Real Brewed Moments with Pure Leaf Tea

Lets be real. We all want a drink that is going to quench our thirst. A drink that does not only taste good, but is also healthy and nutritious. In order for this drink to be good for our bodies, it needs to have no artificial sweeteners, no preservatives, and no added colours. A drink I can get behind is a drink made with real ingredients, and that is why I love Pure Leaf Tea so much. They are passionate about realness as their tea experts pick real tea leaves and real ingredients, that are purposefully crafted and carefully brewed, to deliver a genuine tea experience.

I'm here to celebrate real moments with Pure Leaf Tea because it's real brewed tea, made from real tea leaves, and the best way to celebrate these real moments is to just be yourself in your natural environments and state of mind. Drinking Pure Leaf Tea is nothing fancy for me because I've incorporated their teas into my daily life, and I'm here to share with you all some of my daily and weekly rituals I take on. Whether it's drinking their Unsweetened Lemon, Green Tea with Honey, or Peach flavour, I know it's going to be a good day whenever I can grab a bottle of any of their flavours and take it with me.

Here are just a few of my real moments with Pure Leaf Tea.

Netflix and Chill

There is nothing better than relaxing at home, watching one of my favourite shows on Netflix, and sipping on some Pure Leaf Tea. The goal here is to try not to drink it down too quickly because I want the bottle to last for the entire duration of the episode. It's a hard thing to do. Trust me.

Running Errands

It has been scorching hot lately in Toronto, so to beat the heat while I'm driving around town doing my errands I make sure I have a cold bottle of Pure Leaf Tea sitting snug in my cup holder beside me. Pro Tip: crank up the a/c in your car to keep it nice and cool for as long as possible.

Video Games (Seriously)

I've waited almost 5 years to play the next installment of my favourite video game series, and now that it's finally out I need some much needed energy while I'm glued to the couch and playing hours on end. It doesn't get any more real than that folks.

CraveTO Colouring Book Launch Giveaway!

Add a splash of colour to your favourite city, while you enjoy food, drink and friends at the launch of Toronto's newest colouring book!

Colouring books for adults have been all the rage lately and it's not a surprise as many find it calming and even therapeutic. This new Toronto foodie colouring book features 14 Toronto establishments sketched by local artists presented by CraveTO.

The colouring book launch event is happening Wednesday, July 27th at 6:30PM to 10:30PM at The Craft - Brasserie & Grille. There will be 120 beers on tap, food from local vendors, and even Toronto themed crafts sold by local artists. 

We will be giving away a pair of tickets for you and a guest to attend this launch ($40 value)! To enter in this giveaway, all you have to do is download the below black and white sketch by clicking the link HERE.

Print it out, colour it in any way you would like, take a picture of it, and then post your finished coloured drawing on your Instagram page and hashtag #everydaycolour. Feel free to also tag us on Instagram (@theeverydayfoodie) to ensure we see your online entry.

The contest will run until Wednesday, July 20th, 2016 and the winner will be randomly chosen through the hashtag #everydaycolour submissions and then announced the very next day. Please note that this is also a 19+ event. Good luck everyone!

If you would like to purchase your own tickets to the CraveTO Colouring Book Launch Party, please visit this link HERE.

Taste of Toronto (2016)

There's no festival better at showcasing the flavours of our city's food scene than Taste of Toronto, a world renowned restaurant festival that takes places in cities all across the world. Each year Taste of Toronto keeps on getting better and better, with the addition of new chefs, restaurants, vendors, and interactive cooking demos where you can either watch it all unfold at the Taste Theatre or sign up for an hands-on cooking lesson at the Metro Master Class.

Celebrity chef Chuck Hughes kicked off opening night this past June leading a live demonstration of gastronomic delights at the Taste Theatre, inside the Garrison Common at Fort York where this festival was taking place. It was only the start of what was to come after opening night as over 24,000 guests sampled more than 60,000 dishes throughout the 4 day festivities from June 23rd to 26th.

No restaurant festival is complete without handing out some hardware! At the Best of Taste Awards this year, Chuck Hughes, Franco Stalteri (Charlie's Burgers), Rebecca Fleming (Toronto Life) selected the top three dishes, plus the best dressed booth handing out four trophies to well deserved winners.

The winners were:

First place: Chinatown Platter, The Drake Hotel Properties
Chef: Ted Corrado, corporate executive chef
 
Second place: Aburi Oshi Sushi, Miku Toronto
Chef:  Kazuki Uchigoshi, head sushi chef
 
Third place: Porchetta Pizza, Carver
Chef: Rob Bragagnolo, chef and co-owner
 
Best dressed booth: Mamakas Taverna
Chef: Chris Kalisperas

Here were some of my favourite dishes at this year's Taste of Toronto.

