Sometimes food holidays make no sense. Why have National Blueberry Pancake Day on January 28th, when fresh blueberry season won’t begin for months.

The North American blueberry harvest runs from April through late September. Imported blueberries from South America fill in the shelves from October to March.

The imported blueberries are pricey and because they have to travel longer to get to your market, they are picked before they reach maximum juiciness.

So here are some alternatives to imported winter blueberries, that make your blueberry pancakes just as delightful.
 
 
SUBSTITUTES FOR FRESH BLUEBERRIES

1. Frozen Blueberries.

Defrost the blueberries, then taste them for sweetness. If too tart, toss them with a bit of sugar or Splenda before mixing them into the pancake batter.

2. Freeze-Dried Blueberries.

They’re a different, chewy, texture, but still make a legitimate blueberry pancake.

3. Blueberry Preserves #1.

Make the batter, then swirl the preserves through it with a fork.

4. Blueberry Preserves #2.

Make blueberry pancakes with fresh, frozen or dried blueberries. Use the blueberry preserves as a topping, by itself or mixed into Greek yogurt. Which brings us to…

5. Blueberry Yogurt.

Use it as your pancake topping!

6. Blueberry Syrup.

Homemade blueberry syrup, made with fresh or frozen blueberries. Here’s the recipe from Honest & Truly (photo © Honest & Truly).

7. Blueberry Purée.

Purée fresh or frozen blueberries and adjust the sweetness. If you like, add a bit of lemon zest. Pour over the pancakes instead of maple syrup.

[2] Carrot Cake Cannoli. You can port your favorite cake flavor into cannoli cream.

[3] Chocolate Cherry Cannoli, its shell dipped in a hard chocolate.

[4] Maple Bacon Cannoli, maple cannoli cream topped with a strip of caramelized bacon affixed with chocolate drizzle.

She plans a fantasy vacation to St. Louis, to visit the source: Piccione Pastry. [Editor’s Note: Sadly, the bakery has closed, a victim of the pandemic.]

It’s the home of scores of flavors of Crazy Cannoli, the only problem is that the bakery features just one special flavor a week. Hmmm…move to St. Louis?

With a fantasy like this, our only recourse is to make the flavors at home. Not one a week, of course; but we’re trying for one a month. At this rate, we have years to go, just to make a portion of Piccione’s output.

Oh, and a hack: You can buy the cannoli shells from an Italian bakery.

Some of the flavors are below, but first…
 
 
THE HISTORY OF CANNOLI

A Sicilian pastry originating in the area around Palermo, cannoli date to the ninth century. They were made for Carnevale, the festival season immediately before Lent. But the demand for the crunchy, sweet treats evolved to satisfy pastry lovers year-round.

Cannoli is actually the plural form of the word. The singular is cannolo (cannolu in Sicilian dialect), meaning “little tube.” Cannoli range in size from finger-sized cannulicchi (mini-cannoli) to five-inch-long shells.

The crunchy, fried pastry dough shell is filled with a sweetened ricotta cream (sometimes mascarpone), which can be mixed with vanilla, chocolate chips, chopped pistachio nuts, candied citron, marsala, rosewater, liqueur and other flavorings.

The filling at the ends of the shell can be decorated with mini chips, shaved chocolate or chopped pistachio nuts. The ends can be dipped in chocolate; or the whole cannolo can be dipped.

September is National Cannoli Month. June 16th is National Cannoli Day.
 
 
HOW TO MAKE CANNOLI

Cannoli shells are made from, flour, butter, sugar and optional seasonings (a pinch of cinnamon is particularly nice).

The dough is then rolled into ovals, wrapped around a cannoli tube and fried. The cooled shells are filled with a pastry bag.

The filling is ricotta, or the richer mascarpone, sweetened with sugar and enhanced with a bit of vanilla. Chocolate filling is a variation.

That’s the standard cannolo found in the U.S., but the filling can be much more nuanced, blended with any variety of ingredients such as marsala wine, rosewater, chocolate bits or chopped pistachio nuts.

Here’s a basic recipe and video from Food Network chef Alex Guarnaschelli.

Note to new cannoli makers: The shells shouldn’t be filled until you’re ready to serve. If left to sit too long, the moist filling turns the shell soggy and lose its crunch.
 
 
FLAVOR INSPIRATION

Start with classic vanilla cannoli, then let your imagination soar (there are even gender reveal cannoli, photo #7).

