EMMA'S EATERY

GRILLED PEACH SALAD

2011-09-01T18:22:00.000-07:00

I can't BELIEVE I forgot to blog about this incredible salad! I made this dish as an appetizer for two of my friends Kate and Kelly earlier this summer and they loved it! I just adore peaches, especially in the summer as they are at their sweetest and juiciest point! I have had this recipe on the backburner for a while waiting for the perfect night to bring it out!

This salad is but of course a Jamie Oliver recipe and truly a crowd pleaser! Very Italian as during his time there Jamie found that fruit in Italy is often grilled, hence the inspiration behind this dish!
The peaches are served with bresaola, which is a very thinly sliced, cured, dried beef that you can find at Italian delis or more specialty high end supermarkets. It's very salt and savoury and holds up quite nicely with peaches, arugula and cheese! The recipe says to serve the salad with goat cheese but I decided to stick more with the Italian theme and opted to use ricotta instead. Ricotta is a very creamy Italian cheese made from sheep's milk. And for me the silky texture was perfect for a juicy peach!

Enjoy!!

Ingredients:
Serves 4
- 4 just-ripe peaches
- a few fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped
- olive oil
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper optional
- some woody herb stalks or branches (such as rosemary or thyme)
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon natural yoghurt or crème fraîche
- 16 slices of bresaola or Parma ham ***(I actually only bought 8, I think 2slices per person is plenty, size depending)!!
- a few sprigs of fresh tarragon, leaves picked
- 2 handfuls of rocket, washed and spun dry
- 100g goat’s cheese, crumbled

Directions:
- Preheat a barbecue or griddle pan until hot. Cut the peaches in half, then twist them to remove the stones – don’t worry if they break up when you do this. Toss them in a bowl with the chopped rosemary, a splash of olive oil and a little salt and pepper. If you’re cooking on a barbecue, throw some herb branches on to the coals if you like – this will give the peaches a herby, smoky flavour. Grill the peaches for a couple of minutes on each side until nicely charred, but not burnt!
- Pour the vinegar into a bowl or a Flavour Shaker and add three times as much extra virgin olive oil. Add the yoghurt or crème fraîche and a pinch of salt and pepper. Whisk or shake until mixed together well.
- Drape the bresaola over four plates, pinching it up here and there so it’s not lying flat. Place the peaches over the bresaola. Toss the tarragon leaves and rocket in the creamy dressing and pile the salad on top of the peaches. Drizzle with a little more extra virgin olive oil, scatter with the crumbled goat’s cheese and tuck in!

THE EX

2011-08-29T10:59:00.000-07:00

The Canadian National Exhibition (CNE or also known to Torontonian's as the "Ex") has been an August staple in Toronto for years. Fried food has been typical at these types of carnival fairs for years, and with food becoming ever so popular and fun, of course carnival food too has upped its game! Here are some of the craziest treats this year at the Ex, don't think any of them would be too good for the waistline!

The one that everyone in Toronto is talking about - The Krispy Kreme Doughnut Burger!
Two Krispy Kreme doughnuts, a very generous 6 oz. beef patty, cheese, lettuce and tomato and for only $1 more you can treat yourself to the extra toppings of an egg, bacon or cheese!

Deep fried fudge!
A block of chocolate, vanilla or maple syrup fudge deep-fried for one glorious minute and 50 blessed seconds in doughnut batter.

Deep-fried mac-and-cheese; deep-fried mac-and-curds
Crispy fried balls, two ways: macaroni and cheese, and macaroni and cheese curds

Deep-fried cola
Coca-Cola batter squirted into a deep fryer and served with whipped cream

Has anyone tried these creations yet! Personally I think I'd like to try the fudge!! Happy eating at the EX!

photo credit: toronto life

"EAT"

2011-08-16T13:42:00.000-07:00

3 guys, 44 days, 11 countries, 18 flights, 38 thousand miles, an exploding volcano, 2 cameras and almost a terabyte of footage... all to turn 3 ambitious linear concepts based on movement, learning and food ....into 3 beautiful and hopefully compelling short films.....

Obviously the clip that captured my attention was EAT, hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

EAT from Rick Mereki on Vimeo.

source: http://vimeo.com/27243869

ROASTED TOMATO SOUP WITH BLT CROUTON

2011-08-15T18:05:00.000-07:00

Last week was our final exam for our Culinary Skills 2 class. We had to make an appetizer and a main course, and the appetizer was a delicious Roasted Tomato soup with a BLT crouton. We have quite a bit of artistic liscense in our class, as we are always encouraged to find our own way to garnish the dish! I decided to make a mini bite sized BLT!

The tomato soup is really delicious, a great soup for the summer, and especially heading into the fall if you are still dying for that taste of summer. The soup is light, but rich at the same time. Finishing it off with a touch of cream and basil just makes it that more luxurious.

Serves 4
Ingredients:
8 plum tomatoes
50g tomato paste
1 onion
1 celery stalk
1 carrot
4 slices of bacon
60g of butter
60ml olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 sprigs of basil
For the mini BLT ( 20g of iceberg lettuce, 2 slices white bread + some bacon and slice of tomato)
1 L chicken stock
1/4 cream (optional)
Salt and pepper

Method:
1.    Roast tomatoes in a 400 degree oven for about 30-40 minutes
2.    In a pan, add butter and oil and sauté bacon, mirepoix (celery, onion, carrot) and garlic puree until lightly browned
3.    Add the tomatoes, tomato paste and cover with chicken stock and let simmer for 45-1 hour
4.    Blend the soup, and strain
5.    Return to stove and keep warm
6.    Chiffonade basil
7.    Add basil and cream into soup
8.    Adjust seasoning and serve warm
9.    Shape crouton and fry in butter until golden brown
10.   Assemble mini BLT on skewer

SOFT ROLLS

2011-08-15T17:57:00.000-07:00

Today was our last lab of baking ! So sad, but we made bread! I have never made bread before, but it acutally was quite easy. And I must say, there is nothing like slathering a hot fresh bun with some cold butter!

BANANA CREAM PIE

2011-07-18T15:53:00.000-07:00

Last weekend at the cottage we were having guests for dinner and I was in charge of dessert! A bit nerve racking as I feel like dessert skills have taken a backseat since school started but I was eager to try something new, light and fresh. I opted for banana cream pie, as it is a favourite of my dads and in my mind a bit simpler to make compared to a complex cake!

I searched around for a good recipe, and settled for one by Martha Stewart. I can't begin to describe how great this pie really was. Making it the day you eat it just screams freshness, from a ripe banana to whipped cream, this pie could not be more decadent for the summer. Enjoy!!

Banana Cream Pie

Ingredients:
- All-purpose flour, for dusting
- 1 9 inch pie shell (or homemade pie dough)
- 1 large whole egg, lightly beaten, plus 4 large egg yolks
- 6ish medium-ripe bananas
- 3 cups whole milk
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 5 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup heavy cream (plus a bit of vanilla for whipping, that's my little addition)
- 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

- Line chilled pie shell with a round of parchment paper, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Fill with pie weights or dried beans (This is called blind baking, so that your bottom crust doesn't puff up when you pre bake it). Bake until edges of crust just turn golden, 10ish minutes if you are using a pre made shell, probably 20-25 if you are using dough you made yourself.

- In a bowl, lightly whisk egg yolks; set aside.

- In a saucepan, whisk together milk, granulated sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Bring to a simmer (do not boil), and cook, whisking constantly, 3 to 4 minutes.

- Whisk a quarter of hot-milk mixture into egg yolks; whisk in remaining milk mixture. Strain into a clean saucepan, and cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until custard is thick and bubbles appear in center, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl, and cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto surface to prevent a skin from forming. Chill in fridge. (Filling can be kept in refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap, up to 1 day.)

- Cut 5 bananas into rounds. Beginning at the edge of the piecrust, arrange the slices in slightly overlapping rows or circles. Cover with custard, using an offset spatula to smooth it into an even layer.

- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine cream, vanilla and confectioners' sugar; beat until soft peaks form. Using a small offset spatula, spread the whipped cream on top of the custard. Refrigerate pie, loosely covered with plastic wrap, for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days.

photo credit: sammy's ipad!

FENNEL & ORANGE SALAD

2011-06-29T14:52:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks go marked the first "Cookbook Club" dinner with about six of my friends from chef school. Once a month we decided get together and cook. The host chooses a cookbook and each person is responsible for preparing one of the parts of the meal!

The first cookbook chose was French Taste by Laura Calder. I made the appetizers, which I will later share, but one of the dishes that really stuck with me was my friend Kyle's orange & fennel salad. Two fabulously fresh and interesting ingredients. The purple flowers that garnish the photo below (of Kyle's dish) are chive flowers, and I think an absolutely gorgeous touch to a summer fresh dish.

Fennel & Orange Salad

Ingredients:
- 1 fennel bulb, fronds reserved (this is just the fennel hairs on the top of the bulb)
- olive oil for frying
- sea salt, and ground pepper
- 1 orange
- 1/2 small red onion
- handful small black olives
- handful toasted pinenuts
- zest and juice of 1 lemon

Directions:

- Trim the fennel, reserving a handful of green fronds. Cut into slices about 1/4-inch thick. Heat a little olive oil in a saute pan, and, working in batches and seasoning with salt and pepper as you go, fry the fennel on both sides until golden and tender. As the fennel is done, arrange it on a serving platter.
- Zest the orange and set the zest aside. Remove the skin with a sharp knife, taking care to remove all the white pith from the fruit. Discard the peel. Cut out the orange sections, arranging over the fennel, and squeeze the orange juice over the whole salad.

- Slice the onion into paper thin rings and arrange over the salad. Scatter over the olives and pine nuts. Squeeze over lemon juice, to taste.

- Drizzle over a little more olive oil. Finally, scatter over the reserved fennel fronds. Serve.

photo credit: moi!

CHICKEN KEBABS

2011-06-29T14:44:00.000-07:00

Summer is finally here, and one of my loves of summer is the BBQ! Last week I decided to make some delicious BBQ chicken kebabs, courtesy of Jamie Oliver! I love the barbecue for so many reasons, I think the flavour you get out of a bbq is second to none. A bbq, summer weather and eating outdoors... it's pretty hard to beat.

The chicken ones are the top left!

These kebabs were so easy to make but just jammed packed with flavour. I find that I don't always have time to let things marinate, but this is one of those times that I was so thankful I did! The flavours of the herbs really penetrated the chicken and after the bbq they were extremely moist and tender.

Jamie O's Chicken kebabs
Makes 6-8 kebabs

Ingredients:
- 4 or 5 free-range boneless chicken breasts
- 3 or 4 zucchini, sliced very thinly lengthways
- 6–8 skewers or sticks of fresh rosemary, lower leaves removed, tips kept on

for the marinade
- 1 handful of fresh coriander
- 1 handful of fresh mint
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 6 spring onions
- 1 red chilli
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- olive oil

Directions:
- Cut the chicken into 2.5cm/1 inch cubes and place in a bowl.
- Blanch the courgette strips in salted boiling water for 30 seconds then drain and allow to cool.
- Blitz all the marinade ingredients (except the olive oil) in a food processor, then loosen to a paste with a little olive oil.
- Add the marinade to the chicken pieces and mix well. Allow to sit for up to an hour.
- Then weave the courgette strips in between the chicken pieces on the rosemary sticks or skewers.
- Grill for around 5 minutes, turning regularly, until cooked.
- Feel free to cut a piece open to check if they're done.

photo credits: jamie o & me!

ARCTIC CHAR & BEURRE ROUGE

2011-06-13T14:24:00.000-07:00

Arctic Char is a saltwater and freshwater round fish that is an ever popular choice on today's fish menu! It is a fish that is very similar to slamon and trout, as it is related to them! The flesh is pinky, like salmon but with less fat.

Last week in our culinary skills classe we made potato crusted arctic char with a beurre rouge (a red wine butter reduction!). I will share with you, as this is one of those recipes that would be sure to impress anyone! And cooking fish is so great, because it literally takes only five minutes, so the prep time is so much less!

Potato Crusted Arctic Char (Serves 4)
Ingredients:
- 4 filets of Arctic Char
- 1 yukon gold potato thinly sliced into rounds (best done on a Mandolin)
- Vegetable oil
- Splash of lemon juice
- Salt and pepper

Directions:
- Cut the potatoes into thin thin rounds (you want them paper thin)
- Season the filets with the lemon juice, salt and pepper and then arrange your thin potato rounds on top of the char forming a sort of "crust"
- Heat a splash of oil in a saute pan until reaching the smoking point
- Remove the pan from the heat, and turn to low
- Add the char to the pan (presentation side down) and return to the heat
- Pan dry gently to ensure the potato crust is cooked and golden brown
- Once potatoes are cooked through carefully flip the char to finish cooking it all the way through
- Serve immediately with the beurre rouge

Beurre Rouge (Red Wine Butter Sauce)
Ingredients:
- 100ml red wine
- 30g shallots (chopped)
- 150g butter
- 1/2 lemon (juice)
- salt and pepper

Directions:
- Reduce the wine, shallots and half of the lemon juice by 2/3rds (on medium high heat)
- Cut the butter into small cubes
- Swirl in the butter cubes into the read wine and let melt, while continually swirling or stiring with a wooden spoon
- Add salt and pepper and adjust seasoning if necessary
- Strain and serve with char

photo credit: carl of course!

PORK, APPLE, SAGE SAUSAGE

2011-06-13T11:37:00.000-07:00

In our Banquet & Production class at school, each week we are given a certain protein. For example pork. And with this protein we use our butchery skills to butcher the piece of meat into workable sizes to produce about four different dishes. Last weeks lab was pork. The best part about this class is our chef challenges us to make one more dish using any of the extra ingredients we have or any of the spice supplies in the lab. I took on this challenge and was inspired by last weeks Top Chef Canada where Connie showed supermarket goers how to make sausage at home! I settled on making a pork sausage, seeing as we had leftover ground pork, apples, onion and sage.

A classic pairing combo with pork is apples (pork & applesauce), so I cut up some apples and onions into small cubes, brunoise as its called and sauteed them off so they were a bit soft. I then mixed in chopped sage, some white pepper, garlic powder and a pinch of nutmeg and salt. Before making them though, I fried off a piece to make sure they tasted alright, and I must say, they really were delicious! As Connie showed us on Top Chef, you can easily make your own sausages by rolling out a long tube in a piece of plastic wrap and then poaching in simmering water on the stove! It was incredibly easy, and you really could do this at home!

Here is a picture of my dish! The sausage shape is not the finest, but at least it tasted great!

photo credit: carl & the iphone

THE BLACK HOOF

2011-06-06T15:58:00.000-07:00

If you know Toronto's food scene, you know that The Black Hoof if now one of the best spots in town, loved and adored by the critics. I have been itching to go for months now, but was always nervous to try it on a Friday or Saturday since they don't take reservations! I finally went! With my three classmates from George Brown on a Monday night, at 6pm. By 6:25, the place was almost full - on a MONDAY!

The Black Hoof is cozy on the inside fitting about 25 including bar seats, decorated with dim lighting, rustic wood and tin. The kitchen is open and the smallest I have ever seen. Four of them squeezed into a tiny cube with an old-school electric oven that one would expect to see at a cottage. As someone learning to be a chef, the respect I felt for that team after seeing that was insane!

As the Monday I went was a gorgeous night we decided to sit on the patio that had recently just opened. The patio is constructed of beautiful wood with a large image on a pig on one wall and two chalkboard menus, one for the drinks and one for the wine. We started with the Hoofs creative cocktails, a basil fawlty (gin, orange blossom water, lime, simple syrup and basil), a tequila Maria and two lemon meringue-inspired cocktails sweetened with a lavender simple syrup called lillypies.

We instantly devoured the menu and settled on ten different sharing plates. The Black Hoof is really a place where you go to share food. The dishes are meant for that, as the mains are smaller then one might expect a typical main to be. We started off with house-pickled vegetables, warm marinated olives, a cheese board and of course the famous meat platter. On the meat platter we had a wild selection! Genoa salami, duck proscuitto, fennel salami, sopressata, spicy sausage and horse mortdaella. The meats were arranged carefully on a beautiful wooden plank and served with grainy mustard and lavendar lard. A crazy duo but one that worked very well! The thing I loved most about The Black Hoof was the time they took to make their food pairings perfect. For example on the cheese board, the cheese were paired accordingly with a red current and rosemary jelly, a nutmeg and blueberry jam and a hazelnut and vanilla sauce with a bourbon glaze on the apples. Each component on their own was as lovely as when they were paired with the specific item. The originality behind the flavours at The Black Hoof is sheer culinary genius, as we all agreed at the end of the meal.

Marinated Olives

The Cheese Board

The Charcuterie Board

The complexity yet simplicity is apparent in each dish, and with every dish presented on a different type of plate, there was just such excitement when each dish was brought to the table! The real winner of the meal was the fried sweetbreads finished with fiddleheads (in season right now!), sautéed ramps, fingerling potatoes finished with a velvety butter sauce. My other favourite was the N'Duja and brussel crostini with a parsley pesto, fried parsley and fresh Parmesan (N'Duja is sort of like chorizo in my mind, a bit spicy!) You can tell that the quality of the ingredients used is there, and when we talked with one of the owners, Jen she told us that they are constantly changing the accompaniments of each dish according to the season.

N'Duja Crostini

Tongue on Brioche

Fiddleheads

The concept behind The Black Hoof is meat, taking on the philosophy of snout-to-tail (aka using the whole animal, not just one piece.), where they use different sorts of meat and make the off cuts available to the general public. For example on their menu is horse, beef heart, sweetbreads, cod collar, fois gras, duck liver, tongue and pig belly. What a crazy selection! But they know what they are doing, and their execution is perfect. Never have I tried horse or sweetbreads, but both were extremely pleasurable to eat, something I would have never imagined!

