Toronto Festival of Beer

If you, like me, was once a painfully shy girl who cringed at the thought of making new friends in a crowd of thousands of people, you will have no trouble finding plenty of new buddies at the Toronto Festival of Beer. I had a blast on Saturday with my friend Lisa (creator behind Confessions of a Dietitian) meandering through dozens of tents in search of the best tasting beers, talking to beer reps, not to mention finding some food to soak up all the booze. 

It was early afternoon when we made it to the festival grounds and had to make sure it wasn’t Frosh week. There was dance music blaring, adults wearing custom-made hats designed from Steam Whistle beer cartons in various shapes like a pirate’s ship, a palm tree, and antlers. There were men with sparkly mardis gras beads around their necks and beer stickers all over their shirts and the ones who didn’t have stickers all over their shirts, donned clothing that had paid some sort of tribute to beer. It was wild and we loved it. Tickets to the festival were sold out on Saturday, so you can imagine how busy it was.

After walking around, we found our way to Rock Lobster’s booth also known as the “Lobster Shack” and right next to them was a team representing one my of my favourite beers, Sam Adams. I’m no stranger to either; I've been to Rock Lobster a few times and could sit all day stuffing my face with fresh seafood. Sam Adams Boston Lager was one of the first beers I fell in love with since I began to appreciate the golden liquor, we go way back.

We ordered the Sam Adams Summer Ale and Latitude 48 IPA to try. I’ve had the summer ale before and love how easy it goes down, its crisp citrus flavor complements the lobster roll we ordered. The lobster meat was tender yet juicy, we couldn’t help making a mess on the table. The Latitude 48 IPA had a beautiful amber color and a hint of sweetness with a strong bitter finish, it contrasted the sweet lobster tacos nicely. I could have had 10 more tacos but I wanted to leave room to sample more beer. It’s a tough life. 

We spent a good 4 hours at the festival, eating Porchetta and Co sandwiches stuffed with cracklings and homemade mustard plus roasted potatoes doused in lemon crème fraiche (amazing!!). We watched a food demo by Ted Reader who grilled a mean, thick steak that was age dried for 42 days. We also tried so many beers I lost count. Some memorable ones included the Raspberry Ale from Granville Island (another of my favourite breweries), the Fruli (on tap!!), and Melville’s ginger beer.

The best part of the festival aside from drinking was meeting fellow beer enthusiasts. I’m sure the constant consumption of liquid courage had something to do with it, but everyone was very friendly. We even met Matt Pettit of Rock Lobster! There was a group of guys dressed in their own cultural attire, including one dude who's been going to the festival for 10 years. One guy came all the way from Burlington too. There were a ton of beers to try, sadly, I didn’t get a chance to sample the watermelon cider I spotted. Guess I’ll have to go back again next year.

Big thanks to Toronto's Festival of Beer for the kind invite to attend and cover the event!

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Mother's Day and Baked Chocolate Pudding with the Works

A few weeks ago, my mom flicked someone off. It was entertaining and mildly embarrassing. She was driving and we were leaving a busy plaza. At a two way stop sign, she slowed down when a lady in a van signaled to turn into our narrow path. My mom stayed put, there was another car coming behind us, giving us little room to move. The other lady began to make frivolous hand gestures, motioning us to back up but we didn’t budge. Soon, she began honking and even her daughter who sat in the passenger seat joined in, yelling through their window. Other cars crammed the intersection, impatiently honking. The lady finally surrendered and as they drove off, her teenage daughter, faced us and with a cold glare, twirling a forefinger to her temple, the universal sign for crazy. In prompt fashion, my mom gave her the middle finger. I beamed and couldn’t have been more proud of her.

My mom is the sweetest, gentlest person you will ever meet. She’s a great shopping companion, never refuses ice cream (especially when offered a Magnum bar), and she’s always there to comfort me whenever I need a hug. She’s my biggest fan of this blog and always willing to sample any of the sweets I make. For Mother’s Day, I took her to L’Avenue Bistro for dinner. We stuffed our bellies till we couldn’t move, I regretted not wearing stretchy pants. This is my third time eating there and definitely remains as one of my favourite places to eat in Toronto. It’s a cozy restaurant with exceptional service and consistently serves memorable dishes.