Kanpai Snack Bar

Formasa Ceviche - shrimp, squid, citrus fruits, bell peppers, bird’s eye chili, ontario apples and tromba tequila with Crispy taro chip. Cost - 8 Crowns

El Caballito Tequila y Tacos & Los Colibris

Churro Nest - with housemade dulce de leche or vanilla bean hard ice-cream. Cost - 8 Crowns

The McEwan Group

Crispy Calamari Po-Boy - with Ace Bakery charcoal bun, lemon caper aioli. Cost - 8 Crowns

Piano Piano

Veal Parm Sangouche - Hot Peppers, Roasted Onion, Mozzarella. Cost - 10 Crowns

Richmond Station

Fresh Waffle Cone with Organic Ice Cream - waffle cone, organic ice cream, praline. Cost - 6 Crowns

If I were to hand out my own Best of Taste Award at this year's Taste of Toronto, it would have to go to The McEwan Group and their Crispy Calamari Po-Boy. A complimentary glass of white or red wine while you waited for your order may or may not have influenced my decision. All I can say is that sandwich hit all the right notes!

Not only did I get a chance to try many dishes from this year's restaurant line up, but I was lucky enough to take part in the Metro Master Class where I cooked a dish following the instructions of a celebrated local chef, Mike Ward. The classes are on a first-come first-serve basis so make sure you sign up early to reserve a spot in one of the three classes for each of the afternoon and evening sessions.

Once you are one of the lucky ones who managed to snag that coveted spot in the Metro Master Class, you will be taken to a make shift kitchen with top of the line appliances, kitchen tools, and fresh ingredients supplied by Metro that you will be sharing with a partner throughout the cooking lesson.

The dish that Mike Ward taught our class was "Chicken with Cumin, Tahini, Lemon & Burnt Onion." The first hurdle to try to overcome was trying to figure out how to operate this very fancy, top of the line Electrolux stove that uses touch sensors to turn the stove on and off and to set the temperature. Luckily there were always experts on site to help us out if we ever had any questions on the cooking hardware.

The first task was to flatten out the chicken breast. Not so hard right? You couldn't possibly screw that up? Wrong. I thought I would be smart and use the pan as a hammer to flatten out the chicken, but I totally forgot that the pan was hot, and as you can see from the picture below part of the chicken got stuck and heated by the pan. Oops. Luckily it didn't affect the end result of the dish and I totally dodged a bullet there and not let my partner down.

The onions then needed to be chopped and put in the pan. The dish incorporates "burnt onions" and burnt is no understatement. Mike Ward re-assured us that even though to the average eye the onions looked overly burnt, that was exactly what the dish requires and was he ever right. I loved the smoky flavours the burnt onions brought to the dish at the end.

We spiced up the chicken with some cumin, salt, and pepper and put some lemon zest over the chicken as well to give it a nice earthy flavour to it. The chicken went in the hot pan and we seared it using a medium to high heat for about a good five minutes on each side. To bring the dish together we mixed in some olive oil to the tahini and used that as the sauce for the chicken. The final touches were to sprinkle on some chopped pistachios and parsley and about 30 minutes later the dish was complete and ready for consumption!

Mike Ward made sure to walk around to each individual several times throughout the cooking lesson to give out helpful hints and tricks while we were cooking to ensure we were all on the same page. He even noticed me using a hot pan to smash the chicken in the beginning and he didn't even laugh at me. I can certainly appreciate that he made me feel like I totally knew what I was doing.

All in all it was another great year at Taste of Toronto and I enjoyed every minute of it. Not only did I just get to enjoy the food at this year's festival, but I also was able to learn and bring home some practical skills and knowledge I can use forever back in my own kitchen. The countdown is now back on until we get to partake in next year's festivities and I cannot wait!

The Stop's Night Market (2016)

The Stop's Night Market has always been one of my favourite events to cover. Not only does it fulfill every foodie's dream of having access to unlimited food and drinks for the night, but at the core of this event is a philanthropic one. Celebrating its 5th anniversary this year, all the proceeds from The Stop's Night Market will support critical food access and community-building programs offered at The Stop's Community Food Centre. Located in Toronto’s west end, The Stop's Community Food Centre works to increase access to food in a manner that maintains dignity, builds health and community, and challenges inequality. From its origins as one of Canada’s first food banks, The Stop has blossomed into a thriving community hub where neighbours participate in a broad range of programs that provide healthy food, foster social connections, build food skills, and promote civic engagement. Underlying all of The Stop’s efforts is the belief that food is a basic human right. With tickets that cost $100 per person for all-you-can-eat food and alcohol for the night, it truly is a small price to pay when you think of the impact your money will have on the very people you share this city with that are hungry day-in and day-out.

