Food for Thought with Alex Bielak- Garden Fresh – Relaunching the Rock Garden

Garden Fresh – Relaunching the Rock Garden 

The drone footage shows just how stunning the re-launched Rock Garden at the Royal Botanical Gardens will be. The inter-twined paths of the new year-round perennial gardens are sinuous as vines, and the waterways feature state of the art programmable lighting and sound. The nearly-completed and fully-accessible Visitor Centre features a leaf-shaped roof, restaurant, and banquet space for 120 guests. There’s also a million dollar courtyard with water features that will accommodate 2 - 300, and the venerable tea house has also had an upgrade.

As part of a focus group, gathered in the RBG boardroom earlier this month, I was there to provide feedback on the food-themed grand re-opening events tentatively scheduled for May 13-15 2016. The Rock Garden was first built in 1931, and the recent transformation of the beloved space has entailed no less than $20 Million of public and private funds. For that kind of investment expect fireworks. Or better yet a spectacular light show, set to music, showcasing the history of the RBG.

The RBG Board want the events to become a premiere annual fundraiser, and the plans are nothing if

Food for Thought with Alex Bielak - Sips and Bites – early fall 2015 edition, with bonus giveaway

Sips and Bites – early fall 2015 edition, with bonus giveaway 

There are a couple events, beginning TOMORROW, that merit mention. I’m also pleased to: share some breaking news about an exciting new premier bash that is being developed to launch next May; report on the recent Flamborough Chili Fest; and point you to a couple of tasty, quick reads.

The ever-popular Chef Michael Smith is at Springridge Farm tomorrow, Sunday 27th September, between 10:30 and 12:30. He will be speaking about his new Cookbook, ‘Make Ahead Meals’. You’ll see from a previous Food for Thought, he’s a genuine and funny presenter well worth hearing from. When I first met him at Springridge he stayed until every single copy of his last book (Family Meals - which recently won a Gold Medal at the Taste Canada Food Writing Awards) had been signed. He’s not perfunctory in the least, engaging with the crowds of folk who clearly adore him. It will be crowded, so get there early and take in some of the other offerings at this family and foodie-oriented destination.

The very enjoyable Harvest Halton takes place on Sunday, October 4, from noon - 4:00 p.m. at Country Heritage Park in Milton. Local farmers pair with area chefs to create dishes, and all food and drink tastings are included. A WagJag discount offer of up to 54% off of regular priced tickets makes the event even more affordable, with prices going down the more you buy. Kids 12 and under are just $5.00 at the door. Readers can win two tickets (valued at $60) simply by leaving a comment below, or tweeting to me @AlexBielak and using the hashtag #harvesthalton. I will draw from among entrants toward the end of the week.

I’ve heard the Royal Botanical Gardens is looking at introducing a major annual signature event that will be run “in tandem with the opening of their newly renovated and beloved Rock Garden.” It will feature local celebrity chefs, entertainment, and an “incredible finale” that is being kept under wraps for now. I’ll be happy to share more as I am able.

The 3rd Annual Flamborough Chili Fest was held earlier this week. I was sorry not to be able to accept the invitation to be a judge again this year, and hear I missed some great offerings. All the funds raised benefitted the Flamborough Women's Resource Centre: it provides support services for all women in the community including information and community referrals, individual counselling, legal advocacy and support, women's groups, transitional housing support for victims of abuse, and teen peer support groups. A worthy cause indeed.

Flamborough Downs carried off the majority of the accolades, repeating in three categories. They were again the Overall People's Choice winners, and took Best Garnish/Presentation and Hot and Spicy classes again as well, adding Best Booth to their haul this year. The lovely ladies at Roseto Culinary and Catering Services were also repeat winners carrying off the Celebrity Judge Favourite title. The Chili Fest will be back in 2016, and I hope to return as a judge too.

Finally, fancy a really good, fast, tasty read? Taste Canada in partnership with the Food Bloggers of Canada (of which I’m a proud member) recently celebrated the first-ever winners for best French and English-language posts on food blogs. The winner in the Category for Best English Post was "Whole Roasted Cauliflower with Hazelnut, Orange, and Saffron." The French gold laureate was "Pizza 3 minutes: saucisses italiennes, épinards, tomates cerise, coeurs d'artichauts et mozzarella.” Congratulations Allison Day from ‘Yummy Beet’ and Christelle Tanielian from ‘Christelle is Flabbergasting’.

To close, I’d mention this is the 90th Food for Thought. Stay with me to the centenary folks! 

To see more pictures, click here.

