Food and Drink

Judging the Discovered Culinary Competition

Judging the Discovered Culinary Competition

Yes, I’m putting my judges hat back on and will be judging the Discovered Culinary Competition at Nella Cucina on Monday night. Now in its second year, the Discovered Culinary Competition gives up-and-coming Canadian chefs an opportunity to showcase their culinary talents.  In front of a live audience  and a rotating panel of judges including Toronto’s most notable chefs and food writers,  the competitors work against the clock in a black-box competition.  All to win the coveted Grand Prize of an all expenses paid trip to the North of Spain for a week-long cooking stage. The competition begins with four…

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Dim Sum Quotes

Dim Sum Quotes

For our first meal after Live Below The Line we returned to our regularly scheduled weekend dim sum. We headed out further a field than usual because our friend Linda was visiting and she came equipped with a car. So we headed north to where some of the best dim sum in the GTA can be found these days. As usual the conversation was smart (Linda), quick (Gerry) and often silly (Lex). I couldn’t help capturing the best quotes of the meal: Gerry: “They are allergic to bits.” Lex: “I use communications to avoid communication.” Linda: “If you can monetize…

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Chef John Placko’s 48-hour bavette with parsley gel mash, seared asparagus and spicy crisp onion strings

Chef John Placko’s 48-hour bavette with parsley gel mash, seared asparagus and spicy crisp onion strings

When Chef John Placko agreed to send in a recipe for Chefs #LoveCDNbeef I was eager to see what fun new food science techniques he would have for me to try.  He didn’t disappoint with this recipe that is wonderful to eat and fun to make without being labour-intensive. I got to do some sous vide (long-slow boil-in-a-bag), gelification (changing liquid into solid, bouncy jiggly solids), as well as doing some mashing  (great for getting frustration out) and deep-frying (just damned tasty). Of course, when I initially read the recipe and saw 48-hour sous vide I couldn’t stop laughing imagining…

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Choices–Live Below The Line

Choices–Live Below The Line

When you are doing a poverty or hunger challenge like Live Below The Line and shopping for 5 days food with only $8.75 per person you don’t think you have a lot of choices. But you do.  Especially here in downtown Toronto where it’s a short walk to 7 or more grocery stores, 2 major markets, 2 Chinatowns and countless corner stores. You can choose where to shop. You can choose alternative proteins like TVP or tofu. You can choose from a wide variety of cheap carbs to fill you up.  You can even choose from a vast array of…

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Put My Money Where My Mouth Is–Live Below The Line

Put My Money Where My Mouth Is–Live Below The Line

From April 29th to May 3th, I am taking the challenge to survive on a $1.75 per day food budget.  Sound extreme?  It is! Everyday 1.4 billion people worldwide live in extreme poverty, surviving off of $1.75 per day for all their needs.  Live Below The Line is challenging Canadians to learn about extreme poverty by experiencing it themselves and spend only $1.75 a day on food and drink for 5 days from April 29th to May 3rd. As you know I’m a big supporter of Hunger Charities and the work they do. I donate money, food and my time…

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Week Filled With Conferences, Cookies, Contests and Crowds (lovely crowds!)

Week Filled With Conferences, Cookies, Contests and Crowds (lovely crowds!)

Last week was a whirlwind, leaving my brain (and my SD cards) filled with images, ideas and inspiration. I have much to process, integrate and digest, so I’ve decided I’ll share a quick set of snapshots of what was going on over the last week in the Food and Hospitality scene around here.  (Yes I know this is sucky SEO-wise, should care. Don’t.) Terroir 2013 – #Terroir7 the 7th annual Hospitality Industry Symposium bringing together Canada’s “innovative and creative influencers of Canada’s hospitality industry including chefs, food writers, wine and food experts and business leaders.” Essentially we all get together…

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Sugaring on the Weekend.

Sugaring on the Weekend.

Yes, it’s getting sweet and sappy here on unsweetened.ca because for the first time in my life I made maple syrup! All my years in the woods, all my stories of pruning, chopping, tending tress and I’d never tapped one. I’ve never made maple syrup before. I’ve never visited a Cabane au Sucre. I’ve never had maple taffy fresh from the snow. I felt I had failed as a Canadian to accomplish this basic of all basic rituals, this cultural rite of passage, this symbol of all that is woody, sappy and Canadian. Until this weekend! Sunday we were out…

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I’m Speaking at the Food Bloggers of Canada Conference

I’m Speaking at the Food Bloggers of Canada Conference

I’m excited to announce that I am one of the speakers at this weekend’s Food Bloggers of Canada Conference, Canada’s first dedicated food blogging conference. I will be speaking about restaurants, blogging and critiques in: The Chef & The Critic – 2 Perspectives on Restaurants and Blogging Alexa Clark and Jason Bangerter. Moderated by Alison Fryer of The Cookbook Store In this panel, moderated by Alison Fryer of The Cookbook Store,  Chef Jason Bangerter of Oliver & Bonacini’s Luma Restaurant and Alexa Clark of CheapEats and unsweetened.ca will discuss and debate the pros and cons of bloggers and restaurants working…

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Then The Eat Street Cookbook Arrived

Then The Eat Street Cookbook Arrived

Gerry just came into the office with a big padded manila envelop (I was going to say package, but I know some of you would read that wrong.) Inside was my last prize – the new Eat Street Cookbook. It’s filled with great recipes and beautiful photos. Even the trucks I visit the most – El Gastronomo Vagabundo and Caplansky’s Deli Truck (aka Thundering Thelma). And from the episode I was IN – Smoke’s Poutinerie . For the West Coasters, don’t worry, Japadog and Vij’s Railway Express are in here too! They’ve included a Truck Index and a Recipe Index.…

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Chef Carl Heinrich’s Station Burger with Pommes Kennedy

Chef Carl Heinrich’s Station Burger with Pommes Kennedy

I wasn’t quite sure what was coming when Carl said he’d be sharing the recipe for Station Burger and Pommes Kennedy.  We had talked about doing a recipe that would push me, and maybe you, to try something new in the kitchen and on the plate.  But I didn’t expect that making a burger with potatoes would do that.  I could not have been more wrong. The core of this burger is stuffed with braised beef which has been combined with a glaze made from the stock it was cooked in, then formed into a torchon. The torchon solidifies overnight…

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My First Torchon

My First Torchon

Rolled my first torchon last night as part of the next Chefs #LoveCDNBeef recipe.  I don’t normally pre-blog about these, but I was so excited to try this technique I couldn’t resist showing off my success. With only 2 hands to work with, and a filling that was less torchon and more just a wet beef filling, I had to work fast as I rolled it up. I found these kitchen clips to be a much much faster solution to “tying up the ends”. I was a little concerned about the wetness of the filling, (though I’ll tell you more…

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West Side Beef Co Pickup

West Side Beef Co Pickup

Today I picked up my first order from West Side Beef Co. The meat looks amazing and there is a great variety in the order that I can’t wait to start cooking with! For a set $150, our order contained: ribeyes filet skirt steak stew beef sausages hamburger inside round roast short ribs top sirloin shank stock and tallow. It was fun talking to Kurt about each cut in the order and how they can be used too. I’ll be back, likely sooner rather than later! West Side Beef Co. also provides locally sourced pork and chicken orders designed for…

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