Inspired by night markets from across the globe, The Stop’s Night Market transformed a unique outdoor space on Sterling Road in Toronto's Junction Triangle neighbourhood over the span of two summer nights in June. This year the night market featured more than 70 of Toronto’s best chefs, 20 local beverage vendors, and more than 35 unique food carts, each created by local design teams.

My recommendation I've been telling anyone that comes to The Stop's Night Market is to come hungry! The last thing you want to happen is to be full after you've tried only a handful of the vendors. There were so many delicious food options this year it was hard to figure out where to begin, but as I got my groove on I certainly developed a rhythm and quickly consumed some tasty dishes all while trying to find the booths that had the shortest line ups. 

Here are some of my favourite dishes of the night!

Richmond Station

Vegetarian Shawarma - Pickled Turnip, Garlic Sauce, Hot Sauce

Tori's Bakeshop

A Homer Simpson Classic - Vanilla Bean, Rhubarb Donut

Pizzeria Libretto

Gnocchi Fritti - House Made Gnocchi, Deep Fried, Topped with Marinara Sauce

Steven Gonzalez On Tour

Choripan - Pork Chorizo, Chipotle Mayo, Slaw + Bun

Seawitch

Box Cut Chips & British Style Curry Sauce

Citizen Catering

Grilled Octopus - Patatas Bravas, Chimichurri, Olives, Espelette, Lemon

Smoke Signals Bar-B-Q

Wings - Smoke, Fish Funk, Bird Chilies, Lemon Grass

I'm happy to conclude that this year's event was another smashing success with $215,000 raised for The Stop's critical food programs! Not only did they satisfy our hungry bellies who took part in the event, but hundreds more of those that are less fortunate and hungry on a daily basis. Here's to hoping that next year we can raise even more money than what we did this year, feeding one more hungry stomach at a time.

Recipe: Drake One Fifty Caesars

We have three exclusive Caesar recipes for all our readers today from one of the hottest restaurants in Toronto right now, Drake One Fifty, the Drake Hotel's chic stand-alone destination restaurant in the heart of the Financial District. These three cocktail recipes is directly from the head bartender himself Gord Hannah who has already mastered the art of cocktail making, and has graciously shared three of his favourite Caesar recipes with us including their Classic Drake Caesar. These cocktails will surely impress your guests the next time you are hosting your very own cocktail party, and the great part to this is that they are super easy to make thanks to the clear and concise directions from Gord below.

Check out the three Drake One Fifty Caesar recipes below!

Classic Drake Caesar

Ingredients

• 2 oz. Vodka

• 1 oz. Carol + Co. Bloody Mix

• Lemon Wedge

• Olives

• Pinch of...

  • Horseradish

  • Clamato Juice

  • Cracked Pepper

  • Celery Salt

Directions: To craft your perfect Canadian Caesar, begin by moistening the rim of your glass with a lemon wedge and then coat with celery salt. Fill your glass half-way with ice and then you’re ready to pour! First, add the vodka followed by the Carol + Co. Bloody Mix and a pinch of horseradish. Top your glass off with Clamato juice and then let the garnishing begin. Trim your Caesar with olives and add crushed pepper to taste. After that, it’s all yours to drink!

Cucumber Gin Caesar

Ingredients

• 2 oz. Gin

• 1 oz. Carol + Co. Bloody Mix

• Lemon Wedge

• Sliced Cucumber

• Cucumber Ribbon

• Pinch of...

  • Clamato Juice

  • Cracked Pepper

  • Celery Salt

Directions:  A new twist on an old classic, the Cucumber Gin Caesar is the perfect drink for summer! Begin by moistening the rim of your glass with a lemon wedge and then coat with celery salt. Ice your glass half-way and add in a couple of cucumber slices. Follow this by pouring in the gin and the Carol + Co. Bloody Mix. Top off your drink with Clamato juice and garnish with crushed pepper and a cucumber ribbon. The cucumber ribbon is a pretty touch that will be sure to wow! To make: peel a thin slice of cucumber and weave through a tooth-pick in an ‘S’ formation.

Cilantro Tequila Caesar 

Ingredients

• 2 oz. Tequila

• 1 oz. Carol + Co. Bloody Mix

• Lemon Wedge

• Olives

• Pinch of...

  • Horseradish

  • Clamato Juice

  • Cracked Pepper

  • Celery Salt

  • Cilantro

Directions: For a drink that truly packs a punch, look no further than the Cilantro Tequila Caesar! Begin by moistening the rim of your glass with a lemon wedge, coat with celery salt and ice. Next, bruise your cilantro by putting it in the palm of your hand and slapping it with the other. This will really bring out the flavour! Add the cilantro into the glass and pour in the tequila, Carol + Co. Bloody Mix, and horseradish. Top off your glass with Clamato juice and garnish with olives and cracked pepper to taste!

Photos taken by Brian Lai.