Toast & Roast

Scouring Toronto high & low for the best breakfast joints to tickle and enchant your palate. Rating/reviewing eggies, taters and toasts... all for the sake of the most important meal of your day!
Happy Eastover! My family isn’t religious but we do get together every year for the typical holiday celebrations. With a mix of Jewish/Christian heritage I’m not sure why we defaulted to Christmas, Easter, etc but perhaps it was because they have become the more commercial holidays and can be the most easily disassociated from any actual religious meaning (for us - like many kids - Christmas was about stockings, eager anticipation, Santa Claus, food and family. Jesus who?) So Easter, though of no religious importance to me, has always been about bunnies, chocolate eggs, food and family. This year Easter is a bit different because I’m spending it with my boyfriend Steve and he celebrates Passover. Though we are not doing anything remotely Easter-related (I may find a chocolate egg to demolish later) I thought I would deem this holiday “Eastover.” There are actually some similarities between Passover and the Easter I’m familiar with. Steve has told me that a popular game on Passover is called “Afikoman” - someone hides matzah (unleavened bread) and whoever finds it gets a prize (money). Matzah seems to be incredibly popular so I am likening this to an Easter egg hunt. Anyway, on Passover you aren’t supposed to eat any bread (when the Jews were fleeing Egypt they didn’t have time for the bread to rise) so this morning I got creative with breakfast and put us together a spiced hash with over easy eggs and a delicious berry fruit smoothie. It was an Eastover success! Spicy Hash with Over Easy Eggs 1 russet potato, cubed 1 Roma tomato, diced 1 yellow onion, diced 1/2 parsley, chopped 1 T Cajun spice (or a mix of hot spices) Dash of cayenne pepper Salt & pepper 3 eggs 1/2 avocado, cubed Olive oil Sprinkling of shredded cheese (your fave!) 1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a bowl, toss the cubed potato, spices and some olive oil (I used about 1 T) coating the potatoes. Spread them on a tray and stick them in the oven when ready. 2. Cook potatoes until they begin to brown, turning to evenly cook both sides. Approx 10 mins 3. Heat a little oil in a medium/large frying pan and add the onion/potato. Cook for 5 mins or until the potatoes seem well cooked through 4. Add the red pepper, parsley and tomato. Keep mixing and cook for another minute. 5. Create 3 small ‘pockets’ in the mixture and crack an egg in each one. Cover and cook until the eggs are well set. 6. Sprinkle the cheese and avocado on top and boom! You’re eating’ breakfast Berry Fruit Smoothie 1/2 cup frozen strawberries 1/2 cup raspberries 1/4 cup blueberries 1 banana 1/4 vanilla yogurt 1/4 cup orange juice 1. Add all ingredients to a blender and mix! Yum :)

Happy Eastover!

My family isn’t religious but we do get together every year for the typical holiday celebrations. With a mix of Jewish/Christian heritage I’m not sure why we defaulted to Christmas, Easter, etc but perhaps it was because they have become the more commercial holidays and can be the most easily disassociated from any actual religious meaning (for us - like many kids - Christmas was about stockings, eager anticipation, Santa Claus, food and family. Jesus who?)

So Easter, though of no religious importance to me, has always been about bunnies, chocolate eggs, food and family. This year Easter is a bit different because I’m spending it with my boyfriend Steve and he celebrates Passover. Though we are not doing anything remotely Easter-related (I may find a chocolate egg to demolish later) I thought I would deem this holiday “Eastover.”

There are actually some similarities between Passover and the Easter I’m familiar with. Steve has told me that a popular game on Passover is called “Afikoman” - someone hides matzah (unleavened bread) and whoever finds it gets a prize (money). Matzah seems to be incredibly popular so I am likening this to an Easter egg hunt.

Anyway, on Passover you aren’t supposed to eat any bread (when the Jews were fleeing Egypt they didn’t have time for the bread to rise) so this morning I got creative with breakfast and put us together a spiced hash with over easy eggs and a delicious berry fruit smoothie. It was an Eastover success!

Spicy Hash with Over Easy Eggs

1 russet potato, cubed
1 Roma tomato, diced
1 yellow onion, diced
1/2 parsley, chopped
1 T Cajun spice (or a mix of hot spices)
Dash of cayenne pepper
Salt & pepper
3 eggs
1/2 avocado, cubed
Olive oil
Sprinkling of shredded cheese (your fave!)

