Time to give thanks to agriculture this Thanksgiving

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How did we go from Labour Day to Thanksgiving in what feels like a blink of an eye?

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But we have and next week promises to be a time of celebration for the country’s beautiful bounty. As well, Oct. 7 to Oct. 13 is officially Ontario Agriculture Week, the annual celebration of the amazing contributions we enjoy from the farm and food businesses that fill our tables.

“Agriculture is a major pillar of our provincial economy, supporting more than $50 billion in economic activity and jobs for more than 870,000 people,” said Drew Spoelstra, farmer and president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, in a news release. “All across this province, Ontarians both rural and urban enjoy flowers, produce, meat, dairy, eggs and other local products from Ontario farms — and as farmers, we appreciate the support.”

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The organization has an excellent Home Grown campaign to raise awareness about Ontario farmland and its production of “food, fuel, flowers and fibre.” You can find a full list of what’s in season at homegrownofa.ca/whats-in-season.

And enjoy the following recipes perfect for Thanksgiving!

LET’S EAT!

Rising Gen-Z food star Liam Lewis — considered a bit of a culinary child prodigy — might be young, but he is quite seasoned since he began cooking at age 10, appearing in cooking segments for various TV shows during his teens.

Now 22 years old, he’s the sous chef at Montreal’s trendy Enter Deaux restaurant and has been a VIP Paddock Club chef at Formula 1 races for three years. He recently teamed with Think Turkey (canadianturkey.ca) to create an easy, inspiring menu celebrating the country’s famous bounty.

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Soy and Maple Roasted Turkey

1 whole turkey, 10-12 lb.

2 cups soy sauce

1 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup sesame oil

1/4 cup ginger, sliced

1/2 lb. (250 g) unsalted butter

Preheat your oven to 350 F (180 C). In a large bowl, whisk together soy sauce, maple syrup, sesame oil and ginger.

Place turkey in a bowl or tray, breast side down, and marinate at room temperature for 45 minutes. Turn turkey over and marinate breast side up for 15 minutes. Remove turkey from tray and set aside liquid marinade for basting.

Set turkey breast side up on a resting rack of a roasting pan. Rub 2 tbsp of butter all over turkey skin and pour some of marinade over top.

Roast turkey in oven for 3-4 hours (or until the internal temperature reaches 170 F), basting every 30 minutes. Use remaining butter for first rounds of basting. Once butter basting is complete, use reserved marinade liquid in next few rounds. At 3-hour mark when marinade/pan juices start to evaporate, add water as needed to prevent burning pan.

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TIP: To prevent burning at halfway point of roasting, cover wings and drum tips in aluminum foil for remainder of roasting time.

Miso Roasted Brussels Sprouts

2 lb. Brussels sprouts

1/3 cup miso paste

3 tbsp cooking oil

3 tbsp rice vinegar

3 tbsp maple syrup

3 tbsp sesame seeds

Preheat your oven to 350 F (180 C). Trim ends off Brussels sprouts and cut them in half. Steam Brussels sprouts for 4-6 minutes until tender, but not completely soft.

In a large bowl, add miso paste, oil, rice vinegar and maple syrup. Whisk to combine. Toss Brussels sprouts in miso mixture until fully coated. Arrange sprouts in an even layer on an aluminum foil-lined baking tray. Roast sprouts for 20-30 minutes until lightly charred around the edges. Garnish with sesame seeds.

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TIP: When purchasing Brussels sprouts, try to make sure they are roughly the same size to ensure even cooking. Don’t crowd your tray when roasting.

Gochujang Glazed Carrots

4-6 lb. medium rainbow carrots, peeled

1/2 cup butter

3 tbsp gochujang (a Korean-based spicy paste made from red chili peppers, fermented soybeans and other ingredients found in specialty stores or supermarkets)

3 tbsp chives, diced

Steam carrots for 6-8 minutes until tender, but not completely soft. In a large frying pan, melt butter and add in gochujang paste, whisking to combine. Add carrots and 1/4 cup of carrot cooking water to frying pan and toss with sauce until well coated. Cook for an additional 2-4 minutes. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with chives.

TIP: If you don’t have a pot with a steamer, you can shallow-boil carrots in a frying pan with water until tender.

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