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oktoberfest in calgary – win tickets!

September 30, 2014 By Fareen 3 Comments

The end of September – time for Oktoberfest! Oktoberfest is a very popular festival in Munich Germany which runs from the end of September to the first weekend in October. Over 200 years since it’s inception, over 5 million people attend the event every year celebrating with beer and music and food.

Can’t make it to Munich? No problem! Steam Whistle is bringing an authentic Oktoberfest to Calgary. For the 2nd year, Steam Whistle is hosting its Oktoberfest party complete with oom-pah-pah music, clanking steins of delicious Pilsner and bonafide German food. The party will be held on October 4th at Wurst. You can get tickets in advance or at the door and includes admission to the party, a souvenir ceramic Stein and food! Click here for more information on this fun celebration and get ready to unleash your inner Wunderbar!

Want to win tickets? It’s easy! Just leave a comment here, on Facebook or on Twitter and you’re entered to win! Deadline to enter is Friday, October 3rd at noon.

pulo lemongrass chicken salad rolls

September 30, 2014 By Fareen Leave a Comment

I was so excited to receive to receive a package of Pulo Cuisine sauces and marinades to participate in the Pulo Recipe Challenge. Pulo is an authentic collection of sauces and marinades inspired by the 7000 Islands of the Philippines. With three marinades and two cooking sauces, each loaded with amazing flavours, the possibilities on how to use them were endless.

For dinner tonight, Q and I decided to make Lemongrass Chicken Salad Rolls using the Pulo Lemongrass Marinade. The sauce itself is packed with so many complex notes that nothing else needed to be added to marinate the chicken.

The chicken was soaked in the marinade for half an hour, quickly stir fried and then added to rice paper with mint, carrots, spinach and vermicelli noodles. Q loved the process of dipping the rice paper in water until it was pliable and assembling the rolls. My picky little boy loved the flavours of the chicken; I was ecstatic that he was nibbling on the chicken without any prompting – that speaks volumes!

This was a hit with everyone and is definitely something I will be making again and again. I have so many ideas for the other sauces!

Pulo Lemongrass Chicken Salad Rolls

8 chicken thighs, cut into strips
1/2 cup Pulo Lemongrass Marinade

Mint
Carrots
Spinach
Vermicelli Noodles
Rice Paper

Cut the chicken into strips and cover with Pulo Lemongrass Marinade for at least half an hour. Stir fry until the chicken is thoroughly cooked.

Dip the rice paper into hot water until pliable. Lay on a flat surface and fill with the cooked chicken, mint, carrots, spinach and noodles. Roll and enjoy!

yyc pizza week and donair pizza

September 26, 2014 By Fareen Leave a Comment

Today marks the start of YYC Pizza Week! The team behind YYC Burger Week have partnered up with some great restaurants in the city to raise money for Calgary Meals on Wheels. From September 26 to October 5th, 40 restaurants will compete in a pizza battle, with a portion of all sales going to Calgary Meals on Wheels. What a delicious idea!

There is also a Blogger Challenge which I am participating in along with 8 other local bloggers. We were given a list of three secret ingredients which we needed to incorporate in our pizza. You had an option to choose one or all three: chestnut puree, anchovies or fire roasted tomatoes.

I would love your votes for my Donair Pizza! The base of the pizza is a creamy white sauce loaded with garlic and sweetened with chestnut puree. This was topped with homemade donair meat, crisp onions, fire roasted tomatoes and loaded with cheese. My pizza is up against some tasty creations so your vote would be most appreciated. Thank you!!

vinay virmani from dr cabbie talks food

September 19, 2014 By Fareen Leave a Comment

Opening in theatres today is a movie which I can’t wait to see – Dr. Cabbie. It’s a plot that may ring true for so many immigrant professionals who end up unable to practice what they were trained to do in their homelands. Vinay Virmani plays Deepak, an Indian doctor who emigrates to Canada with big dreams. Unfortunately his training is not recognized, he is forced into life as a taxi driver.

The movie has some great actors such as Kunnal Nayar from Big Bang Theory, Adrianne Palicki and Rizwan Manji.