To see all past columns please see (and “like”) the Food for Thought Archives

Alex (Alex can be reached at fft@thehamiltonian.info or on twitter @AlexBielak)

Food for Thought with Alex Bielak - How I “cooked” with @CHEF_LYNN

How I “cooked” with @CHEF_LYNN

Life is good. Today is, of course, the 22nd anniversary of the official recognition of the baguette (thanks Mother Google), and I’m just back from the first ever Scottish Salmon Festival in Inverness. As noted in my last column, I took the opportunity of being in Scotland to partake of three splendid and educational tours: at the Scotch Whisky Experience in Edinburgh, and Glenfiddich and Abelour distilleries in the Highlands. I’ll be writing about them later and will provide links once the piece is published.

Re-entry to the Southern Ontario food scene was swift. I received an invitation to participate in the 5th Stein and Dine in Waterloo. The main draw was Pitchin’ In star and Chopped Canada Judge Chef Lynn Crawford. (Readers may recall Food for Thought covered Crawford’s appearance at Denninger’s Diamond Anniversary about a year ago, but was unable to secure an interview at that time.)

The Waterloo gig was clearly going to be my chance!

In many ways the Kitchener-Waterloo food and drink scene is poised to take off the way Hamilton-Burlington has prospered during the past three years. KW has long been known for the bounteous St Jacob’s Farmers’ Market, and hosting what National Geographic crowned the best Oktoberfest outside of Munich, Germany. But there’s a lot else going on these days, with fine culinary talent being attracted to the area, new breweries abounding (as befits the area’s Germanic origins) and active social media devoted to the topic. I’ve often directed readers south toward St. Kits, Niagara and east to Halton : I can heartily recommend going a bit further northward as well. 

Dave MacNeil, Executive Director of Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest told me the festival now counts four silos: Cultural and family activities, Sports, Business to Business, and Culinary. They’ve brought food “front and center” and while “there has always been the traditional foods like schnitzel, and sausage on a bun available at the fest halls, there will be more food events than ever this year.” There will be a Taste of Oktoberfest culinary series featuring Bavarian-inspired menus and beer pairings, Oktoberlicious (think Taste of Burlington’s prix-fixe menu program), and Oktoberfeast, a food truck gathering with trucks from all over Ontario. For full details see the Oktoberfest website.

So there I was at the culinary kickoff, Stein and Dine, for a dinner prepared by Chef Lynn and the staff of the Waterloo Inn. When I finally got to eat it, it was pretty tasty. “My” salad with beer-pickled beets was light and well dressed. A trout schnitzel with pilsner remoulade was a standout, perfectly cooked, quite the trick given the number of portions served. The Applewood-smoked pork chop with sausage gravy was very tender and accompanied by an unusual side: a ham hock, apple and sauerkraut bread pudding.

Dessert was a signature dish from Crawford’s restaurant, Ruby Watchco, a sweet pretzel streusel with airy pumpkin cheesecake, served in a small mason jar. Each of the dishes were well-paired with a Molson product (Creemore Springs lager and pilsner, and Rickard’s Red and White) by Justin Lamontagne, one of only 8 Cicerones (think beer sommeliers) in Canada.

You’ll note I said “My” salad. Yes indeed, I ended up on stage, endured a Survivor-style elimination (see photo by Sylvia Pond Photography), and was dressed by Chef so I could prep the salad with her. That involved more of the same, i.e. no, as in zero, handling of food, except for pieces of pickled beet stuffed in my mouth and a bit of jar shaking. Now I admit I had provoked Chef with my comment about silly hats (see photos again), and fully deserved the continuous ribbing I took from her, to the delight of the crowd.

I departed the stage arms full: a jar of brown derby dressing, a spoon, a chef’s hat, a cleaning cloth, her book (At Home with Lynn Crawford), and a tube of Rub A535 to soothe my aching arms. As I said later on Twitter, I’m expecting the offers to come rolling in from the fest halls now I’ve proved my mettle as a beer carrier.

The thing I did not leave the event with was an interview with Chef Crawford.

Third time lucky?

To see more pictures, click here.

To see all past columns please see (and “like”) the Food for Thought Archives

Alex (Alex can be reached at fft@thehamiltonian.info or on twitter @AlexBielak)

Food for Thought with Alex Bielak- Sips and Bites – It’s summertime edition

Sips and Bites – It’s summertime edition 

I’ll be the first to admit the hot summer weather has meant that beyond fishing, marketing, a bit of barbequing, and a bit more imbibing with friends, little has gone on in the Food for Thought household. That said, here are a few upcoming dates for your calendars, as well as a couple of tips on places that merit a visit. Pop Up Hamilton is running ‘The Great Southern Cookout August 28th.’ Owner, Dave Hanley says chefs from Southern Smoke BBQ and the Aberdeen Tavern will be collaborating on the chef-inspired menu. As always the location is secret for now. You can sign up for tickets via the website.