Like lemon meringue pie? Make lemon meringue cannoli. Red velvet cake? Make red velvet cannoli.

Here are just some of the creative flavors at Piccione Pastry, that start with the basic cannoli cream plus mix-ins or infusions:

 
Exhausted yet? Imagine what it’s like to work at Piccione Pastry!

And there’s more:
 
 
SAVORY CANNOLI

[5] Dreamsicle Cannoli, with fresh orange segments and topped with candied orange peel.

[6] Simple but scrumptious: cannoli shells filled with gelato.

[7] For a baby shower: gender reveal cannoli!

[8] Summer cannoli: lavender with honey and lemon.

 
How about Caesar Cannoli? French Onion Soup Cannoli? Chopped Chicken Liver Cannoli?

Any flavor that goes with a crunch (croutons, crackers) is ripe for trying.
 
 
MORE CANNOLI FUN

[2] Gourmet poutine with boar shank, duck confit and foie gras sauce (photo courtesy Brasseur de Montréal).

[3] Poutine topped with General Tso’s Chicken (photo courtesy Wok N Roll).

[4] Pulled pork poutine (photo courtesy Dirty Dogs).

[5] Surf and turf poutine with pork and clams (photo courtesy Grillades Dasilva.

[6] Cheese steak poutine (photo courtesy 3 Brasseurs Canada).

[7] Corned beef and fried egg (photo courtesy Tavern Ferriera).

The first week in February is La Poutine Week in Canada.

Often referred to as the national dish of Canada, poutine is comfort food made of French fries and cheese curds topped with brown gravy.

It’s the northern version of cheese fries, with brown gravy instead of ketchup. It begs to be accompanied by a cold beer.
 
 
GET FANCY WITH POUTINE TOPPINGS

What was a simple recipe, developed decades ago in Quebec as a snack to follow a night of drinking, has become a culinary phenomenon.

During La Poutine Week, chefs at restaurants across Canada pull out all the stops to out-poutine the classic poutine with toppings, that go atop the fries, curds and gravy.

These enhancements are just some of the variations added on top of the basics:

 
Year-round, La Banquise in Montreal serves more than thirty different kinds of poutine. It’s open 24 hours daily. Here’s the menu.
 
 
HAVE A POUTINE PARTY

It’s fun to set up a buffet and let guests top their own.

To make it a group effort, you can ask everyone to bring a different topping.

 
Plus condiments and garnishes: chopped scallions, fresh dill or parsley, ketchup, mustard, sour cream.

And plenty of beer.
 
 
POUTINE HISTORY

Various places claim the credit for inventing poutine, in rural Quebec in the 1950s, where numerous dairies produced Cheddar cheese curds.

The first leg of the story is that poutine originated in a restaurant called Le Lutin Qui Rit (“The Laughing Goblin”), when a customer asked the owner Fernand Lachance to mix cheese curds with his fries.

A restaurant called Le Roy Jucep is the first to have served poutine as we know it today—French fries, cheese and gravy—in 1964. The owner registered a trademark for the dish.

Another restaurant La P’tite Vache (“The Little Cow”) sold curds from the local Princesse dairy. Customers would order fries and buy a bag of cheese curds to mix together at their tables in a 50:50 proportion. When gravy was added, the dish became known as “mixte” (“mixed”).

The name “poutine” appeared in 1982, when large restaurant chains began to sell it. While no one can explain the derivation for certain, it could be derived from the English word “pudding,” which was expressed as “pouding” in Acadian French.

One meaning of “pouding” in Canada is “an unappetizing mixture of various foods, usually leftovers.” According to Merriam-Webster, poutine derives from a Quebecois slang word meaning “mess.” [Source]

Turn the “mess” into a DIY-topping treat!

Homemade applesauce is one of the undersung delights of the table.

Our mom made the best we’ve ever had, cooking McIntosh apples skin-on and puréeing them into velvet with a food mill (the recipe).

These days, many of us are looking for simpler solutions. The hack is chunky applesauce: no food mill or elbow grease required.

This recipe, with chai spices, was created by Alex Caspero, MA, RD, CLT, for Fruits & Veggies: More Matters.

The recipe is lower in sugar than store-bought versions, and is ready in just 15 minutes with an Instant Pot or pressure cooker. It can also be made in a slow cooker, and of course, in a regular pot on the stove top.
 
