Walking back from the contemporary museum of Art in Place D’Armes in Montreal, I stumbled across a sea of cheese in the under ground mall. Artisan cheese makers from across La Belle Province had gathered together in one place to show of their pungent goods as if expressly for me. I couldn’t have been more excited – I would have had to travel all over Quebec to talk to these producers and taste their products but instead I am privy to a veritable buffet of stinky goodness at my disposal.

Of course I came home with a questionably smelling suitcase, as any good foodie would do. Here’s what made it back: (more…)

I sat for four hours yesterday and listened to a very smart man talk about webstuff, and the most important thing you can do is engage the reader and deliver a clear call to action.

Did you read the subject line above?? Following on the very successful heels of my blog-mate Christine, I present A CONTEST!!

For the last three days, I’ve explored the kid-likability of this made-for-them vitamin and supplement powder. My kids like it, zillions of adults love the many adult versions of Greens+, and that’s my prize.

You can win 2 jars of Greens+kids—which is $100 retail, by sending in the winning answer to either of these questions: (more…)

You can judge a food town by its market – after visiting Jean Talon Market, Montreal passes with flying colours. It is a produce market surrounded by food shops set in the heart of Little Italy open every day of the week . Locals seem to lament that the market is not what it was back in the day and that it has become a yuppy food emporium instead of the farm stand cheap seasonal produce market it once was – but I think Montrealers have had it too good. The prices and selection are good and the purveyors are knowledgeable about their products. I can see that it has probably gone a bit upscale which makes it a destination and not just a place for locals to do the daily groceries.

The day I visited there were food purveyors from around Quebec (more…)

On Day Three (Day Two, Day One) of Take those vitamins! the goal was to create a smoothie that my three kids would like enough to get a full dose of Greens+kids into them. I won’t go into the details (I always do, I know, but I won’t today), but here is:

The Winning Smoothie Recipe
half a banana
half cup vanilla soy milk (or any milk, rice or cow or sheep or goat)
1 handful frozen or fresh blueberries
1 frozen individual serving of any fruity yogurt (I stuck them in the freezer last night)
1 scoop Greens+kids
Pulse first, then whip, in the blender. Pour and serve ASAP.

All three kids liked it, so, It Works for Me!

And now, A CONTEST!! (more…)

Quelque Chose is the name of the Unibroue’s unique ale brewed with macerated cherries over several months. I had the opportunity to try it at the outdoor winter bar in Old Montreal during the Montreal Highlights Festival. The bottle suggests serving on ice as an aperitif or heated; yes, that’s right - I said hot beer. The instructions on the bottle say to “heat the opened beer in a double boiler a 70 degrees Celsius” until a light foam forms and the aroma intensifies. It was served in a small cylindrical vessel just big enough to wrap

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I spent the weekend in Montreal – a fantastic food city all around. There is an unwritten law among Canadian foodie friends and Montreal expats - if you make a trip to Montreal, you had better bring back bagels. I knew the scorn I would bring upon myself if I were neglect in returning with a grocery bag spewing sesame seeds. As a matter of fact I met a New Yorker, a first-timer in Canada, who was also instructed to secure bagels for a Toronto native living in that fat-bready-bagel city.

So, any one who knows about Montreal bagels knows the eternal unanswerable question – St Viateur or Fairmount? (more…)

This follows on from yesterday’s post.
Armed with the tub of Greens+kids, the knowledge that the creator, Sam Graci, is a true advocate of health for grownups and kids, a plastic shaker cup and lid, I sat my seven-year-old this morning and started the experiment. I put him in front of a bowl of cereal, a favourite TV show and his Nintendo DS in mid-game. This offers the distraction level I think will be necessary to even get him to taste a new concoction.
One scoop of stuff that looks like dried herbs + 4 ounces of water + shake shake shake = vitamin drink #1, a half cup of mulberry-coloured water. I tried it. Not too bad. I put it in front of Luka, who took a drink and said, “Not bad.” (more…)

Friday night was the Women and Wine party at the Fifth in Toronto. Our wine writer Anne Martin participated on the panel of foodie and wine-os competing in a culinary and wine know-it-all contest. Local food celebrities Lucy Waverman, Trish Magwood and Donna Doher among others also participated. Here are shots from a successful night of fundraising for lupus.
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One of the big guilts I carry around as a parent is the guilt that my kids don’t get enough vitamins. I buy the fruit they like, the veg they like, low fat sandwich meat, whole grain breads and tortillas, omega-3 eggs and we eat salmon once a week. But they will not take vitamins. It doesn’t matter if they are cartoon characters and crunchy, or shapped and goopy like gummy bears, they’ll eat the first few than that’s it. Game over. And it’s been that way for the last 14 years. (more…)

On the one-week anniversary of Valentine’s Day, finally some photos:

Here are three of my Valentine’s presents, made at the kitchen table and now sitting happily on my work desk. The black one with the flowers is by Luka, and he selected all the gems and where they should go. (more…)