If you’d like to get a flavour of what to expect at the Pop-Up, check out a short YouTube video about the previous event: held at the Hamilton Player’s Guild Theatre, it was a celebration of Downton Abbey, with guests attired in Edwardian costume and served authentic period dishes. Sounds like fun!

Ever-popular Chef Michael Smith returns to Springridge Farm, Sunday, September 27 at 10:30am. He’ll be promoting his latest cookbook, Make Ahead Meals, during an exclusive meet and greet and

Food for Thought with Alex Bielak - Gone Fishing

Pierre D'Amours cooks a shore lunch
on the banks of the Restigouche river -
 Iphone pic by Alex Bielak

GONE FISHING!

The filing deadline for this column was inconveniently in the middle of Food for Thought's annual fishing trip to the Maritimes. I'm sending this photo - recording a remarkable lunch in a remarkable place - from a Timmies in Campbellton during a "supplies run." (The river is low, as are staples like nibblies and gin, so needs must, and we have ventured from camp to "civilization" to restore the larder.)

The joys of such a trip with good friends include not just the fishing and easy camaraderie, but also long discussions after dinner on esoteric subjects: thus far we've covered the recent discovery of the oldest ever published volume of fly patterns, fraternities, British sketch comedy, and what in life remains sacred. Not much beyond love, apparently.

The integral fuel for all of this is the fantastic camp food, wine assembled from all over the world and intermittent, copious refreshments. An additional bonus this year was a side trip a number of us arranged down much of the Restigouche River. Over the course of a sunny day we motored and floated about 100 Km of the river, including over 60 Km of stunning wilderness, punctuated by some of the most exclusive salmon camps in the world.

Our guide, Pierre D'Amours, a superlative woodsman, navigated the skinny waters, teaching us much about the ecosystem, and some about ourselves and our place in it. At midday, after we had seen a fisherman land a fine male salmon on the best pool on the river that can hold thousands of Atlantic salmon up to 40 pounds or more, Pierre made a fire over which he cooked a splendid shore lunch.

Salmon smoked according to his secret recipe, and fiddleheads were followed by the steaks in the photo, accompanied by fried potatoes, onions and mushrooms. His wife Lisa's fresh strawberry jam on rolls baked by his mother were dessert. And yes there were libations, chilled in the cool tributary that ran into the main river.

It has been said one fishes to feed one's soul rather than one's body. I put that into practice this morning as I released a small salmon back to the clear green waters of Camp Pool. Luckily our cook, June, had a light something ready for us to restore the balance between soul and body!

Dr. Sam Schulman- on management of bleeding disorders

Enjoy our chat with Dr. Sam Schulman as Dr. Schulman talks about his and the researchers working with him's findings on the management of bleeding disorders and of blood thinners during surgery

1. In layman’s terms, can you describe the contribution your research has made to the issues surrounding bleeding disorders and use of blood thinners used during surgery. Please describe the problem you’ve addressed and the impact of what you have discovered.

The new blood thinners that are starting to replace warfarin (Coumadin) act in a different way and therefore you need to stop and restart them differently when patients have surgery. Physicians have been unsure of how to do that and it is important to demonstrate the optimal timing for this. If the blood thinner is stopped too early before surgery, the patient can suffer a stroke or a new blood clot in the lungs or legs. If it is stopped too late, they can bleed more during surgery. same problem after surgery. Our results show how this should be done safely with a very low risk for both bleeding and stroke.

2. What will physicians and surgeons learn from your studies and how might they employ these findings?

By publishing the result in a high-impact journal like Circulation and also lecturing on this we hope our colleagues will adopt our strategy and establish local hospital guidelines or policies based on these results.

3. We are certain that many will be interested in the results of your research, but can you also explain what prompted you to focus on this area and, more specifically, what triggered the revelation that led to this breakthrough?

When new drugs are approved some questions are addressed by the studies performed before registration. But many hugely important issues are left for studies such as ours to answer afterwards.

4. Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know about this work?

The study was funded by the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada and recruited almost twice as many patients as originally planned, which strengthens the results.

Thanks Dr. Schulman for your work and the sharing of this information on The Hamiltonian.