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Cococo Chocolatiers and Halloween….and a giveaway!

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Halloween is one of my favourites and I can’t believe it’s in 5 short
days! I can’t decide what my favourite part is – dressing up (how cute
are all the kids!), decorating the front lawn, having a party, trick or
treating (the only time when begging for candy is totally acceptable).
Who am I kidding, it’s about the chocolate!

I’m so happy to share that one of my favourite chocolate places has a
lot of great chocolate choices for Halloween. Cococo Chocolatiers, owners of Chocolaterie Bernard Callebaut® sent me a few of
their Halloween offerings to sample. All unique chocolates crafted by Cococo use the finest natural ingredients and blends and are free of preservatives. For Halloween, they are offering:

Chocolate witches starting at $21
Chocolate wafers, a box of 30 for $15
Chocolate skulls, a box of 7 for $16.50
Pumpkin Lollipops, 6 for $10.50
Chocolate bars, $3.95 each

I think the lollipops are perfect for handing out at school. The skulls
make a Halloween table even more delicious and festive. The wrapped
chocolates are perfect for handing out to guests or for those special
neighbours that come knocking at the door. I might take all the candy that Q collects and trade him for the chocolate witch – natural, handmade goodies just seem like a way better option than all the candy he will likely collect.

You have a few days to make a run for it and pick these up by Halloween. You can also enter to win! Cococo Chocolatiers is offering a gift basket valued at around $100 for those in Calgary. The gift basket
includes all the Halloween chocolates mentioned above, including some
chocolate covered pretzels and a solid chocolate owl. Contest closes on November 1st so you won’t get them in time for Halloween but trust me, you will enjoy every bite!

Just leave a comment about how you celebrate Halloween. You can even unlock more entries via Facebook and Twitter. Good luck!

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beef pot roast

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Life is busy. Our days are spent running from one activity to the next. We try and keep Sundays free, a day to spend at home and putter around the house. Sundays seem like the perfect day to have something cooking for a few hours, filling the house with aromatic smells.

Yesterday we spent our Sunday enjoying the smells of a roast while we hung around the house. Cooked alongside lots of veggies and topped with a creamy gravy, this pot roast gives a sense of comfort. The perfect Sunday Supper.

We love beef around here. Since we love it so much, I felt I had to enter the Canadian Beef Blogger Ambassador Contest. I am up against 9 other competitors and would love your votes. Thanks for your help! Click here to vote.

Beef Pot Roast

1 small roast (3 to 4 pounds)
3 carrots, cut into chunks
2 onions, cut into large chunks
handful brussel sprouts, halved
1 pound mini potatoes, halved
6 cloves garlic
1 cup red wine
4 cups beef broth
salt
pepper
thyme
olive oil

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Heat oil in a pot on the stove. Add the onions and cook for a couple minutes. Remove and place on a dish. Add the carrots and brussel sprouts. Cook until there is a bit of colour. Remove and place with the onions.

Coat the roast with salt and pepper. Sear on all sides until there is a nice crust. Remove from the pan. Add one cup of red wine to deglaze the pan and scrape up all the bits. Place the roast back in along with the vegetables (including the potatoes) and cover with beef broth. Add a couple sprigs of thyme, throw in the garlic and place in the oven for approximately 3 1/2 hours.

Gravy

Remove the roast and cover with foil. Remove the vegetables. In a small pot, melt 2 TB butter and add 1/4 cup flour. Slowly add the drippings from the roast and stir until smooth.

bibimbap

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One of my favourite Korean dishes is bibimbap. Bibimbap is a dish with steamed rice topped with vegetables, meat, a runny egg and a red pepper paste sauce. Any dish topped with a runny egg is a winner in my books. The best part of this dish though (besides the name) is the sauce. It’s made with gochujang, a red pepper paste with additions like garlic, soya sauce and sugar. We love this sauce so much that lately there has been a batch in the fridge to top off any meal.

The components of bibimbap are cooked separately and placed on top of the rice. It is usually stirred together right before eating. The combination of the rice, veggies, meat, egg and sauce is tasty and comforting.  This is the perfect dish to use up leftovers. Just use what protein and veggies you have and you’ve got dinner!

Bibimbap

Chicken:
1 pound chicken thighs
3 TB soya sauce
1.5 TB sesame oil
2 tsp crushed ginger
2 tsp crushed garlic
salt pepper

Marinate for at least an hour. Stir fry in a little bit of oil. Remove from the pan and cook your vegetables.

Veggies:
Whatever you have on hand. I used mushrooms, zucchini, carrots and bok choy

Rice:
Steamed rice.

Egg:
Sunnyside up

Bibimbap Sauce (From Food.com):
2 TB gochujang (red pepper paste)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 TB rice vinegar
1 TB soya sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp sugar

Mix all ingredients together.

chicken salad

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Every couple of weeks, I always try and pick up a rotisserie chicken on my shopping trip. The rotisserie chickens are so versatile – you can eat them as is or use the chicken in so many ways. From sandwiches, to soups to stock, one chicken can go a long way!