To start, there was yellow gazpacho and salted cod beignets with truffle mushroom mascarpone cream. The latter didn’t look too appetizing but I could have licked my plate, looks can be deceiving. I convinced my mom to have the buttermilk fried chicken, knowing she would fall in love with the crisp, crackly chunks of chicken. It was served in a citrusy slaw with a little chilli, a good balance of heat and acid. I had the duck confit in a ridiculously good blood orange beurre blanc and green beans. I ate it all, even picking at the bone with my hands and licking my fingers. 

Without missing a beat, our server brought us the dessert menu. We settled on the triple chocolate terrine, which was milk, dark and white chocolate whipped with heavy cream and then frozen. To my surprise, the white chocolate had the most pleasing texture, much smoother and lighter than it’s counterparts. 

As if we weren’t big enough gluttons, I made baked chocolate pudding the following night. It reminds me of a dense chocolate cake with a gooey centre, sort of like a molten lava cake enriched with extra eggs and butter. I topped it with Speculoos ice cream, dulce de leche sauce and crushed nuts, pretty much the epitome of indulgence. Mom and I ate it with our feet propped up on the ottoman, watching tv and satisfying our inner fat child.

I actually finished my portion in three (!!) sittings, it’s insanely rich with a truffle-like texture and big chocolate flavor. I even ate my leftovers cold, straight from the fridge and liked it more, it makes me think of crumbly flourless chocolate cake, something you just can't say no to.

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Espresso Cake

I used to drink coffee everyday. I wouldn’t call myself a java junkie, I don’t have to start my day with caffeine, though I do enjoy a latte with lots of silky foam on top. When my dad was here to visit over the holidays, he got me hooked on to black tea with milk. He made it over the stove, throwing in two bags of tea into the simmering water, and since he has a heavy hand when it comes to anything sweet, he went through a litre of raw, unpasteurized honey fairly quickly. If you peeked into the jar, you would find craters of honey where he scooped up the golden liquid.

It doesn’t taste the same when I make it, though that is most likely because of love and affection that goes into making cups of tea for my mom and me. Besides, it’s always better when someone else makes something for you, especially someone I don’t see often. So since the start of the year, I’ve been making milky teas every morning for work. A hot beverage helps keep me wake for my hour long commutes long before the sun rises.

If you are a serious coffee addict though, here’s a cake that deserves the Coffee Fanatic Seal of Approval. It smells amazing, there are teeny bits of ground coffee throughout the cake, my favourite part is the delicately crunchy crust with a tender crumb.

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Lately: brick chicken, meatball pizza and grilled cheese

Sometimes my camera feels like a dumbbell. It’s heavy and bulky (although nothing compared to this) but I never want to miss capturing a shot that makes me smile or something that immediately brings calm to my occasional frantic nerves. I’ve been savouring the end of summer with great enthusiasm and fervor as if it were my last. 

Last weekend, I picked up a bottle of Orange Weisse from Amsterdam Brewery, disguising it in a McDonald’s soda cup and strolled through nooks and cranies of a city I now call home. I found myself in colourful alleyways from Portland Avenue to Spadina, stumbling on what is known as Graffiti Tour, and later, made my way down to the Harbourfront, breathing in the wet, humid air, fantasizing what it’ll be like if I owned a yacht and sailed the world. It was the perfect timing too; the sun was starting to descend over the horizon, splashing everything in its path with a golden glow. 

I’ve also visited Gusto and was seated on the patio, surrounded by my favourite people. We sipped house-made wine (sold for a staggering $1 per ounce!), passed around plates to sample each other’s meals, including brick chicken with fingerling potatoes (featured in the first photo), homemade mozzarella with arugula, chicken salad, the poplette aka meatball pizza, plus rigatoni with juicy bits of tomatoey lambshank. 