The mood in The Black Hoof was calm but you could just feel all of the love and passion from everyone working there to those eating. The general manager and part owner Jen just finished off our meal perfectly by talking with four star struck chef school students on our way out. I will most definitely be heading back to the Hoof as soon as possible.

And as my classmate, friend and fellow blogger Carl put it, The Black Hoof - "Where capicollo, chorizo and prosciutto happily clog the menu and your arteries."

photo credit: carl and his cool iphone

APPLIANCE FUN

2011-05-19T14:56:00.000-07:00

I found this image while on StumbleUpon and I just thought I would share it! What a great idea for a grater! I want it!!

AGAVE Y AGUACATE

2011-05-13T17:29:00.000-07:00

A newly opened hole in the wall in Toronto's Kensington Market, Agave & Aguacate has become my newest Mexican obsession! Run by Chef Francisco Alejandri, a former Stratford Chef School grad, this Mexican stall you could almost call it (as it is in a store with about four other vendors selling their own specialties) focuses on "Fresh Mexican take-out with quality in mind." Featuring the "tostada", Agave & Aguacate is quickly making a name for themselves, being named a daily lunch pick by the Toronto Life. A tostada is a dish where the base is a toasted form to hold the meal. In this case Alejandri's tostada is a fried tortilla so that it puffs up and is light crispy and airy.

He has two different options, the ting tostada and the green tostada. The ting tostada which was written about in the Toronto Life (which both friends I went with had!) was topped with chipotle chicken, creamy avocado, some Mexican crema fresca and slivered red onions lightly marinated in lime juice and salt.

Of course I had to go for the one that included guacamole, hence the green tostada. Expecting the guacamole to already be made, I was over the moon when Alejandri began to make it fresh by hand with ripe green avocados, lime juice, salt and some jalepeno. Super simple, incredibly flavourful. It was then topped with a large slice of queso fresco (a Mexican cheese, quite mild), some cream (much like sour cream) and a whole plum tomato that was sliced so perfectly and delicatley you would think his hands were that of a surgeon! The tomato was seasoned with just a little bit of salt and then the whole tostada was topped with guajillo - a type of dried chili pepper.

The day I went was also miserably cold and rainy and the pinto bean soup option just jumped off the blackboard at me! I love pinto beans, and with some toasted tortilla strips and a little queso fresco in the bottom, this soup could not have been more warming or delicious. A great start as I stood watching Alejandri make our tostada's! And finally for dessert - (this meal seriously came to a total of 15$ for the three items!) Lime Charlotte, a decadent lime cake that when served is drizzled with fresh lime juice, lime zest and a splash of good quality olive oil. The cake was extremley moist and the cream held so well with the lime flavouring. Needless to say, the three of us were extremley impressed. Alejnadri's skills are sensational, my eyes were glued to the precision, speed and perfectness of the food he prepared! I one day hope to have skills like that!

For an amazing Mexican fresh lunch or light dinner I urge you to try Agave & Agucate!

Agave y Aguacate, 214 Augusta Ave. (look for El Gordo Fine Foods), 647-208-3091.

ROASTED BEET SALAD

2011-04-20T13:09:00.000-07:00

So the other night with my banoffee pie for dessert, one of my side dishes was a roasted beet salad! This past weekend we went out for dinner to Scaramouche and one of the starter's was a roasted beet salad with goat cheese, so from this delicious appetizer, I was inspired! This salad is so simple and a great alternative to a classic green salad. Beets have a really sweet natural flavour to them, making it a tasty treat for those kids who don't like leafy greens! The basis of the dressing, red wine vinegar, dijon and tarragon are a natural combination, and a perfect light dressing for the beets.

Roasted Beet Salad with Tarragon

Ingredients:
- Large red beets (depends on how many people you are having, at least 1 medium size beet per person)
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- salt and pepper
- olive oil
- 3 sprigs of tarragon

Directions:
- Wash beets. Set oven to 400degrees F
- Place on a layer on aluminum foil and mix olive oil salt and pepper around with the beets to cover them. Then take foil and mold it into a tent shape (in order to both steam and bake the beets at the same time)
- Place beets in oven for 45minutes to an hour, or until for tender.
- Remove from oven and peel (you may want to wear gloves when doing this as beets do stain a bit!)
- Slice into rounds.
- Whisk dijon, red wine vinegar, olive oil, salt & pepper together until emuslified. Mix in the tarragon leaves (you may chop them if you wish but I like the look at the leaf in tact)
- Toss beets in the vinaigrette and let rest until serving.
- This salad may be served warm or cold. ENJOY!

photo credit: my sister, nora b.

BANOFFEE PIE

2011-04-18T18:29:00.000-07:00

I have been dying to try out Chuck Hughes' Banoffee Pie and tonight I finally made it. The bottom layer of the pie is ground up Oreo's and melted butter, followed by caramel, bananas and whipping cream. Could it sound more heavenly?! I however stray a bit from Chuck's recipe, as instead of using boiled evaporated milk as the caramel, I made my own caramel. (Which for those of you who don't know, is SUPER easy and takes legitimately 10 minuets max!) This dessert was so great, fun to make, and a total hit with my family tonight! Give it a try!

Banoffee Pie
Serves 4

Ingredients:
- 20 Oreo cookies
- 1/4 cup butter, melted (60 ml)
- 1 can of condensed milk (300 ml) ** ( Instead of this I made my own caramel. To do that: dissolve one cup of sugar into 1/3 cup of water. Bring to a boil on med-high heat stirring occasionally (5-7 minutes max). Once you reach a medium brown colour add in 1/3 cup of cream and thicken on low heat for about 2 minutes. Finish with a splash of vanilla and cool.)
- 2 ripe bananas, sliced
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 2 cups 35 % cream (500 ml) (I used whipping cream instead)
- 1/4 cup icing sugar (60 ml)
- 2 tablespoons strong coffee (30 ml)

Directions:
- Pre-heat the oven to 350 F (180 C).
- In a food processor, add the cookies and process until it becomes a crumb like mixture. Add butter and process again. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, take the condensed milk can and place it in an oven-proof stockpot filled with water. DO NOT OPEN THE CAN. Make sure the can is constantly covered in water. Bake in the oven for 3 ½ hours. Remove, let cool, open and set aside.
- In a bowl, mix the bananas with lemon juice. Set aside.
- Whip the cream with icing sugar and coffee in another bowl until soft peaks form.

To serve: Using a round 4 inch mold directly on the serving plate, put a layer of the cookie mixture, then the slices of bananas, cover with the condensed milk (now toffee) and repeat the layers. Remove the mold and garnish with a dollop of cream. (I just used a regular circle cake mold as my cake was for a family of 8!)

photo credit: my sissy

TOMATO BASIL BOCCONCINI SKEWERS

2011-04-18T12:07:00.000-07:00

My mom was having a dinner party this weekend so I offered up my help, and one of the dishes I though to make were tomato/basil/bocconcini skewers. These hors d'oeurves are beyond cute and extremely tasty! So easy to make, with basically no prep time involved, these are perfect for the stressed dinner party host!

Tomato Basil Bocconcini Skewers
To serve 8 people
Ingredients:
- 16-20 bocconcini balls
- 16-20 baby tomatoes
- 1 basil leave per skewer
- salt and pepper
- olive oil to drizzle over top
- 16-20 mini wooden skewers

Directions:
- Season bocconcini balls with salt and pepper
- To assemble place half of the basil leave then tomato on the skewer, then the rest of the basil leave and finish with the bocconcini ball (refer to image)
- Drizzle the skewers with olive oil and let rest before serving in order for the flavours to marry.

FENNEL GRATIN

2011-04-12T17:07:00.000-07:00

Today in our Banquet & Production class, one of the foods we made was Fennel Gratin. I truly love fennel, and I find it so underused! Today just reaffirmed my need to get fennel back into my cooking program! As my classmate Kyle put it, fennel is like "licorice celery." Fennel is known for its licorice-y flavour, but fennel is also a bit of a tougher vegetable that needs to be braised or cooked slowly and for longer times in order to soften it right up.

Today’s recipe could not have been more simple - only 5 ingredients! A perfect side dish and one that is sure to wow anyone you have over for dinner.

Fennel Gratin
Total time: 1:20 minutes

Ingredients:
- Fennel bulbs (1 will serve two people, or you can serve one per person depending on how large the bulbs are)
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper
- 1 cup vegetable stock (chicken will be fine too)
- softened butter

Directions:
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F
- Remove the leaf part of the fennel bulbs and split in half. Cut fennel into strips but maintain the shape of the fennel (this is a bit tricky to explain, but look at the picture for clarification. When putting the “half fennel bulb” in the baking tray, it maintains it shape and does not look like it has even been cut up)
- In a roasting pan with high sides, smear the butter all along the bottom so that it covers the pan.
- Add in the fennel bulbs with each half laying flat on the bottom of the pan side by side.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Cover midway up the fennel with the stock.
- Cover the pan with aluminum foil and place in the oven for 45-60 minutes.
- Remove the aluminum foil, and sprinkle the cheese so that it covers the fennel.
- Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.
- Serve warm

photo credit: my own

TOP 5 SPRING INGREDIENTS

2011-04-08T19:14:00.000-07:00

Back in the winter I talked about my top five winter ingredients and ways in which to use them. So here are my favourites for Spring, and what I am looking forward to stocking up on! Knowing 5 ingredients like this is great as sometimes just being able to focus in on a few key items helps can really help in meal planning and recipe searching!

1) Peas
I love peas! They are just to me the epitome of springtime, with their fresh taste, vibrant green colour and sweet flavour. They are a great ingredient for many different dishes; soups, pastas, side dishes. Quite versatile and extremely inexpensive, peas are a great go-to for the spring.
- Sweet pea risotto
- Crostini with mushed sweet peas and lemon ricotta
- Pea soup

2) Asparagus
I don't think there is one vegetable I truly couldn't live without other than asparagus. Such a great flavour, and to me a good looking vegetable. It always looks good on a plate and can really make a dish look pretty and rustic. Great on their own, with natural flavours of olive oil, salt and pepper or one of my favourite ways, with eggs in a frittata. They also could accompany any meat dish you serve!
- Roasted asparagus
- Asparagus frittata

3) Lemon
I am obsessed with lemons these days. Their tart flavour, versatility and bright colour just draw me in! A great springtime flavour, you will be sure to love this ingredient. It can be in salad dressings, in desserts, freshly squeezed
- Meyer Lemon tart
- Lemon ricotta for a crostini (basically this is a light and fluffy spread that can go on a crostini, delicious on its own or with crushed peas on top, this is a great springtime dish. To assemble just mix 1/2 ricotta with 2 tbsp lemon juice, some lemon zest, salt and pepper. For a deeper lemon flavour continue adding lemon juice to the mix)

4) Mint
I keep repeating how "fresh" flavour all of these ingredients are, and I guess the word fresh is just what I think of as necessary for Springtime. Mint is another one of those ingredients. After using it in my lab at school this week I rediscovered my love for mint! Beautiful as a garnish!
- Mint sauce for lamb chops
- Mojito (Cuban drink with fresh mint crushed into it)
- Two ingredient combo: pea soup with mint (also mint as a garnish for this)

5) Honeydew melon
Honeydew for me just brings back the memories. In high school, everyday after school my mom would have a fruit platter waiting for us, and springtime meant copious amounts of honeydew, that is definitely part of the reason I adore honeydew. A great fruit, with a smooth texture and extremely sweet flavour, kids will gobble this one off their plates!
- Cold melon soup
- Melon wrapped with prosciutto
- Cut up on a fruit tray

Happy Spring!!

photo credit: google images

FOOD TROTTER

2011-04-04T19:14:00.000-07:00

My newest post for the other place I write, Food Trotter, is up!

Check it out, on my adventures at my beloved Eataly in NYC!!

http://foodtrotter.com/eataly-a-slice-of-italy-nestled-into-the-heart-of-new-york-city/4164/

THE YEAR IN DINING

2011-03-30T18:17:00.000-07:00

Toronto is such a food filled city, with new places and trend popping up all over the place!

Read more on the Toronto's great food trends this year from the top critics at Toronto Life!

This is a great article for those of you looking to find the best drinks, and product-focused meals, or Italian flare, popular ingredients and hot spots around town!

http://www.torontolife.com/daily/daily-dish/from-the-print-edition-daily-dish/2011/03/30/the-year-in-dining-our-chief-critic-dishes-on-his-gastronomic-adventures/

ENGLISH ONION SOUP BY JAMIE

2011-03-24T17:41:00.000-07:00

You must think that all I do is post about Jamie Oliver, and I apologize for that, but it's his kind of cooking that really generally does inspire me; rustic, family, simple, beautiful! So I have another one to add to the books this week. When I was watching Jamie at Home during our silly spring snowstorm yesterday he was making French Onion Soup. I have never been more inspired to get off the couch, to the grocery store and then to start cooking. It's all I wanted, perfect comfort food for a blizzardy day.

A word to the wise about this soup, it is necessary to caramelize your onions, which means it will take over an HOUR at a low temperature! So for you speedy cookers, this is not the recipe for you. Luckily I wasn't going anywhere and I had plenty of time to spare. Since I made such a big batch, mine actually took about two hours! The wonders of food...

Jamie's description of the dish is quite cute and funny so I thought I would add it in too!

Jamie's English Onion Soup
Total time: about 2:30 (or less depending on your onions!)
Servings: 8 generous portions

"There's something so incredibly humble about onion soup. It's absolutely one of my favorites but unfortunately I only ever get to make it in the restaurant or for myself as the missus thinks she's allergic to onions. (She's not, because I whiz them up into loads of dishes without her knowing!)
If you have the opportunity, get hold of as many different types of onion for this soup as you can - you need about 2 pounds in total. Sweat them gently and you'll be amazed at all the flavors going on"

Ingredients:
- Good knob of butter
- Olive oil
- Handful fresh sage leaves, 8 leaves reserved for garnish ( I also added about 4 sprigs of thyme in as well, because I love the flavour and its perfect with this soup!)
- 6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
- 3 large red onions (or 5 small red onions), peeled and sliced
- 3 large white onions, peeled and sliced
- 3 shallots, peeled and sliced
- 11 ounces leeks, trimmed, washed and sliced (I just did one bunch)
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 8 cups good-quality hot beef, chicken or vegetable stock
- 8 slices good-quality stale bread, 3/4-inch thick (I just used a white French baguette and toasted it for the stale effect)
- 7 ounces freshly grated Cheddar
- Worcestershire sauce

Directions
- Put the butter, 2 glugs of olive oil, the sage and garlic into a heavy bottomed, nonstick pan. Stir everything round and add the onions, shallots and leeks. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place a lid on the pan, leaving it slightly ajar, and cook slowly for 50 minutes, without coloring the vegetables too much. Remove the lid for the last 20 minutes, the onions will become soft and golden. Stir occasionally so that nothing catches on the bottom. Having the patience to cook the onions slowly, slowly, gives you an incredible sweetness and an awesome flavor, so don't be tempted to speed this up.
- When your onions and leeks are lovely and silky, add the stock. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. You can skim any fat off the surface if you like, but I prefer to leave it because it adds good flavor.

- Preheat the oven or broiler to maximum. Toast your bread on both sides. Correct the seasoning of the soup. When it's perfect, ladle it into individual heatproof serving bowls and place them on a baking sheet. Tear toasted bread over each bowl to t like a lid. Feel free to push and dunk the bread into the soup a bit. Sprinkle with some grated Cheddar and drizzle over a little Worcestershire sauce.
Dress your reserved sage leaves with some olive oil and place 1 on top of each slice of bread. Put the baking sheet into the preheated oven or under the broiler to melt the cheese until bubbling and golden. Keep an eye on it and make sure it doesn't burn! When the cheese is bubbling, very carefully lift out the baking sheet and carry it to the table. Enjoy.

photo credit: my own

GARLIC SPINACH SPAGHETTI

2011-03-22T16:20:00.000-07:00

Last week in lab our chef made garlic spinach and since then I have been craving more of it! Last night, I didn't know what to do for dinner, but I wanted to try and use spinach and a combination of ingredients in my fridge. I found pine nuts, mascarpone (which was about to go bad so I had to use it up!), spinach, garlic and spaghetti. A perfect combo for a delicious pasta! The nutmeg works really well with the spinach and garlic giving it an earthly flavour. If you happen to have ricotta on hand not mascarpone you could easily substitute one for the other.

This pasta was so simple, but with so many different flavours and textures in the dish, it made for a really exciting meal! Quick to prepare, and without having to buy really any of the ingredients as most are staples in my fridge, I think this pasta is going to become a regular! The other plus about this dish, its a one pan dinner.

Garlic Spinach Spaghetti
Serves One
Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:
- 2 garlic cloves (finely chopped, or use a microplane to turn it into more of a paste)
- 1 heaping spoonful mascarpone cheese
- 60mL of milk (or cream, but I was trying to be somewhat healthy)
- 2 handfuls of baby spinach
- toasted pine nuts (as many as you would like)
- salt and pepper
- nutmeg
- spaghetti (enough for one serving)
- 1 tbsp olive oil

Directions:
- Boil the pasta water, salt and cook pasta for about 12 minutes or until al dente.
- In a large saute pan toast the pine nuts of medium heat until they are golden brown. Remove and set aside.
- Place olive oil and turn to medium high heat. Add the spinach and wilt. Once wilted add in one clove of garlic and toss. Remove from pan and set aside.
- To the pan add the milk, mascarpone, another clove of garlic, salt, pepper and a touch of nutmeg. Let the sauce mix together and warm throughout.
- Once pasta is cooked move immediately to the sauce pan. Add in the spinach and pine nuts and mix thoroughly.
- Season with a bit more salt and pepper if necessary, plate and grate some fresh parmesan on top before serving.

BON APPETIT!

