
Locally Inspired Recipes for the Holidays
Recipes worth making and eating! Eat local and eat fresh with these dishes and desserts provided by Windsor Essex businesses.
Many of the ingredients listed below can be found at local markets. Visit weheartlocal.ca for a list of businesses offering the freshest local ingredients to whip up the most delicious recipes! Pick up your vegetables, fruit, meats and other items to see just how local you can make the following dishes!
Arrancini from: Cooper’s Hawk Vineyards and The Vines Restaurant
Preparation for 4
Ingredients:
- 1/2 onion
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 pinch saffron
- 1.5 cup arborio rice
- 1/4 cup white wine
- 6 cup hot vegetable stock
- 1/4 cup grated fresh parmesan cheese
- 2 tbsp cold butter
- 16 individual bocconcini balls
Breading:
- 2 cups flour
- 6 whole eggs
- 3 cups panko
Instructions:
- Saute onion in heavy bottom pan in olive oil
- Add garlic and fry till fragrant
- Add saffron, stir
- Add rice and stir to coat all rice with the oil approx. 18-22 mins
- Add butter and parm. Stir to combine. Add salt to taste. Cool fully.
- Divide rice into 16 balls Stuff each with cheese ball and reshape.
- Bread each ball (flour/egg/panko)
- Deep fry 5 minutes until golden brown.
**Serve with Marinara and Fresh parmesan cheese.
Brussels Sprouts from: Sawyers Craft BBQ
Ingredients:
- 2.5 lbs Brussels sprouts
- 2-3 Red Thai chillies
- 2 tbsp Fried garlic
- 2 tbsp Roasted Sesame seeds
- 1 tbsp Roasted Peanuts
- 3 cups Beef tallow
Dressing:
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup lime juice
- 1/4 cup good fish sauce (Red Boat or 3 Crabs)
- 1/3 cup Maple Syrup
Instructions:
- Clean and cut Brussels sprouts in half
- Take 3 cups beef tallow, and place in a smoker for 2 hours at 200F to develop a sweet subtle and smoky flavour.
- Place Brussels sprouts in a thick cast iron or roasting pan. Toss with 2-3 tablespoons of smoked beef tallow. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Reserve remaining tallow for future cooking.
- Roast at 400F for 45 minutes to an hour until golden brown. Stirring and shaking the sprouts every 12–15 minutes to ensure even cooking.
- Once sprouts are almost done roasting, toss in finely sliced chillies, fried garlic, sesame seeds, and chopped roasted peanuts to pan. Stir to combine.
- Mix dressing ingredients and add 1 cup to sprouts to glaze.
- Serve warm and garnish with a sprinkle of fried garlic.
Cozy Winter Cream of Mushroom Soup from: Thyme Kitchen
Makes 4 cups
Ingredients:
- 2 cups brown mushrooms (cremini or baby bella) sliced
- 2 cups white mushrooms, sliced
- 2 tablespoons neutral cooking oil, like canola
- 1 cup white onion small diced
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 2 cups water
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup 35% cream
Directions:
- On a stovetop, heat a medium pot over medium heat, add the oil, and half of the sliced mushrooms, and sprinkle with a small amount of salt and pepper. Sauté until tender and most of the moisture has been released, then add the remainder of the mushrooms and repeat this process. It is essential to cook your mushrooms well so they are brown and not gray, this is where all the flavor comes from. Reserve a ¼ cup of the cooked mushrooms for garnish.
- Add onions. Sauté until lightly brown and translucent, about 6 to 7 minutes. Add the minced garlic, and sauté for 30 seconds. The liquids should be mostly gone at this point and the bottom of the pot should be brown and kinda sticky.
- Add the water and bring to a boil over high heat for 20 minutes or so.
4. Remove from heat and use an immersion blender to purée your soup.
5. Return to the stove and heat the soup over low heat. Add the cream and stir to combine. Continue to stir and cook until hot, about 4 to 5 minutes, season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Divide the soup among serving bowls. Garnish with reserved mushrooms.
Notes: This soup is basic and delicious. It can easily be made into a thousand other styles of soups by simply changing the garnishes. Some ideas would be to add in one or two of the following garnishes: chives, garlic chips, brioche croutons, dill, lemon zest, parsley, chili flakes, truffle oil, fried sage, mushroom chips, goat cheese, or bacon bits.
Roasted Lamb from: Mezzo Ristorante
Reduction:
- 1 large white onion…or 3 shallots (peeled & diced\1 tsp. butter)
- 1 tbsp. canola or olive oil
- 3 tbsp. brown sugar
- 200ml balsamic vinegar
- 500ml beef stock
- 2 tbsp. nutella – it’s a lot easier than milling bittersweet chocolate with butter!)