On another beautiful day, my belly rumbled (what else is new?) for a heartstoppingly amazzzing grilled cheese sandwich at the aptly named The Grilled Cheese. After much time contemplating the menu, I went for the Mushroom Madness, filled with four types of mushrooms squeezed between cheddar cheese and toasted till light and crispy, I discovered the Good Egg, a pure gem at Kensington Market. I could have spent hours at this store flipping through cookbooks, food memoirs, touching all the Le Creuset dutch ovens and mortar and pestles and microplane graters that sat waiting to be taken home. It was hard leaving, but I wanted to pick up a flourless chocolate cupcake at Miss Cora Kitchen’s before they packed up for the day. If you're ever in the area, I'd suggest picking up a cookie or two at Cora’s before hitting Good Egg, food books are better enjoyed with food in hand.

The other day, I walked into the Hispanic Fiesta at Mel Lastman Square. There was a live band playing Latin music, a crowd had gathered around the stage and a smaller crowd of kids holding hands dancing and giggling. For a brief moment, it felt like Montreal, where street fests can magically transform an ordinary street block to a bumbling electric space. Rebozo’s had a booth with a long snaking line, a sure sign of good food. My theory proven  correctly when I swiftly polished off their popular beef tacos and stole a few bites of my friend’s burrito, swishing it all down with a cold soda. I hope you’ve been having an amazing summer too.

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Lately

I don’t know how we got to August so soon. I feel like I haven’t played enough, haven’t tanned dark enough (put me next to my mom and we look like night and day), haven’t gone on any road trips, nor have I enjoyed summer to its full potential. I’m not complaining though, I relished each heat wave as if it were my last, sitting motionless on the patio, inducing a minor heat stroke when I arrived at work, woozy with an angry migraine pounding the top of my head. 

Other memorable parts of my summer include hanging out at Centre Island (we didn’t go to the nude beach, but it’s marked high on my bucket list), sipping ridiculously strong mojitos surrounded by calm water at Ennismore, watching the sun go down at 8pm, splashing the sky with a beautiful purple glow, eating fresh, local peaches so sweet, I could feel the glucose bubbling in my blood.

But the proudest thing that I fumbled upon in the past few months, was discovering my love for beer. As I was a child, my dad would occasionally order a tall glass when we dined out, I eyed the golden, foamy drink with curiosity. Silent, I looked to him for approval, with a nod, he pushed the glass closer to me, leaving streaks of moisture across the table. I looked down at the creaminess and took a whiff, I already didn’t like it and I wasn't sure if this was a good idea. Still, like a true food warrior, I took a sip, instantly regretted it and gulped it down making a face. Never again I vowed.

And yet, a spark went off when I went to the Bier Markt for the first time. I tried Achel 8, then Muskoka Brewery’s Mad Tom IPA (I only drink it because of its awesome name), and I tried Belgium’s Leffe and loved them all. They were flavourful, complex and delicious. My 11 year old self wouldn’t believe it, but it’s true.

I went to the Brewer’s Backyard at the gorgeous Evergreen Brickworks and tried Mill St’s blueberry beer (!!) and raspberry beer, my favourite being the former for its refreshing tartness. There were also hot pressed sandwiches to accompany them, like my meltingly tender beef brisket with baked beans and cheddar cheese or my friend’s pulled pork with guacamole and tortilla chips (thank you Fidel Gastro’s!). Both sandwiches sealed the deal that lovely Sunday.

The other day I went for a walk through Kensington market, bringing back flashbacks and then made new memories with the help of a brilliant pint-sized lady named Stella Artois. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn’t have the guts to ask this friendly stranger for a portrait with his handsome Mamiya camera (I promise to dedicate a whole blog post to beer soon). I've been to Kensington several times already and each time, I get lost in the colourful buildings and eclectic crowd that mill around the streets.

 

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Lately and The Delicious Project: Mushroom Risotto

As most food-lovers will agree, at meal times, you must have your camera ready. When I dine out, I frequently have my camera sitting in my lap, with the appropriate settings turned on to capture the perfect moment. It's especially awkward however, when the table is small, there's only a smidgen of space between me and the next diner and I have the urgent need to whip out my DSLR. I know they stare at me in bewilderment, I know they're judging, but I do it anyway. It's critical to document these meals ykno? 