SUPPORT FOR JAPAN

2011-03-19T14:38:00.000-07:00

Looking to support Japan somehow - well look no further then a dinner hosted at Boehmer by oh just a few of the city's best chefs! In response to the awful earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan, Toronto chefs and Ontario wine produces are joining forces for a fundraiser in the best way they know how, cooking!

The fundraiser will be held on Sunday March 27th at Bohmer Restaurant.

"The evening begins with cocktails and hors d’oeuvre, followed by a five-course sit-down meal catered by Paul Boehmer (Böhmer), Adam Colquhoun (Oyster Boy), John Higgins (George Brown Chef School), Daisuke Izutsu (Kaiseki Sakura), Jamie Kennedy (Gilead), Chris McDonald (Cava), Anthony Rose (The Drake Hotel), Michael Stadtländer (Eigensinn Farm and Haisai), Anthony Walsh (Canoe) and Hiro Yoshida (Hiro Sushi)." (Toronto Life)

Tawse, Southbrook and 13th Street are some of the wineries donating and Creemore and Sapporo will be two of the supporting breweries. In addition to the dinner there will be prizes at the silent auction.

Support for Japan. Date: March 27th. Time: Cocktails at 5pm Dinner at 6:30pm. Price: $250. Location: Bohmer Restaurant, 93 Ossington Ave. Reservations? call Milana at 416-531-3800

SWEET POTATO HASH

2011-03-15T18:06:00.000-07:00

Well watching the Food Network yesterday, I was inspired by Michael Smith's Chef at Home "Breakfast for Dinner" episode. I adore breakfast for dinner, and one of the side dishes he made for his breakfast was a sweet potato hash. I decided to give it a whirl as it would be a great side dish for many different meals as sweet potatoes are very versatile. With the flavour and taste of bacon and some crisp chives, you can't beat this side dish. In the episode he served it alongside some crispy pork belly and a three-egg omelet with chives, thyme and sharp cheddar cheese. For a great meal idea try all three together! Otherwise just serve on the side of something like chicken!

Sweet Potato Hash
Serves 4
Total time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:
- 2 sweet potatoes (diced)
- 6 pieces of bacon
- a handful of chopped chives
- salt and pepper
- sour cream (optional)

Directions:
- In a pan on medium-high heat cook the bacon until crispy. One done, remove from pan and leave bacon fat in the pan.
- Dice sweet potatoes (I left the skin on, way more flavour and nutrients) and add them to the pan with the bacon fat. Mix around so that the grease covers the potatoes and cook until tender on medium heat. About 10-15 minutes depending on the size of the dice.

- Once fork tender, remove from place and place in serving dish.
- Top with crisp bacon (just break the bacon apart with your hands) and the chopped chives.
- Serve immediatley. (sour cream on the side is optional, but a great little dip)

ENJOY!

photo credit: my own images

TUNA TARTARE

2011-03-14T09:10:00.000-07:00

I love tartare, beef or tuna, both work for me. When I see it on a menu I just know I will end up ordering it! But luckily for me I didn't need to be in any restaurant this weekend in order to indulge in some delicious tuna tartare. My friend Kate came over Saturday night with a little treat from her dad's birthday party - tuna tartare! I was so excited to try it, and let me tell you - it was a hit! When committing to making such a delicious dish, it is important that you do get really good quality tuna steak because that is the star of the dish and really needs to be top notch. The flavouring of the dish was quite asian but with diced avocado in there as well you couldn't go wrong. Creamy in a sense yet the diced tuna still holds its own. This tartare was an appetizer to their main dinner and was hoovered! I'm lucky I got some before it was all gone. So if you are looking for a great entertaining recipe that is sure to WOW your guests, this my friends is it!

Recipe by Ina Garten (The Barefoot Contessa) and one of my personal favs!
** Note do not save leftovers for more than 24 hours

Total time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 3 3/4 pounds very fresh tuna steak
- 1 1/4 cups olive oil
- 5 limes, zest grated
- 1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 1/2 teaspoons wasabi powder
- 2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons hot red pepper sauce
- 2 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1/4 cups minced scallions, white and green parts (12 scallions)
- 3 1/4 tablespoons minced fresh jalapeno pepper, seeds removed
- 5 ripe Hass avocados
- 1 1/2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds, optional

Directions:
-Cut the tuna into 1/4-inch dice and place it in a very large bowl.
- In a separate bowl, combine the olive oil, lime zest, lime juice, wasabi, soy sauce, hot red pepper sauce, salt, and pepper. Pour over the tuna, add the scallions and jalapeno, and mix well.
- Cut the avocados in half, remove the seed, and peel. Cut the avocados into 1/4-inch dice. Carefully mix the avocado into the tuna mixture.
- Add the toasted sesame seeds, if using, and season to taste.
- Allow the mixture to sit in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour for the flavors to blend. Serve on crackers

photo credit: food network

MUSHROOM PASTA BAKE

2011-03-12T12:46:00.000-08:00

Toronto this week has been non-stop rain, and with such bone chilling coldness I wanted to make something last night that would warm me right up, some real good homestyle comfort food. Of course for this I turned to Jamie's Italian cookbook (by Jamie Oliver). My friend Kate was coming for dinner and we wanted something, easy, warming and delicious, and Jamie O is our fav!

The dish I ended up creating was more so inspired by this recipe than Jamie than followed word for word. The dish is called spaghetti tetrazzini (a chicken and mushroom pasta bake). I'm not really a fan of chicken in pasta, so I took that right out and instead of using basil like Jamie does I substituted in rosemary as I think it is a perfect marriage with woody mushrooms. I also for the first time bought porcini mushrooms and they were so great! Porcini's come dry so you need to rehydrate them, but the flavour that the water takes on after the re-hydration is so strong and perfect for making a sauce!

Here is my recipe of the dish, based off of Jamie's original recipe! In this recipe you will see that I infuse my cream with garlic and rosemary. Since starting chef school I find we are always infusing our liquids and it really makes such a difference in the end result. More flavour developments, but not necessarily as harsh!

Mushroom & Rosemary Pasta Bake
Serves 4
Total time: 1 hour

Ingredients:
- 1 handful of dried porcini mushrooms
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 3 cloves of garlic (2 cloves should be pureed)
- 2 handfuls of mixed fresh mushrooms, sliced
- 1/2 of a small white onion finely diced
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 1/2 box dried spaghetti
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary

Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F
- Boil water for pasta on high heat and cook pasta in salted water once water is boiled.
- In a kettle boil about a cup of water for the porcini mushrooms. Once water is boiled place mushrooms in a bowl, pour water over, cover and let sit for about 20 minutes. Do not throw out the water! Reserve for later!!
- In a sauce pot put in cream with a peeled garlic clove cut in half and a sprig of rosemary. Keep on low temperature until ready to use.

- Slice mushrooms, and dice onion.
- In a large enough pan to fit all the liquid and vegetables soften onion in a little bit of butter and olive oil.
- Once translucent add in the mushrooms and porcini mushrooms.
- Add in the pureed garlic (for this I usually just use a microplane, works really well to get that pureed consistency)
- Cook the mushrooms, onions and garlic until softened. Then add in about one sprig of chopped rosemary and let cook for a few more minutes.
- Add in the white wine and cook for about 5 minutes until the alcohol has burned off. Then add about half of the reserved porcini water and cook for 3 more minutes. Finally add all of the cream to the saucepan and let the flavours blend together.

- When the pasta is cooked add the pasta to the sauce with half of the grated parmesan and mix. Dont' forget to season with salt and pepper!

- Transfer the spaghetti into an ovenproof baking dish (I buttered mine so that it wouldn't stick). Sprinkle the rest of the Parmesan on top of the pasta and bake until crispy and golden brown. About 30-40 minutes, but keep an eye on it!

Before baking

After baking

BON APPETIT!!

photo credit: my own

EATALY NYC

2011-03-09T17:44:00.000-08:00

One of my sole missions to complete in New York was to check out the Italian super store/restaurant complex that takes up a whole city block called Eataly. This place is what I consider to be Italian heaven. Fresh ingredients every, dedicated to the best product, hand made foods and everything Italian. This place is a mecca for anyone looking to cook, learn or eat Italian. It took me forever to wander through here, aisle after aisle and restaurant after restaurant. I could not leave the cheese & meats aisles, they were to die for ! Whole walls of just parmesan and fresh charcuterie! Amazing! And the coolest part I found about Eataly, was that it was not just for tourists. People actually shopped there (I would only shop there if I lived in New York)! We went on a Saturday, and the place was packed! The meat&cheese restaurant bar was already full at 11am, people were eating pasta and pizza and it wasn't even noon! We sampled an Italian sandwich of crusty baguette and house cure proscuitto, simple and perfect, classic European.

For more info on Eataly and its greatness visit - http://eatalyny.com/#1

Outside the entrance!

Incredible variety of meats

Canadian Lobster!

Insane mushroom selection

Onion selections I love Parmesan!

photo credit: my own

THE BRESLIN

2011-03-08T15:29:00.000-08:00

Sorry for my lack of blogging, but now for some posts on my New York City adventures!

The first spot I want to talk about is called - The Breslin Bar & Dining Room, located beside/in New York's ACE Hotel. I first heard about the spot through one of the chefs at Part&Labour who had tweeted a picture from the hotel, from there I checked it out and decided it was a must go! The restaurant is sister to New York's also popular "Spotted Pig." Both restaurants are "nose-to-tail" restaurants, meaning that thy use everything from the nose to tail of animal products, preventing waste and teaching eaters about different parts of the animal and how they can be enjoyed. A trend that is seriously hitting Toronto these days! The chef and co-owner of both The Breslin & Spotted Pig, April Bloomfield is a NYC legend. She received a Michelin Star for the Spotted Pig.

The Breslin is a great spot, wooden decor with a casual yet seriously hip feel and little pictures and figurines of pigs and other animals adorn the walls. The place was packed, and we walked in for lunch at 230! But you can clearly see why, with an open concept kitchen, the restaurant is producing fabulous product. With a smaller menu, The Breslin is able to focus more on each dish, making sure it is perfect. I loved the feel of this place, and with a great snacks menu it would the perfect spot for after work beers as well. New Yorkers, and NYC visitors this is a definite must see!

Some of their great snacks include:
Boiled peanuts cooked in pork fat
Chicken liver parfait with madeira jelly
Spiced Almonds
Caramel Popcorn

For lunch I had hear the burger was a must! So we ordered the Chargrilled lamb burger with feta, cumin mayo and thrice cooked chips and the Oven Baked 3 cheese sandwich with onion marmalade and mustard. The BEST grilled cheese, the onion marmalade was out of this world!!

For more on their menus check out: http://thebreslin.com/menu-lunch.html

So for a great casual, but delicious bar-like dining experience, check out The Breslin!

photo credit: my own & the breslin

LOVE FOR FABBRICA

2011-02-20T18:46:00.000-08:00

Tonight my dad and I were picking up my brother from a hockey practice out at the 401 & Kennedy, so for dinner we wanted something closer to the 401, without sacrificing taste however! Automatically we thought of Fabbrica, Mark McEwan's newest restaurant to the McEwan chain.

Fabbrica is located at the Shops at Don Mills, but surprisingly received quite some negative criticisms at first, making me a little bit more hesitant than normal. But boy was I wrong, it completely surpassed all of my expectations. Fabbrica was the perfect spot for a cozy Sunday wintry night dinner. We walked in early, around 6:15 and there were a few tables here and there, but by the time we left at 7:30 it was completely packed with a lineup to get in! Talk about a perfect neighbourhood spot.

Fabbrica is authentic Italian cuisine, sourcing products from Italy with iconic Italian style decor! Very chic and very cool to say the least with a beautiful wood-burning brick pizza oven from Naples. Traditional for the perfect Neopolitan pizza, with a temperature of 900 degrees the pizzas are done in a rapid 90 seconds!

To start we shared a salad, which in my opinion was the star of the show. A roasted yellow and purple beet salad with arugula, prosciutto, toasted pistachios and goat cheese in a light simple olive oil dressing. From there we moved onto the home made pasta dishes. The Casserace pasta (rapini, chilies and house made pork sausage) for me and the Papardelle pasta for my dad (braised shortrib, tomato and basil). We decided we couldn't pass up the pizza so we decided to try the Capicollo (mozzarella, hot capicollo, basil and tomato) pizza with hopes of bringing the leftovers to my little brother (That definitely didn't happen! lol).

The meal was truly great, Italian is my favourite and nothing beats a good home cooked feel Italian meal. This is exactly what Fabbrica was. With a vibrant and exciting decor and a view of their house curing room and pizza oven, Fabbrica is the perfect spot for a Sunday meal, date night, a large group of family or friends or to introduce those to Toronto's great culinary scene! And with complimentary parking on a snowy night, what could be better?!

Buon appetito!

To learn more and check out their menus visit: http://www.fabbrica.ca/

photo credit: fabbrica & google images

TORONTO'S BEST WINTER COCKTAILS

2011-02-16T12:49:00.000-08:00

I just adore Toronto Life's daily dish! Their blog is so great and always up to date with the interesting finds in Toronto. This week it is "Core-Warming Winter Cocktails." I don't usually use a full article from Toronto Life, but I thought this one was really cool and would be fun to share.

"Interesting" drinks are popping up all over the city these days, not only are different menus becoming important but the drinks list that comes along with it is getting equally as playful! Fun drinks are all the rage, whether it is alcoholic or not, a drink is becoming another star in the food show!

Here are some of Toronto's hottest new drinks for the winter! Another drink that I think could be added to the list is Campagnolo's caesar, whose ingredients include cilantro and chili-infused vodka!

Have you tried any of them?!

Hot Buttered Rum
The perfect après-ski (or après–afternoon of shopping): Sailor Jerry spiced rum and compound butter (cinnamon, clove, brown sugar, lemon zest and butter) steeped in hot water. $12. Sidecar, 577 College St., 416-536-7000.

My Darling Clementine
House-made gingerbread syrup lends a subtle molasses flavour to this mimosa-esque mix of prosecco, Grand Marnier and fresh-squeezed clementine juice. $14. Ruby Watchco, 730 Queen St. E., 416-465-0100.

Winter Jacket Fellow
A soothing mash-up of two traditional cold-weather treats—mulled wine and hot apple cider—ups the ante with a dose of Zubrówka bison grass vodka. $9. Brockton General, 1321 Dundas St. W., 647-342-6104.

S’mores Hot Chocolate
Nutty Frangelico and Navan fortify a serving of Soma’s sinful malted milk hot chocolate. Topped with a melty house-made marshmallow and a sprinkling of graham cracker crumbs, it’s tastier (and tidier) than its campfire namesake. $10. Luma, TIFF Bell Lightbox, 330 King St. W., 647-288-4715.

So Martini
Caffeine fiends can get their fix with a potent combination of vanilla vodka, Baileys, Chambord and a kick of espresso. $11. Table 17, 782 Queen St. E., 416-519-1851.

Parkdale Bake
A maple, baked butternut squash and sage syrup forms the savoury centrepiece of this gentlemanly blend of Maker’s Mark and sweet
vermouth. A crisped sage leaf adds an earthy embellishment. $10. Local Kitchen, 1710 Queen St. W., 416-534-6700.

Blitzen
A bracing mix of muddled lime, lemon-ginger syrup, Johnnie Walker Red Label and prosecco is garnished with cranberries, a rosemary sprig and powdered sugar for a pretty twist on the whiskey sour. $12. Grace, 503 College St., 416-944-8884.

Spanish Flip
Forgo the calorie-dense cream of eggnog, and indulge in a frothy concoction of Pedro Ximénez sherry, egg yolk, spice syrup (cinnamon, allspice, clove), lemon juice and nutmeg. $11. The Drake, 1150 Queen St. W., 416-531-5042.

photo credit: courtesy of Toronto Life Daily Dish

HOOF CAFE

2011-02-15T18:40:00.000-08:00

There have been so many wonderful articles written about the Hoof Cafe - that those of you who know it, know that every word of praise is true. For those of you who don't, let me introduce you to the Hoof Cafe, sister restaurant to The Black Hoof (Toronto's famous charcuterie restaurant making headlines left right and center)! I recently had the luxury of visiting this cafe prior to its closing on February 28th! (So for those of you who haven't gone, you MUST get there! But be prepared to wait! The line up last weekend was an hour long!) I went last Friday for brunch with my friend, fellow blogger and George Brown classmate Carl! We had been dying to go, and knew we had to get there before it was gone forever.

The place is perfect, if I could one day own a spot like that my life would be complete. About 30 seats, with 12 of them being at the bar, the space is bright, lovely and oh so cafe like. With a beautiful rustic bar, a neat aluminum ceiling and big windows along the front wall, you just feel like you are in a dream cafe. The most perfect spot for brunch, I can't believe I only got there once!

The food like the space is just to die for! No wonder they have received non-stop praise! Based around a meat-based theme restaurant, Hoof Cafe offers the neatest combination's! French toast with Foie Gras for brunch, oh la la! I had the "Suckling Benny" (Eggs Benedict with some suckling braised pig underneath) and a side of their hay ham with a lovely streak of Dijon mustard on the plate! When we walked in the door we saw a beautiful lemon meringue tart on display. The look of it alone had Carl and I knowing it could not be passed up! It was the most light & refreshing dessert to end a delectable brunch! (Thanks to the tart Meyer lemons and the fresh mint sprig)

For more on Hoof Cafe and The Black Hoof visit : http://theblackhoof.com/food/

Please please please! I beg you to try this brunch spot (or even for dinner too) before it is gone. It truly is one of Toronto's bests! Now for my next adventure... THE BLACK HOOF!

photo credits: my own

SPANISH TAPAS

2011-02-10T18:12:00.000-08:00

As you know I also write for FOOD TROTTER!

Here is my newest addition to my Food Trotter posting: Tapas in Spain!

http://foodtrotter.com/3903/3903/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+FoodTrotter+(Food+Trotter)

"Eating, drinking, and sharing in good fun with friends is popular in every culture, but Spanish tapas takes this notion to a whole new level. While living in Spain I fell in love with the corner tapas bars that populate the country. You can’t travel to Spain without understanding this amazing concept and knowing what to look for!"

