canada beef Archives

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We had a great weekend with a delicious meal enjoyed with family. Luckily I had help with dinner prep from Q, who happily helped with making dessert.

We have had the kids in the kitchen from an early age. From measuring out flour or rolling out dough, there is always something for them to do to get them involved. We learned early on that if they have a hand in making a meal, they are more likely to eat it.

I was excited to be invited, along with Q, to the Canada Beef cooking event in partnership with Canadian Living. This was an interactive session, “Cook With Us”, that allowed us to learn from the folks at the Beef Centre, and arm the kids with basic skills to be confident in the kitchen.

The event took place at the Canadian Beef Centre of Excellence where we were invited to cook with several other families. Each family worked as a team to create one course for a meal to be enjoyed by all at the end of the evening. Of course beef took centre stage and the meal included meatloaf, sliders, stew, a stirfry and a roast.

Q and I were tasked with making mozzarella-stuffed mini meatloaves. We were joined virtually by Publisher Sandra Martin from Canadian Living who helped us prepare the dish. I have to admit, I’ve never made meatloaf. Maybe because I’ve always had this perception that meatloaf is dry. Well, this sure did change my mind! The meat was super moist and the flavours were fantastic. This recipe was a hit, especially with Q who made me promise that we would make it again at home. We did, and it tasted amazing the second time around as well.

The October issue of Canadian Living has a dedicated feature on families cooking together along with some great beef recipes. You can find the recipe for the mini meatloaves here.

Thanks to Canada Beef and Canadian Living for a fun evening!

A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to the Canada Beef Centre of Excellence for the Canada Beef Family Dinner. The evening featured the launch of the new Canadian Beef brand, a burger cookoff and some delicious beef eats themed around the Family Dinner.

We filled our bellies with beef short ribs, beef sliders, roast beef with barley and beef tacos while we watched local food personalities compete in a burger cookoff. We were also treated to a performance by Canada’s country music superstar, Paul Brandt who is featured in Canada Beef’s latest video. It was a great evening with foodie friends and Canada Beef.

Growing up, both my parents worked hard during the day. Dinners were the one meal that we could spend time together and catch up on everyone’s day. We would all rush off to evening activities but not before having a hearty meal with our loved ones.

Now that I have my own kids, eating dinner together remains an important part of the day. It’s a great way to find out about what’s going on when we aren’t together. Sometimes all it takes is a delicious meal with all of us on the table to get the little guy to open up about school and friends and life as a seven year old. The days we have activities in the evening, just means we eat earlier or later but still together.

Food is always the center of any kind of celebration. I love how it brings people together, and provides an excuse to spend time with the ones we love. When thinking back on these family dinners, Canada Beef plays an important role. From pot roasts for Sunday suppers to juicy steaks for birthdays, food is as big a part of the memories as the moments we spend with each other.