Taste Canada Award winners 2018

Taste Canada Awards / Les Lauréats des Saveurs du Canada (tastecanada.org) has announced the winners of the country’s only national, bilingual food writing awards. 

 October is National Cookbook Month #Love Cookbooks #MoreThanRecipes

#TasteCanada

Date: Oct 29th, 2018

Location: Fairmont Royal York Hotel

At the gorgeous and opulent Royal York Hotel a group of food writers gathered to show their appreciation for great cookbook writing and fantastic food blogs.

This is a look at some of the winners. I kept it to the English category for space and my audience.  Photos below are just a few of the winners of the Taste Canada Awards.

A champion of cookbook authors and food bloggers, Taste Canada inspires readers to discover delicious recipes and diverse food stories written from a Canadian perspective. Taste Canada is a not-for-profit founded in 1998. More than just recipes, cookbooks and food blogs reveal Canada’s unique history, culture, and diversity.

“When we write about food, we are really writing about humanity and community; about love and death and biological imperatives; and about the powerful connections and similarities between us. Food writing has been as undervalued as the actual work of food preparation. Taste Canada is the only body in the country recognizing the importance of the work of food writers. Food stories are after all, the real stories of our lives,’ said Lindy Mechefske, author of Out of Old Ontario Kitchens, and Sir John's Table: The Culinary Life and Times of Canada's First Prime Minister (2016 Taste Canada Gold Award Winner for Culinary Narratives),

This year, 91 cookbooks and 50 food blogs entered the competition. A shortlist announced earlier in the year narrowed the competition to a maximum of 5 entries per category.

The 26 gold and silver award winners were revealed at the Taste Canada Awards Gala on October 29 at the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto, co-hosted by Shahir Massoud and Claire Tansey. The Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Her Honor Elizabeth Dowdeswell delivered the welcoming and opening remarks. 

The Hall of Fame Awards were presented to The Galloping Gourmet, Graham Kerr (living) and Constance Hart (posthumous), the first Jewish person in Canada to write a cookbook. This award, sponsored by the Culinary Historians of Canada, goes to authors of a stellar culinary book or body of work that has had a lasting impact on Canadian cuisine.

The annual Gala brings together writers, publishers, chefs, restaurateurs, farmers, industry, media and cookbook fans to promote a vibrant national conversation about food and the art and culture of culinary writing.  

The evening started with a welcome reception by Summer Fresh, followed by the awards presentation, and then, aone-of-a-kind gastronomic celebration, presented by Good in Every Grain,featuring food by Fairmont Royal York Executive Chef j.W. Foster, as well as Ivana Raca (Ufficio), Matt Basile (Lisa Marie/Fidel Gastro’s), Ted Reader (Ted’s Famous BBQ), Trevor Lui and Hemant Bhagwani (Fat Rabbit), Charlotte Langley (Restaurants Canada), Brad Lomanto (Conestoga College), Brian McCourt and Benjamin Lillico (Ignite Restaurant Group), Daniel Stubbe (Cacao Barry), Dufflet Rosenberg (Dufflet),  Trevor Ritchie (Bocuse d’Or Team Canada), and Vanessa Yeung (Aphrodite Cooks). Wines were presented by the Niagara College Teaching Winery. 

In 2017, the total units sold in Canada for books in the “Cooking” subject category amounted to 1.4 million for a total value of $47.4 million, according to BookNet Canada's national sales tracking service for the print English-language trade market, BNC SalesData.

Award Categories (English and French Language)

• General Cookbooks / Livres de Cuisine Générale
• Single-Subject Cookbooks / Livres de Cuisine Sujet Unique
• Regional/Cultural Cookbooks / Livres de Cuisine Régionale et Culturelle
• Culinary Narratives / Narrations Culinaires
• Health and Special Diet Cookbooks / Livres de Cuisine Santé et Diète Particulière
• Food Blogs: General / Blogues culinaire
• Food Blogs: Heath and Special Diet (English only) 

About Taste Canada A champion of Canadian cookbooks and food blogs, Taste Canada inspires and encourages readers at home and abroad to discover delicious recipes and diverse food stories written from a Canadian perspective. Taste Canada brings together Canadian food and beverage writers, publishers, chefs, restaurateurs, farmers, industry, post-secondary culinary colleges, media and cookbook fans, recognizing that food connects us all.  Since 1998, Taste Canada, a national, bilingual not-for-profit, has presented awards to the best Canadian food writers. Awards are presented each year at a Gala in Toronto. For more information, visit tastecanada.org. 

