Green Living Show 2019

#GLS19

@greenlivingshow

March 22-24

Metro Convention Centre Toronto

I have been going to the Green Living Show for a few years now and I am always on the look out for new and smart products that will sustain us in the future.

This show really is the one show that is for everyone.  It covers products for moms, kids, families, people with busy lives and busy business people.

The show is very interactive and not only is it about purchasing sustainable products it's about learning about ways you can make choices in your every day life that will have a global impact.

This year there was a large presence of Sustainable clothing made from everything from rubber to water bottles and accessories from leaves even.

 

 There was the Eco Car of the year once again in an eye catching bright green color.

There is an age restricted Canabis section where I got a free 10 minute chair massage event.  There were lots of canabis related products including books.

The thing I am always striving for is to reduce my waste and save money so I was happy to see a store based in Scarborough with a booth at the show that you could purchase recycled jars that you could fill up with things like shampoo and dish soap and they had a bunch of other really cool products that I plan on going back to pick up today.

There are interactive booths like the Electric Car simulator to tai chi and kids play areas.

Green Peace was on hand with this thought provoking display and it's clear that a lot of booths were concerned about plastic in our Oceans.

Don't forget about the food.  That's what I was there for after all.

Besides the Local Sustainable foods that are flavours from around the world and also the attached beverage area there are also lots of products to sample and purchase.

Some things I liked included the Keto coffee and there is great vegan cheese and the La Dee Da ladies created snack products in compostable packages and great sauces.

There are loads of products in Mason Jars which I love because it goes back to the time before plastic products took over the world and our oceans.

This product got my attention because I don't think I have seen it before and because I am an Ox the label got me curious.  I tried the Strawberry Mint flavour.  It would be a fast way to make a great salad dressing for a spinach salad even though this stuff is made for cocktails it's also great for other things.

So that's my quick overview of the show.   I got a bunch of stuff like cleaning products, snacks and a bunch of other things in a swag back but I picked up these 3 things and I plan on going back today for a couple of other things like some bamboo sheets I can't stop thinking about.

Why I picked up these three things.   The Cupanion water bottle is about the size of a regular water bottle with a wide lid easy to clean and everytime you fill it up and scan a card water is provided to someone somewhere else in the world.  That's smart.   The Keto Coffee is a delicious way to get an easy and healthy coffee wherever you can boil water.  I also liked this pumpkin spread that I picked up at the Organic Garage booth, always my favourite place to stop by and get samples.  I am thinking it will make a great chicken dish or spread for bagels.

Well that's it for me... I am planning on gong back for a couple of hours today to pick up a few more things.  Hope to see you there...and look out for these things in stores soon.

www.greenlivingshow.ca

New Sustainable Dim Sum Festival

LOVE DIM SUM?

LOVE THE ENVIRONMENT?

Toronto welcomes it's first Sustainable Dim Sum Festival.

Wednesday, March 8th, 2017
6:30pm-9:30pm
Rotunda - City Hall
Tickets $55 - includes all dim sum items and all beverage

In partnership with Live Green Toronto!

Make a delicious difference and support Environmental Defence!

Save your appetite and feel good about over-eating at this event! Some of the city's and province's best chefs will put their spin on delicious dim sum items using only fresh, local and sustainable ingredients from our environmentally conscious partners.

Overfishing is the biggest issue our oceans face today so all of our seafood options are Ocean Wise recommended. You can get more information about Ocean Wise at www.oceanwise.ca.

Meat, poultry and eggs are provided by Rowe Farms and Yorkshire Valley Farms.

All guests will receive a passport to try each Dim Sum item from each of our vendors!

Cafe Belong
DaiLo
Daniel et Daniel
Kana Snack Bar
Lake Inez
Hawthorne Food + Drink
Bruce Wine Bar
Saturday Dinette
Pork Ninjas
C-fu Foods
Centennial College
Meat, poultry and eggs are provided by Rowe Farms and Yorkshire Valley Farms.

Pair your dim sum items with local and independent wines, beers and ciders, all in support of Environmental Defence; defending clean water, a safe climate, and healthy communities. 

Some of our alcohol partners include:
401 Cidery
Beau’s All Natural Brewing Co.
Brickworks Ciderhouse
Mill St. Brewery
Muskoka Brewery
Walter Caesar
George Brown College (Mocktails)
And more!

Local artists will feature their "Environment-themed" works of art for auction, in order to raise money and awareness for Environmental Defence. PLUS a LIVE art installation onsite with artist Mark Grice. You don't want to miss it!

