Chef Bruce Wood's Recipes of the week
Add your own special recipe to our site now!

My name is Bruce Wood and I have been a chef since 1984. I did my apprenticeship in Toronto at the Hazelton Café and attended George Brown college when it was still in Kensington market. This is when my love for all things local started to really take hold.

I would wander the market on my breaks looking for new and exciting foods to work with and meet many vendours and local food producers. I moved to Ottawa in 1992 and worked in several restaurants before winding up at Mariposa Farm. Working for the owners Ian & Suzanne was one of the most liberating culinary experiences any chef could ever experience. For 3 years I wrote the menus for Sunday lunch and all the functions using only products from the farm or other small local food producers and farmers.

We developed a series of succesful cooking classes featuring these local products. In September of last year I left the farm to get married and am currently teaching at Algonquin College where I have taught part time for the past 4 years. I also do guest appearances on Rogers and the new RO and teach in many small venues around Ottawa. I am very excited to be involved with Bryson farms and look forward to finding new and wonderful ways to prepare the fruits of their labours.

1 lb. potatoes, washed & cut in quarters
1 lb. sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in quarters
1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1 cup chicken or vegetable stock
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp. mixed fresh herbs ~ oregano, rosemary, parsley thyme etc.
4 tbsp. organic Quebec canola oil

sea salt and freshly milled black pepper

• pre heat the oven to 375 degrees
• heat a heavy bottomed saute pan and add 2 tbsp. of the canola oil
• add the onions and cook until lightly browned, approx. 15 minutes
• add half the herbs and season lightly
• add the stock and stir well
• pour the onions into a 9” square baking dish
• toss the potatoes with the remaining herbs, garlic and oil and season lightly
• place the potatoes on top of the onions and place in the oven
• bake for 45 minutes or until the potatoes are soft and lightly browned

I use a lot of stock in my cuisine. It builds flavour in soups and stews and makes a good base for light pastas. If you are a vegetarian it is easy to make a nicely flavoured vegetable stock. Always remember that the stock pot is not a compost bowl. If you add anything other than fresh vegetables or add a lot of peelings and scraps than that is what it will taste like. The stock can be frozen and indeed it is good to make a large batch and freeze it in ice cube trays. Once it is frozen pop it into baggies and voila when you are making a pasta you can just pop out one or two cubes as you need them.

To make 1 litre

4 carrots, peeled and cut in one inch cubes
2 white turnips, peeled and cut in one inch cubes
2 onions, do not peel, wash and cut in one inch cubes N.B. ~ the onion skins will give a nice colour and flavour
6-10 mushroom stems, washed (the portobello stems in the organic basket are great for this)
two leeks, washed and cut in one inch cubes
1 head garlic, split in half
you can use other vegetables ~ the stems from broccoli or asparagus washed work well, a few chard leaves also add a rich flavour
2 branches fresh thyme
8 black peppercorns
2 bay leaves

place all ingredients in a pot and add one litre cold water bring to a simmer and simmer (just bubbling) for 30 minutes strain the stock through a fine mesh strainer and cool refrigerate until needed or freeze

4 organic free range eggs, lightly beaten
dash tabasco or even better ½ tsp. Harissa ( Lebanese hot chili paste)
sea salt and freshly milled black pepper
two sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in one inch cubes
1 tsp. Canola oil
4-5 swiss chard leaves, finely shredded
small handful micro greens
1 tbsp. unsalted butter or canola oil
3 oz. Back Forty feta or goat cheese

• pre heat the oven to 425 degrees
• toss the sweet potatoes with sea salt and black pepper
• roast for 25 minutes or until soft
• in a bowl beat the eggs with the hot sauce, chard and micro greens
• pre heat a non stick pan with butter or oil
  pour the eggs into the pan and stir well until just beginning to set
• place the potatoes over the top of the frittata and dot with the feta or goat cheese, sprinkle with black pepper
• place the frittata in the oven for 5 minutes or until lightly browned
• remove from the oven slide out onto a cutting board and serve in wedges with a green salad

• heat a saute pan over medium heat and add 3 tbsp. canola oil
• place the garlic cloves and thyme branches in the pan and cook until the garlic is golden brown
  remove the garlic and thyme from the pan and place the tofu in the pan
• cook for 1-2 minutes on each side or until lightly browned and remove to a clean plate
• cover with foil and keep warm
• add the shallots and remaining canola oil to the pan, cook for 30 seconds
• add the mushrooms and cook until the mushrooms are soft and lightly browned, approx 5 minutes
  add the remaining ingredients and cook for one minute or until just thickened, season to taste with the sea salt and pepper
• cut the tofu into two triangles and place on a plate, spoon the mushrooms over the tofu