Vinay was kind enough to talk about everyone’s favourite subject – food!

Coffee or Tea?
I love my coffee, especially in the morning. I need my Nespresso to get
me started. There’s a Roma flavor that is very woody and roasted.

What is your signature dish?
I’m not much of a cook, but I enjoy making simple dishes like grilled
chicken marinated in lemon and spices, with a green salad.

What kind of food do you go out for the most?
I’m a big sushi guy. I could eat it everyday. Love spicy tuna rolls!

What would your last meal include?

It would have to be my mother’s home-cooked Indian food. Butter chicken, Indian-spiced potatoes and fresh crispy roti.

Check out Vinay and the awesome cast of Dr. Cabbie, in theatres today!

2014 home + design show

September 16, 2014 By Fareen 2 Comments

The 2014 Home + Design Show is happening this weekend in Calgary. This fun event runs from September 18 to 21 at the BMO Centre and features some great food-related and
family-friendly features this year including kid-centric interactive
cooking presentations and a dog show benefiting the Alberta Animal
Rescue Crew Society (AARCS).

We always have fun at the event but will be taking an even closer look this year since we’re building a new house. With big names like Colin McAllister & Justin Ryan, stars of Cottage Life TV’s Colin & Justin’s Cabin Pressure, Bryan Baeumler, host of HGTV’s Leave it to Bryan, and celebrity Chef
Corbin Tomaszeski, plus more than 350 exhibitors and a slew of sensational
new features, the possibilities are endless!

Want to win tickets to the event? Leave a comment here, on Facebook or send me a tweet. Contest closes on Wednesday at 8:30am.

pc spice of the prairies burger

August 31, 2014 By Fareen Leave a Comment

It’s hard to believe that summer is almost over. We had a great few months, and the heat that we enjoyed was so welcomed. The summer has definitely been one where we got out of the kitchen and used the grill as much as we could.

Earlier this year, PC challenged chefs throughout Canada to create the Ultimate Burger for their region using PC products. Food writer Dan Clapson created the Spice of the Prairies Burger made with PC Free Bison Burgers.

The folks at President’s Choice sent me some ingredients to try out Dan’s creation for myself. Dan’s creative take using the bison burger and a spicy blueberry aioli was made even better with the crunch of PC Regular Potato Chips. The heat from the aioli is mellowed out by the coolness of the lettuce with PC Sweet Vidalia Onion Salad Dressing. Add some provolone and put it all in a pretzel bun and you’ve got yourself a winner. Click here for the recipe – it’s definitely a must try!

edo japan sushi rolling competition

August 30, 2014 By Fareen Leave a Comment

Last month, I had the opportunity to participate in Edo Japan’s first Sushi Rolling Competition. I was up against some fierce competitors:

Pierre Lamielle
Vincci Tsui
Katrina Brady
Elizabeth Booth
Bonnie Huang
Ryan Massel

The competition was simple. We had twenty minutes to create a sushi roll and we were judged on presentation, creative content and taste.

My entry was “Land and Sea – The Ultimate Surf and Turf”. Lobster along with shrimp tempura and a spicy sauce were rolled and topped with Sukiyaki beef, Edo’s signature teriyaki sauce and crunchy fried onions. This came a close second to Bonnie’s beautiful creation which was topped with blow-torched salmon! Check out pictures from the event here.

Congrats to Bonnie for winning the coveted prize of Edo for a year!

summer time!

August 18, 2014 By Fareen Leave a Comment

August is already half way through and I’ve just realized I haven’t updated the blog in a while. Things have been a little crazy around here. Besides the fact that we are packing up and putting up our house for sale and getting ready for a trip (Z’s first!), we have been busy enjoying the summer.

There was a fun sushi rolling contest at Edo with fellow food bloggers (more on that soon), a couple of concerts, a delicious Tomahawk, or two (more on that soon too!). Besides running Q to all his summer activities, we managed to fit in some festivals, a day trip to Sylvan Lake, a cousins getaway to Canmore and even a big picnic with the whole clan at Lake Minnewanka.