Taste Canada Awards would like to thank our partners who support our mission to champion Canada’s culinary writers including the Alberta Canola Producers Commission, Summer Fresh, Fairmont Royal York, Good in Every Grain, Egg Farmers of Ontario, Mildred’s Temple Kitchen, Restaurants Canada, Toronto Star, Canada’s 100 Best, Eat Your Words and Education Awareness Partner, ThinkBeef.  For more information, visit, tastecanada.org.

TASTE CANADA AWARDS / LES LAURÉATS DES SAVEURS DU CANADA
THE 2018 AWARD WINNERS

English-Language Books
Culinary Narratives

Gold
Vij, Vikram. Vij. Penguin Canada, Toronto

Silver
Phillips, Rod. 9000 Years of Wine. Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Markham

General Cookbooks

Gold
Crawford, Lynn. Farm to Chef. Penguin Canada, Toronto

Silver
Wimbush-Bourque, Aimée. The Simple Bites Kitchen. Penguin Canada, Toronto

Regional/Cultural Cookbooks

Gold
Anderson, Lindsay and Dana VanVeller. Feast: Recipes and Stories from a Canadian Road Trip. Appetite by Random House, Vancouver

Silver
Butters, Rod. The Okanagan Table: The Art of Everyday Home Cooking. Figure 1, Vancouver


Single-Subject Cookbooks

Gold
Kohlman, Renée. All the Sweet Things: Baked Goods and Stories from the Kitchen of Sweetsugarbean. TouchWood Editions, Victoria

Silver
Gardner, Kristy. Cooking with Cocktails.Countryman Press, New York

Health and Special Diet Cookbooks

Gold
Podleski, Greta. Yum & Yummer: Ridiculously Tasty Recipes That'll Blow Your Mind, But Not Your Diet!Author/One Spoon Media Inc., Kitchener


Silver
Wright, Laura. The First Mess Cookbook. Penguin Canada, Toronto

English-Language Food Blogs

General Food Blogs

Gold
Rhubarb & Cod, Susan Keefe
www.rhubarbandcod.com

Silver
The Lemon Apron, Jennifer Emilson
www.thelemonapron.com

Health & Special Diet Blogs

Gold
Oh She Glows, Angela Liddon
www.ohsheglows.com

Silver
Joyous Health, Joy McCarthy
www.joyoushealth.com

I will post more about the Cooks the Books event on my next blog post.  Too much to get into one post but a little bit about it.

The winners of Cooks the Books, a cooking competition that invites Canadian culinary students from across the nation to compete for the title of Canada’s Best New Student Chefs, were also announced at the Gala. The Silver Medal was awarded to  Celina do Souto and Sydney Lutz from Conestoga College (Kitchener, Ontario) for their Braised Beef Cheeks with Roasted Squash & Maple Milk Foam recipe.  Jessi Coulter & Kaitlin McCarthy from Assiniboine Community College (Brandon, Manitoba) won the Gold Medal for their Cast Iron Seared Hudson River Arctic Char with Smoked Maple Birch Glaze, on Heritage Grain recipe written.  Cooks the Books – A Student Chef Battle was held at Mildred’s Temple Kitchen in Toronto on October 28.  This competition is presented in partnership with the Alberta Canola Producers Commission and sponsored by Summer Fresh, with Education Awareness Partner, ThinkBeef.ca. 

