There is something about the Toronto Garlic Festival that I love. Perhaps it’s the aroma that I can detect from the parking lot. HA HA. (sorry….but it’s true).

This is my third year that I’ve attended the Toronto Garlic Festival, and I swear  each year it keeps getting better and better.

I had a ton of fun sampling a variety of delicious food, craft beer, and even managed to participate in a free garlic shot. Here’s proof!!

I ate the whole thing!!

I discovered a few new vendors as well. In particular, one called Smoked & Cracked. I had a spoon of their soup that will have me running to their restaurant in no time at all. (516 Mt. Pleasant Rd). 

I also discovered some unique key chains that would make the perfect gift for foodies! I’m now the proud owner of one of these beautiful key chains. ps u can email your order to: uaddloveandstir@hotmail.com)

Another favourite event taking place in the near future is Soupalicious. Sadly I’m unable to attend but trust me I would be there the minute it opened if I was in town!!

More events that I would be trying to squeeze in next weekend include:

Toronto Underground Market for their two year Anniversary Party on Sept 28th. For more info, please click here

Abbey’s Kitchen Stadium for Battle Three on Sunday Sept 29th from 1-4 pm. For more info, please click here 

Oktoberfest at the Bier Market (running until Oct 20) For more info, please click here.  Nothing beats, drinking beer, eating great food, listening to live music with some friends!

(from left to right) @clickflickca @th3hungrycat @beachrockinc.

Enjoy!

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A few years ago, I was in love with Hot Balls at Table 17!  Now I’m in love with Hot Bunzz! I mean seriously…what’s not to love about these buns that are the perfect texture and filled with fabulous flavours and then topped off with more goodness!!

The brains behind Hot Bunzz are these two guys. Mark (on the right) has been involved with the food business for years and Mitch (on the left) has been involved with marketing for years. They make a great team.

What I love about Hot Bunzz is their ability to join forces with other restaurants to create a unique bunzz. They have collaborated with Cheesewerks in the past and now they have joined forces with Rock Lobster Food Co, Fidel Gastro’s and La Carnita, to introduce the #TUMalumCOLLECTION. How brilliant? All three of these delicious creations will be launched at the upcoming TUM Event.  (Toronto Underground Market)

The Spiced Sailor Bun

The B.L.T.O

However if you aren’t able to attend the TUM event, don’t worry – you can still grab a Hot Bunzz at their retail location which is located at 21 St. Clair West. (just west of Yonge St. on the south side of the street).

One last thing I should mention is that Hot Bunzz is doing an incredible job using social media to spread the word about their amazing product!! I love companies that “get it” and these guys “get it”.

For more information:

Hot Bunzz: 21 St. Clair Ave. West, Toronto (647) 748 5510

Twitter: @HotBunzzTO

Facebook: www.facebook.com/hotbunzz

Instagram: HotBunzz

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A few weeks ago, I was invited to check out Kanga Meat Pies at Sanagan’s Meat Locker. I honestly thought I was going to try Kangaroo Meat but I was oh so wrong!!

Infact I was introduced to four different Aussie meat pies! Kanga Meat Pies are best described as: an individually portioned, handheld, buttery pie filled with loads of meat, veg and gravy. Their pies are intended to be eaten with one hand only (the other is strictly reserved for the beverage of your choice)!

The two young woman behind Kanga had travelled to Australia and fell in love with the meat pie scene “down under”.  So they came back to Toronto and started to recreate them. Kanga Meat Pies were first introduced at TUM (Toronto Underground Market) but now you can buy them at Sanagans too!!

I did not grow up with meat pies but something tells me there are two components to the “perfect” meat pie: the crust and the filling. Guess what? Kanga Pies nailed it! My friend also pointed out to me that there are no PEAS in these meat pies, so if you are allergic to peas or don’t like peas – then these pies are for you!!

Not only are they pretty….

But they are delicious too.

I was surrounded by foodie friends at this event, and was thankful that we could split each pie into quarters so I could get a chance to try all four varieties. Two flavours stood out as my favourites: the Steak and Bacon and the Butter Chicken.

Hope you get a chance to try Kanga Meat Pies soon. You won’t be disappointed.

For further information:

Kanga Meat Pies are now sold at:

Sanagan’s Meat Locker, 176 Baldwin St. In Kensington Market.

Hot Oven Bakery, 177 Roncesvalle, Toronto

Twitter: @eatkanga

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eatkanga

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I absolutely adore Thai food but for some reason I don’t seem to go out for it a lot. I guess one could say that I’m “selective” when it comes to eating Thai food.  Therefore, I was thrilled to have received an invitation to attend an invitation only gala reception at Linda Modern Thai, who was receiving a special designation called “Thai Select”.

I started off my meal with these delicious appetizers. To be honest…I could eat these appetizers all night and be very happy. This type of dish represents exactly what I’m looking for when dining in a Thai restaurant. Not to mention, it’s the perfect meal for someone who is eating low carb!!

My favourite dish!!

I then enjoyed every drop of my Tom Yum Soup with Mushrooms. This is a classic Thai soup made with homemade stock, enoki, beech and maitake mushrooms. I love this flavorful soup and felt compelled to order it, even though I could have ordered a Mango Salad or the Thai Lobster Bisque!!

The meal continued with a few more tasty dishes: Crispy Beef Panang (my favourite), Red Snapper with Rustic Chili Sauce (amazing execution) Stewed Duck with Chestnuts, Pineapple Yellow Curry, and Royal Pad Thai. There was no shortage of food at this event!!

I not only only enjoyed my meal but also learned something interesting from Mr Ben Heller who works for the Thai Consulate General. I learned that in Thailand – forks are used as a serving utensil and only the spoon is used as an eating utensil.  One won’t see chopstick or knives!

I also learned that Linda Modern Thai is one of a handful of Thai restaurants that have received the Thai Select designation. This internationally recognized designation is a mark of certification that guarantees the authenticity of a Thai restaurant and food products that have been prepared with ingredients and spices in the traditional style of Thai cooking.  Linda Modern Thai is the first Canadian recipient of the Thai Select Premium Designation. Congratulations!!

For more information:

Linda Modern Thai, 11 Karl Fraser Road (Shops at Don Mills) 416-642-3866

Twitter: @LindaModernThai

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I’ve been using the same chocolate chip recipe that I cut out from the Toronto Star for years. It served me well however the results were never consistent. One day, I googled “chocolate chip cookie” recipe and a few recipes came up. (just a few..HA). I realized that many of the recipes had the same ingredients but the measurements are slightly different. Plus the technique can be different too!!

After clicking on a few websites, I came across a recipe that was posted on a blog called: Sally’s Baking Addiction! 

Her recipe stood out for these three reasons:

1. the photos (seriously…they couldn’t get any better)

2. she explained each component of the recipe.

3. the addition of CORNSTARCH intrigued me.

I tried out the recipe and then continued to make about 5 batches. I COULD NOT STOP MAKING THIS RECIPE!! Thank you Sally’s Baking Addiction for this perfect recipe.

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A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend the opening of the new food court at Square One Shopping Centre. Seeing as I was a Marketing Director at Yorkdale Shopping Centre decades ago, I was eager to see what this was all about. There’s still a small part of me that is interested to know what’s going on in the shopping centre industry!!

The event was hosted by James Cunningham from Food Networks’ Eat St., who actually grew up shopping at Square One. Pretty cool.

During the media preview, I learned that they invested $320 million dollars on 3 different initiatives. FOOD CENTRAL is the first milestone of this exciting new journey. Not only do guests have the opportunity to eat in a modern and sophisticated space but there are now 8 new food retailers as well.

What really impressed me…….. (drum roll please)……

Square One FOOD CENTRAL has just launched a food court with REAL PLATES and REAL CUTLERY. That’s right – no more styrofoam  plates and no more plastic cutlery. THIS IS HUGE NEWS.

Here’s what this really means:

• It will displace 5.6 million styrofoam plates, plastic cups and cutlery from landfills every year
• Reduces food court waste from 1,200 tons to 480 tons (60% reduction)
• Reduces water usage through an energy efficient dishwashing system

The new retailers in the food court include: Big Smoke Burger, Amaya Express, Cultures, Su&shi and Noodle Bar, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Shanghai 260, Burger King, Szechuan Express.

Other exciting news for Square One, include the opening of Ann Taylor, Top Shop, White House/Black market and LOFT.

For more information:

Square One 100 City Centre Drive, Mississauga (905) 270 7771

Twitter: @ShopSquareOne

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My good friend served a salad over the Jewish New Year that was so tasty that I asked her about it.

She told me that it was from Costco. I was SHOCKED. I then asked her “where can I find it?”. She told me to head to the cold produce area. I asked her to bring out the bag so that I could recognize it and she did!!  Here’s the bag you should be looking for.

This bag contains 7 Superfoods: Broccoli, Cabbage, Brussel Sprouts,chicory, kale, roasted pumpkin seeds, and dried cranberries. A lemon poppyseed dressing is even included.

How much is this tasty salad? Here’s the answer. I’m floored at how inexpensive this salad is. I mean seriously.

I’m off to Costco this week to buy a few bags!! Something tells me this is going to become a weekly staple in my fridge.

Thanks Costco for continuing to have amazing products at amazing prices.

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I’m always looking for new fish recipes, seeing as I haven’t had any meat in my kitchen for the last two decades!!

Lately I’ve been using Panko Crumbs but I was getting bored of using them so I went over to Pinterest to get some inspiration. (which I’ve been doing a lot of lately).

I found a Popchips Recipe Board and saw that one recipe featured  Popchips crusted baked buffalo chicken tenders! I said to myself: “hmm..bet I could recreate this with fish”. So I did. Bye Bye Panko Crumbs. Hello Popchips!!

Here’s what you need:

INGREDIENTS

2 pieces of sole, thawed

2 egg whites

2 small bags of Popchips (I used the nacho cheese flavour)

a few dashes of Tobasco Buffalo  Sauce (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a food processor, pulverize the Popchips. Add a few dashes of Tobasco Buffalo Sauce for additional flavour (optional)

2. Put out two plates: one for the Popchips. One for the egg whites. Dip the fish into the egg whites and then dip into the crushed Popchips until well coated.

3. In a heated frying pan, add some oil. (I used coconut oil for my first time…yay for coconut oil)

4. Place the fish into the frying pan and cook for a few minutes.

FINAL RESULT

Hope you get a chance to snack on some Popchips soon or use them in a recipe like I did!! These chips will soon become a favorite. Promise.

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Home of the Brave is the type of place where I would want to hang out on a regular basis. It’s got a cool vibe and a kick ass menu. The first thing I noticed upon walking in, is the open window that overlooks King St. W, (as the restaurant is on the second floor). The second thing that grabs my attention is the food!!

The menu TOTALLY appeals to me. Why? Coz there’s plenty of unique items that you just don’t see on too many menus in Toronto.  This is what I ordered.

A FRIED BOLOGNA SANDWICH – Bologna, house made (that’s right – house made) american cheese, toasted pistachios, and spicy sour cream. Soon as I saw this item on the menu I knew that I was going to order it. Of course, I knew that I was going to split it too. Thankfully my blogger friend @nearafar was right there to help me out with the other half of this killer sandwich.

My friend also tried the Kentucky Fried Handshake Sandwich – Fried Chicken, Mayo, Iceberg Lettuce, Louisana Hot Sauce. Take a peek at this presentation. Is this not brilliant?

Creative. Don’t you think?

Guess what’s hiding under the napkin?

Next time I visit – this is what I’m going to order. Bones in a Bucket (Kansas City Rubbed Beef and Pork Ribs, Ranch Dressing, Celery and Carrot) and the Buffalo Cauliflower (this has my name written all over this dish…Beer Battered Cauliflower, Louisiana Hot Sauce, Ranch dressing, celery and carrots). Something tells me I’m going to try one of their famous cocktails too. (which they take seriously by the way).

Congratulations to Andrew (from La Carnita) who is behind this new venture. I can’t wait to return.

For more information:

Home of the Brave:  589 King St. W, Toronto, ON,  416-366-2736

Twitter: @theHOTB

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On Thursday night, I went to the Toronto Poutine Fest that was put together by the good people at Joylister. It was held at the Beer Academy and your $35 ticket enabled you to eat as much poutine as you want  (from 5 different poutine craftsmen) and drink a few beers as well.  JUST MY TYPE OF EVENT.

About 400 guests felt the same way, as tickets sold out in about a minute and a half.  I’m sure next year this will event will be at a bigger venue so more poutine fans can attend!!

Sadly my stomach didn’t allow me to eat poutine from all five vendors. I should have just “sampled” a few bites but my willpower was non existent that night. ARGGGHHH. I also blame it on the fact that the poutine was JUST too good. Yup – excuses, excuses, and more excuses.

Here’s what I sampled:

Coquine Restaurant:

Duck Confit Poutine: Yukon Gold frites topped with dem-glace, smoked provolone, brie and Quebec duck confit cured for two days and slow for 5 hours until tender. Verdict: My personal favorite that night.

Great Burger Kitchen:

Buter Chicken Poutine: Hand cut Yukon Gold fries topped with slowly poached chicken and sauteed onions, garlic, curry powder, tomato paste, heavy cream and deglazed with white wine.

Lou Dawg’s BBQ

The Mighty Loutine (Pulled Pork Poutine): Hand Cut Yukon Gold potato fries topped with homemade smoked chicken gravy, fresh cheese curds, and 12 hour, slow smoked pulled pork.

Here’s what I didn’t sample: (again, blame my stomach)

Poutini’s (which has been my go-to Poutine choice, since they opened) and The Feisty Jack Mobile Food Co. My apologies.

Participants had a chance to vote on the best poutine and today I received an update that Coquine Restaurant won. Congratulations. I totally agree with this choice. There was something about the duck gravy that really elevated their poutine from “norma”l to “extra-ordinary”

As for the event itself: Fantastic. I was super impressed with the layout of the room, the venue, the volunteers, and of course…the POUTINE.

Some volunteers enjoying some poutine too!!

Please take a minute to check out Joylister, which is a Toronto based start up that aims to enrich people’s lives with fun and memorable experiences. Joylister is an online community marketplace of events for people to explore their passions and interests. I’ve signed up to get their updates and you should too!!

For more information about Joylister:

Twitter: @Joylister

Facebook: www.facebook.com/joylisterfun

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