Interpreting the local food scene
The food scene in Montreal will be the topic Monday, May 25, when two chefs, a food writer and a fine-food marketer meet to share views and identify trends. The organization is the Women’s Canadian Club of Montreal and the panel is scheduled for 12.30 p.m. at the Unitarian Church, 5035 de Maisonneuve Blvd. W., near Claremont Ave. Price for non-members: $10. A sandwich lunch will be available from 11:15 a.m. for $5. Speakers will be chefs Emma Cardarelli of Restaurant Nora Gray and Hilary McGown of Grumman ’78, and Hivron Turanli, owner of the Italian food importing company I Macchi. Food writer Joanna Fox will moderate. No reservations are necessary. Information: 514-932-4005.
COOKBOOKS WIN
Toronto cookbook author Jennifer McLagan has won a major cookbook contest with her latest book, Bitter: A Taste of the World’s Most Dangerous Flavor, with Recipes (Ten Speed Press). Her book led the single-subject category in the annual awards presented by the James Beard Foundation, based in New York. The contest for books published in English in 2014 had more than 420 books entered, a record.
Alice Medrich, celebrated for baking and chocolate cookbooks, won in the baking and dessert category for her new book, Flavor Flours: A New Way to Bake with Teff, Buckwheat, Sorghum, Other Whole & Ancient Grains, Nuts & Non-Wheat Flours (Artisan). The general cookbook category was won by Faith Durand and Sara Kate Gillingham for The Kitchen Cookbook: Recipes, Kitchens & Tips to Inspire Your Cooking (Clarkson Potter).
Other winners and their categories include: vegetables, At Home in the Whole Food Kitchen: Celebrating the Art of Eating Well, by Amy Chaplin (Roost Books); health, Cooking Light Made Delicious: The Science of Making Healthy Food Taste Amazing, by Keith Schroeder (Oxmoor House); international, Yucatán: Recipes from a Culinary Expedition, by David Sterling (University of Texas Press).
For the complete list of winners, announced April 24 in Chicago, visit: jamesbeard.org/awards.
BURGER IS KING OF THE GRILL
Grilling season is warming up and Weber, the grill manufacturer, has released findings of its annual Canadian grill habits study. Results show that hamburgers are the most grilled food, but steak is the most popular. A whopping 87 per cent of the 1,007 Canadian grill owners surveyed said they cooked burgers most often, while 44 per cent said steak was their all-time favourite food to grill.
Men are the main grillers in Canadian households (64 per cent), according to the online survey, conducted across Canada in October by Weber-Stephen Canada. When shopping for Father’s Day, June 21, take note the survey showed these are the favourite barbecue tools: tongs (80 per cent), a basting brush (73 per cent), and a wire bristle grill brush (70 per cent).