THE EX

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"

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

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

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!