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a bowl, toss the cubed potato, spices and some olive oil (I used about 1 T) coating the potatoes. Spread them on a tray and stick them in the oven when ready.
2. Cook potatoes until they begin to brown, turning to evenly cook both sides. Approx 10 mins
3. Heat a little oil in a medium/large frying pan and add the onion/potato. Cook for 5 mins or until the potatoes seem well cooked through
4. Add the red pepper, parsley and tomato. Keep mixing and cook for another minute.
5. Create 3 small ‘pockets’ in the mixture and crack an egg in each one. Cover and cook until the eggs are well set.
6. Sprinkle the cheese and avocado on top and boom! You’re eating’ breakfast

Berry Fruit Smoothie

1/2 cup frozen strawberries
1/2 cup raspberries
1/4 cup blueberries
1 banana
1/4 vanilla yogurt
1/4 cup orange juice

1. Add all ingredients to a blender and mix! Yum :)

Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.

—Through the Looking Glass, by Lewis Carroll

Pre Road Trip Open-Face Brekwich

Set the alarm to early this morning… Steve and I are heading down to Princeton, NJ to visit his family for Sauder Hannukah before Keitner Christmas next week. Kind of works out nicely doesn’t it?

To fuel ourselves for the long drive ahead I put together a little open-faced sammie action composed entirely of leftovers in the fridge! Steve and I both hate letting things go to waste (his passion being Waste Management, makes sense) and he won’t be back until after the New Year, so the waste-less challenge was on.

Now not everyone has these items lying around in their fridge, but if you don’t, I recommend you re-evaluate your situation next time you’re at the grocery store.

So finally, here it is… Pre Road Trip Open-Face Brekwich composition:

  • 1 piece of extra grainy/nutty bread (the more grains and nuts, the bettttttter)
  • 2 slices of cheese (we used vegan, but it’s most def not for everyone)
  • a handful of alfalfa sprouts! yummmmmm - adds a nice crunch, not to mention nice and healthy 
  • two slices of tomato 
  • one egg, over-medium

Ta-da! Some quick morning energy to get you through that long holiday season drive.

Healthy Fruit, Greek Yogurt & Oatmeal Salad Every year when winter rolls around my body just wants to shut down and enter hibernation mode. I am however, not a bear (sometimes I think rather unfortunately), I am a young woman with places to go, people to see and things to do. Rather than caving into my desire for comfort-inducing (sugar-loaded) muffins and (butter-soaked) croissants, I am going to work on giving my body the fuel it needs to keep a fire going all chilly-winter-day-long. This breakfast will kickstart your metabolism and is chalk-full of things your body needs to be a well-oiled machine. Oats are good carbs that your body takes longer to process and break down - like a slow burning coal! Berries are full of anti-oxidants as well as vitamins and nutrients that help your body fight disease (and stave off winter flu’s!) Bananas have that good ol’ potassium and are also very fibre-rich… working to keep your blood-pressure low and your body regular ;) Finally, Greek yogurt is high in protein and low in fat - keeping your muscles healthy, your skin glowing and your energy up all day long. Not to mention this is pretty much a big bowl of yum. If you need some extra flavour (I used plain yogurt) I would recommend mixing in a dab of honey - a totally natural sweetener. Raw unpasteurized is best!

Healthy Fruit, Greek Yogurt & Oatmeal Salad

Every year when winter rolls around my body just wants to shut down and enter hibernation mode. I am however, not a bear (sometimes I think rather unfortunately), I am a young woman with places to go, people to see and things to do.

Rather than caving into my desire for comfort-inducing (sugar-loaded) muffins and (butter-soaked) croissants, I am going to work on giving my body the fuel it needs to keep a fire going all chilly-winter-day-long.

This breakfast will kickstart your metabolism and is chalk-full of things your body needs to be a well-oiled machine. Oats are good carbs that your body takes longer to process and break down - like a slow burning coal! Berries are full of anti-oxidants as well as vitamins and nutrients that help your body fight disease (and stave off winter flu’s!) Bananas have that good ol’ potassium and are also very fibre-rich… working to keep your blood-pressure low and your body regular ;) Finally, Greek yogurt is high in protein and low in fat - keeping your muscles healthy, your skin glowing and your energy up all day long. Not to mention this is pretty much a big bowl of yum.

If you need some extra flavour (I used plain yogurt) I would recommend mixing in a dab of honey - a totally natural sweetener. Raw unpasteurized is best!