PULLED PORK

2011-02-07T09:14:00.000-08:00

Thank you Bonnie Stern for the best superbowl party food yet! Thanks to twitter - my new favourite source of all food related knowledge, I discovered Bonnie Stern's weekend article in The National Post - "Presenting the perfect pretext to pull pork." I am a HUGE fan of pulled pork, and after reading through the article I could literally not wait to make it! Especially since last week we butchered pork & lamb shoulder's in butchery class I thought it would be so great to work with meats now that I understand their cuts.

The end result - pulling the pork

So for a great, fun meal, pulled pork is for you! I can't wait to make it again! The great part about this recipe is Bonnie actually gives a few extra ingredient recipes, chipotle mayo, a doctored-up BBQ sauce and a creamy coleslaw to top the pulled pork. Make sure to get really soft, good quality buns. I found mine at The Healthy Butcher, (any sort of egg made buns, like Challa is fab).

Pork Rub before going in the oven

Pork once it had cooked for 3.5 hours

The Pork itself
Ingredients:
Rub
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp each paprika, pepper and cumin
- 2 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 lb boneless pork shoulder (pork butt roast)
Cooking liquid
- 2 cups apple juice
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 6 whole cloves garlic
- 2 onions, thickly sliced
Maple barbecue sauce
- 2 cups favourite barbecue sauce
- ½ cup maple syrup
- 2 tbsp each Worcestershire sauce and apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard

Directions:
1. Combine brown sugar, salt, paprika, pepper, cumin, mustard and garlic. Rub into roast. Marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
2. Combine apple juice, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar and Worcestershire sauce. Place garlic and onions in the bottom of a Dutch oven and set roast on top. Add liquid. Cover roast with a piece of parchment paper and then cover pan tightly. Cook in a preheated 325F/160C oven for 3 to 4 hours or longer, until pork is so tender it falls apart when pierced with a fork.
3. Meanwhile, in a saucepan whisk barbecue sauce with maple syrup, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar and mustard. Bring to a boil. Cook gently 5 minutes. Reserve.
4. When roast is ready, remove from pan. Slice thickly and chop. Combine with half the barbecue sauce, adding some of the strained cooking juices if meat is too dry. Reheat meat just before serving in a 325F oven for about 30 minutes.
5. Make sandwiches on the soft buns with meat, extra barbecue sauce, coleslaw, chipotle mayo
Makes 12 sandwiches

Chipotle Mayo

Ingredients:
- 1 cup mayonnaise (I like Hellman’s)
- 1 tbsp chipotle chili purée or to taste
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp lemon juice

Directions:
1. Place mayonnaise in a bowl and stir in chipotle purée,

Creamy-Style Coleslaw
Ingredients:
- 4 cups shredded green cabbage
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 1 carrot, grated
- OR - just the pre made coleslaw packages by Our Compliments
Dressing
- ¾ cup mayonnaise
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper or to taste

Directions:
1. Make coleslaw by combining shredded cabbage with salt. Place in a colander set over a bowl, with a plate on top, pressing down on the cabbage to extract excess moisture. After about one hour, rinse cabbage and pat dry, pressing again firmly. Combine with carrots.
2. For dressing, combine mayonnaise with garlic, sugar, vinegar and pepper.
3. Combine dressing with cabbage mixture. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Makes 12 servings

Total time (prep+cooking): 3-4 hours

photo-credit: my own & national post

NEWS: THE BLACK HOOF

2011-02-02T18:27:00.000-08:00

Toronto's sister restaurant to The Black Hoof - the Hoof Cafe will be closing on February 28th! So for those of you carnivore lovers (me included) you must get there before it closes. I have been dying for ages to go, and this is just the push to do it!

The space will re open in April as a more upscale Black Hoof and Company!

Read more here from Jen and Grant about the crazy idea to change an already iconic spot into something new and completely different!

http://www.charcuteriesundays.com/2011/02/black-hoof-company/

The good news - they will now be taking reservations! Yipee!!

BLUEBERRY SCONES

2011-02-01T17:47:00.000-08:00

I found this article by Bonnie Stern in the National Post called "Better Cooking Through Chemistry." She pushes the fact that every kitchen needs a copy of Harold McGee's Keys to Good Cooking: a Guide to Making the Best of Foods and Recipes. I had never heard of the book so naturally I was quite curious! McGee is a leading writer on the science of food and cooking and is a columnist for The New York Times.

Bonnie writes that during her lunch with the San Francisco-based writer, his hope behind the book was "cooks would use this book while they’re standing in the kitchen cooking, and close the book once they get the answers." The book is full of information on techniques, food safety and purchasing/storing food. It's great because he explains the science behind a cooking process - helping you avoid the "what went wrong disaster" during a recipe.

The three recipes she highlighted in her article looked great, but the one that really stood out was the scone recipe! The best part about this recipe - that it truly was so simple, and helped me cook with ease!

I have been craving some lovely baked goods, real rustic ones that you find in a quaint cafe. So scones seemed to fit the bill. The recipe was for scones with dried cranberries, but I much prefer fresh fruit - so I substituted them for fresh blueberries. I can't explain how simple it was! My friend Kate was over so we made the scones together and the batter was literally done before my oven had pre-heated to 450 degrees. So wild - I think the whole cooking time including prep time and oven times was 25 minutes, 30 max! So easy - can't wait to make these one morning for a special brekky.

DRIED CRANBERRY SCONES (or blueberry like me!)
For tender scones, McGee says be sure to use fresh baking powder and/or baking soda; if the recipe calls for baking soda, be sure it also calls for an acid, such as buttermilk. Blend dry ingredients thoroughly — at least a minute of whisking (sifting lightens and removes lumps, but does not mix). Then, combine wet and dry ingredients quickly and bake immediately.

Ingredients:
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 4 tsp baking powder
- 3 tbsp sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 1⁄3 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- 1 egg
- ½ cup milk
- 1 egg white
- 1 tbsp coarse sugar

Directions:
- In a large bowl combine flour with baking powder, sugar and salt. Stir mixture with a whisk for about 1 minute to combine thoroughly. Cut in butter until it’s in tiny bits. Stir in cranberries.
- Mix egg with milk and add to flour mixture. Gather mixture together and gently knead just until mixture forms a ball.
- On a floured work surface, pat dough into a round that’s approximately 10-inches (26 cm) in diameter. Cut into 8 wedges.
- Transfer scones to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush with egg white and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
- Bake in a preheated 450F oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until lightly golden. Makes 8 scones

photo credit: my own

PORK LAB

2011-02-01T14:28:00.000-08:00

Pork is one those delicious meats that so many people forget about, but it is truly a great alternative to the classic beef or chicken.

Today is our Fundamentals of Butchery lab we butchered a pork rack and shoulder!

Pork leg - skin on and all!

Pork cutlets for a scallopini

A pork roast - trussed (to tie up, in this case secure the meat for when it is cooking)

Pork is really one of the meats that I grew up on - I think we had pork tenderloin (PT as we called it) in our house every week. For a really great way to eat pork tenderloin - try using this marinade! Marinate the meat for as long as possible - but an hour or two will do!

My mom's famous PT marinade!

Ingredients:
1/3 to 1/2 cup of soya sauce - low sodium if possible

1/4 cup of vegetable/canola/corn oil

1/4 cup sherry

8 cloves of garlic peeled and sliced

a whole bunch of ginger - peeled and sliced

salt and pepper

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

Directions:

Put it all in a jar and shake it like crazy!!

For a complete meal, serve with some crisp green beans tossed in butter, rice or we liked a little sweet potato on the side and a nice loaf of baguette warmed. For a healthier option, try making a warm salad of pork tenderloin (slices on top of the salad).

Cooking tips for pork tenderloin:

In the oven - 25-35 minutes at 350 degrees F

On the BBQ - On medium with a hot hot grill - 8/9 minutes per side. Then a loose foil tent to cover for 2-4 minutes to let the juices retract

Photo credits: my own

DISCUSSION DAY #2

2011-01-27T17:35:00.000-08:00

Hello my lovely readers!

Discussion Day is back! We had SUCH a great turnout in December so I thought it would be a great thing to continue!

So please take a minute to comment or share your thoughts on today's discussion day.

Today's discussion question:

"Eating Local" is a term you hear everywhere these days! From TV shows to chef ideologies to the changes on menu, "localism" seems to be the new trend. As a budding chef I feel knowing your suppliers and learning to use great product from the province you live in (for me Ontario) is such an important element in today's cooking world, so for me - learning and loving local is key!

Does eating local affect your life at all? Do you eat local, do you support and what do you think of the localism movement?!

Let me know and let your fellow blog readers learn a thing or two from you!

TOP 10 NEW SANDWICHES

2011-01-26T13:04:00.000-08:00

Thanks to my excellent Facebook creeping skills I recently discovered a post from a blog ENDLESS SIMMER about America's Top 10 New Sandwiches. Out of complete curiosity I decided to check it out and was WOWED with the crazy sandwiches and pictures to boot. So for all you sandwich lovers, this article is a must read - but for now here are some of the sandwich names & pictures!

The Maple from Meat Cheese Bread, Portland (Oregon)
"Two hot-from-the-oven slices of maple-currant bread pudding loaded with savory sausage, chipotle cheddar cheese and tangy shavings of fresh fennel."

Brussels Sprouts Sandwich from No. 7 Sub, New York
Brussels sprouts, granny smith apples, and crushed peanuts on a sandwich roll

The #1 New Sandwich....

The New Luther from CurchKey, Washington
"A house-made brioche donut is glazed in savory maple-chicken jus and topped with warm pieces of oven-baked pecans. While that sounds like a meal already, the brioche is cut in half and stuffed with a hunk of buttermilk fried chicken and wedges of applewood smoked bacon."

Does this not sound like a heart attack waiting to happen! Crazyness! So out there it is only available BY REQUEST (speakeasy styles) on Sundays!

To read the rest of the article go to :
http://www.endlesssimmer.com/2011/01/20/americas-top-10-new-sandwiches/

What sandwich would you TRY?

photo credit: endless summer

BUTCHERY CLASS

2011-01-26T12:55:00.000-08:00

Hello readers! Sorry for my lack of posting lately. I have finally started Chef School at George Brown and I have just been quite busy!

I thought I would share a photo with you - from my FUNDAMENTALS OF BUTCHERY class. Last week was butchering a chicken - this week a lamb shoulder. We had to cut into stew meat size, uniform shapes of course! Here is the great photo from the lab - courtesy of Carl, one of my classmates!

PARSNIPS

2011-01-20T19:18:00.000-08:00

A winter vegetable I just can't get enough of right now is the PARSNIP! A root vegetable similar to a carrot yet paler and sweeter. Prior to the staple potato the parsnip was actually the main source of starch in diets as they had a long storage life, a sweet flavour and nutritional value. Parsnips grew in Europe and in Roman times parsnips were believed to be an aphrodisiac and a luxury item for the aristocracy. The Europeans brought parsnips to the United States in the 16th century, but to this day they are still not as popular as the carrot - although they are truly superb.

Interestingly, parsnips are NOT grown in warm clients, as frost is actually what helps develop their flavour - the cold converts the starch to sugar, sweetening the parsnip and mellowing the flavour.

My favourite ways to enjoy parsnips are either roasted or in a soup! Parsnip soup is one of my ultimate favourites!

Try Jamie Oliver's Spicy Parsnip Soup!

Ingredients: Serves 4
- olive oil
- knob of butter
- 1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
- a thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 6 parsnips, peeled and chopped into chunks
- 500ml milk
- 1 litre vegetable stock
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 fresh red chili, deseeded and finely sliced
- optional: a handful of fresh coriander leaves
- crusty bread, to serve

Directions
- Heat a splash of olive oil and the butter in a large saucepan. Add the onion, garlic, ginger and garam masala. Gently fry for around 10 minutes, until the onions are soft and sweet.
- Drop in the chopped parsnip and stir together so that everything gets coated in the oil and flavours. Pour in the milk and stock, season well and bring to the boil. Turn down the heat and simmer for 30 minutes with a lid on.
- After half an hour, check that the parsnips are cooked by sticking a knife in. If you’re happy, remove them from the heat and carefully whiz up using a hand blender or liquidizer. Taste the soup to see if it needs a little more salt or pepper.
- Serve with a sprinkling of sliced red chili, a few coriander leaves if you like, and a good chunk of crusty bread.
- Tip: Use coconut milk instead of regular milk for a twist.

To roast parsnips cover peeled and sliced parsnips with oil, salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet at 400 degrees for about 35 minutes, or until they turn golden brown with the roasted look!

photo credit: jamie oliver & google images

PRAISE FOR TORONTO'S THE BLACK HOOF

2011-01-16T16:00:00.000-08:00

The Black Hoof (and Hoof Cafe) of Toronto are turning into the trendy spots to go for meats - serving up rarely seen items like HORSE and other great meats including, prosciutto, jamon iberico, charcuterie, pork, duck, pork belly, bone marrow and fois gras!

Recently Gordon Ramsey dined there and in an interview with Food Network about new trends, praised the restaurant for their ability to use a unique ingredient, and make it wonderful!

For more on The Black Hoof visit: http://theblackhoof.com/

FOOD TROTTER #2

2011-01-13T18:34:00.000-08:00

Here is my second post with the blog I write for - FOOD TROTTER.

Blog post title: NOVA SCOTIA = BEST SEAFOOD

Reminiscing on my Wolfville days! Enjoy!!

http://foodtrotter.com/nova-scotia-seafood-paradise/3666/

BUCA BUCA BUCA!

2011-01-12T18:23:00.000-08:00

I am just beyond excited to post about BUCA Restaurant in Toronto! I have been DYING to go here and my I was finally dazzled by all that BUCA has to offer!

A new addition to Toronto's restaurant scene, and voted one of EnRoute's top 10 new restaurants in Canada, BUCA has taken Toronto by storm - booked solid! I luckily squeezed in last Thursday with over a week's notice for a reservation! Someone must be doing something right!

BUCA is just off King St. (at Portland Ave) down a little alleyway in a historic building's old boiler room. The space is incredibly cool, fitting right into the King St. vibe! Old wooden tables, a glass wine cellar, open concept kitchen, brick walls and hanging lumieres give the space a beautiful rustic feel. We were seated right in front of the fabulous wine cellar and our server was just excellent. The speed of the service was impeccable, and a relaxing 2 hour dinner just somehow flew by!

Before we even opened the menu for the food we saw the "date stamp," it has each day in order to incorporate the daily specials into the menu! Very cool. The menu is edgy Italian. The usual meats and cheeses to start, very simple fresh salads, an array of pastas, meat and fish and then some great "bianca" (white) & "al pomodoro" (red sauce) pizzas (which have little silver scissors to cut it up)!

To start, charcuterie of course! Three meats, three cheeses. Some of the best pairings I have had. Each meat and cheese is paired with an accompaniment, and the detail that went into each of those pairings is truly incredible. The taleggio cheese was the star of the show for me!

Another must have to start - the "nodini" - warm bread knots with olive oil, garlic, rosemary and sea salt. I could have popped those little knots all night!

To balance out the heavy meats and cheeses, the ever refreshing "arance e ravanelli" - naval and blood orange salad with heirloom radish, red onion, 30-year vinegar, olive oil and basil. This salad was a perfect combination of sweet, sour, and texture. A little crunch from the radish, just lovely!

Before heading to BUCA I had read quite a few reviews just to get a sense of what the best main dishes were and the duck ragu kept popping up everywhere! However the minute I opened the menu my heart was stolen by the "mezze lune" pasta - sugar pumpkin filled pasta with taleggio fonduta, pregiato truffle and toasted pumpkin seeds. Pure bliss. What an incredible winter dish, from the pumpkin to the creamy taleggio sauce, topped with what else? TRUFFLES! By I convinced my date to go for the "bigoli" - hand cranked duck egg pasta with duck ragu, mascarpone and basil. This was a serious meat sauce, for all you general meat sauce lovers out there, this once TAKES the cake! (Also voted best pasta dish in Toronto by Toronto Life!!) Such a light pasta, and the mascarpone cheese is so light as it is that the dish just felt like it was floating on air!

To finish it up dessert of course. There was no way I was skipping dessert after a meal like that. I was so conflicted as to what to get - so I had to ask the waiter to weigh in, and the dessert of choice - panna cotta! Goat yogurt and vanilla panna cotta with red wine poached pear granita and concord grape "mosto cotto" served with an orange and semolina biscotti. What a mouthful in itself! I have to say the biscotti were quite dry but the panna cotta was the most creamy dessert I think I have ever had. It was perfectly smooth, chilled and with a crunch cool flavoured granita on top, the combo was a smash success! (Note: granita is a frozen Italian ice dessert)

The meal finally ended, much to my dismay, I could have stayed there all night. But BUCA fully lives up to the expectation. Rob Gentile has done a wonderful job with the place, with his training from mentor Mark McEwan fairing him well. So for all you Italian lovers wanting real, fresh, simple yet complex Italian food, this is the place for you. A great spot for parties and groups, BUCA should be at the top of your restaurant list! BUON APPETITO!

photo credit: my own and google images

TASTES OF TOMORROW

2011-01-11T15:10:00.000-08:00

I have officially started day one of my Culinary Management program at the George Brown Chef School!

One of the perks of starting here was learning about the student run Tastes of Tomorrow program.The program is run by the students at the Chef school and the club is funded by the membership fees and admissions at all the events! Fees are $35 per school year, or $10 at the door. Membership and attendance to all the events are open to anyone!

The three main components of the club are, "Education, Networking and Social Awareness."