So here are the places and things I've been eating. There was a real yum and affordable classic French food at L'Avenue, I went with a food-lover friend, she got the buttermilk fried chicken and I ordered the croque monsieur, all I can say is I can't wait to go back.

 

There's also been a family potluck in which my cousins who also happen to love food (it runs in the family), prepared not one, but two desserts. There were apple blossoms plus apple and cheddar pies. I'm not even a fan of warm fruit but I was smitten over the blossoms which were deliciously comforting (besides, its fun to say apple blossoms over and over again)

 

 

I had an friend visit from California last week and was eager to try Toronto cuisine. I don’t even know what that is. Thankfully, she did some research and found The Black Hoof, I'm still unsure if it's considered Canadian, but this place is definitely worth talking about. I peeked at the menu online and my heart skipped a beat when I saw roasted bone marrow. Ohmygoodness. I was already excited. At promptly 7pm, we surveyed the cocktail selection, settled on sangria (which to be honest, wasn’t very good and disgustingly overpriced) and chose four dishes from the chalkboard menu and waited.

First, came the cheese platter with complimentary jams, chutneys and homemade raisins, followed by the roasted bone marrow (sigh!) served with salsa verde and flakes of sea salt, I’m happy to report that it was exactly what I envisioned: smooth, silky, and unctuous on grilled bread, I could have eaten five plates of it. But I didn’t, we shared it and moved on to the next dish, burrata and asparagus salad, splitting it into three equalish portions (Terroni wins for making an oozier, creamier burrata). The most surprising thing however, was the beef heart with mussels.

I was expecting a slab of bloody meat and a bundle of steaming mussels to arrive at our table, but when the cute waiter set down a neat plate of slivered beef heart, topped with tender mussels (out of their shell) along with a creamy sauce, a scattering of breadcrumbs and frisée tower, I was blown away. This is serious business folks. The most intriguing part wasn’t the tattoos that snaked along our waiter’s arms and legs, but how the heart was seared just on the outside yet retained a decent chewy texture and you couldn't detect any peculiar beefiness, it was mildly meaty and yet still gracious. 

We didn’t have space to stomach another morsel, so we made our way to the Bier Markt, which I think was the smartest idea ever. Overwhelmed with a dizzying selection of beers, we took our time and chose our first round: Lindeman’s apple beer, Muskoka’s Mad Tom India Pale Ale and Rochefort Trappist Achel Ale. I’ve only just started to enjoy beer and now I’m tempted to go back and try more, the ale was complex, rich and fruity, a far cry from the regular beers I've had. It even smelled good. On our second round, I had the Muskoka Mad Tom, as I was immediately drawn to the floral yet bitter flavours. And as if our big dinner wasn’t enough, we ordered the smoked meat poutine which was so darn tasty, a fellow patron walked by, curious to know what we ordered. I highly recommend it.

 

The following day, I went to Ennismore with a good friend to visit another good friend. We’ve been getting together since the beginning of the year for a girl’s night, and this time, we showed up at our friend’s house near Turtle Bay. Despite the sad, gloomy sky hovering above us, that didn’t stop us from by mixing very strong mojitos and dining on the patio with BBQ salmon and creamy potato salad.

  
Afterwards, we took our drinks and sat by the dock. It was quiet and peaceful, something that I rarely take time for. Buzzed and a little lightheaded, we made our way back to the house for some dessert: Eton mess, a beautiful mixture of vanilla yogurt and heavy cream topped with broken up meringue cookies and berry compote.

On the same busy weekend, I rushed off to meet up my fellow food-lovers for our third Delicious Project, this time taste testing mushroom risotto. But first, Lisa bought pastries from La Boheme to kick off our epic taste test, we shared croissants, almond croissants, chocolatines, danishes, and vanilla custard filled croissants. Then came the serious work, photographing risotto ingredients and sampling four types of risotto (life is really hard), Lisa has documented the results here. I’d say my summer is off to a great start. 

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