Sittin' in the Kitchen

Vancouver-based pastry chef Bruno Feldeisen has won major awards and has worked with top chefs in Paris, San Francisco and New York. He has appeared on TV shows like Beat Bobby Flay, Donut Showdown and Chopped. He is a judge on The Great Canadian Baking Show on CBC TV. Don't miss his inspiring story about redemption from childhood trauma.

Chef Lynn Crawford and I have been friends for decades. Our common bond is a love of humour and a passion for food and cooking. We talk about her path to celebrity, her TV career and our joint project raising funds for a new kitchen at the Sistering shelter in Toronto.

Rebecca Coleman’s cookbook Aquafabulous! will appeal to vegans and people who don’t eat eggs. She uses the eggwhite substitute to make meringues, macarons, and mousse. Aquafaba (the liquid from canned beans) is also featured in recipes for hummus, pulled jackfruit, breakfast cookies, and shepherd’s pie.

Chef Jagger Gordon has declared war on food waste. His multi-faceted non-profit Feed it Forward recycles food that would otherwise be wasted by the food industry. He has an organic farm, serves meals at Nathan Phillips Square and dishes out soup, sandwiches and salad at his pay-what-you-can soup bar in downtown Toronto. He's a big guy with big ideas and big plans.

I talked with chef Hugh Acheson on his visit to Canada to present at this year's Terroir Symposium. His topic: representing Canada on the world stage. Well-known for his appearances on 'Top Chef', he has strong opinions on sexism in the food industry, on being Canadian and on teaching school children to cook.

I talked with chef Hugh Acheson on his visit to Canada to present at this year's Terroir Symposium. His topic: representing Canada on the world stage. Well-known for his appearances on 'Top Chef', he has strong opinions on sexism in the food industry, on being Canadian and on teaching school children to cook.

Restaurateur Jen Agg named her memoir "I Hear She's a Real Bitch". We chatted about her mixed reputation at one of her restaurants, Grey Gardens, in Toronto's Kensington Market. Hear her thoughts on being a successful woman in a food industry rife with sexism, misogyny and the bro culture.

I met chef Matty Matheson for this conversation at Parts & Labour in Toronto. He consults on menus when he's in town between Vice TV shoots that take him around the world. His show, Dead Set on Life, has made him a rising star. His TV antics and his recipe for fluffy pancakes have made me a fan.

Street nurse Roxanne Danielson and health promoter Kristen Ireland of the Inner City Family Health Team in downtown Toronto lead cooking workshops for men who are or have been homeless. I attended one of these uplifting, lively sessions at the 519 Community Centre and stayed for a delicious lunch of paella. It was a communal effort and a heartwarming time for all.

Jill, a restaurant server with an acting career, loves her job. It gives her a chance to observe the human condition, have fun and make good money. There are times, however, when guests behave badly and cause frustration all around. This is the real behind-the-scenes story from the front of house.

Chef Michael Lomonaco opened his steakhouse, Porter House Bar and Grill, in 2006. He was executive chef at Windows on the World on September 11, 2001 and survived by pure chance. He dedicates his work every day to the colleagues and friends he lost on that fateful day. Hear him talk about this and his love of cooking.