One way to use the chicken is to make chicken salad. The creaminess of the mayo, the crunch of the green onions and that distinct kick from the Dijon make this the perfect lunch. Sandwiched between bread or scooped up with crackers, its a great way to use leftovers.

Chicken Salad

1 cup shredded chicken
1/4 cup mayo
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp oregano
1 green onion
salt
pepper

Sweet and simple – put everything into a bowl and mix.

cabela’s in calgary…and a giveaway!

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Calgary’s first Cabela’s opens to the public a week from today! On Thursday, October 15, you will be able to check out the 70,000 square foot store located at Deerfoot City. Hubby, the kids and I got a sneak peak of the store a couple days ago and were blown away!

The store is designed to give customers an outdoor-like experience. Wildlife displays are all over the store. The animals they have chosen are ones that you would find in Alberta like bears, ducks and raccoons. Z loved them! They went into the Glenbow Museum archives to get local pictures to use in their decor. It was quite impressive.

We sampled crackers, cheese and game meats that will be available for Christmas. I was happy to find that the Elk Summer Sausage and the Elk Pepperoni didn’t have pork casing and we really enjoyed them. I’ll definitely be coming back to stock up on them for the holidays.

The Archery Range was so much fun and Q and I had a great time learning the proper technique. The Fudge Shop smelled so good as they made over 40 flavours of fudge. I can vouch for their tastiness along with the roasted nuts from the nut cart. Yum!

The cooking section was extensive and I seemed to want everything they offered! From smokers to seasonings, they had a huge selection to make any cook happy.

Want to win a $25 gift card to do some shopping at Cabela’s? Enter below. We will close the contest the day the store opens. Good luck!

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cook it raw alberta

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There is an exciting event going on in Alberta right now. Cook It Raw is an event taking place from October 4 to 11 and brings 14 local chefs together with 7 international chefs for a week of culinary exploration. The 21 chefs are divided into 7 teams and assigned one significant Alberta ingredient: root vegetables, bison, honey, red fife wheat, saskatoon berries, canola and beef.

The local chefs include Andrew Winfield, Blair Lebsack, Brayden Kozak, Cam Dobranski, Connie DeSousa, Darren MacLean, Duncan Ly, Eden Hrabec, John Michael MacNeil, Justin Leboe, Liana Robberecht, Paul Rogalski, Scott Pohorelic and Shane Chartrand. The international chefs include Albert Adria (Spain), Amanda Cohen (USA), Brandon Baltzley (USA), Elizabeth Falkner (USA), Jamie Kennedy (CAN), JP McMahon (Ireland)Magnus Ek (Sweden), Preeti Mistri (USA) and Syrco Bakker (Netherlands).

The chefs are currently in Canmore drawing inspiration from First Nations traditions with a full immersion into the landscape, customs and culinary culture of the region. From their discoveries, the will collaborate and create dishes for Feast on the Frontier. Check out the website for tickets.

I was lucky to be invited to the launch party that was held on Sunday, October 4th at Model Milk. We got to meet the talented chefs and sample some delicious food. Here’s a peak at the event.

calgary rocky mountain wine and food festival *giveaway*

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It’s October and time for one our favorites – the Rocky Mountain Wine and Food Festival. The Festival presents Calgarians an exclusive opportunity to sip, sample and savour with friends, family and co-workers.

The Calgary Rocky
Mountain Wine & Food Festival, sponsored by Sobeys Liquor and
Safeway Wine & Spirits, is back for a weekend of indulgence,
offering a unique opportunity to explore new products and flavours. The
Grand Tasting Hall will overflow with more exhibitors than ever before!
Attendees can expect 140 wineries, featuring a distinguished collection
of wines from 16 different countries, more
than 150 brands of premium spirits, single malt and blended scotches,
port, liqueurs and craft beers. Taste what’s new and hot in the adult
beverage scene with approximately 100 new-to-Alberta wines, beers and
spirits! Bursting with flavour, nearly 50 local
restaurants and food purveyors will cook up a variety of gourmet
culinary creations.  For an enriched tasting experience, knowledgeable
industry experts will be on hand to educate and entice.

The event takes place a the BMO Centre, Halls D & E on Friday, October 16, 5 – 10 p.m, Saturday, October 17, 12 – 4 p.m. and Saturday, October 17, 6 – 10 p.m. Tickets are available online at
www.rockymountainwine.com. Sampling coupons are required for sampling and are available for purchase onsite. 

Want to win tickets to the event? I have a pair of tickets to the Saturday, October 17, 2015 afternoon session which runs from 12 to 4pm. See the many ways to enter down below. The ticket includes free entry into the festival but winners will have to purchase tasting coupons. Please note that you must be 18 or over to be eligible.

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