Brunch

The Best Thing I Ate this Month – September 2026

I had never eaten a proper Sunday roast. Not once. For someone who has spent a considerable portion of his life eating things on purpose, this seemed like a fairly serious oversight.

So I decided to fix it.

A quick search led me to The Cheshire Cat in Carp, about a 30 minute drive from home. I enlisted a few friends because if I was going to finally eat a Sunday roast, I wanted witnesses. Or accomplices.

The pub is tucked away in Carp, just off the highway, in a setting that feels a world away from the city. It is not exactly where you expect to stumble upon a memorable meal, which made discovering one there all the more satisfying.

We started with drinks in the outdoor lounge before moving to the patio. September had begun making its presence known, so the overhead heaters and blankets were a nice touch. The place was bustling, but the staff never seemed rattled by it. The servers were funny, kind and attentive without hovering, a quality that should be easier to find than it is. They made us feel less like customers and more like people who had somehow been invited over for dinner and were now expected to eat everything.

Naturally, we needed starters. (more…)

Mustard Caviar Egg Bites

Mustard Caviar Egg Bites

Mustard Caviar Egg Bites excerpted from Gather Together: Delightful Décor and Simple Recipes for Every Occasion. Text and Photography © 2026 by Robyn Chubey

Gather Together: Delightful Décor and Simple Recipes for Every Occasion by Robyn Chubey

Dazzle your guests with enticing seasonal menus and eye catching décor all year round.

Packed with vibrant photographs and helpful tips for all your hosting needs, Gather Together takes the stress out of entertaining with more than 100 food and décor ideas for every holiday and occasion. From showstopping centerpieces to mouthwatering bites, this book is organized by season and offers recipes for appetizers, drinks, meals and desserts, along with beautiful DIY decorations.

Begin your hosting adventure by reviewing the foundational elements of a welcoming, stylish table, from linens and cutlery to essential tools and equipment. All can be affordably sourced at big box stores or supermarkets. Then dive into easy to create decorations and recipes for seasonal celebrations, including:

Picnic in the Sun

An elevated spread under dappled sunlight, complete with a blanket, basket and low table. The menu features creamy Coconut Custard and fruit served on Marvelous Mini Pavlovas, along with a refreshing Raspberry Mint Green Tea.

Al Fresco Dinner

An elegant open air affair that embraces the beauty of nature, featuring a table set with herb bouquet place markers. The menu includes Smoked Pineapple Pork Skewers drizzled with Chimichurri Sauce and a Rosemary Lemonade Fizz. (more…)

Sweetened Roasted Vermicelli

Sweetened Roasted Vermicelli

Sweetened Roasted Vermicelli excerpted from Pakistan: Recipes and Stories from Home Kitchens, Restaurants, and Roadside Stands by Maryam Jillani. Photography by Sanjeev Thakur.

Pakistan: Recipes and Stories from Home Kitchens, Restaurants, and Roadside Stands by Maryam Jillani

Pakistan is a groundbreaking cookbook that explores the country’s many regional cuisines, making Pakistani food more accessible than ever to cook and enjoy at home. Thanks to shared borders with Afghanistan, China, India, and Ira, as well as a rich history of migration and trad, Pakistani cuisine draws upon a marvellous array of flavours and ingredients, making food one of the country’s finest qualities.

With recipes for sauces, chutneys, aromatic curries, and subtly spiced vegetables, Pakistan is the perfect introduction for readers new to the cuisine and a welcome reminder of beloved favourites for those already familiar. A showstopping cookbook to be read, savoured, and cooked from every night.

A few of the recipes that await: Spiced Chicken Dumplings, Lentil Fritters in Yogurt, Tangy Potato Curry, Slow-Cooked Lamb, Saffron-Infused Flatbread, and Parsi Wedding Custard.

Pakistan: Recipes and Stories from Home Kitchens, Restaurants, and Roadside Stands by Maryam Jillani is available at Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and Indigo.ca.   


Sweetened Roasted Vermicelli

Seviyan

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Tomato-Olive Focaccia

Tomato-Olive Focaccia

Tomato-Olive Focaccia excerpted from MILK STREET BACKROADS ITALY by Christopher Kimball and J.M. Hirsch. Copyright © 2025 by CPK Media, LLC. Photograph by Connie Miller.

MILK STREET BACKROADS ITALY by Christopher Kimball and J.M. Hirsch. Copyright © 2025 by CPK Media, LLC.Discover the real techniques, ingredients, and stories behind the Italian dishes you know and love—and the ones you’ve yet to try—with more than 145 delicious recipes that bring simplicity back to Italian cooking, from the James Beard Award-winning team at Milk Street. 

Forget everything you thought you knew about Italian food. In Italy, cooks throw away their garlic, they don’t stir their polenta, and they never labour over pans of risotto. But they do make enormous meatballs that are tender and light, and they occasionally break all the rules when making pasta.

