A Beginning at the Okanagan Food and Wine Writers Workshop at Gods Mountain

Have you ever had a life changing moment where you are so overwhelmed on many different levels of emotion that it is hard to put it down in words? I have experienced this only rarely in my lifetime when discovering the tiny island of Kea in Greece through the eyes of Aglaia and Costas of Keartisanal, climbing up pinnacles of rocks to ancient monasteries in the Meteora region in Greece, driving along the Cinque de Terre in Italy at 18, when attending the Foodbuzz Festival in San Francisco; and the list will continue. I experienced this same emotion when attending the Okanagan Food and Wine Writers Workshop in Penticton a few weeks ago organized by our innovative and fearless leader Jennifer Cockrall-King. Jennifer is a foodie extraordinaire who lives part time on the Naramata Bench with many prestigious writing gigs and awards under her belt (if I list them all I am sure she would be blushing) as well as a book in the works. She led us through many learning experiences throughout the 3.5 days of the workshop with energy to spare. She did everything in her power to gather the most creative and knowledgeable speakers...and thrown in for good measure passionate locals and memorable meals.

Out of My Comfort Zone to Learn the Art of Paella - Voting begins Today

Voting begins today!!!

Well the votes are in from our esteemed judges and I am still standing in Project Food Blog at  Foodbuzz . Have you caught the BUZZ!!!! I have!!!!A heart felt thank you to all who took the time to vote in the People's Choice. There are now 400 bloggers left in the competition so on to round 2 where we are making a classic dish from any worldwide cuisine that we feel is out of our comfort zone!!!!Project Food Blog is the first-ever interactive competition where thousands of Foodbuzz Featured Publishers are competing in a series of culinary blogging challenges for the chance to advance and a shot at the ultimate prize.  As contestants we will see who will rise above the pack and become the next Food Blog Star!!!! I have made it this far and it is so much fun to participate and become more deeply embedded in the Foodbuzz community!!!! Every day we should be this excited about what we are eating even if it just means making use of a wonderful find at our local farmers market. 

When searching for a dish that could speak to the hearts of many I decided that rice would be the single universal factor that bloggers could relate to best. Rice is the primary staple for more than half the world’s population, with Asia and Africa being the largest consuming regions. Pair rice with some sun-ripened tomatoes, sweet peppers, assorted meats, seafood and seasonings and you have described the ingredient list of Thieboudienne from Senegal, Jambalaya in the deep south of the United States, Jollof Rice in West Africa or countless other variations on the theme. As a food blogger I have a passion, dedication and even an urgency to create a dish that might knock your socks off all the while using a comforting ingredient like rice!!When in Spain.....

Presto Pasta Nights Rounding Up

Presto Pasta Nights  has been the baby of Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast for over 3 glorious years. Whenever we feel the urge for some pasta we can go over to her site and have 3 years of entries from all over the world to choose from from pasta salad to lasagna to Pho. There is a pasta for every season, every ingredient and every taste. All of these delicious pasta dishes have been submitted by all of you!!!

I have followed and tried to join in on the fun whenever I have pasta. My cupboards are always full of pasta in countless shapes and sizes. It is simply too hard to resist at our local Italian grocers, especially since they have expanded!!! I want to have pasta every day of the year!!!!

This week I have been lucky enough to host this long lasting event so join me as we support our fellow bloggers and enjoy their delicious pasta dishes.

Hosting Presto Pasta Nights and Cooking Spaghetti with Two Tomato (spaghetti ai due pomodori) Voting Opens for Project Food Buzz

 I have been following and joining in on the fun whenever I have pasta over at Presto Pasta Nights for the past few years. My cupboards are always full of pasta in countless shapes and sizes. It is simply too hard to resist at our local Italian grocers, especially since they have expanded!!! I want to have pasta every day of the year!!!!

