Lick Your Plate!

For home cooks of all skill levels, the Lick Your Plate cookbook is a must have for anyone looking to brush up on their culinary expertise and add some new delicious recipes to their arsenal. The fun loving authors of Julie Albert and Lisa Gnat are sisters and provide us with 160 easy to follow recipes from appetizers, to soups, fish, meats, brunch, desserts and so much more!

My favourite part of this cookbook is going through the pages upon pages of vibrant, colourful pictures of the food itself so you will know exactly what you will be cooking (and hopefully exactly what your finished dish should turn out to look like). If you're not going to take my word on this, Lick Your Plate has also been highly praised by celebrities within and outside of the food industry such as Jon Bon Jovi, Chris Hadfield, Gail Simmons, Jason Alexander, Chef Michael Smith, and Meghan Markle. This cookbook is a must have on everyone's bookshelf at home and as the title suggests, after you go through a few of their delectable recipes, you will no doubt find yourself licking your plate.

CONTEST - Win 2 Free Tickets to CraveTO

Win em before you can even buy em! We are giving away 2 free tickets to CraveTo's highly anticipated event at one of Toronto's most historic venues and rooftops at the Burroughes before it even goes on sale to the general public!

The event is happening on Friday, May 27th where you will be able to taste 14 different food and drink creators, all to the soundtrack of Toronto's DJs. It'll be a night to remember. Tickets don't go on sale until March 31st, but head on over to our Instagram page to find out how to win your free tickets!

Five Great Perks of Having a Foodie Friend

Last month, we talked about the “Five Troubling Signs You Are Eating Out with a Food Blogger”. This time I decided to cut our foodie friends some slack. So, let’s talk about five reasons we love having them around!

1. New Places to Eat

When you are friends with a foodie, you will almost never eat at the same place twice. The only exception is if the restaurant in question happens to be a personal favourite. Every eating experience will be sure to delight your taste buds…well mostly. One thing is for sure, it’s never a dull day when you go out to eat with your foodie friend.

2. Foodie Perks

If your foodie friend’s Instagram account has made it big, chances are they get invited to some pretty cool events. So what happens when they need a plus one? That’s right! It’s you! You get to tag along and have the experience of a lifetime. I’m talking mixers, phone launches and even private dinners with chefs. Cool by association anyone? You bet I milk those experiences!

3. Instagram Michelangelo

After having been around your foodie friend for a while, you suddenly realize one day that you are slowly morphing into them. You find yourself constantly searching for new places to eat, worrying about lighting, arranging table settings and dare I say it…taking pictures before you eat! That’s right, you too will become an Instagram Michelangelo.

4. Leftovers

Okay, let’s be real, who doesn’t love leftovers? I’m not talking about your grandma’s five-day-old meatloaf. I’m talking about fresh cupcakes, pizza, chocolate – the good stuff. When companies send your foodie friends items in bulk, it’s inevitable they won’t be able to finish everything. So, are you really going to say no to a dozen cupcakes at 10:00 at night? That’s what I thought!

5. Foodie Gifts

I love receiving presents, especially if they happen to be food. Don’t confuse these with leftovers. When your foodie friend gives you leftovers, you love them for it but you know you only got the food so they wouldn’t have to waste all that goodness. Things are different when your foodie friend gives you food as a present. This tells you that they thought about you, appreciated your support, and knows nothing makes you happier than food. My foodie friend gave me cookies last Christmas. What did yours give you?

CONTEST - Win 4 Free Chatime Brown Sugar Drinks

Check out our Instagram and enter to win 4 free Chatime drinks! There is a new line of drinks at Chatime and we would like YOU to try it! We are giving away 4 drink vouchers to 1 lucky winner to try the new "Brown Sugar" drinks where you can enjoy the classic Chatime drinks with a twist in 7 new flavours.

The Brown Sugar series is one of the most popular items in Chatime around Asia, and they are thrilled to now introduce them here in Ontario. This new line was inspired by the islands of Okinawa, Japan and their iconic brown sugar.

Deadline to enter is at 11:59PM EST on March 19th, 2016. One random winner will be selected and announced the next day. Good luck everyone!

Good luck to everyone entering!

CONTEST - Win a $50 Gift Certificate to Aroma Espresso Bar

I hope everyone had a chance to read my blog post of my 5 favourite dishes to get at Aroma Espresso Bar.

Now is your chance to win a $50 gift card to Aroma Espresso Bar to try my suggestions, or order anything else on their menu of your choosing. It's completely up to you!

Visit my Instagram for contest rules. Deadline to enter is at 11:59PM EST on February 28th, 2016. One random winner will be selected and announced the next day (Leap Day!). Good luck everyone!