The editors at Milk Street have spent years scouring small eateries, local markets, farms and home kitchens from Lombardy to Calabria and from Sardinia to Sicily in search of fresh takes on classic recipes as well as little-known regional favourites that never crossed the Atlantic.

On our travels we found new ways with pasta, from foolproof cacio e pepe in Rome to Puglia’s olive oil—crisped fettuccine with chickpeas and a lemony pesto from Amalfi, where the pasta itself is enriched with citrus. Plus some surprising tomato sauces, including spaghetti all’assassina from Bari—spicy, charred, and made in one skillet. (more…)

Breakfast Crystal Bao

Breakfast Crystal Bao

Breakfast Crystal Bao excerpted from Breaking Bao: 88 Bakes and Snacks from Asia and Beyond by Clarice Lam. Photographs copyright © 2024 by Evan Sung.

Breaking Bao: 88 Bakes and Snacks from Asia and Beyond

Food & Wine Best Cookbooks of 2024 • New York Times Best Cookbooks of 2024

“Breaking Bao is the rare cookbook that stops you in your tracks. Visually arresting, thoughtfully researched, and both whimsical and grounded in serious baking expertise.”—New York Times

From acclaimed pastry chef Clarice Lam: a visually sumptuous pan-Asian baking book exploring an umami-rich array of baked goods, confections, and savoury snacks.

Breaking Bao is a culinary journey bridging gaps between Asian flavours and global techniques. It is a collection of recipes rooted in renowned chef Clarice Lam’s personal journey of self-discovery and the transformative power of embracing one’s heritage.

Here are 88 approachable recipes that are firmly rooted in classical French technique but travel far and wide. Dive into three chapters, exploring:

  • Bao: the fundamentals of baked, steamed, fried, or laminated buns and breads, from golden curry-filled donuts to Rice Dumplings filled with Hong Kong Bolognese to Vietnamese Cinnamon-Raisin Babka.
  • Cakes & Desserts: classics treated with a twist, such as Mango-Yakult Tres Leches Cake, Ovaltine Mochi Marjolaine, and Pandan-Lime Meringue Pie.
  • Snax: savoury and sweet treats, from Cantonese-Style Fig and Marzipan Mooncakes to Gochujang-Furikake Caramel Popcorn to Ramen Cheese Itz. 

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Scottish Cranachan

Scottish Cranachan

Scottish Cranachan excerpted from A Taste of Disney: Snacks: Bite-Size Recipes in a Snack-Size Book by Insight Editions.

A Taste of Disney: Snacks: Bite-Size Recipes in a Snack-Size Book by Insight Editions

Enjoy a taste of Disney with this pocket-size cookbook of snacks inspired by your favourite animated adventures!

Celebrate your love of Disney films with this adorable cookbook filled with the most delicious snacks from Insight Editions’ bestselling Disney and Pixar cookbooks.

BITE-SIZE AND DELICIOUS: Tempt your tastebuds with these simple recipes featuring everyday ingredients. Enjoy White Rabbit’s Garden Crudité (Alice in Wonderland), Merida Cranachan (Brave), Bare Necessities Banana Muffins (The Jungle Book), Mug of Meat (The Emperor’s New Groove), Icicle Cookies (Frozen), and so many more delicious creations to munch on!

GREAT GIFT: Perfect for holidays, party hosts, birthdays—and un-birthdays, of course! It’s sure to be a delight for any Disney fan

BEAUTIFUL AND CUTE: This fully licensed cookbook features gorgeous recipe photos, beautiful styling, and artful appearances of the characters you love

A Taste of Disney: Snacks: Bite-Size Recipes in a Snack-Size Book by Insight Editions is available at Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and Indigo.ca.

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Perfect Scrambled Eggs

Perfect Scrambled Eggs

Perfect Scrambled Eggs excerpted from Life’s Too Short to Stuff a Mushroom: Really good food without the fuss – foolproof recipes, shortcuts and hacks by Prue Leith. Photography copyright © 2024 Ant Duncan.

Life's Too Short to Stuff a Mushroom: Really good food without the fuss - foolproof recipes, shortcuts and hacks by Prue Leith

Chef and TV legend Dame Prue Leith brings us the cookbook you’ve always wanted – 80 delicious recipes, with accompanying kitchen shortcuts and hacks, for a lifetime of easy cooking. 

Every recipe in this book comes with a handy tip, plus you’ll find over 25 videos accessed by a QR code to help you learn a skill or get ahead.

Coined by Shirley Conran in her ’70s bestseller Superwoman, ‘Life’s Too Short to Stuff a Mushroom’ is a phrase that every time-poor cook can relate to. In this clever cookbook, you’ll find really good recipes without the fuss: recipes where a neat trick can save you time, recipes where the cheat versions taste just as good as the home-made, and recipes to help you avoid waste and save you money. How do you cook the perfect steak? What’s the best way to dice an avocado? And what about when it just all goes terribly wrong?