Presto Pasta Nights event has been the baby of Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast for over 3 glorious years. Whenever we feel the urge for some pasta we can go over to her site and have 3 years of entries from all over the world to choose from from pasta salad to lasagna to Pho. All of these delicious pasta dishes have been submitted by all of you!!!

Please don't forget that voting starts today at Foodbuzz's Project Food Blog where you can read my first challenge. Check out my profile here!!!! Project Food Blog is the first-ever interactive competition where thousands of Foodbuzz Featured Publishers are competing in a series of culinary blogging challenges for the chance to advance and a shot at the ultimate prize. Voting for entries on the first challenge kicks off TODAY, and contestants will be whittled down over the next 12 weeks via exciting challenges related to food blogging.

Winners advance to the next challenge, including one lucky Reader's Choice winner who earns auto advancement to the next challenge (solely based on Reader votes. Entries are also rated by our panel of illustrious judges including:

Dana Cowin (Editor-in-Chief of FOOD and WINE Magazine), Nancy Silverton (Founder La Brea Bakery, Co-owner Mozza) and Pim Techamuanvivit (Author of ChezPim and The Foodie Handbook). Vote here!!!!!

Harvest Pumpkin Butter Grown Close to Home

As we speak I am attending the Food and Wine Writers Workshop south of here. Modern technology allows me to be in 2 places at once and tell you about what I was up to last Sunday and inform you about my latest foray into canning as well as have wine tastings, market tours and gourmet dinners all at the same time. I will tell you all about the workshop when I get back.  

In the meantime a few weeks ago I received an e-mail from the Loblaw's Corporation to participate in their Grown Close to Home campaign. They asked me if I would like to receive a Bernardin Canning kit to highlight our local Canadian produce. Let me think about that for a nano-second. YES was my unequivocal reply!!!!What arrived was a rather large package with President's Choice measuring cups, organic sugar, white vinegar, a Bernadin Home Canning Kit featuring a 21-quart canner, an instructional DVD and a gift card to purchase local produce. I hesitate to tell you how many years it has been since I canned from my own home grown produce but I was more than ready to get started again. Thanks Loblaws and Bernadin!!

Have You Caught the Buzz with Project Food Blog??

I am one of thousands of food bloggers who has been given the opportunity to participate in Project Food Blog at Foodbuzz. The Project Food Blog challenge is open to any food blogger who is part of the Foodbuzz Featured Publisher Program. Foodbuzz is a community and comprehensive marketing, advertising and distribution program designed for food bloggers just like you and me. Have you caught the BUZZ!!!!Project Food Blog is the first-ever interactive competition where thousands of Foodbuzz Featured Publishers are competing in a series of culinary blogging challenges for the chance to advance and a shot at the ultimate prize.  As contestants we will see who will rise above the pack and become the next Food Blog Star!!!! Will it be me!!!! Why not!!!!It will be so much fun to participate and become more deeply embedded in the Foodbuzz community!!!!

What makes me want to compete in this challenge is for the same reason why you all are all "NUMBER 1" in my books. As  food bloggers you and I have a passion, dedication and even an urgency to create dishes that knocks each others socks off !! We toil in the kitchen to create, and ultimately photograph, the captivating recipes you see on blogs like More Than Burnt Toast. This could be as simple as a time honoured family recipe that feeds my soul or sharing the latest gourmet combination. I am fearless!!! In our community we support each other and encourage our fellow bloggers to reach for the stars and this humble food blogger is up for the challenge! I would really appreciate your support in the first step of this challenge!!

Zucchini Wars with Zucchini Risotto with Saffron and Shrimp

Zucchini Risotto with Saffron and Shrimp

I am sure that by now, if you don't have a garden of your own, your neighbours are stealing into your yard in the wee hours of the morning and leaving care packages of zucchini on your porch. Or perhaps you are covertly picking the locks of your neighbours cars and leaving them in their baby car seats. If this sounds all too true you have hit the mother load!!!People seem to have a love/hate relationship with this prolific summer squash. I am a lover of zucchini so am always looking for new ways to highlight it's delicate flavour. Bring on the zucchini wars!!!!