 
RECIPE: CHAI-SPICED APPLESAUCE

Many applesauce recipes are simply seasoned with cinnamon. This recipe adds dimensions of flavor, with chai spices.

Use tart red apples like Gravenstein Jonamac and McIntosh, and cook them with the skins on. The skins provide the pink color in photo #1.

Granny Smith, a favorite tart apple with green skin, will produce a conventional applesauce color.

Ingredients For 12 Servings

 
Preparation

1. PLACE all ingredients in the base of the Instant Pot or pressure cooker. Cook over high pressure for 8 minutes. Quick-release or slow-release when finished.

2. MASH the apples to the desired consistency using a potato masher or wooden spoon. Transfer to a bowl and let cool completely. If you prefer a smooth applesauce, transfer to a food processor and pulse to the desired consistency.

3. SERVE at room temperature, chilled, or slightly warmed.

[2] Everything goes into an Instant Pot, pressure cooker or slow cooker.

[3] The finished product, ready to purée in a food processor or enjoy as is.

Stove Top Preparation: Place the apples and water in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer. Use just enough water to keep the apples from burning. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are very soft and falling apart, about 30 minutes. Mash with a fork, process through a food mill or use a food processor. Add a dash of salt; then sweeten to taste.
 
 
APPLESAUCE HISTORY

While apples have been added to dishes since ancient times, medieval European cooks are believed to be the first to make apple sauces and related recipes, such as stewed apples and apple pudding.

Depending upon the food they accompanied, apple sauce could be tart or sweet.

According to The Oxford English Dictionary, the first extant print citation of the word “applesause” is in Eliza Smith’s Compleat Housewife, 9th edition, [London:1739].

The recipe is often found in 18th century British and American cookbooks, confirming the popularity of the dish.

While it began life as a side dish and a pudding, applesauce has found its way into baking (cakes, cookies, muffins) and as a solo dessert.

We grew up eating applesauce with grilled meats and potato pancakes (latkes), and as a sweet snack.

Try homemade applesauce topped with a bit of cream and a sprinkling of cinnamon. It’s divine, warm or chilled.

And try it for breakfast with yogurt or cottage cheese: a sweet way to start the day.

[2] Any grain or legume can be sprouted. You can find them fresh in health food stores, or dehydrated in a broader selection of markets.

[3] Sprouted bean and lentil dip with chia (Here’s the recipe).

[4] Soup with sprouted mung beans (here’s the recipe).

[5] A grain bowl with sprouted rice (here’s the recipe).

What are sprouted grains, a colleague asked, during a conversation on better-for-you foods to embrace in 2018.

Sprouting is a culinary technique that dates back more than 5,000 years.

Legumes (beans, peas and lentils), grains and seeds that come into contact with moisture will sprout naturally—and accidentally. Man figured out how to do it deliberately.

In the last 100 years or so, as the superior nutritional benefits have been recognized, the sprouted group become a fast-growing sector of the category.

You can find them fresh in health food stores, or dehydrated (dried) in a broader selection of markets.
 
 
WHAT IS SPROUTING?

The goal of sprouting is to break down—split open, but not remove—the protective bran coating. This helps to unlock nutrients. Sprouted grains are still whole grains.

The grains, legumes or seeds are soaked in water and allowed to germinate long enough to sprout. The bran layer splits open as the sprout emerges. If the sprout is left alone, it turns into a plant.

But stop the action when it’s just sprouted—the stage between being a grain or legume and being a new plant—and it retains the increased nutrition it needs grow into a full plant.

Some call that extra hit “supercharged.” That’s why sprouted grains, legumes and seeds have been embraced by people seeking ways to enhance their nutritional intake.
 
 
THE BENEFIT OF SPROUTED GRAINS-LEGUMES-SEEDS

When they sprout, nutritional “magic” happens. The sprouted foods:

 
According to the Whole Grains Council, research on sprouted grains has documented a wide range of health benefits for different sprouted grains. Just a few:

 
 
WHEN TO SERVE WHOLE GRAINS

You can serve whole grains for any repast of the day. In addition to purchasing prepared foods like breads, wraps and pizza crusts, you can use whole grain flour to bake, make pasta, etc.

Some examples:

 
Check out these recipes from Tru Roots.
 
MORE RECIPES
Some sprouted grain recipes from the Whole Grains Council and Tru Roots: