I had the opportunity last week to check out some innovative menu items made with Nutella® at the Loblaws® store at Maple Leaf Gardens.

How could I say no?

Once I walked into the store, it only took me a nano second to spot the Nutella® Cafe.

 Then my eyes went right to the menu!!

There’s  Nutella® Pizza with a variety of toppings: Strawberries, Cookies ‘n Creme, Berry Medley, Pretzel, Pear, Puffed Rice, Tortilla, Banana, Tropical and Fruit. So many choices and one is prettier than the next!

b) There’s Waffles as well. As you can see from the photo, I had a bite and it was DELICIOUS.

Theres Crepes (sorry no photo) and even Nutella® Milkshakes.

I took home a Nutella® Banana Panini which is one of my favourite combos. It was indeed a great choice.

Besides eating, I had a great conversation with Executive Chef Mark Russell who is behind this initiative.
So help “Spread the Word” about the Nutella ®Cafe at Loblaws®. It’s worth visiting. Promise.

I’m always happy to visit Loblaws® at Maple Leaf: underground parking (free for an hour when you spend $20), a gorgeous grocery store, Joe Fresh and an LCBO. What more could one want?

For more information:

Loblaws, Maple Leaf Gardens, 60 Carlton St, Toronto, ON
Phone: (416) 593-6154

Twitter: @LoblawsCarlton

Hashtag: #MorewithNutella

Disclosure: I was compensated for this post, however all opinions are my own.

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Here’s a recap of my day:

It started off at Mr. Mike’s Pizza (269 Morningside) so that I could inhale a slice of poutine pizza…

……and it ended off at Brookelynn Bistro (9300 Keele St) to help celebrate World Nutella Day.

In between those two events, I went to the gym and ran on the treadmill (I swear).

Seriously. Life is good. Here’s more information about why I consumed Poutine Pizza and Nutella on the same day!!

a) Poutine Week takes place from Feb 1 – 7th,  at 23 participating restaurants. I love the stuff….I’ve had it in sandwich, for brunch and now on a pizza.

b) World Nutella Day is on Feb 5th. I was happy to celebrate this special day  with Brookelynn Bistro, Fables & Foccaccia in collaboration with Continental Noodles and Wild Burger! The menu included Wild Boar Nutella Sliders, Plantain Nutella Springrolls, Nutella Arancini, a Nutella Spread Station, and a Nutella Dessert Station and more!! I was freaking out with happiness. One item was better than another! Kudos to www.sweetboutique.ca for their delicious nutella creations and Wild Burger too. I’m in a food coma!!

Le Sigh…..

ps many thanks to Fables and Focaccia for inviting me to help celebrate World Nutella Day. You really are Queen of Nutella.

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If you asked me “what is my definition of a healthy meal?”…this is how I would reply.

The meal would consist of fruit, veggies, protein and some carbs.  Now how would I ensure that these meals would appeal to kids?  Let’s see…here’s a few TIPS.

a) Make sure that the meal is colourful.  It’s funny how presentation can go  along way!

b) A deconstructed salad (see photo) is a great way for your kids to choose what THEY like. This is perfect for those families where one child doesn’t like tomatoes and the other child does. (you know exactly what I mean..LOL).

c) Have fun with your food! Again – presentation goes a long way. This is a photo of a homemade healthy pancake with just a touch of Nutella.

d) Invest in a Spiralizer and turn boring vegetables into FUN vegetables. Trust me – this works!!

To ensure that I stay within my budget, I always shop at No Frills so I can get the best prices and take advantage of using my PC Points.  I signed up for the PC app when I attended the launch of the PC Plus program back in May 2013. I’ve been a faithful user ever since. In fact I’m pretty sure I was downloading the app while Kathy Buckworth was talking about it at the launch. (yup – I’m an eager beaver when it comes to saving $$)

There is no doubt that making healthy meals is important to me and it’s also important to me that I spend my money wisely. No question that the PC Plus program and No Frills helps me obtain my goals.

For more information:

No Frills: www.pcplus.ca

Instagram: #PCPlus

Disclosure: I am blogger participating in a program with No Frills. I have received compensation for this blog post however all opinions are my own.

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The media day for the CNE has been marked off in my calendar since July 9th. I’m not kidding, this is one event I was not going to miss!! It’s an opportunity for me to sample an array of goodies all at one time. Note the word “sample”.

However, as much as I wanted to sample everything …I didn’t. I couldn’t. I wouldn’t. I only sampled 4 items. This means I will just have to return to the CNE. Right?

See what I mean?

This is what I sampled and seriously you should go to the CNE and eat these items too. You can thank me later.

1. The All Bacon Canuck Burger from Bacon Nation: An all bacon burger served on an all bacon bun. Topped off with 2 strips of bacon and 1 slice of thick cut peameal bacon. Please try this. I insist.

2. Nutella Fries from Spread Nutellerie. These fries are simply brilliant. I loved how they had just the right amount of sea salt on them. The combo of the chocolate and the sea salt was heavenly (my taste buds were telling me). Congratulations to  3. The EPIC Maple Bacon “Cronut” Inspired Burger. What is it exactly? It’s a maple bacon cronut inspired burger rolled in cinnamon sugar, sliced in half, filled with 100% Canadian , all beef patty, cheese and topped iwth a home made maple bacon jam, (both Canadian too). Congratulations to Epic Burgers and Le Dolci who partnered this year to create this sensational item. My waistline thanks you.

PS the Maple Bacon Cronut inspired Burger is only available at the Canadian National Exhibiton from Aug 16th to September 2nd. I’m crossing my fingers that Abbey’s Kitchen will host an event with them in the near future. Please cross your fingers too.

4. Panini Gelato  OK picture this. …A combination of fresh gelato sealed within a warmed sweet fresh brioche. Can you say “Un-freakin’- belieavable”
 

My stomach had such a good experience, that it wouldn’t surprise me if you saw another blog post about the CNE!!

The CNE runs from Aug 16th to Sept 2nd at Exhibition Place, Toronto Ontario.

Website: www.theex.com

Twitter: @letsgototheEX

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

There is even a CNE app!!

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