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 1 sprig thyme
Morrocan Spice:
- ½ tsp. dried clove
- ½ tsp. dried cumin
- 1 tsp. coriander
- 1 tsp. cardamom 2 tsp. brown sugar
- Pinch of salt
Instructions:
- In small pot place onions or shallots with butter and oil
- Sauté for approx 5 mins on high heat until onions are translucent
- Add brown sugar and balsamic, place back on stove, lower heat to simmer, reduce by 1/3
- Add beef stock and return to high heat
- Reduce by ½ and fold in nutella
Combine all ingredients and dredge lamb individually or as a rack
Sear and bake lamb to desired temperature
Honey Apple Bundt Cake from: The Farm House Market
PREP TIME – 15minutes | COOK TIME – 1hour 15minutes | COOL TIME – 20minutes | TOTAL TIME – 1hour 50minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 cup chopped pecans divided
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- ¼ cup Hawksview honey
- 3 large local eggs
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Chalice Spices’ ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Chalice Spices’ ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 cups Honeycrisp apples peeled & chopped from Meleg’s Orchard
Honey Caramel Sauce
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup local butter
- ¼ cup Hawksview honey
- ¼ cup heavy cream or half and half from Kawartha Dairy
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 12- cup bundt pan {or spray liberally with non-stick cooking spray} and sprinkle bottom of pan with ¼ cup of chopped pecans.
- In a medium bowl, beat sugar, oil and honey until combined. {Note: This batter is going to be thick so a hand mixer or stand mixer is the best bet here.}
- Add eggs one at a time, making sure each is well incorporated after each addition.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Gradually add to wet mixture until just incorporated. Like I said, it’s a super-thick batter, so make sure there are no pockets of flour hiding, but also try not to overmix.
- Fold in vanilla, remaining ¾ cup chopped pecans and chopped apples — this part can be done by hand, but it’ll take some muscle!
- Spoon mixture evenly over pecans in pan. Bake at 350° for 65-75 minutes. Note: This cake browns very quickly due to the high sugar content. If you notice that it’s looking like it might burn, loosely place a piece of foil on top to prevent over-browning.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 20-30 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to remove from pan. When the cake is slightly cooled, pour ½ cup honey sauce over top.
- Serve the remaining honey sauce with each slice of cake.
For sauce:
- Bring sugar, butter and honey to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly for about 3-4 minutes.
- Remove from heat and carefully add cream {it will bubble quite a bit}, and stir until the mixture looks uniform and is slightly thickened. {For a thicker sauce, allow to cool before drizzling.}
- Place the cooled cake on a cooling rack on top of a baking pan. Drizzle some of the sauce over bundt cake. Allow to set slightly before transferring cake to a serving dish or cake plate.
Variations:
- Swap pecans for walnuts.
- Try different types of apples such as Granny Smith, Fuji or Golden Delicious.
- Switch up the spices! Try adding a bit of ground cloves, allspice or cardamom for a different flavor.
- Don’t feel like making caramel? Try serving the cake with a sprinkle of powdered sugar instead.
- For Gluten Free Version: Try using cup-for-cup gluten free flour blend for a gluten-free version. (Note: I have not tried this specifically for this recipe, but I imagine it should work fairly well.)
- For Dairy-Free Version: This recipe is naturally dairy-free when served without the caramel sauce. You can also try making the caramel sauce with dairy-free creamer, coconut milk or serve with store-bought dairy free caramel.
- For Nut-free Version: Omit the pecans for a completely nut-free version.
Cocktail Recipes
Looking to take things up a notch with a pre-dinner cocktail? Head to our Locally Inspired Cocktails blog post for four perfectly crafted cocktail recipes to serve this holiday season using locally distilled whisky!
Find recipes from:
- Erie St. Gastropub
- Funky Chow Kitchen
- Salute
- Wolfhead Distillery
Wine Pairings
Having trouble figuring out what wine to serve this holiday? Make things a bit more joyous with our pairing guide featuring options from local wineries. Find more seasonal suggestions at visitwindsoressex.com/wine.
MAINS:
- Cabernet Franc: we suggest the 2021 Cabernet Franc from Paglione Estate Winery
- Syrah: we suggest the 2017 Syrah from Muscedere Vineyards
- Cabernet Sauvignon: we suggest the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon from CREW Winery
SEAFOOD:
- Sauvignon Blanc: we suggest Beach Glass Wine from Sprucewood Shores Estate Winery
- Riesling: we suggest the 2019 Right Angle Riesling from Dancing Swallows Vineyard
- Chardonnay: we suggest the 2020 Chardonnay from Oxley Estate Winery
Vegetarian Fare:
- Sauvignon Blanc: we suggest the Hopetown Sauvignon Blanc from Colio Estate Wines
- Pinot Noir: we suggest the 2021 Pinot Noir from North 42 Degrees Estate Winery
- Rose: we suggest the Niya Rose from Mastronardi Estate Winery
Poultry
- Chardonnay: we suggest the 2018 Chardonnay from Erie Shore Vineyard
- Pinot Grigio: we suggest the Pinot Grigio from Viewpointe Estate Winery
- Baco Noir: we suggest the Bourbon Barrel Reserve Baco Noir from Pelee Island Winery
Dessert
- Icewine: we suggest the Vidal Icewine from Vivace Estate Winery
- Sparkling Wine: we suggest the Blanc de Noirs Sparkling from Cooper’s Hawk Vineyards
- Sparkling Rose: we suggest the sparkling rose from VIN Winery