Education

Invite Toronto’s best chefs and culinary experts to offer their personal and professional stories and demonstrate their talents
Organize culinary related fieldtrips

Networking

Develop the skills necessary to establish professional relationships of the highest standard
Hold symposiums where students can be inspired by the influential leaders of our community
Collaborate with already existing Associations and work towards common goals

Social Awareness

Promote awareness around such issues as food sustainability, food history and diversity
Showcase conscientious local producers who’s businesses are helping to promote social change
Come together to help people in our community in need, using food as our vehicle to communicate our support

This coming Thursday, one of the culinary wizard in the Toronto food scene - Rob Gentile of BUCA Restaurant will be the featured guest at Tastes of Tomorrow! Rob is one of Toronto's most talked about chefs right now, after training under his mentor Mark McEwan, Rob's restaurant BUCA has skyrocketed to the top restaurant lists in the city and country! Interested in attending? RSVP to tastes@georgebrown.ca ... After just eating at BUCA last week and having enjoyed one of the best meals of my life - I could not be more excited for this event!

For more on upcoming events visit: http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/group.php?gid=11307262142

photo credit: taste of tomorrow & mcleans.ca

WINTERLICIOUS UPDATE

2011-01-09T16:34:00.000-08:00

Don't forget Winterlicious starts January 28th! But the day that restaurants begin accepting reservations is January 13 - so don't forget! January 11/12 for all you American Express users!

For those of you wondering what the top spots to hit this year might be? Check out Toronto Life's article - "12 best bets for Winterlicious 2011: our chief critic goes through the menus so you don't have to."

Enjoy choosing and happy eating!!

PORCHETTA & CO.

2011-01-07T12:37:00.000-08:00

Twitter sometimes really is just the best, because it is through people you are following that you discover really cool new places - and for me, this was Porchetta & Co. I started following them before they had opened, and have been waiting patiently for the opening to try out their mouthwatering porchetta sandwiches! With the business of the Christmas season finally over, I just got there yesterday, and I am so happy that I did. I ended up going on a solo mission after my orientation for George Brown Chef School but after raving to my friends for the past day, I think there will be many more visits to come!

The place is small and specializes stricly in porchetta based sandwiches. They have a porchetta plate, soups, delicious sides and great sauce&toppings for the super simple yet flavour filled sandwich.

Simple and real food, former Canoe and Drake Hotel chef Nick auf der Mauer knows what he is doing. Focusing on one exciting ingredient keeps it simple yet fabulous. The porchetta filling is a trio of tender pork shoulder, salty prosciutto and fatty cured belly. You could literally hear the crack from the crispy exterior being broken as the sandwich was being made. Talk about one small little noise knowing how to excite someone for the delicious lunch to come!

The sandwhich I ended up getting was topped with rapini and their truffle sauce. Truffles, me? Duh! But there are so many other great topping combinations that I will be sure to try!

Porchetta & Co. is a real shop doing what they know best - porchetta. There is a lot of love and soul in the place, you just feel it the minute you walk in!

All you meat lovers head on over to Dundas West for a truly new sandwich experience. Keep up the amazing work!!

Porchetta & Co.

825 Dundas Street West

Toronto, ON

(647)352-6611

photo credit: porchetto&co twitter/facebook and my own images

JAMIE KENNEDY ORDER OF CANADA

2011-01-04T18:00:00.000-08:00

Another fabulous congratulations is in order. To Canadian Chef Jamie Kennedy, who has been named to the Order of Canada which is one of our country's highest civilian honours.. An extremely high achievement and well deserved!

To hear Jamie talk about receiving his award listen here at CBC's Metro Morning.

http://www.cbc.ca/metromorning/2011/01/awarded-order.html

photo credit: the national post

JOANNE KATES' TOP 10 OF 2010

2011-01-04T17:56:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to all my readers! Hope you had a fabulous night to ring in 2011!

Just thought I would share with you Joanne Kates' (Globe and Mail Life columnist) top 10 restaurants of 2010.

1. Hashimoto (6 Garamond Ct)
2. Hoof Cafe (923 Dundas St West)
3. Guu Izakaya (398 Church St)
4. Centro (2472 Yonge St)
5. Malena (120 Avenue Road)
6. Scarpetta (Thompson Hotel)
7. Frank's Kitchen (588 College St.)
8. Ici Bistro (538 Manning Ave.)
9. Niwatei (3160 Steeles Ave. East)
10. Boehmer (93 Ossington Ave.)

Congratulations to all!

What restaurants have you been too?! I'm looking forward to trying Hoof Cafe and Boehmer!

ALL ABOUT ARTICHOKES

2010-12-29T18:32:00.000-08:00

I just turned on, what else but the Food Network to Ina Garten making roasted artichokes and it reminded me to blog about artichokes as an ingredient! I am in Florida for the week, and a typical dish down here found at a ton of the restaurants is a whole artichoke (hot or cold) served with warm melted butter or a dijonaise sauce. It is truly one of my favourite things to eat down here, and it is one of the only places I do - making it extra special!

The artichoke has many names and is called the globe artichoke, French artichoke and green artichoke, deriving from the northern Italian word articiocco. The artichoke is a perennial in the thistle group of the sunflower family and is native to the Mediterranean. The edible artichoke is actually the plant's flower bud. The vegetable is available 12 months a year, but their peak seasons are fall and spring. Incredibly - there are 140 artichoke varieties worldwide, but only 40 are grown commercially. Most artichokes grown today are cultivated in France, Italy, Spain, and California.

Here are two ways for making artichoke. The first, how to cook an artichoke which you would then eat hot and dip in butter or a dijon/mayo mix. The second is Martha Stewart's easy Artichoke dip.

What's your favourite way to eat artichoke? It is certainly not an ingredient you see all the time!

How to Cook an Artichoke
1. If the artichokes have little thorns on the end of the leaves, take a kitchen scissors and cut of the thorned tips of all of the leaves. This step is mostly for aesthetics as the thorns soften with cooking and pose no threat to the person eating the artichoke.
2. Slice about 3/4 inch to an inch off the tip of the artichoke.

3. Pull off any smaller leaves towards the base and on the stem.
4. Cut excess stem, leaving up to an inch on the artichoke. The stems tend to be more bitter than the rest of the artichoke, but some people like to eat them. Alternatively you can cut off the stems and peel the outside layers which is more fibrous and bitter and cook the stems along with the artichokes.
5. Rinse the artichokes in running cold water.
6. In a large pot, put a couple inches of water, a clove of garlic, a slice of lemon, and a bay leaf (this adds wonderful flavor to the artichokes). Insert a steaming basket. Add the artichokes. Cover. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer. Cook for 25 to 45 minutes or until the outer leaves can easily be pulled off. Note: artichokes can also be cooked in a pressure cooker (about 15-20 minutes cooking time). Cooking time depends on how large the artichoke is, the larger, the longer it takes to cook.

Martha Stewart's Artichoke Dip

Ingredients: Serves 8
- 2 cans (14 ounces each) artichoke hearts in water, rinsed, drained, and coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup light mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped
- 1 scallion, minced, plus more for garnish
- Crudites (such as raw pepper wedges) or whole-wheat pita chips, for serving

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 425. In a food processor, place half the artichokes, the mayonnaise, cup Parmesan, lemon juice, and garlic. Process until smooth.

- Add scallion and remaining artichokes; pulse once to combine. Transfer mixture to a 1-quart baking dish. Top with remaining tablespoon Parmesan.

- Bake until golden and bubbling, 30 to 35 minutes. Garnish with scallion, and serve with crudites or pita chips.

photo credit: California Artichoke Advisory Board

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2010-12-26T06:28:00.000-08:00

With non-stop Christmas festivities I have been a little lacking on the posting lately, sorry!

Just a quick MERRY CHRISTMAS message to all my readers!!

Have fun boxing day shopping for those braving the malls!

PANETTONE MILANESE

2010-12-21T12:56:00.000-08:00

Last night I was watching Food Networks “Best Thing I Ever Ate: Christmas Special.” This show is a bit different than the typical Food Network shows as it has the chefs telling us where they like to eat and the best thing they ever ate (each episode changes it could be chocolate dish, appetizer, eggs etc). So last night was the Christmas special and Giada de Laurentiis, Food Network’s Italian beauty was talking about her Christmas staple – panettone. Panettone is a traditional Christmas & New Year sweet bread loaf that originated in Milan. It is enjoyed in Italy, Malta, Brazil, Switzerland, and South America, and is one of the symbols of the city of Milan. It truly is a Christmas dinner staple. Giada regaled us of what panettone meant to her, but she also told us that instead of making this difficult cake she likes to head to Emporio Rulli in California for this “blissful” dessert.

According to Rulli, their panettone recipe is a century old recipe handed down to Chef Rulli during his apprenticeship in Italy. The knowledge and technique needed to make this 16th century leavened cake from Milan has been passed down from panettone maestri to their apprentices for generations! The cake is made up of fine wheat flour, creamery butter, egg yolks, golden raisins and Italian candied orange peels. There is a 50% butter to flour ration, it is soft, flakey, butter and delicious! The cake is about 12-15cm high, and when removed from the oven is hung upside to ensure that it doesn’t collapse! The “proofing process” ensures that this cake maintains its distinctive fluffy characteristics! (Proofing process means letting the dough rise high enough in order to get the height on the cake. The whole process takes 5 hours!!)

This yummy Italian dessert is one that our neighbours have given us every year at Christmas and something I always look forward too. Perfect with a cup of coffee or espresso, or even turned into a bread pudding, panettone is a wonderful Christmas dessert!

photo credit: google images

WINTERLICIOUS 2011

2010-12-21T10:35:00.000-08:00

The Winterlicious 2011 restaurant names and menus are finally up!

Winterlicious is: "Toronto's favourite winter gastronomic celebration again offers TWO popular programs for you to savour. Discover new favourite restaurants by sampling mouth watering three-course prix fixe menus at 150 of Toronto's top restaurants. Food gurus will want to explore the culinary event series of 14 unique foodie experiences featuring diverse cuisine and notable chefs. Just in time for holiday gift-giving, culinary event tickets go on sale December 16, 2010"

Check out their main site and scope out where you want to head this Jan/Feb.

Reservations will begin to be accepted on January 13th, but if you have an AMEX you can call on either the 11th or 12th for early booking reservations!

Get all your Winterlicious details here: http://www.toronto.ca/special_events/winterlicious/2011/index.htm

photo credit: winterlicious

EGGNOGGED

2010-12-20T09:01:00.000-08:00

The ugly Christmas sweater parties we have all been to would not be complete without the spiked eggnog! A traditional holiday drink turned commercial has taken over the #1 place for holiday drinks! Variations of the drink are seen everywhere now, eggnog lattes from Starbucks, eggnog pudding, custard etc from chefs around town, its everywhere!

When I was younger around Christmas the family would always have out the eggnog and I just remember thinking how horrid it looked and that there was noooo chance I would be trying that stuff! It wasn’t until last year that I finally tried, and then loved the eggnog! But I mean how could you not, cream + eggs + cinnamon + nutmeg, hellooo!

Eggnog is actually said to have originated in Medieval England. There are two theories behind the drinks name. The first, “nog” is said to stem from the term “noggin” – a Middle English term used to describe a small, carved wooden mug used to serve alcohol. The second is that eggnog derived from the term “egg and grog”, a common Colonial term used for the drink made with rum. It was eventually shortened to “egg’n’grog” and then “eggnog.” Eggnog is said to have made its way across the pond in the 18th century.

Here is a recipe for a quick and easy eggnog you can make at home, from Alton Brown of the Food Network.

Eggnog
Ingredients: Yields 6-7 cups

- 4 egg yolks
- 1/3 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
- 1 pint whole milk

- 1 cup heavy cream

- 3 ounces bourbon (but here I would use rum instead!)
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 4 egg whites*

Directions:

- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Add the milk, cream, bourbon and nutmeg and stir to combine.

- Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat to soft peaks. With the mixer still running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.

- Whisk the egg whites into the mixture. Chill and serve.

Cook's Note: For cooked eggnog, follow procedure below:

- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Set aside.

- In a medium saucepan, over high heat, combine the milk, heavy cream and nutmeg and bring just to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and gradually temper the hot mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. Then return everything to the pot and cook until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F. Remove from the heat, stir in the bourbon, pour into a medium mixing bowl, and set in the refrigerator to chill.

- In a medium mixing bowl, beat the egg whites to soft peaks. With the mixer running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Whisk the egg whites into the chilled mixture

*RAW EGG WARNING

Food Network Kitchens suggest caution in consuming raw and lightly cooked eggs due to the slight risk of salmonella or other food-borne illness. To reduce this risk, we recommend you use only fresh, properly refrigerated, clean grade A or AA eggs with intact shells, and avoid contact between the yolks or whites and the shell.

photo credit: google images

ROASTED FINGERLING POTATOES W/ WATERCRESS & HORSERADISH

2010-12-17T07:02:00.000-08:00

Mashed potatoes are usually the go-to potato side dish of choice, but approaching the holidays I wanted to share with you a great roasted potato dish that is sure to wow your family and guests! A few weeks ago we were at my cousin’s birthday dinner and my aunt made this lovely dish, I completely forgot to share with you – but here I am now, and how timely with the holiday season.

The recipe is roasted fingerling potato salad with watercress and horseradish dressing. The thing I love about this dish is that the potatoes are wonderfully roasted with good kosher salt and pepper, giving them a great exterior texture and crunch, but the dish overall remains light not heavy, like potatoes usually are. The watercress gives it a nice airy sort of feel and the horseradish in the dressing gives the dish a nice bite. I love horseradish, but I know a lot of the time it is too strong for some – this is great as the dressing has sour cream and red wine vinegar to cut that typical harshness found in pure horseradish. Fingerling potatoes are really cool in texture and shape, quite different then a baking potato. They give the dish some life and they are really just a fun looking food, that looks great on a plate!

Roasted Fingerling Potato Salad with Watercress and Horseradish Dressing (serves 4)

From Earth to Table: Seasonal Recipes from an Organic Farm (by Jeff Crump & Bettina Schormann)

Ingredients:

Potatoes

- 2 lbs fingerling potatoes (make sure to scrub them)

- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

- 3 tbsp dry white wine

- 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

- 1 tsp salt (kosher or sea salt if you prefer)

- 2 bunches watercress

Dressing

- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

- ¼ cup sour cream

- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar

- 1 tbsp freshly grated horseradish root
- Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 450 degrees

- Toss potatoes in oil, wine, thyme and salt

- Spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake until very tender (about 40 minutes)

- Prepare dressing: whish together oil, sour cream, vinegar, horseradish, season to taste with salt and pepper.

- Add warm potatoes to dressing and toss to coat

- Top with watercress.

photo credit: my own and google images

GILEAD CAFE + BISTRO

2010-12-16T11:25:00.000-08:00

Jamie Kennedy. If you are Canadian and love food you have to know who this man is. A Canadian culinary star, Jamie Kennedy has been a large part of the food scene in Toronto (and Canada) for years, running a slew of restaurants, starting with Palmerston's. (He now does catering too, so if you are looking for someone fabulous for a special event check him out!) Two of my siblings are home for the holidays, so for a fun Christmas treat, the three of us and my dad decided to go out for lunch! My dad had been here before and knows how much I adore new places so he decided to take us to Jamie’s Gilead Cafe + Bistro.

Tucked down a little street in Toronto’s Corktown, you are walking into a café full of passion, Canadian flare and love for local and delicious food. The atmosphere is extremely cozy and inviting, I really just didn’t want to leave! At night the place is transformed into an intimate dining room, a perfect place for two or for a fun smaller group party. There is no menu – it is only written on the chalkboard, and the specials change daily depending on local produce. The food is seasonal local modern Canadian cuisine with French influence.

The food is fun, bistro rustic lunchtime (which I’m sure is converted perfectly for brunch and dinner) fare, from the typical crispy JK frites to a beautiful Ploughman’s lunch with house made pâtés and Niagara Gold cheese. The food is simple yet complex all at the same time, leaving you wanting more. With the café walls covered in jarred to-go preserves, beautiful loaves on rustic breads on display and a bounty of cheeses, pâtés and desserts on the counter, I think it is impossible to leave there empty handed. With a dinner party on the Sunday night horizon, I was thinking appetizers. I walked away with a great circle loaf of bread, the Niagara gold cheese and a great pâté Oh and I also had to have a jar of the beet soup – the vibrant fuscia colour was seriously calling my name, and I do love beets.

Our lunch menu yesterday consisted of quite a few sharing plates. A simple winter salad, the Ploughman’s lunch filled with cheese, pâtés grainy mustard, pickles and fresh bread, and the “special” poutine – JK frites with cheese curds and then pulled pork and cider vinegar. I also had the celeriac soup, so winter, so rustic, SO delicious. Nothing is better then a warming soup on a cold December day and this one just hit the spot.

So if you are looking for a cozy, cool and food loving place for dinner, lunch or brunch, Gilead Cafe is for you. The atmosphere alone is enough to keep you going back, and with Jamie in house frequently – who doesn’t want to see Canada’s all-star chef in action?!

Jamie Kennedy et moi!

Gilead Cafe and Bistro

4 Gilead Place

Toronto, ON M5A 3C9

(647) 288-0680

www.jamiekennedy.ca

photo credit: my own

FOOD TROTTER

2010-12-15T07:06:00.000-08:00

Hello readers! I have some exciting news....I am now a contributer on the website Food Trotter: Travelling the World on a Full Stomach. I will be writing articles for them about once a month about travel as it relates to food.

"Food Trotter is dedicated to discovering the cultural wealth of the world through global food exploration. We aim to promote cultural diversity and understanding, bringing the world closer together and affecting positive change one dish at a time."
Check out my first article: A Food Trip to Greece – Emma’s Greek Food for Beginners

http://foodtrotter.com/a-food-trip-to-greece-emmas-greek-food-for-beginners/3145/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+FoodTrotter+%28Food+Trotter%29

CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL

2010-12-14T07:08:00.000-08:00

Chipotle Mexican Grills are popping up all over the place, and with a million dollar donation pledge to Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution I have a feeling they are going to just soar! Chipotle Mexican Grill started out as a little Mexican joint by Steve their CEO in Denver, Colorado 1993. It has seriously evolved and is now located across the United States and starting to take rise in Canada.