With recipes including Celeriac Rémoulade with Prosciutto, Rocket and Pine Nuts, Crispy Pork Belly, Buttermilk Chicken, Sushi for Scaredy-cats, Chocolate Almond Torte and Cherry Clafoutis, Prue’s handy hacks show you how a little bit of insight goes a long way.

Perfect for every home cook, the absolute beginner, or someone who has been doing it so long that cooking has somehow lost its attraction – Life’s Too Short to Stuff a Mushroom contains years of culinary know-how and inspirational meals, squashed into an accessible cookbook. (more…)

Nectarine Oven Pancake

Nectarine Oven Pancake

Nectarine Oven Pancake excerpted from Williams Sonoma Breakfast & Brunch: 100+ Recipes to Start the Day by Williams Sonoma. Photography by Erin Scott.

Williams Sonoma Breakfast & Brunch: 100+ Recipes to Start the Day by Williams Sonoma 

A complete collection of the most delicious breakfast & brunch recipes from the trusted kitchen of Williams Sonoma.

Over 100 perfectly crafted recipes for the most delightful meals of the day: breakfast and brunch. Master every way to prepare an egg, along with exciting and flavourful dishes like Fried Chicken and Cornmeal Waffles, Caprese Scramble, Curried Chicken Salad, and Cider-Glazed Pork Sausage. Williams Sonoma Breakfast and Brunch is the ultimate entertaining cookbook: with vegan and vegetarian recipes and variations, it has something for absolutely everyone to savour. Whether it’s a quiet breakfast in bed, or a lively Sunday brunch with friends, this cookbook has the perfect dishes and drinks to entertain and enjoy.

PERFECT FOR EVERY OCCASION: With over 100 recipes, host the perfect breakfast & brunch for birthdays, Mother’s Day, or any special celebration

GREAT GIFT: Step-by-step recipe instructions and serving ideas make this hardcover cookbook an ideal gift for the home cook in your life (more…)

Basic Crunchy Granola

Basic Crunchy Granola

Basic Crunchy Granola excerpted from Lunchbox: 75+ Easy and Delicious Recipes for Lunches on the Go – A Cookbook by Aviva Wittenberg.

Lunchbox: 75+ Easy and Delicious Recipes for Lunches on the Go - A Cookbook by Aviva Wittenberg

Say good-bye to the same boring, limited lunch rotation, and hello to everyone’s new favourite meal of the day! Lunchbox contains literal months’ worth of recipes for flavorful, filling, nutritious, and delicious meals—guaranteed to stay fresh until lunchtime. With chapters on Soups, Sandwiches, Salads, Warm Bowls, Cold Bowls, Handpies, and Brunch for Lunch—as well as simple, satisfying snacks and sweet treats to pack alongside—these straightforward recipes will get anyone out of that dreaded lunch rut for good.

Every recipe has a “Get Ahead” tip, calling out exactly what to make ahead of time, as well as a “Packing Tip” on how to assemble a balanced and beautiful lunchbox. The steps are fuss-free, and all ingredients can be found in any local grocery store. In addition, you’ll find lunch packing strategies and multi-week meal plans to help you efficiently plan your menu and your time, streamlining meal prep to avoid that stressful morning crunch.

This book is great for any eating pattern, with plenty of vegan and vegetarian options, hot weather and cold weather seasonal suggestions, and freezer-friendly choices, too.

Lunchbox: 75+ Easy and Delicious Recipes for Lunches on the Go – A Cookbook by Aviva Wittenberg is available at Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and Indigo.ca.   


Basic Crunchy Granola

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Aunt May’s Wheatcakes

Aunt May's Wheatcakes

Aunt May’s Wheatcakes excerpted from Marvel: Spider-Man: The Official Cookbook: Your Friendly Neighborhood Guide to Cuisine from NYC, the Spider-Verse & Beyond by Jermaine McLaughlin, Paul Eschbach and, Von Diaz.

Aunt May's Wheatcakes excerpted from Marvel: Spider-Man: The Official Cookbook: Your Friendly Neighborhood Guide to Cuisine from NYC, the Spider-Verse & Beyond by Jermaine McLaughlin, Paul Eschbach and, Von Diaz.

Narrated by the web-sunger himself, Spider-Man’s guide to NYC’s iconic cuisine features his favourite hometown recipes, as well as those of fellow neighborhood super heroes and friends from across the Spider-Verse.

With great recipes, there must also come great responsibility… to share. Spider-Man’s decided to do just that, pairing recipes for his favourite New York City dishes with action packed anecdotes. From Aunt May’s Wheatcakes to Miles Morales’s Arañitas to Wong’s Chai Tea Latte, Spidey turns each meal into a culinary adventure.

Enjoy more than 60 of Spider-Man and Co.’s favourite recipes for appetizers, main courses, desserts, and beverages from all over New York City! Cook up recipes from all around the five boroughs and enjoy the global influence that makes the city a true melting pot.

This cookbook also features contributions from Miles Morales, Ghost-Spider, and more heroes from across the Spider-Verse! (more…)