After a cold and wet morning run, nothing feels better than starting the day off with some guilt-free banana chocolate chip muffins - vegan style! Seeing as I had some old naners lying around, and I was looking to bake a special treat for all my pals at lululemon Queen Street for my very last day of work tomorrow before a whole month off (!!!) - banana bread seemed like the obvious route. The fact that I couldn’t fit all the dough in the pan, and had to make some banana muffins, was just an extra special breakfast bonus. I decided to go vegan for this recipe because there are some herbivores on the team and because I have been dabbling with the idea lately. I don’t know if I will make the full transition but I figure it can’t hurt to try and reigning in my love of cheese/certain dairy products to a more moderate degree is probably a good thing. Enough rambling, let’s get to the recipe! Vegan Banana Chocolate Chip Banana Bread! (or muffins!) 2 cups flour (any kind will do - I used a simple unbleached organic cake flour) 3/4 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup Earth Balance (vegan butter) 2 eggs-worth of an egg replacer (I used an actual egg replacer but you could always just use extra banana or apple sauce!) 2 1/3 cup mashed old bananas 1 tsp. vanilla 1 tsp. cinnamon or more 2 tsp. baking soda A dash of salt 1 cup chocolate chippies (I found a milk-free semi-sweet dark) 1. Preheat oven to 350F. 2. Mix butter, sugar, banana and egg replacer until well combined. Add vanilla, salt and cinnamon. Pour those chippies in and stir it all up. 3. Stir baking soda and flour into the wet mix until just combined. 4. Grease a glass loaf pan and pour the naner mix in! Bake for approx. 45 mins* *Baking time will depend on the pan you use. Since I had a smaller pan and a muffin tin I just checked every 15 minutes or so until they were brown around the edges and a fork came out clean! (Well - covered in chocolate, but no batter). Let cool and dig in!

After a cold and wet morning run, nothing feels better than starting the day off with some guilt-free banana chocolate chip muffins - vegan style!

Seeing as I had some old naners lying around, and I was looking to bake a special treat for all my pals at lululemon Queen Street for my very last day of work tomorrow before a whole month off (!!!) - banana bread seemed like the obvious route. The fact that I couldn’t fit all the dough in the pan, and had to make some banana muffins, was just an extra special breakfast bonus.

I decided to go vegan for this recipe because there are some herbivores on the team and because I have been dabbling with the idea lately. I don’t know if I will make the full transition but I figure it can’t hurt to try and reigning in my love of cheese/certain dairy products to a more moderate degree is probably a good thing.

Enough rambling, let’s get to the recipe!

Vegan Banana Chocolate Chip Banana Bread! (or muffins!)

2 cups flour (any kind will do - I used a simple unbleached organic cake flour)
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup Earth Balance (vegan butter)
2 eggs-worth of an egg replacer (I used an actual egg replacer but you could always just use extra banana or apple sauce!)
2 1/3 cup mashed old bananas
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. cinnamon or more
2 tsp. baking soda
A dash of salt
1 cup chocolate chippies (I found a milk-free semi-sweet dark)

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Mix butter, sugar, banana and egg replacer until well combined. Add vanilla, salt and cinnamon. Pour those chippies in and stir it all up.
3. Stir baking soda and flour into the wet mix until just combined.
4. Grease a glass loaf pan and pour the naner mix in! Bake for approx. 45 mins*

*Baking time will depend on the pan you use. Since I had a smaller pan and a muffin tin I just checked every 15 minutes or so until they were brown around the edges and a fork came out clean! (Well - covered in chocolate, but no batter).

Let cool and dig in!

Table 17 in Leslieville With less of a wait time then it’s more Easterly neighbours, a menu that changes according to seasonal availability and fancy sounding meals at reasonable prices, I’d say Table 17 is a winner. Our group was 12 people and for the most part we all tried the Weekly Scramble (with a different veggie mixed into the scramble every once in a while I assume - we had green onions) or the Poached Eggs which came in a bed of roasted tomatoes. Both were delicious - the toast was French baguette fresh, the eggs were buttery and cooked to perfection and the sides of potato rosti most of us ordered made for a great combo. For the brave - the Scottish egg. It is hardboiled, wrapped in bacon, breaded and deep-fried. We had no takers. Beverages are where you’ll likely slip into a slippery slope of costliness so hydrate beforehand and stick to water or coffee unless you’re willing to shell out a little extra. If you have a party as big as ours or bigger there is a room upstairs that you can ask to reserve (we made our reservation on Open Table) that is perfect - although you may wait longer for food while your waiter juggles running up and down the stairs to check on you while serving his other patrons. One last note for Foursquare users - be sure to check in and unlock the Table 17 ‘special’ surprise!

Table 17 in Leslieville

With less of a wait time then it’s more Easterly neighbours, a menu that changes according to seasonal availability and fancy sounding meals at reasonable prices, I’d say Table 17 is a winner.

Our group was 12 people and for the most part we all tried the Weekly Scramble (with a different veggie mixed into the scramble every once in a while I assume - we had green onions) or the Poached Eggs which came in a bed of roasted tomatoes. Both were delicious - the toast was French baguette fresh, the eggs were buttery and cooked to perfection and the sides of potato rosti most of us ordered made for a great combo.

For the brave - the Scottish egg. It is hardboiled, wrapped in bacon, breaded and deep-fried. We had no takers.

Beverages are where you’ll likely slip into a slippery slope of costliness so hydrate beforehand and stick to water or coffee unless you’re willing to shell out a little extra.