Chipotle is truly amazing “fast food”. Their motto? Food with Integrity. “Our commitment to finding the very best ingredients raised with respect for the animals, the environment and the farmers.” What a great foundation this is in today’s food world. It is this motto that is truly separating them apart from the pack. Chipotle uses sustainably raised food, meat from animals raised without antibiotics or added hormones, and dairy from cows raised without use of synthetic hormones. They are using real meat and fresh locally and organic sourced ingredients! Now that is what I am talking about!

Chipotle offers a variety of Mexican delights: burritos, burrito bowl, crispy tacos, soft tacos and a Mexican salad. Toppings include cilantro-lime rice, black beans, fresh guac, sour cream, 4 different types of salsa, a corn salsa, lettuce, “fajita” onions and peppers with your choice of meats: braised carnitas or barbacoa or adobo-marinated and grilled chicken or steak, and chipotle-honey vinaigrette for the salads.

Chipotle really is delicious and fresh fast food. I know, who would have thought the word “fast food” would be in a sentence like that. But check it out, you won’t be disappointed! Locations in Toronto are at Yonge & Eglinton and Yonge & Dundas. Check them out online at http://www.chipotle.com/

photo credit: chipotle.com

SIMPLE BISTRO

2010-12-13T12:21:00.000-08:00

Simple Bistro is delicately perfect. A favourite French Bistro of my mum’s, we went here this weekend for a Sunday brunch. French Bistro’s are a plenty in Toronto but Simple Bistro does it so well, giving the feeling of eating in the streets of Paris at a cozy bistro with some light bites of French classics such as egg, cheese, pear and vinaigrettes.

Located on the Mt. Pleasant strip Simple Bistro is neighbours to quite a few French food eats. With a simple exterior of black with “Simple Bistro” in plain black type across the front on a beige strip, it just looks charming and inviting. Once inside, the bistro is simple. Wooden tables and chairs accompanied by a mulled red seat cushion, the place just has that charming bistro-feel. After too much chatter and a few glasses of wine we finally got to the menu! And what a tough decision it was, each dish just sounded perfect in its own way, and it was so tough to decide between a favourite egg brunch or a lovely steak frites. Three of us decided on the crèpe du jour, filled with mushrooms, truffled scrambled eggs and chèvre. Truffles, mushrooms, chèvre….need I say more??

My mum had the quintessential steak frites. A beautiful piece of striploin cooked rare with horseradish butter, red wine jus, frites and chipotle mayonnaise. Every component of this just worked numbers together. The horseradish butter was a great twist from a typical herbed butter and the red wine jus was a perfect softening agent for the crispy bistro frites which were then luckily submerged into a chipotle wonder.

And to start off the meal we all split a “Winter Salad” of Belgian endive, raisins, walnuts, Benedictine Blue cheese (Quebec's answer to Stilton), and pear with a cassis vinaigrette. I have never had such crisp endive that held its shape just right.

Each of the plates we were presented just screamed bistro elegance. For a lovely brunch, lunch or dinner á la French bistro head to Simple Bistro, un bijou dans la coeur de Mt. Pleasant (a gem in the heart of the Mt Pleasant strip)!!

Simple Bistro

619 Mount Pleasant Road

Toronto, ON M4S 2M5

(416) 483-8933

http://www.simplebistro.com/

photo credit: my own & simplebistro.com

RED FIFE

2010-12-13T08:17:00.000-08:00

I had quite a few culinary adventures this weekend, and have been searching around the internet today for Christmas lunch places and I keep coming across the words “red fife.” I finally looked it up after not knowing what it was all weekend. So if you have ever seen this on a menu, you now know what it is!

Red Fife is a bread wheat, Canada’s oldest to be exact. It was introduced by David Fife and his family who began growing it on his farm in 1842 in Peterborough, Ontario. The kernel was red and Fife was the name of the farmer which is how the name came to be. This procedure for naming the wheat was typical during this time period. Red Fife is renowed as a fine milling and baking wheat and set Canadian wheat standards for more than 40 years.

One legend states that a load of wheat grown in Ukraine was on a ship in the Glasgow harbour. A friend of Farmer Fife dropped his hat into the red-coloured wheat, collecting a few seeds in the hatband, which he then shipped off to Farmer Fife. The wheat grew. The family cow managed to eat all the wheat heads except for one, which Mrs Fife salvaged. This was the beginning of Red Fife wheat in Canada.

eg., Jamie Kennedy’s Gilead Bistro serves “Red Fife Sourdough Bread and Butter”

Now that you know what Red Fife is I am sure you will start noticing it more often - this is always how it happens! Enjoy Canada's finest wheat!

photo credit: google images

EDIBLE HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

2010-12-09T07:09:00.000-08:00

I love the Toronto Life - especially for posts like this.

14 edible present ideas for holiday gifts. They have a handful of great selections, like ordering a Poilâne-style miche. A heart loaf of bread based on the world-renowed Poilâne bakery is Paris. (Holt Renfew flies in this bread daily from Paris for their "tartines" on their cafe menu).

Or like a "O crostoli tree" - a four tiered Venetian dessert delicacy maked of thick flaky pastries (flavours of vanilla, raspberry, cinnamon and chocolate) dusted with icing sugar.

For more on these great gift ideas check out:

http://www.torontolife.com/daily/daily-dish/food-porn/2010/12/08/holiday-gift-guide-14-edible-present-ideas/

photo credit: Renée Suen via Toronto Life

THANKS!

2010-12-09T06:53:00.000-08:00

Thanks to everyone who commented on discussion day! We had some really great answers and it was so fun to hear all of your holiday stories. If you haven't commented yet - go for it!

More blogging to come later today!

DISCUSSION DAY

2010-12-08T08:19:00.000-08:00

Hello my lovely readers! Emma's Eatery is going to try out something new, a DISCUSSION DAY- once a month. I really want to get some connection and chatter going on here on my blog. I get so much feedback verbally but I would love to hear what you have to say and to help encourage you to start a discussion among fellow readers, sharing your own ideas, not just mine!

So please take a minute to comment or share your thoughts on today's discussion day.

Today's discussion question:

Holiday's are special and different for everyone. How does food play a role in making your holidays special? Is it the preparation of food? Enjoying it with your family? Sharing it with friends? etc. Share your favourite stories, recipes or ideas here!

Let me know and let your fellow blog readers learn a thing or two from you!

PERFECT HOLIDAY BAKING PACKAGING

2010-12-08T07:01:00.000-08:00

For all you baking gift givers out there, President's Choice has launched a perfect gift wrap tin for baked goods. The Baker's Gift Loaf Pan includes six good looking cardboard loaf pans lined with silicone coated paper (meaning they can go into an oven up to 390 fahrenheit) and a festive red ribbon.

Simplicity at its finest: you can bake your loaf in the pan, let it cool and then tie a pretty bow around it and voila! A perfect holiday or hostess/host gift ready to go from your oven to their hands!
$9.99 from President's Choice

NOMA: A TIME AND PLACE IN NORDIC CUISINE

2010-12-07T08:03:00.000-08:00

Looking for a great gift this holiday season, or even just a fabulous coffee table book – look no further than Rene Redzep’s Noma: Time and Place in Nordic Cuisine. Voted one of the top ten new best cookbooks this year, Noma is certainly making noise for itself. The Globe Mail said of the book: “the most stunning, interesting, thoughtful cookbook most foodies will never cook from.” Which is why it brings me to offering this book up as something for the coffee table as the book is filled with jaw-dropping photos of each dish/

Redzepi has been widely talked about for his way to re-invent Nordic cuisine. His Copenhagen restaurant, Noma was recently recognized as the best in the world by San Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurant awards 2010. Redzepi uses his edge of gourmet cuisine, his unrelenting creativity, remarkable level of craftsmanship and complete knowledge of his Nordic produce to create such masterpieces. He previously worked at elBulli and the French Laundry – so you know he must be good. The book features nine different essays describing Redzepi’s relationship with his restaurant’s closest collaborators and local producers.

His exquisite concoctions along with his unique ingredients, local suppliers and beautiful landscapes of the Nordic region bring a wonderful new element to cooking and subsequently the way one reads and admires a cookbook.

photo credit: google images

CINNAMON

2010-12-06T11:24:00.000-08:00

What better sent to remind you of the holidays than cinnamon! Cinnamon buns, apple cider, dessert, donuts and tea – perfect ways to incorporate cinnamon into every day cooking - especially at Christmas!

Cinnamon is a spice that is taken from the inner bark of several trees in the genus cinnamomum. The trees are native to South East Asia and take back to 2800 BC. The largest producer of cinnamon today is Sri Lanka who accounts for about 90% of the world’s cinnamon! Harvesting cinnamon is kind of cool – the trees are grown for two years then coppiced (tree is cut down to near ground level to encourage new shoots to be produced). Dozens of new shoots will form from the roots and then the branches are processed by scrapping the outer bark off, beating the branch evenly with a hammer to loosen the inner bark. The inner bark is then pried out into long roles, only the inner bark is used as it is the thinnest part, the bark can also only be processed when still wet!

There are a few varieties of cinnamon out there today:
Cinnamomum verum – “true cinnamon” from Sri Lanka
Cinnamomum burmanni – Indonesian cinnamon

Cinamomum loureiroi – Saigon or Vietnamese cinnamon

Cinamomum aromaticum – Cassia or Chinese cinnamon

Nothing beats walking into a house of a snowy day to the warming and soothing sent of cinnamon. Pure coziness and warmth is what cinnamon is to me!

Here are some fun ways to incorporate cinnamon into your cooking other than the typical cinnamon buns!

Cinnamon Honey Butter by Ina Garten
A lovely spread for toast in the morning, brioche, pancakes, scones or even as a rub for a chicken breast!

Ingredients

- 1/4 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature

- 3 tablespoons good honey

- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

- Combine the butter, honey, cinnamon, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Serve at room temperature.

Makes 3/4 of a cup

Spiced Apple Cider by Food Network Canada

Ingredients

- 2 liters apple cider

- 4 whole star anise

- 1 cinnamon stick
- 10 cloves
- pinch nutmeg, ground
Garnish
- 4 cinnamon sticks
- 4 whole star anise

Directions
- Place apple cider and spices in a large pot over medium heat.
- Bring to a boil an allow to simmer for 15 minutes.
- Ladel Spiced Apple Cider between four mugs.

- Place 1 cinnamon stick and 1 whole star anise in each mug.

Note – This Spiced Apple Cider can be refrigerated and enjoyed cold as well!

photo credit: food network canada & google images

HAPPY HANUKKAH

2010-12-06T08:47:00.000-08:00

The part I love about food is how different religions and countries use food to celebrate special times, Christmas, Hanukkah, Chinese New Year, Easter etc. Each festivity is marked by their food and what they serve at each holiday. For Hanukkah it is the traditional latkes, applesauce, rugelach and chocolate coins!

I thought I would just share a great latke recipe, wonderful during the year not only at Hanukkah! Latkes are a traditional food eaten during the Hanukkah festival as the oil for cooking the latkes is reminiscent of the oil from the Hanukkah storey that kept the long-lasting flame alive – the celebrated miracle. Try them out, they are just delicious with traditional applesauce but for a twist or to use them for entertaining use them as the base for smoked salmon and chive cream cheese!
Potato Latkes by Daphna Rabinovich of the Food Network

Ingredients

- 6 baking potatoes

- 3 small onions, quartered

- 4 eggs, beaten

- 1/3 cup flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- Vegetable oil, for cooking

Directions
- Peel baking potatoes and cut lengthwise into quarters.
- By hand or in a food processor using shredder blade, alternately shred onions and potatoes
- Transfer to colander, squeeze out as much moisture as possible discarding excess liquid
- Transfer to a large bowl, mix in eggs, flour, baking powder, salt and pepper
- In a skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat
- Add ¼ cup of mixture per latke, leaving space between each, flatten slightly.
- Cook for 3 minutes until browned and crisp around edges, turn and cook for 3-5 minuets longer.
- Transfer to paper towel to drain well

Yields: 8 latkes

photo credit: food network & google images

THE 12 DAYS OF COOKIES

2010-12-01T07:26:00.000-08:00

Happy December 1st! The Christmas Countdown has finally begun!!

What better way to get in the spirit of the holidays then baking! Cookie exchanges, bringing baked goods to the officer, sharing them with your family...there are so many ways holiday baking can be enjoyed!

Food Network has started their "12 Days of Cookies." Today is day 3and for the next 9 days they will be showcasing a different cookie recipe each day! Check it out for some inspiring and delicious cookie ideas!

Todays cookie: Garam-Masala Chocolate Gingerbread

Get the recipe here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/aarti-sequeira/garam-masala-chocolate-gingerbread-recipe/index.html

They also wrote an article called the 50 Holiday Cookies - 50 recipes to celebrate! Check it out here:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/holidays-and-parties/50-holiday-cookies/pictures/index.html

Knowing a bunch of different recipes and making a bunch of different cookies is a great way to give a "variety pack" of baked goods at Christmas instead of sticking to just one kind. My mom each holiday usually dedicates one full day to baking all her goodies, but I know one of my baking goddess friend Adi likes to make hers ahead of time and then freeze them till she needs them. Such a smart idea!

Get baking! What are your favourite holiday classics to make?! Comment here and let me know!

photo credit: foodnetwork.com

EARTH

2010-11-30T08:51:00.000-08:00

Customer appreciation nights is the nicest thing a restaurant can do! Last night I attended EARTH'S customer appreciation night for their loyal customers who had been there and supported them in their first year of business. I can't tell you how nice I think it is that a place would do that - talk about giving back and giving thanks to the people that have been there for them. I think it is a great idea and many restaurants could learn from EARTH'S wonderful night. Filled with passed appetizers, a cheese station and drinks, EARTH'S atmosphere last night was filled with happiness and holiday spirit! EARTH is a very cool restaurant on Yonge St. just north of Rosedale Subway Station. Their motto - Think Global. Eat Local. A great motto for anyone who loves and appreciated food and the wonderful local food we have around us. EARTH this year was also named one of Toronto Life's Top 10 New Restaurants (Toronto) of 2010. Congrats to them!

The appetizer that I wanted to tell you about though, was what I considered to be a new take on the traditional slider appetizer. EARTH was serving Wellington Country rib eye meatballs on a skewer with a choice of two dips - spicy mustard or homemade ketchup. This is a perfect slider idea, really fun and whimsicle but with a more gourmet twist from the condiments and the quality of the beef. I love new finding new twists on classic appetizers!

earth

1055 Yonge Street

Toronto, ON

416.551.9890

http://www.globeearth.ca/

photo credit: globeearth.ca

HOLIDAY COOKIES

2010-11-29T13:24:00.000-08:00

The start of Christmas is finally here! With my tree in place and decorations all around I thought it was the perfect time to start some holiday baking that I could bring into work!

To start - what better, than a vanilla thing cookie with a royal icing glaze (coloured of course)!

When looking for recipes I always turn to my dessert Guru's - Anna Olsen and Donna Hay. I wanted something really simple but with good flavour. I settled on Donna Hay's Vanilla Snap Biscuit - which I later decorated with icing instead of just icing sugar.

Here is the recipe for easy holiday cookies!

Vanilla Snap Biscuits from Donna Hay's Modern Classics 2

Ingredients:

- 185gms butter

- 1 cup caster sugar
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups flour
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- icing sugar to dust

Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350 f
- In a food processor mix the butter, sugar and vanilla until smooth
- Add the flour, egg and egg yolk and process until the mixture forms a soft dough
- Take the dough out the processor and knead slightly bringing it together in ball and wrap it in cling film and place in the fridge for 30 minutes
- Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface or between 2 sheets of baking paper until about ½ cm / 5mm thick
- Cut into any shape you want using cookie cutters
- Place cookies on a baking sheet that has been lined with baking paper or silicone baking sheets
- Bake for 10 – 12 minutes until golden brown
- Remove the biscuits carefully from the baking tray and allow them to cool on a wire cooling rack as they have a tendency to carry over cooking and could turn too brown once removed from the oven (I generally cool all biscuits on a cooling rack).
- When cooled, dust them with some icing sugar or decorate as desired.

BOBBETTE & BELLE

2010-11-25T13:54:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine recently asked me if I had heard of this new bakery place in Leslieville called Bobbette & Belle. I hadn't heard of it but within two minutes of devouring the website, I was dying to go! I could barley wait until Saturday came to go on an adventure to Leslieville to seek out this shop! Bobbette & Belle is an artisinal pastries shop specializing in fabulous cakes and macaroons. Not only is it a shop to make these cakes, but to design them as well. The cakes featured below are some of the prettiest I have ever seen - who doesn't want a wedding after looking at the possibilties that these girls can give you!

Sarah Bell and Allyson Meredith Bobbitt are the owners and creative minds behind Bobbette & Belle. The two of them have partnered together creating this luxurious shop, inspired by their longstanding love of the French Macaroon and the desire to make it more prominent in the Canadian market. Not only do the cakes look extremley delicious but the macaroons are top notch! Chewy and delicious, a real treat! I tried two different flavours:

Gianduja: Dark chocolate ganache with praline and roasted hazelnuts

Classic: Rich and creamy ganache made with a semi sweet chocolate

But other flavours offered include:
Passionfruit: White chocolate ganache with passionfruit puree

Pecan: Milk chocolate ganache with toasted pecans

Mocha: Espresso buttercream with a hint of chocolate
Caramel: Rich butter caramel with fleur de sel
Vanilla: Madagascar vanilla buttercream
Lime: Tangy lime buttercream with a hint of coconut

Raspberry: Tart raspberry and lemon buttercream

The shop is beyond cool, with a lounge area for cake&macaroon clients to wait to talk to the girls about what they want, and also a table area to talk business. The front station at the window is a cake makign station and a neat idea to have part of the food creating area front and center. The decor is flirty, simple, elegent and pastel-themed. Old china plates, interesting picture frames that house wooden spoons and spatulas line the walls, and the seating feels like you are at an old fashioned tea salon! Very girlie and very fun.