I have only included the English Canada Categories for the French Canadian winners please check out the Taste Canada Website www.tastecanada.org

Taste Canada Awards - Canada's best Cookbook Authors -Food Bloggers

   

Taste Canada Awards 2016 Shortlist

The winners of Canada’s only culinary writing awards will be announced at the Taste Canada Awards Gala in Toronto on November 14, hosted by Mary Ito, former host of CBC’s Fresh Air

Taste Canada Awards - 2016 Shortlist featuring 55 world-class culinary writers in both official languages.

This year, Taste Canada Awards received 150 submissions (96 books and 54 food blogs) for a coveted award, which has been honouring culinary writers for 19 years.  

At the Taste Canada Awards Gala on November 14^th, Taste Canada Awards will present 22 winners with a Gold or Silver Award. CBC radio personality and former host of the top-rated show, Fresh Air, Mary Ito, will serve as host of this year’s Gala at the Arcadian Court in Toronto. The Gala is a one-of-a-kind gastronomic event with more than a dozen chef-led food stations presented by Toronto’s most celebrated chefs, and a Red Carpet walked by some of Canada’s most celebrated writers and culinary personalities.  At the Gala, Taste Canada Awards will also name this year’s Hall of Fame Award inductees (living and posthumous) sponsored by The Culinary Historians of Canada.

What’s New in 2016

·       New Category: Health and Special Diet Cookbooks

·       This year, Taste Canada Awards will present two prizes for each book category, a Gold and Silver (previously just Gold was awarded).  In the Food Blog category, presented by Canadian Lentils, a Gold award will be given.

Taste Canada Awards: Categories

·       General Cookbooks / Livres de Cuisine Générale

·       Single-Subject Cookbooks / Livres de Cuisine Sujet Unique

·       Regional/Cultural Cookbooks / Livres de Cuisine Régionale et Culturelle

·       Culinary Narratives / Les Narrations Culinaires

·       Health and Special Diet Cookbooks/Santé et diète particulière (NEW CATEGORY)

·       Food Blog / Blog Culinaire

Taste Canada Cooks the Books

Taste Canada Cooks the Books is a cooking competition that invites Canadian culinary students from across the nation to compete for the title of Canada’s Best New Student Chefs. Taste Canada Cooks the Books showcases the talent of Canada’s next generation of chefs, honours the authors and brings some of this year’s outstanding submitted cookbooks to life. Cooks the Books is presented by Taste Canada Awards and by the Alberta Canola Producers, sponsored by The Egg Farmers of Canada, The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair and Ricardo Cuisine.

The teams are paired with a culinary author and given the challenge to recreate a recipe from the author’s cookbook, along with their own signature garnish. This year, the students will compete in front of food lovers, industry professionals and peers at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair on November 12^th and 13^th. A mentoring author who will offer guidance and motivation will join the teams on stage. A panel of notable culinary experts will judge the competition. The winners will be announced at the Taste Canada Awards Gala on November 14^th where they will be presented with prizes, a letter of recommendation and a trophy to display at their school.

About Taste Canada

Our Canadian story, as told through the art of culinary writing

Taste Canada Awards celebrates 19 years as the only organization in Canada that recognizes this nation’s abundance of outstanding culinary writers. The mission of Taste Canada Awards is to be the authoritative culinary writing award in Canada by showcasing and recognizing the best. Our vision is to promote Canadian-authored culinary writing so it is recognized as world class. Drawn from Canadian academic, publishing, creative and institutional fields, the independent panel of judges reviews submissions across six categories.  In 2015, the total units sold in Canada for books in the “Cooking” subject category amounted to 1.3 million for a total value of $38.7 million, according to BookNet Canada.

2016 TASTE CANADA AWARDS:  THE SHORTLIST IN ALL AWARD CATEGORIES:

ENGLISH LANGUAGE

Culinary Narratives

Alford, Jeffrey. Chicken in the Mango Tree: Food and Life in a Thai-Khmer Village. Douglas & McIntyre, Madeira Park

Gaylard, Linda. The Tea Book. DK, Toronto

Hamilton, Alissa. Got Milked? What You Don’t Know About Dairy, The Truth About Calcium, And Why You’ll Thrive Without Milk. HarperCollins, Toronto

McClusky, Peter. Ontario Garlic: The Story from Farm to Festival. Arcadia Publishing and The History Press, Mt. Pleasant, S.C.