Zucchini season is in full swing and you can easily purchase several zucchini at your local farmers market for a dollar. Found in big-box grocery stores and markets year round, this squash truly shines by mid-summer. As a home cook, I'm partial to the sweet, young version, whose delicate, creamy flesh lends itself well to both raw and cooked dishes. I avoid the large, mature zucchinis that haunt the stalls at many markets in late summer which have waterlogged, fibrous bodies and bitter seeds.

Break out the Brai with Grilled Pesto Peppers

Grilled Pesto Peppers

I hope you all had a fun-filled weekend. The kids were visiting over the long weekend so we dug deep into to our roots to enjoy some of the simple things in life...creating meals together as a family, good conversation, picking the first apples of the season, being in each others company while all the while being a tourist in our own town. Where else would we want to be, unless if course you are a university student finding her own path in life and enjoying all the cultural diversity of living in a big city on the coast?

 I certainly understand the draw of living in the BIG CITY.  I have had my share of living in larger centers all across this vast country. There’s nothing more exciting and challenging for a twenty-something than to spread their wings. Big cities are appealing because they have more of a variety of everything...types of people, restaurants, cultural events, and things to see and do. It’s possible to never be lonely or bored if you are proactive in getting out and taking advantage of everything that’s there.

Heirloom Tomato Pasta Bake with Fresh Tomato Sauce for Canadian Chef Series and What I Learned This Week....

Heirloom Tomato Pasta Bake with Fresh Tomato Sauce

Here it is the Labour Day long weekend. The kidlets are coming for a few days from Vancouver and I am in cooking mode. In the meantime, if you have been following More Than Burnt Toast you will know that a while ago I started a feature to highlight Canadian Chefs. Through your TV networks, or perhaps on other blogs, or even just right here on More Than Burnt Toast you may have heard of some of our Canadian chefs. For those of you who haven't, I hope you will find it interesting to see what our chefs are up to, a little about their history and how they came to love what they do. There will be some chefs you have heard of and adore and some lesser known who are "up and coming". Some are not even chefs at all, but just Canadians who are passionate about what they do!!For the past year I have been featuring one of our Canadian chefs periodically and will continue to do so. As the sixteenth installment in my Canadian Chef series I introduce you to:

Anthony Sedlak

Virtual Supper Club Showcases Our Fall Favourites

Frisée, Baby Spinach, and Golden Beet Salad

We are so glad you have decided to join us once again for our Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club. This is a monthly event where 5 ladies in two neighbouring countries get together to create a delicious meal with a theme in mind. We are now in our second year and continue to share a love for Cooking Light magazine which has an emphasis on healthy eating and living. The idea is simple because of our common interest in cooking and healthy cuisine. We love to share these ideas with you each and every month through our Virtual Supper Club. This is a team effort where we combine what Cooking Light readers like best...good food with great company!!! This month our theme was chosen by Jamie of Moms Cooking Club featuring a tasty menu of:

Fall Favourites

Fall is right around the corner! Very soon, leaves will begin changing colour and falling to the ground as the air turns cool and crisp.It is an inbetween season where it is not really cold and not really warm. The air has that certain woodsy fragrance with a little nip to bite your nose early in the morning and my world is seen through multihued glasses of red and russet. If you haven't already gathered it is THE season and my favourite by far!!!!! I love to bring the warm cozy blankets and sweaters out of hibernation and sit curled up on the couch in front of the fire with a book...or better yet a cookbook.

Not only is Fall a great time for jumping into piles of leaves and carving pumpkins, but it also provides a great chance to try out some delicious recipes that will help bring the spirit of the season into your kitchen and home. One of the easiest ways you can do this is by using the bounty of inspirational produce of the season from your garden or farmers markets in various recipes.