If you are looking to try out a delicious macaroon, find a wedding cake or a macaroon tower, Bobbette & Belle is the spot for you! They will customize the macaroon colour for your event and you can even order these macaroon towers - a great addition to a sweets table at a wedding, special event or even they suggest as an alternative to a traditional wedding cake.

If you are heading to Leslieville, this is a must visit spot!

photo credit: my own & bobbette and belle website

AMERICAN THANKSGIVING

2010-11-24T12:09:00.000-08:00

Happy American Thanksgiving!

My step-mom is American and American Thanksgiving in her house in a BIG deal! They have a "Turkey Bowl" every year, a big football game - one for the adults and one for the kids during the Thanksigivng weekend festivities.

When I was making Canadian Thanksigiving dinner this year I asked my three younger siblings (who are also half American) what is something they loved eating at American Thanksgiving in Chicago?

The answer: cornbread.

What could be a better thanksgiving sidedish than warm cornbread. I made this dish for my thanksgiving this year, but I will share the recipe with you for American Thanksgiving as it is a classic American sidedish - one that the Food Network Stars just can't get enough of this holiday! Ina Garten (the Barefoot Contessa) and Paula Deen are the two Food Network gals who I think can cook this side dish the best! Paula is from the South, so cornbread is what she does best!

Paul Deen's Extremley Easy Cornbread

Ingredients:
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup whole milk or buttermilk
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons chopped jalapenos, or to taste

Directions:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Grease an 8-inch square pan, cast iron skillet, or cornbread mold.
- In a medium bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
- To dry mixture, add egg, milk, sour cream, oil, and jalapenos and mix until smooth.
- Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden.

What are your favourite Thanksgiving side dishes?

photo credit: foodnetwork.com & google images

WISH I WAS A LOCAL AT LOCAL KITCHEN & WINE BAR

2010-11-21T19:28:00.000-08:00

I don't think I could have possibly been more lucky then I was Saturday night! With a late decision to go out for dinner - I was only really in the mood for two places - Buca or Local Kitchen & Wine Bar. I just didn't want to go out unless I was trying something new for the blog - and Buca and Local Kitchen are the top two places on my list. Buca, obviously was reserved up on a Saturday night, and I know that Local Kitchen doesn't take reservations so I figured I would call and just see what wait times are around 8:30-9. When I called, I was told wait times were usually about an hour, and then just out of my own curiosity I inquired about the "chef's table" as I had seen it on their website. The chef's table is a table at a bar in the back of the restaurant at the chef's cooking station. You talk with the chef, telling your likes and dislikes and then for the rest of the night you are treated to their culinary magic. When the lady told me that the 9 o'clock reservation (the only reservation they take is for the chefs table) had just cancelled I thought I had died and gone to heaven! What were the chances - I said yes right away and endured a long four hours of excitement until dinner at Local Kitchen!

Local Kitchen is a Parkdale hit - recently named one of En Route's Canada's Best New Restaurants of 2010, and Toronto Life's 2010 Best New Restaurants, this place is just pure genius! Run by Michael Sangregorio and Fabio Bondi they have create Local Kitchen's vibe to recreate the comfortable, inviting, family atmosphere of an Italian wine bar. Layered with a love for food, a respect for food&localism and a passion for the community, Sangregorio and Bondi have succeeded in creating a go-to destination for the Parkdale (and now Toronto) community.

Arriving in Parkdale, we pulled up to a dimly lit cozy looking spot with a glowing chandelier in the front window - very inviting! We were lead to our "table" two comfy bar seats at the chef's working station at the end of the restaurant (but you are still apart of the restaurant - not sitting in the kitchen!). We were asked if we had any special dietary needs, and if we ate everything. When we said yes we were told that we had no ordering to do and that we would be presented with a tasting of the restaurants wonderful dishes.

Now, to the food. We started our night off with an Ontario Burrata cheese (much like a bufala di mozzarella but creamy, rich and luxurious with a ricotta filling) accompanied with a basil pesto, a sun dried tomato pesto and some buttery toasted bread. From there we were served a little mini one biter of a in-house cured sardine on top of little crostini with arugula. I have never thought I was a sardine fan - but after one bite, I was convinced. Beautiful cured with lemon, olive oil, sat - this little morsel of fish was a real treat. We then watched them make Steak Tartare - one of my ultimate favourite dishes. Seasoned perfectly with delicious pieces of crispy pig cheeks (also made in house) and a quail egg on top! Can you say perfect? After our lovely appetizer dishes we had a bit of a breather pre-pasta course - and good thing we did, because these were hands down two of the most delicious pastas I have ever had - so simple and different, they were the star of the show by far!

The first pasta we were served was something unlike any other ravioli type pasta I have had. As Joanne Kates said, "these are pasta dishes that will reinvigorte a love afair with noodles." Beet & Ricotta Francobolli with mint and toasted breadcrumbs in a butter sauce. Pure heaven it was! Each aspect of the dish created the perfect combination for a pasta dish - the beet and ricotta filling was so delicate yet the flavours still shone through, you got the refreshing bite of mint and a little texture from the breadcrumbs with a smooth butter sauce. Genius! The second pasta we indulged in was a Smoked Potato Gnocchi with Telleggio cheese and Rapini. How I adore rapini, and what a perfect accompaniment to a simply done pasta with cheese. Lovely!

From here - more I know, can you even believe it? We indulged in both of the mains that Local Kitchen has to offer - a Wild Ontario Lakefish with a Zuppetta di Pepe, Olive and Capers (a sort of spicy pepper stew) and Rowe Farms Steak with Roasted Squash & Apple. I am not generally a fish lover, but the lightness of the fish mixed with the richness of the extremely flavourful stewed peppers made for a perfect combination. The steak was perfectly cooked and the roasted squash and apples played on the wonderful comfort food theme of winter. By this point I was almost full but I knew I had to save room for dessert - and I am so glad I did. The dolci (dessert in Italian) changes daily - but we indulged in two delicious pieces of blue Quebec cheeses with honey, maple syrup and toasted walnuts along with two different biscotti, the start of the two being chocolate with a nutella filling. We had three people who worked there tell us how much they loved this dessert and how popular it was - how could anything with nutella not be?!

And that is when our culinary tour through perfect Italian foods ended. I hope I have succeeded in making you drool for delicious Italian food and convinced you that Local Kitchen MUST be at the top of your list! Local Kitchen, is simple yet decadent. The insanley cool Italian inspired decor with rustic wood ovals as serving plates just heightens your experience. The food is locally grown, Italian inspired and presented like piattini (small plates) perfect for sharing. Their focus is salumi (Italian charcuterie) that is cured in house and sourced from Stratford, Ontario. My favourite part about Local Kitchen is their dedication and their desire to "maintain a fundamental respect for their food, where it comes from, and the people who help cultivate it." (Local Kitchen) You can feel the love, passion and enthusiasm in Local Kitchen and as an insane foodie myself, I adore being lucky enough to eat in an establishment like Local Kitchen. Congratulations for your huge success and I hope to be back soon. Torontonians - get your bums out to Parkdale asap!!

Local Kitchen & Wine Bar

1710 Queen Street West

Toronto, Ontario

416 534-6700

http://www.localkitchen.ca/

photo credit: localkitchen.ca & my own & toronto life & en route

JAMIE O DOES T.O

2010-11-20T14:58:00.000-08:00

Ok so now to it - Jamie Oliver in Toronto! What a night! Here to promote his new book Jamie's America, to cook two recipes from it and to talk with the people of Toronto - answering a ton of q&a's. The evening was a giant success, held at Toronto's Metro Convention Center - there were 3,000 people there! Congratulations to the Art of Cooking for hosting such a successful event! It was great to hear Jamie talk about his love of cooking and the Food Revolution!

The two recipes Jamie made for us were a steak with two sauces from his time in LA and a Peruvian ceviche from his time in New York. I want to share the ceviche recipe with you - as it is something so fresh and delicious, but something I bet people rarely make!!

Note: Ceviche is a popular South American fish dish, that is made by marinating raw fish in citrus juices such as limes, lemons, orange etc.

Peruvian Ceviche

Ingredients:
- 14 oz sea bass, flounder, sole or snapper, inbonned, skinned and filleted
- 1 red or yellow bell pepper seeded and finely chopped
- 2 scallions, trimmed and finely sliced
- juice of 3 lemons
- 1 tbsp sea salt
- 1-2 fresh chiles, seeded and finely chopped
- 8 sprigs of fresh mint
- 8 sprigs of fresh cilantro
- large handful mustard cress or alfalfa
- extra virgin olive oil
- freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
- Cut your fish into 1/2 inch cubes. Put these into a bowl with your chopped bell peppers and scallions. Cover and place into the fridge just until you need them.
- In a separate bowl mix together the lemon juice, salt, and chiles. Then cover and put into the fridge to chill too.
- Finally, wash and dry your herbs and cress.
- You can assemble the ceviche just before your guests are ready to eat. It's important that you don't leave the fish marinating for too long - you don't want the acids in the juices to cook the fish.
- Pour the lemon dressing over the fish mixture and immediately mix up. Leave to sit for about 2-3 minutes.
- Throw most of the herb mixture into the bowl with the fish and do a quick toss together.
- Divide the ceviche between your 4 plates, gently spoon over a little of the dressing and sprinkle with the rest of the herbs.
- Drizzle some good quality extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with some freshly ground black pepper.

photo credit: my food partner-in-crime kate

CAKESPY

2010-11-19T06:56:00.000-08:00

I recently stumbled across the most enthusiastic and cool site devoted to sweets! CAKESPY – whose motto is "Seeking Sweetness in Everyday Life.”

Cakespy.com is a Dessert Detective Agency dedicated to seeking sweetness (literally) in everyday life. They do this by writing about bakeries, conducting baking experiments and picking the brains of bakers and food artists, and finding awesome products for lovers of baked goods! The Cakespy crew is headed up by Jessie Oleson, Head Spy. She is a freelance writer and illustrator and she recently opened up a retail CakeSpy Shop in Seattle.

While poking around on Cakespy I realized there was a place to contribute – so I sent over none other than my fabulous Pavlova recipe. Jessie has featured it on Cakespy.com and here is the link to check out Emma's Eatery on Cakespy! http://www.cakespy.com/blog/2010/11/15/australian-sweetness-a-pavlova-recipe-from-cake-gumshoe-emma.html

I though I would do a little reciprocal blogging and do a quick Q&A with Jessie about her love for baked goods!

Emma B.: How did you first come to love cakes (and sweets)?

Jessie Oleson: It appears to be something I inherited from my parents. My mother is an avid baker, and both my mother and father are avid eaters of sweets. I blame them!

EB: Where did the idea for “Cakespy” come from?

JO: Well. Before I was a professional Cake Gumshoe, I was the art director at a refrigerator magnet company (no, really). While I got "fed" artistically, I felt that I was missing out on other passions. So I sat down one day and thought to myself: "can I do something that unites all of my greatest loves: writing, illustration, and baked goods?". The spy idea came to me because at the time I was about to get married and was running around town trying all the wedding cake places and felt like an undercover spy trying to find the best one. I figured I would start a blog centered around these things I loved while I figured out what I "really" wanted to do. Little did I know this humble little blog could be the springboard for all of the wonderful things I've been able to do since that day!

EB: What is your job as Head Cake Spy, dessert detective?

JO: As Head Spy at a dessert detective agency, my job is to seek out things that make life sweeter--in my case, they tend to be bakery finds, recipes, and sweet art--and share my findings with the world. My goal? To make the world just a little sweeter.

EB: What is your favourite part about the job?
JO: The fact that I am always doing something related to one of my three greatest loves: writing, illustration, and baked goods.

EB: Any tips for baking lovers out there?
JO: Butter makes everything better.

For more on Jessie & Cakespy visit cakespy.com and explore the endless, wonderful possibilities of baking. The site presentation alone is enough to make you want to always come back for more! Enjoy!

JAMIE OLIVER: 2010 TED PRIZE WINNER

2010-11-17T12:36:00.000-08:00

TED Prize: Wishes big enough to change the world

The TED Prize is awarded annually to an exceptional individual who receives $100,000 and much more important, “One Wish to Change the World.” Designed to leverage the TED community’s exceptional array of talent and resources, the Prize leads to collaborative initiatives with far-reaching impacts.

I am proud to say that the 2010 TED Prize Winner is Jamie Oliver.

Jamie is just a tremendous chef and international nutrition advocate. It is his commitment and passion to what he does that will one day help us change the way we eat, discover, learn and make food which in turn will help with the distressing obesity epidemic. Jamie has truly started a movement that will transform the way “we” feed our children on a global scale, through his cookbooks, shows etc he is changing the face of school lunches.

Watch Jamie's TED Prize Talk:

The Wish: “I wish for your help to create a strong, sustainable movement to educate every child about food, inspire families to cook again and empower people everywhere to fight obesity.”

The Plan: Set up an organization to create a popular movement that will inspire people to change the way they eat. The movement will do this by establishing a network of community kitchens; launching a travelling food theater that will teach kids practical food and cooking skills in an entertaining way and provide basic training for parents and professionals; and bringing millions of people together through an online community to drive the fight against obesity. The grassroots movement must also challenge corporate America to support meaningful programs that will change the culture of junk food.

The Needs:
• Help to establish the organization, with funding, office space and facilities.
• Find partners to equip and run the community kitchens, and food suppliers to provide the fresh ingredients.
• A partner to build and maintain a fleet of food theatre trucks.
• Education experts, graphic designers, artists and writers to develop and produce creative, fun teaching materials.
• Communications experts to create messaging for the movement.
• Web designers and developers to create and build the website.
• Establishment of a food line that generates a sustainable income for the movement.
• Corporate partners to invest in cooking and food education for their customers and champion honest food labelling.
• Your names added to the petition to challenge our leaders to make change now: http://www.jamiesfoodrevolution.com/petition

Want to help Jamie’s wish somehow? Go to http://www.tedprize.org/ to see what you can do to help!

TEDx: THE FUTURE OF FOOD

2010-11-17T12:08:00.000-08:00

Have you ever heard of TED? If you haven’t, you need to! TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. TED supports those world-changing ideas with multiple initiatives. The annual TED Conference invites the world’s leading thinkers and doers to speak for 18 minutes. People who have spoken at TED include, Bill Gates, Al Gore, Jane Goodall, Jamie Oliver, and Isabel Allende.
In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TED created a program called TEDx. TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. Luckily enough, Toronto will be hosting their own TEDx day THIS December. The conference is called TEDx Hart House: “The Future of Food and will be held at Toronto’s Hart House. The event is December 6th at 6:00pm. The Future of Food will explore some of the factors we must weigh as we choose what foods make it into our shopping carts. With the rise of issues like ethical eating, factor farming and food scarcity, the world is awakening to how we sow, grow, raise, reap, slaughter, transport, distribute, buy, share, cook, eat and dispose of food.”

Four experts will speak at TEDx – sharing their views on two-tiered food systems, food sharing, local food movements and sustainability. Those speaking will be Jason Qu, Lauren Baker, Jeffrey Crump and Bettina Schorman.

Interested in this event? Do you love things like Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution? Well here you go – this is the place to learn even more and at an attainable local level. This is the exact type of events we need today! Share your love of food with others by learning more on what you can do!

To learn more about this great conference visit: http://www.harthouse.ca/culture/tedxharthouse

To fill out an application to be one of the 100 people in the audience go to:
https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dFNlSnlybTYzMmN1a0QzRnBYWmhmT3c6MQ

TOP 5 FALL/WINTER INGREDIENTS

2010-11-16T13:42:00.000-08:00

I'd like to share my top 5 ingredients for the late fall/winter months! Sometimes just being able to focus in on a few key items helps can really help in meal planning and recipe searching!

MY TOP 5 FALL/WINTER MUST-HAVE INGREDIENTS

1) Squash

2) Mushrooms

3) Cranberries

4) Risotto

5) Sage

Let me now share with you some great ways to use and combine these top five ingredients of mine!

1) Squash
The quintessential image of fall and Christmas. Squash has so many wonderful ways to be enjoyed and here are some ideas how:
- Squash, Onion & Garlic Soup
- Squash, Sage, Pancetta Risotto (combination of my top three right here)
- Roasted squash as a side dish to a meat

2) Mushrooms
I just love mushrooms more and more each day, and one of my favourite parts about them is their versatility! They can truly be used in so many ways, salads, soups, main courses, stuffing's, you name it!
- Mushroom risotto (a winter classic)
- Side dish of mushrooms in a cream, brandy and thyme sauce
- Warm and crispy mushrooms to top off a winter salad (with some pomegranate seeds for colour and as a fresh cool contrast)

3) Cranberries
I know I know, all you can think about when you hear the word "cranberry" is your grandma's cranberry sauce for the turkey! But cranberries with the right amount of sugar can be wonderfully delicious and used it different ways!
- As a decoration in a champagne glass or in a bowl of festive punch
- A really nice cranberry compote type sauce can be used for a turkey, brie cheese and cranberry sandwich (throw a few leaves of nice and crunchy arugula in there for some peppery flavour)
- A perfect Christmas crowd pleasing appetizer: phyllo pastry cup with melted brie cheese and whole cranberries

4) Risotto
The warmest wintertime dish. Nothing says Italian comfort food like risotto. And the best part about this dish, the possibilities are endless! You can truly put any flavours you like into the basic risotto recipe!
- The squash, sage, pancetta risotto
- Wild mushroom risotto (really try and get a good selection of different mushrooms, the more, the tastier!)
- Green risotto: filled with peas, basil, edamame, fresh parmesan

5) Sage
I adooreeee sage! It is such a wonderful herb, so fragrant and so good!
- Ravioli in a sage brown butter sauce
- Sage, pancetta, water chestnut stuffing for roast chicken or turkey
- Pork chops with an apple and sage glaze with caramelized onions

I hope these recipe ideas have sparked some thinking, enthusiasm and recipe excitement!
For tips on these recipes just leave me a comment and I will be sure to get back to you! Enjoy and happy fall/winter!