Mechefske, Lindy. Sir John’s Table: The Culinary Life and Times of Canada’s First Prime Minister. Goose Lane Editions, Fredericton

General Cookbooks

Canadian Living Test Kitchen and Irene Fong. The Ultimate Cookbook. Les Éditions de l’Homme, Montréal

Neal, Peter and Chris Neal. Goodness: Recipes and Stories. Blakeman Books, Richmond Hill

O’ Brady, Tara. Seven Spoons: My Favorite Recipes for Any and Every Day. Appetite by Random House, Vancouver

Smith, Mairlyn. Homegrown: Celebrating the Canadian Foods We Grow, Raise and Produce. Whitecap Books, Vancouver

Wimbush-Bourque, Aimée. Brown Eggs and Jam Jars: Family Recipes from the Kitchen of Simple Bites. Penguin Canada Books, Toronto

Regional/Cultural Cookbooks

Dammann, Derek and Chris Johns. True North: Canadian Cooking from Coast to Coast. HarperCollins, Toronto

Flinn, Craig. Out of New Nova Scotia Kitchens: Best-loved East Coast Dishes for Today. Formac Publishing, Halifax

Knight, Chris. One World Kitchen: The Cookbook. TouchWood Editions, Victoria

Musgrave, Susan. A Taste of Haida Gwaii: Food Gathering and Feasting at the Edge of the World. Whitecap Books, Vancouver

Nimji, Noorbanu and Karen Anderson. A Spicy Touch: Family Favourites from Noorbanu Nimji’s Kitchen. A Spicy Touch Publishing (Canada) Inc., Calgary

Single-Subject Cookbooks

Hynam-Smith, Adam. Curbside: Modern Street Food From a Vagabond Chef. Whitecap Books, Vancouver

Jones, Bill. The Deerholme Vegetable Cookbook. TouchWood Editions, Victoria

Langford, Signe. Happy Hens & Fresh Eggs: Keeping Chickens in the Kitchen Garden, with 100 Recipes. Douglas & McIntyre, Madeira Park

Mundy, Jane. The Ocean Wise Cookbook 2: More Seafood Recipes That Are Good for the Planet. Whitecap Books, Vancouver

Walsh, Victoria and Scott McCallum. A Field Guide to Canadian Cocktails. Appetite by Random House, Vancouver

Health and Special Diet Cookbooks

Eustace, Mary Jo. Scared Wheatless: Delicious Gluten-Free Recipes That Won’t Make You Lose Your Mind. Whitecap Books, Vancouver

Green, Patricia. Sweet Goodness: Unbelievably Delicious Gluten-Free Baking Recipes. Penguin Canada Books, Toronto

Houston, Jennifer and Ruth Tal. Super Fresh: Super Natural, Super Vibrant Vegan Recipes. Penguin Canada Books, Toronto

Nadel, Jessica. Superfoods 24/7: More Than 100 Easy and Inspired Recipes to Enjoy the World’s Most Nutritious Foods at Every Meal, Every Day. The Experiment (Thomas Allen & Son), Markham

Telpner, Meghan. The UnDiet Cookbook: 130 Gluten-Free Recipes for a Healthy and Awesome Life. Appetite by Random House, Vancouver

Food Blog

In Pursuit Of More

www.inpursuitofmore.com

Mortar and Pestle

www.mortar-and-pestle.ca

She Eats

www.sheeats.ca

FRENCH LANGUAGE

Les Narrations Culinaires

Chartier, François. L’essential de Chartier. Les Éditions de Presse, Montréal

Dô, Sylvie. L’Épicerie : Le plaisir de faire les bons choix. Les Éditions Caractère, Montréal

Francoeur, Jean-Marie. Encyclopédie de la cuisine Nouvelle-France : Histoires, produits et recettes de notre patrimoine culinaire. Fides, Anjou

Lavallée, Bernard. Sauver la planète, une bouchée à la fois: Trucs et conseils. Les Éditions La Presse, Montréal