If you have a party as big as ours or bigger there is a room upstairs that you can ask to reserve (we made our reservation on Open Table) that is perfect - although you may wait longer for food while your waiter juggles running up and down the stairs to check on you while serving his other patrons.

One last note for Foursquare users - be sure to check in and unlock the Table 17 ‘special’ surprise!

The K&S Family Restaurant in Leslieville After much hangry walking about early this past Sunday morning, we finally settled on this Asian family-owned American breakfast restaurant. Compared to the bustlingly popular resto’s surrounding it (renowned Lady Marmalade & Bonjour Brioche), the K&S is a little more no frills. IF, however, you are looking for a $5 greasy breakfast with no waits, semi-warm coffee and service with a smile, then there is no need to look any further. Words of wisdom/caution: pick the french fries, not the home fries… Avoid the bathroom if possible and arrive with low expectations. If you do as stated then good morning sunshine! You’ll be laughing at all the suckers waiting 20 minutes for their over-priced and over-crowded Sunday morning breakfast experience.

The K&S Family Restaurant in Leslieville

After much hangry walking about early this past Sunday morning, we finally settled on this Asian family-owned American breakfast restaurant. Compared to the bustlingly popular resto’s surrounding it (renowned Lady Marmalade & Bonjour Brioche), the K&S is a little more no frills.

IF, however, you are looking for a $5 greasy breakfast with no waits, semi-warm coffee and service with a smile, then there is no need to look any further.

Words of wisdom/caution: pick the french fries, not the home fries… Avoid the bathroom if possible and arrive with low expectations. If you do as stated then good morning sunshine! You’ll be laughing at all the suckers waiting 20 minutes for their over-priced and over-crowded Sunday morning breakfast experience.

Breakfast of Champions!!  Eat this, and you will definitely feel like one. Here’s why - with the warm rays of our beautiful sun slowly taking a backstage to dark and cold these days, we start to miss a dearly needed friend - VITAMIN D! Oh Vitamin D, booster of energy and immune systems… what will we do without you? Don’t fret my fellow breakfast eaters, we already have a one up when it comes to energy. We EAT breakfast. Yup, that’s a sure source of energy right there. Eat breakfast and you’ll kickstart your metabolism… keeping that engine burning all day. But just in case that’s not enough energy for you, here’s an energizing breakfast jam-packed with all sorts of things to keep you running on high all day. Start your day with this tasty dish and not only will you be winning at breakfast, but you will be winning at life. Energy-Boosting Blueberry & Banana Oatmeal 1.5 cups water.5 cup steel cut oatssprinkling of raw almonds (sliced)1 banana, sliceda handful of blueberries!some brown sugar Bring water to a boil in a small pot & add in your oats. Cover the pot and let simmer for approx 15-20 minutes (depending on how soft you like your oaties)Meanwhile prepare your bowl… I like to layer my oatmeal so that every spoonful is a delicious and action-packed bite (similar to nachos - who wants all the cheese on top? You gotta layer that shit). Slice the banana and put half in the bottom of your bowl. Toss half the blueberries in and some of the almonds. When the oatmeal is ready, pour it right in and then put the rest of your banana, blueberries and almonds on top! Sprinkle on some brown sugar and you’re laughing.

Breakfast of Champions!! 

Eat this, and you will definitely feel like one. Here’s why - with the warm rays of our beautiful sun slowly taking a backstage to dark and cold these days, we start to miss a dearly needed friend - VITAMIN D! Oh Vitamin D, booster of energy and immune systems… what will we do without you?

Don’t fret my fellow breakfast eaters, we already have a one up when it comes to energy. We EAT breakfast. Yup, that’s a sure source of energy right there. Eat breakfast and you’ll kickstart your metabolism… keeping that engine burning all day.

But just in case that’s not enough energy for you, here’s an energizing breakfast jam-packed with all sorts of things to keep you running on high all day. Start your day with this tasty dish and not only will you be winning at breakfast, but you will be winning at life.

Energy-Boosting Blueberry & Banana Oatmeal

1.5 cups water
.5 cup steel cut oats
sprinkling of raw almonds (sliced)
1 banana, sliced
a handful of blueberries!
some brown sugar

Bring water to a boil in a small pot & add in your oats. Cover the pot and let simmer for approx 15-20 minutes (depending on how soft you like your oaties)

Meanwhile prepare your bowl… I like to layer my oatmeal so that every spoonful is a delicious and action-packed bite (similar to nachos - who wants all the cheese on top? You gotta layer that shit).

Slice the banana and put half in the bottom of your bowl. Toss half the blueberries in and some of the almonds. When the oatmeal is ready, pour it right in and then put the rest of your banana, blueberries and almonds on top! Sprinkle on some brown sugar and you’re laughing.