Archive forMay, 2011

An Interview With Gremolata’s Resident Spice Girl: Part II



[Editor's Note: I originally wrote this for an old site called Modern Forager and am reposting here since it now has no home.]

This is a continuation from Part I introducing Lorette Luzajic as a part-time food journalist with some interesting commentary on shopping for and using spices & herbs, and her recent experiences writing under headlines like “ I’m A Natural Born Killer ” and “ Life After Bread “.In this second part of the interview the subject moves to cover social stigmas from a female perspective, the real effects diet changes have had in her life and how lessons learned have impacted her future writing projects.

Is it socially acceptable to pile meat and fat on a plate? And do you feel you are you treated differently in this respect as a female?

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An Interview With Gremolata’s Resident Spice Girl: Part I



[Editor's Note: I originally wrote this for an old site called Modern Forager and am reposting here since it now has no home.]


Ever heard of Kifko?

Lorette Luzajic is a contributer to a great Canadian win and food website called Gremolata. But she’s not just any food writer.  Her last headline, “ I’m A Natural Born Killer “, caught my attention along with the undoubtedly significant vegetarian readership.  “ Life After Bread ” was equally compelling.  She’s earned the handle “resident spice girl”, having written some great spice profiles backed up at home with over 70 spice jars.  I thought it would be great if I could bring her perspective here for some insights on food journalism and being a female eating gluten-free.

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Spices in Toronto



A new report by The Atlantic lists Toronto as the #2 best city to live in for business, life, and innovation. But to go on a practical tangent, where should one be buying the spices to stock their kitchen?

It was several years ago that I reviewed a store called The Spice Trader for BlogTO. I have yet to find another store with spices of comparable quality, in spite of hopes that a there would be some sort of cheaper ethnic jewel of a source somewhere in the city.

I’m willing to pay a premium for quality, but what gets me is that the store does not offer any sort of volume discount. With prices ranging from $5-10 for small tins, whether you buy 1 or 10 at a time there is no mercy as you shell out quite a bit of cash. And so despite the dominance of Spice Trader tins on our spice shelf, most of them have been restocked with cheaper versions from various sources.

While I have a few favorites that I might keep buying from Spice Trader (roasted paprika!), I’m still holding out hope that I’ll stumble upon a great store or someone will tip me off. I am excited to see the new Top Chef Canada stumbling around some places in Toronto like Ethiopian Spice Store and
Perola’s in Kensington market.

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