Livres de Cuisine Générale

Coup de Pouce, St-Germain, Claudine. Cuisiner pour une semaine, un mois, un an. Les Éditions de l’Homme, Montréal

O’Gleman, Geneviève et Alexandra Diaz. Famille futée 2 : 175 recettes santé à moins de 5$ par portion. Éditions La Semaine, Montréal

Risler, Clémence et Emilie Villeneuve. Chefs de famille : Portrait et recettes. Les Éditions Cardinal, Montréal

Robitaille, Josée. C’est l’hiver! Les éditions de la Carotte blanche, Montréal

Siri, Florence-Léa. L’Art de cuisiner sans gaspiller ni se ruiner : Trucs et astuces d’économie familliale. Plus d 250 canevas de recettes. Les Éditions Caractère, Montréal

Livres de Cuisine régionale et culturelle

Alary, Christophe et Frédéric Smith. Saveurs de saison : Une cuisine inspirée du domaine Cataraqui. Les Éditions Sylvain Harvey, en collaboration avec la Commission de la capitale nationale du Québec, Québec

Bérubé, Caty, Richard Houde, Miléna Babin, Benoît Boudreau, Annie Lavoie et Raphaëlle St-Laurent Pelletier. Les plaisirs gourmands de Caty – Cuisine québécoise : les secrets de nos grands-mamans. Éditions Pratico-Pratiques, Québec

Di Domenico, Maria. Fine cuisine italienne des Abruzzes. Les Éditions Glénat Québec, Montréal

Loureiro, Helena. La cuisine d’Helena : 80 recettes portugaises pour ensoleiller votre table. Les Éditions de l’Homme, Montréal

Livres de Cuisine Sujet Unique

Gauthier, Emilie. Révolution sandwichs. Les Éditions du Trécarré, Montréal

Gosselin, Virginie et Marie-Pier Gosselin. Au Gré des Champs : Une histoire de famille, d’agriculture et de cuisine. les éditions du passage, Montréal

Lavoie, Maxime. BBQ au Max : 100 recettes débiles par le nouveau guru québécois du BBQ. Guy Saint-Jean Éditeur, Laval

Ricardo. Mon premier livre de recettes. Les Éditions La Presse, Montréal

Vézina, Daniel. La cuisine réfléchie : Bien manger sans gaspiller. Les Éditions La Presse, Montréal

Santé et diète particulière

Cormier, Hubert. Ma table festive : Yogourt. Éditions La Semaine, Montréal

Côté, Stéphanie et Philippe Grand. Nutrition Sportive : 21 jours de menus. Modus Vivendi, Montréal

Michaud, Eliane. Naturellement sucré : 100 desserts à base de sucres naturels. Guy Saint-Jean Éditeur, Laval

René, Jacynthe. Délices détox : Mon guide gourmand et vivifiant. Les Éditions Cardinal, Montréal

St-Pierre, Véronique. Les pâtisseries de Rose Madeleine : 50 recettes véganes. Les Éditions de l’Homme, Montréal

Blogue Culinaire

Nana Marmelade

www.nanamarmelade.com

The Green Life

www.thegreenlife.ca

Champagne & Brunelle

www.camillebrunelle.com

Taste Canada social media handles:

http://tastecanada.org/

https://twitter.com/TasteCanada

https://www.facebook.com/Taste.Canada

https://www.instagram.com/tastecanadaawards/

#TasteCanadaAwards

I will be live Tweeting from the awards and will do another post about the event and winners.

Get Inspired to Taste Canada

INSPIRED TO TASTE CANADA

EVENT:  Taste Canada Event HBXTasteCanada at Hudson’s Bay Queen Street

                176 Yonge St., 7th floor (Housewares dept)

DATE:     May 12, 19 and 26th, 2016

WHO:     Taste Canada's Renowned Cookbook Authors and Chefs,
                Matt Basile (Lisa Marie, Fidel Gastros),         
                Mairlyn Smith Cookbook author & television personality, 
                Derek Damman (Maison Publique) and writer Chris Johns.

