Food + Drink: What’s on the Menu This Winter

Spotlight: Greystones’ pan-seared duck breast

The trick to preparing a succulent duck breast is to first sear it on the fatty skin side. This allows it to sizzle and get crisp while the meat absorbs the juicy flavours, according to Shigetaka Wakai, executive chef at Greystones Restaurant & Lounge in Orangeville. Wakai introduced the new duck recipe shown here to diners in late October. He starts by scoring the skin so it doesn’t curl up during the cooking process. After searing, he cooks the duck breast to a medium rare and while it’s resting, Wakai and his team prepare the rest of the plate. 

A colourful smear of buttercup squash purée serves as the base, on top of which Wakai places a two-inch-thick slice of tender daikon, a long white Japanese radish, braised in dashi soup stock. Wakai places roasted florets of maitake mushrooms tossed in olive oil, salt, pepper and fresh thyme around the daikon.

The most time-consuming accompaniment is the potato pavé: Wakai layers thinly sliced potatoes with butter, salt and fresh thyme, then bakes them for more than two hours. He then presses the dish flat overnight. “The next day we take it from the pan and cut it into cubes, which then go in a deep fryer,” Wakai says. “They come out really nice and crispy, but also gooey and buttery in the middle.” 

In another nod to Japanese flavours, Wakai likes to finish the potatoes with a little touch of togarashi (red pepper) salt. Then, once he places the duck breast on top of the daikon as the star of the show, he finishes the plate with a buttery glaze. Bon appétit.

Mark your culinary calendar

Enjoy Venetian cicchetti – small plates of seafood, cheeses, salumi, bruschetta and more – at Adamo Estate Winery’s Uncorked dining series. Cozy up in their signature heated outdoor snow globes while savoring three wine tastings paired with the menu. Booking through March 2026.

Hockley Valley Resort knows how to feed a crowd for Christmas. Santa’s Brunch on December 14 featuring omelettes, pastries, turkey, pasta, and a kids’ section. The Christmas Day Buffet serves classic fixings of turkey, bread and sage stuffing, gravy and cranberry sauce, and decadent desserts.

Gourmet gifts for foodie friends

Got an epicurean on your shopping list this year? It’s never been easier to shop local.

Almost too gorgeous to eat, the colourful bonbons from YF Pâtissier and Chocolatier in Creemore burst with big flavours such as hazelnut crunch, passion fruit mango coco and lemon basil.

Vanilla salt chocolate from Giddy Yo in Orangeville blends premium cocoa, pink mountain salt from Peru, and aromatic Madagascar Bourbon whole ground vanilla beans. And double-stuffed Oreo ornaments from The Chocolate Shop in Orangeville are cute and crunchy – and stocking stuffer size. 

The Holiday Gift Box from Orangeville’s Wicked Shortbread lets you give 25 assorted varieties at once, including lavender, chocolate peanut butter and cranberry craze.

The owner of Debora’s Chocolates in Erin, Donna Pearson, says sweet and spicy Fiji ginger chocolates available in dark or milk chocolate are her favourite this time of year. 

Not into the sweet stuff? Check out Goodnight Jerky. The Singhampton company marinates its beef for 16 to 20 hours, then smokes it using real hardwood maple chips. We found it at The Rosemont General Store.

Three savoury soups to warm up with this winter 

Sure, we love the old Saturday Night Live “sweater weather” schtick. But it might be edged out by our love of soup weather. There are countless menu winners across Headwaters. Here are three to add to your list.

People travel to Violet Hill just for the famous baked French onion soup, topped with crostinis and bubbling, melted Gruyère cheese, at Mrs. Mitchell’s Restaurant. With a warm crusty roll and a cheddar and port wine spread on the side, it’s a hearty winter meal unto itself. 

Chinese wonton soup from RJ’s Taste of Asia in Orangeville brims with pork and shrimp dumplings, Shanghai bok choi, carrots and onions in a fragrant chicken broth, and is available in two sizes. 

And for a creamy comfort-food fix, the New England clam chowder from Two Brothers at Osprey Valley features a velvety clam velouté finished with baby clams, double-smoked bacon and in-house sourdough croutons.

The missing link

May we suggest trying Heatherlea Farm Shoppe’s maple blueberry sausages if you haven’t yet? Known for the beef they raise themselves, Heatherlea also offers more than 40 varieties of sausages, including hot Italian, sour cream and onion, and spinach and feta. The maple blueberry recipe blends savoury pork with the subtle sweetness of ripe blueberries and Canadian maple syrup. Want to sample a selection? Opt for a 10-pound Butcher’s Choice Sausage Butcher Box – it includes a variety of pork, beef, chicken and/or turkey sausages.

Ready to pour

Punchy fruit combinations including blueberry-lemon, hibiscus-peach and raspberry lemonade star in Alliston’s Iron Kettle Iced Tea – available at More Than Just Baskets in Orangeville. 

Adorned with a garnish almost too cute to eat – a smiling gingerbread man cookie – the Gingerbread Man-hattan from Orangeville hotspot Revival 1863 is an otherwise warm, classic mix of whiskey, sweet vermouth and Angostura bitters.

The new Fruits of Crime cider from Heartwood Farm & Cidery in Erin is smooth, dry and oaky with a burst of fresh berry. It is made by co-fermenting cider with blueberries and strawberries in barrels.

And Badlands Brewing Co.’s Belfountain IPA, dry-hopped with notes of candied pineapple, is the fourth beer in the brewery’s Spotlight Caledon series, which highlights the area’s natural beauty and landmarks.