CUCINA DELL ARTE

2010-11-16T12:05:00.000-08:00

After a fabulous weekend in Florida, I could not finish it off without blogging about our favourite place in town. Cucina Dell Arte, the place-to-be in Palm Beach is not only a fabulously delicious Italian restaurant but it is the bar to be at after-hours. "Cucinas" to the locals and anyone who has spent time on the island is a laid-back, friendly, well-run restaurant. Not only is the food terrific, but the owner Nick is what makes your night! He is the friendliest restaurateur whose professionalism and love for the industry shines through not only at Cucinas but at his other two places in town. Always wanting to make your visit to his restaurants the best, he never fails to disapoint. Cucinas is just such a fun spot, with a neat Mediterranean type decor, and hanging chandeliers. It is a spot intended for everyone - families, date nights, parties, New Years, you name it! Perfect for the early family crowd, Cucinas is able to then transform into the hottest spot in town at night. You do not want to miss the ball drop here at New Years!

So menu highlights that are not to be missed:
Mushroom Raviloi with Spiny Lobster in a Cognac Cream Sauce (seriously to die for, with a little truffle essence, yum!)
Roasted Beet Salad with pistachios, avocado and a simple vinaigrette
Beef Carpaccio with arugula, parmesan, artichokes in a lemony vinaigrette
Short Ribs in a red wine sauce
Bisteca Maria Rossa: a delicious Bush Brother's steak, grilled to perfection with a salted herb crust. A honest to god must try at this place, it will just melt in your mouth!

We just love this spot and hope you will too!

Cucina Dell Arte

257 Royal Poinciana Way

Palm Beach, FL
(561) 655-0770

photo credit: cucina

TRUFFLES

2010-11-11T12:33:00.000-08:00

After my delicious truffle filled dinner at Frank’s Kitchen, I thought it quite appropriate to talk about the truffle and my love for such a delicacy.

A truffle is a rare, edible mushroom, harvested in the wild and extremely expensive!! They have no relation to the chocolate truffle - but they could not be more delicious! Truffles require climates with mild weather changes, so they grow in a limited number of places that include France, Italy, Croatia, some parts of the United States, Middle East and North Africa. They grow about a foot below ground, near the roots of oak, elm, chestnut, pine and willow trees. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, sometimes smooth but generally bumpy and wrinkled looking.

Truffle hunting is a big business that usually lasts from fall to spring. Each year, trufficulteurs use specialty-trained dogs to find these “buried treasures.” This generally takes place at night!

There are a few varieties of truffles with the two most famous being:

The White Truffle
Comes from Northern Italy and most famously from the countryside of the city Alba. It can also be found in Croatia. Italian white truffles are highly esteemed!

The Black Truffle

“Black Périgord truffle” is named after the Périgord region in France which grows these truffles exclusively with oak.

Now to the best part, using truffles in cooking! Because of truffles' high price, they are generally used quite sparingly. White truffles are generally served raw (as when it is cooked it looses its strong natural flavour) and shaved over pasta or salads. White or black paper thin truffle slices are often put into meats, or under the skins of roasted fowl, in fois gras preparations, pâtés or in stuffing’s. They are also used in some specialty cheeses. Truffle oil is an alternative to a fresh truffle as the cost in lower, yet it provides the flavoring to enhance a truffle aroma in cooking and can be used for just about anything. Fresh truffles are generalyl found at the end of fall into mid-winter, but quite often only available in specialty stores. When selecting a truffle, make sure it is firm, with a fragrant aroma, blemish free and well-textured. It is best to eat truffles as soon as possible because they are quite perishable!

Here is a great idea with the use of truffle oil - inspired from a pizza I had last night.

Truffle Filled Pizza: A basic pizza dough - white (so no sauce) with some fresh mozerella baked onto the pizza. Then top the pizza with wonderful bitter arugula, fresh shavings of parmesan, proscuitto strips and drizzle with truffle oil. If you have the good stuff, shave those truffles on top! Now that is a delicious truffle filled meal!

photo credit: google images

BEER AND BUTTERTARTS

2010-11-11T12:19:00.000-08:00

Beer and Butter Tarts is a food blog aggregator dedicated to the food and drink scene across Canada.

By compiling RSS feeds from participating food bloggers, they act as an aggregator to pull Canadian food blogs and writing all together in one place. This makes it easier for readers interested in food and food blogs to find new and interesting bloggers, and helps food bloggers across the country promote their site and attract new readers.

EMMA'S EATERY has been accepted to join Beer and Butter Tarts! My posts will now be a part of this food-loving collection. Check it out and check out EMMA'S EATERY at BEER AND BUTTERTARTS,

Enjoy and thank you Beer and Buttertarts for this great opportunity!

photo credit: beerandbuttertarts.com

TOP 10 COOKBOOKS OF 2010

2010-11-10T07:02:00.000-08:00

Looking for a good new cookbook, but not sure what to pick among the endless rows of cookbooks at the store? Well, thanks to editors at Amazon.com, we are lucky enough to know their top 10 picks for cookbooks this year! I have heard about a few of them, but I will be googling the rest looking for the next best one to buy! My Christmas list this year is quickly becoming just cookbooks!

1) Around My French Table: More Than 300 Recipes from My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

2) The Essential New York Times Cookbook: Classic Recipes for a New Century by Amanda Hesser

3) The Frankies Spuntino Kitchen Companion & Cooking Manual by Frank Falcinelli, Frank Castronovo, and Peter Meehan

4) Thai Street Food by David Thompson

5) Pig: King of the Southern Table by James Villas

6) Urban Pantry: Tips and Recipes for a Thrifty, Sustainable and Seasonal Kitchen by Amy Pennington

7) Baked Explorations: Classic American Desserts Reinvented by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito

8) Heart of the Artichoke and Other Kitchen Journeys by David Tanis

9) In the Kitchen with A Good Appetite: 150 Recipes and Stories About the Food You Love by Melissa Clark

10) Noma: Time and Place in Nordic Cuisine by René Redzepi

Which one do you think looks the best?!

photo credit: amazon.ca & jameschatto.com

KITCHEN: Recipes from the Heart of the Home

2010-11-08T13:18:00.000-08:00

The Domestic Goddess herself has done it again, presenting to you Nigella Lawson's newest addition to the cookbook family, "Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home." What a beautiful title, summing up just exactly what a kitchen is.

Nigella says, “…this book is simply the story of my love affair with the kitchen. Whatever the opposite of the currently still fashionable genre, the misery memoir, might be, this is it: a comfort chronicle.”

Her book focuses on the food we eat now, and the way we eat and live in this hectic world. A collection of recipes of "feel-good food" from the most impotant room in the house. Kitchen is not only engaging but informative offering up answers to everyday cooking quandaries. The recipes she offers up are nostalgic with a modern twist, from quick style recies for the crazy work week, to lovely slow-cooked dishes for weekends and special occasions. "Above all, she reminds the reader how much pleasure there is to be had in real food and in reclaiming the traditional rhythms of the kitchen."

This one is not to be missed!

THE PERFECT CHEESE GRATER

2010-11-05T08:13:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted a Kitchen Tool I love in a while, so I thought I would share one of my more recent kitchen gadget purchases with you! I always get so fed up with cheese graters , they never sit properly, they are always tipping over if you apply to much pressure, the handle never quite fits well in your hand...the list is never ending! But, I have finally found an erganomical, perfet cheese grater! I found mine at Kitchen Stuff Plus, but I am sure this type of grater is all around.

The Counseltron Pyramid Tower Grater is a three side grater, with a easy grip top, and grips on the bottom so that it stays sturdy and doesn't move during the grating process. With this extra balance and stability, it allows for perfectly grated cheese every time!

And the best part is - it's only ten bucks! Cheap and great - what more could you ask for?

Buy online or in stores @ Kitchen Stuff Plus
http://www.kitchenstuffplus.com/shop/product.php?d=&sd=&pid=W002752

photo credit: kitchenstuffplus.com

UPDATES!

2010-11-05T06:26:00.000-07:00

Two new fun updates!!

You can now subscribe to EMMA'S EATERY by email! This allows you to never miss a post and will let you know when I have posted something new on the blog! The subscription box is just under the "about me" section - check it out and subscribe!

Secondly I have created a twitter just for EMMA'S EATERY! The address is twitter.com/emmaseatery
So check it out and follow along. I will be posting tips, thoughts, and links to newest posts - oh and of course pictures!

I hope you enjoy these latest new features and check them out!

LET'S BE FRANK, ABOUT FRANK'S KITCHEN

2010-11-04T09:55:00.000-07:00

Truffles truffles truffles. There is truffle madness at Frank's Kitchen, and as a serious truffle fan and advocate, I could not have been more pleased when I sat down to find truffles scattered all over the menu! Last night my bestie Kate and I went to try out Frank’s Kitchen. After reading Joanne Kates’ review in The Globe and Mail (a fabulous one, which are RARELY handed out) I knew this place would be worth trying. Located at College and Bathurst, Frank’s Kitchen has become a new must-try restaurant for Toronto. Reviews of this place are pouring in and reservations are clearly a must. I called last Monday to make a reservation for the following week – but I was greeted by a message machine informing me that they had no reservations left for the week – popular!

So now to the most important part – the food! I’m always nervous when I have high expectations of a place that it will disappoint, but let me tell you, Frank’s Kitchen did not. Run and owned by Frank Parhizgar (formerly Head Chef of Centro working for 4 years under Bruce Woods and Mark Thuet's Head Chef), you know you are walking into good quality just knowing his background and appreciation for food. When we first sat down the first plate that arrived at our table was a trio of delicious in-house made breads. One was a focaccia type with herbs and a cherry tomato, one was a mini-brioche with a little bit of a glaze to it, and the third was just a fresh white bread twist. They were paired with two spreads – one was a green olive spread and the second was a roasted tomato. The green olive spread was such a perfect accompaniment to the breads – not as strong as a typical black olive tapenade, but executed so extremely well. The breads however were delicious on their own, and did not even need a spread to enjoy them. During our bread tastings we were brought a duo amuse bouche. The first spoon was a little fried goat cheese ball with a refreshing sort of gazpacho like salsa and then there was a shot glass of a warm leek & potato velouté drizzled with truffle oil. When I tried that soup – I had died and gone to truffle heaven. I am usually not even one for goat cheese, but this little mild cheese ball with a crisp light salsa was just the wonderful start to a culinary adventure.

I think Kate and I probably sat there for half an hour devouring the menu wondering how we could possibly choose from the amazing selection of starters and mains available. All the pasta is fresh made each day by Frank and you can tell how the menu is inspired by many seasonal yet Italian ingredients. For starters Kate had a simple salad of arugula, parmesan, fig and mortadella in a fresh lemon vinaigrette. Can you think of anything more delightful in a starter salad? The minute our waiter said one of their features was beef carpaccio I was sold – and then I was even more sold when I saw that it had fresh shaved truffles on top and the green beans were in a truffle vinaigrette. I think this was probably one of the best beef carpaccio’s I have ever had – and I am a serious carpaccio fan, I generally have it when it’s on a menu. The beef was lovely and thin, then layered with a generous piece of fois gras and to top it off French cut beans and frisée in a truffle vinaigrette. Oh and how could I forget the shaved truffle all over the dish. My mouth was watering before I even took a bite!

Prior to our mains being served, we were brought another cute spoon of lemon sorbet as a palette cleanser. The little sorbet ball was tiny, however so flavourful and refreshing and such a nice change as most places rarely serve a cleanser course. It’s those extra “treats” on the house that make a dining experience just that much richer and more appreciated. I would much rather go to a place like Frank’s Kitchen where I am getting not only delicious food but the little extras that are so wonderful I would probably order as a full size portion if I could!

The mains then arrived, two very different plates and very different from out starter courses. I have to admit, I did like my starter more, but my main course was an adventure it itself. Joanne Kates’ had raved about the lobster, and I rarely order fish at a restaurant so I decided to just go for it! My dish was served in a large soup type bowl. The bottom had the wilted spinach, then there was braised fennel, then there were a few homemade spinach ravioli THEN it was topped with a whole (pre shelled) lobster. On top of the lobster was some frisée and then a few vegetables, some cauliflower and I honestly don’t even remember the other veg, but I know they were great. The whole dish was swimming in a buttery lemon broth. It was honestly like nothing I have really ever ate! The dish was just so complex and layered with so many different flavours, your mouth just didn’t know where to go next! Kate had the butternut squash risotto with a full leg of duck. She loved the duck; however her one complaint was that the squash flavour was not as present as she thought it would be so the title of the dish was a bit misleading.

We topped off our evening splitting a peach tarte tatin, which has got to be a house specialty. An upside down tarte tatin, with fresh peaches (which are a nice change to the typical winter dishes with apple or pear) and a salty sweet caramel sauce. MMMM I cannot even explain to you how delicious this dessert was, served with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, and a thin layer of tart pastry, it was wondrous.

Now that I have exhausted your from this ridiculously long post, I hope it will inspire your taste buds to get on over and check out Frank’s Kitchen. It is easily affordable if you are looking for a nice dinner, and they have a range of wines (and wine prices) so there is something for everyone! Well done Frank’s Kitchen, and thank you for a truly new and complex night of food. It was wonderful!

Will you try out FRANK'S KITCHEN?!

photo credit: my own& franks kitchen twitter

BEER BUTT CHICKEN

2010-11-04T08:25:00.000-07:00

I adore Jamie Oliver for so many reasons, but I have found a new one to add to the list - his Beer Butt Chicken! Such a success of a recipe, so easy to make and one that you all need to try! For my birthday I was given his new cookbook, Jamie's America. It features recipes he learned through his trip across the US. One of the recipes was "beer can butt chicken." A chicken roasted on a beer can! This roasting method gives you tender and juicy chicken that is literally fall-off-the-bone good! I barley needed to apply any pressure to the chicken legs when I was serving it up, the fell right off!

This dish has a great "wow" factor to it and would be a fun thing to serve for a group! Also - a great twist-up to a classic Sunday night roast dinner!

Jamie Oliver's Beer Butt Chicken

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken

1 can Budweiser beer (or any other light beer) * I used a taller can for more support

A few sprigs of thyme

For the spice rub:

- 1 tsp fennel seeds

- 1 heaping tsp brown sugar

- 1 tsp chili powder

- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp cumin
- Salt & pepper
- 3 tbsp olive oil

Directions:

- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees so it can warm up while you make your spice rub. Make sure you only have one rack in the oven, and that it is on the bottom.

- In a mortar & pestle (or just a regular bowl) crush fennel seeds and mix together with other spices.

- One spices are mixed together add the olive oil to create a sort of paste.

- In a roasting pan lay down the chicken and use your hands to rub the spices all over, in every nook and cranny.

- One covered with the rub, stuff the thyme sprigs into the top cavity of the chicken.

- Open the beer – take a few good gulps so that it is half full. Lower the bird onto the beer can so that it is standing straight up.

- Place in the oven and roast for about 1 hour 10 minutes – 1 hour 30 minutes, depending on how long it takes to make the skin perfectly golden brown.

- Once done, let rest under tin foil for about 10 minutes, then carve and serve.

** To make a simple gravy: use the pan drippings and over high heat add in some flour to make a roux. Once the flour has cooked a bit use some of the liquid from the beer can, whisk in and let the gravy thicken up. The drippings and leftover spices make such a flavourful and delicious sauce!

What do you think of this recipe? Would you try it out! Leave your comments and questions after each post!

photo credit: my own

HOMEMADE ITALIAN PIZZAS

2010-11-01T08:45:00.000-07:00

Homemade pizzas are so much fun to make! This weekend I made some Italian worthy pizzas with fresh tomato sauce, basil, calabrese salami, cured olives and fresh mozzarella di buffala. I had a friend coming for dinner and really wanted to try something different but fun! I also bought a pizza stone which made the experience so authentic and the pizzas even more delicious!

I like using fresh ingredients, so I decided to make my own tomato sauce. So for the sauce in a pot I put a few tablespoons of olive oil, a quart of cherry tomatoes and two large garlic cloves (very fine), sea salt, pepper and then a bit of basil near the end. I let tomatoes get all blistered and soft and then mashed them around with a fork. Near the end I added about 2 tbsp of tomato paste just to thicken it up a little. It was absolutely wonderful, and the tomatoes and garlic were so fragrant I felt like I was in Italy!

For the pizza dough, I really wanted to make home made dough but I unfortunately was time stricken by the need for a Halloween costume! Reluctantly I used pre-made dough, but next time it’s homemade for me. If you can, homemade dough is just so much better – but in a pinch store bought will do! Make sure the dough has softened, and then roll out using extra flour on the rolling pin and counter. Once you have made your dough into the right shape you can begin the layering process.

First start with your tomato sauce, then layer slices of fresh mozzarella di buffala. Next add desired toppings, olives, calabrese and fresh basil leaves to top it off.

If you are using a pizza stone – put the stone into a cold oven, and let heat up for 20 minutes at 450 degrees. Then place the pizzas on the stone and cook for about 20-30 minutes.

Italian Pizzas

Ingredients:

- 1 ball mozzarella di buffala
- 1 quart cherry tomatoes

- Olive oil

- Salt & pepper

- Basil

- Calabrese salami

- Cured olives

- Pizza dough (store bought or homemade)

photo credit: my own