HASHTAG:  #HBxTasteCanada

I attended 2 out of 3 of Taste Canada's events and I am sorry that I missed Mairlyn Smith's session because I heard she was hilarious as I knew she would be.

The events were hosted by Taste Canada's English Language Chair Jennifer MacKenzie who I had the pleasure of meeting on last year's Farm Food Tour.

The event was to showcase some of the recipes in a few of the cookbooks submitted to the Taste Canada Awards which will be held on November 14, 2016.  It is open to the public if you want to purchase tickets.  It is held at the Bay as well.

The shortlist will be announced on September 13th and I hope to see some of these cookbooks on the short list.
Last year they introduced Food Blogger Awards and for the second year I have submitted my Blog for the Award.  I know it's a long shot but you never know if you don't buy a ticket as they say.  Last year the bloggers were also invited to be red carpet correspondents which was really fun and a great way to finally meet some of the other bloggers and cookbook authors.

I attend the first session just for fun since it was my birthday and wanted to have something to do after work.
Matt Basile made his popular Sriracha Maple Syrup Cauliflower and I think there was other stuff but I didn't get a chance to try it.  The first session was a bit more chaotic because I was trying to figure out all the stations for Beer, Wine, Coffee, Godiva chocolate covered strawberries, Flow water and Kale Chips.
By the time I went to the one with Derek Damman I knew where everything was and already tasted a few of the things so I had more time and a better view of Derek's demo of some amazing fresh Wild Garlic (Ramp) pasta with Wild garlic sauce.  Derek wasn't used to the induction stoves and had a bit of a challenge trying to get them to the temperature he wanted and he said he never used the pasta attachment on the Kitchen Aid Machine but that never stops a true Chef even though he was a little flustered by it he still produced the most amazing pasta.  Imagine the freshest pasta with a full flavour of fresh garlic.  Simple but amazing.  He also made potato croquettes that were passed around and they were fantastic too.  I could have eaten a half dozen of those.

There were deals on products from All Clad and lot's of different beverages to try.  After the quick cooking demo the Chefs sat down to sign their cookbooks and meet everyone.

I have all 3 of these cookbooks and I can tell you that they really represent all that is Canada.  Matt's book is wild and decadent with recipes from all over from his food truck travels. Matt likes to go BIG.  Mairlyn Smith is a people person so her cookbook is just that.  A collection of recipes from fellow Home Economists from across Canada and some are healthy and there are Canadian classics like Butter tarts.  Derek and Chris' cookbook is a superb collection of local ingredients from the West coast to the East Coast of Canada and it could be a lovely coffee table book with the photos from their seasick photographer.  For more info on these Cookbook Authors here is their info:

Matt Basile

Thursday, May 12, 2016 

Featuring Matt Basile, author of “Street Food Diaries” 

Twitter: Matt Basile @fidelgastros 

Presented by Penguin Canada @PenguinCanada

FB: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fidel-Gastros/180390048709936

IG: fidelgastros 

Website: fidelgastros.com

Thursday, May 19, 2016 

Featuring Mairlyn Smith, author of “Homegrown” 

Twitter: Mairlyn Smith @MairlynSmith ; also @OntarioHEA

Presented by Whitecap @whitecapbooks

FB:  Mairlyn Smith Author 

IG: MairlynSmith

Website: mairlynsmith.com

Derek Damman

Thursday, May 26, 2016 

Featuring Derek Dammann & Chris Johns, authors of 
“True North”

T: Derek Dammann @maisonpublique 

Chris Johns @chrisandvinegar

Presented by HarperCollins @HarperCollinsCA

FB: https://www.facebook.com/maisonpubliquemtl/?fref=ts

IG: maisonpublique 

Website: maisonpublique.com

http://chrisjohns.tumblr.com/

To find out more info about the Taste Canada Awards:
http://tastecanada.org/awards/

Please follow Taste Canada and these other sponsors on Twitter: 

@TasteCanada

@hudsonsbay

@AllCladCanada

@GODIVA 

@HealthyCrunch

@CraftBeerGlass 

@sawdustcitybeer

@jamieoliver