BRING YOUR OWN PLATE or use our biodegradable options! Each guest will receive a pair of reusable bamboo chopsticks as a take home.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW! 
Please note tickets will go off sale March 7th at 10pm or when they sell out (whichever happens sooner). There will NOT be tickets available at the door. Get your tickets now!

Click here for tickets: Ticketfly

BECK TAXIS WILL BE ON HAND TO GET YOU HOME SAFE. 

Rotunda - City Hall ( 100 Queen St W, Toronto ON M5H 2N2)

Chowder Chowdown sustainable Chowder battle

CHEFS CHRIS TORGIS AND JOEL GRAY OF BRUCE WINE BAR TAKE HOME TOP PRIZES AT VANCOUVER AQUARIUM’S OCEAN WISE® CHOWDER CHOWDOWN

It was a hot night at the Fermenting Cellar in The Distillery District, as top chefs from 12 Ocean Wise partner restaurants put their best ladle forward at the Ocean Wise Chowder Chowdown. This annual event, which takes place during Ocean Wise Month, brings together some of the region’s culinary heavyweights as they vie to have their chowder recipe be crowned the winner.

This year, a judging panel of food-savvy media and esteemed chefs selected Chefs Chris Torgis and Joel Gray of Thornbury’s Bruce Wine Bar as the 2016 Ocean Wise Chowder Chowdown Champion. The judging panel was wowed by the chef team’s New England Corn and Smoked Whitefish Chowder. Featuring fresh herbs, pickled potatoes, whitefish roe and a corn tortilla ash, the chowder had the crowd buzzing and their mouths watering.  Bruce Wine Bar also took home the People’s Choice Award, selected by hundreds of chowder lovers who cast their vote.

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I can't believe I actually missed trying the winning Chowder, probably because there were so many people around their table that we didn't get near it.  We tried every other Chowder except for the the GeoDuck,  sorry guys,  I wasn't feeling that adventurous.  We literally worked up a sweat with all the hot Chowder sampling.  But I have to say that our favourite was the very first one we tried and then we went back for it again for our last one just to make sure.  That one was from the Chase Fish & Oyster. 

To cool down after the hot chowders there was a delicious selection of beverages including bright white wine from Whitehaven Winery and the perfect, sustainable caesar from partner Walter Caesar.

 Vancouver Aquarium’s Ocean Wise Chowder Chowdown in Toronto showcased 12 top Ocean Wise chefs in total, who all joined the sustainable seafood movement by bringing the heat to this friendly competition. Chowders featured an impressive array of seafood, from octopus to geoduck. A list of participating chefs and beverage partners can be found he​re.

 

This year’s panel of distinguished judges was:

·         Chef  Martin Kouprie, The Globe Restaurant

·         Chef Brad Long, Café Belong

·         Liora Ipsum, Food Editor, The Daily Hive

·         David Ort, Post City Magazine

Ocean Wise began as a grassroots movement in Vancouver in 2005 and is now Canada’s most recognizable sustainable seafood program. What began as an initiative involving 16 chefs has expanded to include more than 675 partners with locations from Victoria to St. John’s.  In addition to Chowder Chowdown in Toronto, Ocean Wise Month is being celebrated with similar events in Vancouver, Calgary and Wolfville and partners across Canada are sharing their stories about sustainability using the hashtag #OceanWiseMonth.

This year’s Ocean Wise Chowder Chowdown in Toronto was made possible with the support of Seacore Seafood Inc. and Distillery Events. 

The reason I was really excited to go was because I think that Ocean Wise has been doing some great work getting the message about how important it is to think about buying Ocean Wise approved sustainable fish.  Why is it so important?  They research the species that are in danger of becoming over fished to the point of forever changing the balance of the Oceans and having all of the different species survive which keeps the planet in good health.  It is all connected.  The Ocean's eco system has been slowly eroding and if we don't change a few of our habits we will lose species of fish and cause other factors that contribute to Global Warming.  Yes it's real and if everyone makes conscious choices about what they eat it could make a huge difference.

For more information about Ocean Wise visit their website:  www.oceanwise.ca
For information about the Vancouver Aquarium:  www.vanaqua.org

Hawthorne Food & Drink -Serves up good things

Do you ever go to a restaurant and wonder what eating your meal is doing for your community and the planet?  Well, I had the opportunity to try Hawthorne Food & Drink's NEW MENU that serves up food sourced from local producers and sustainable and produced with little waste all while training future chefs to gain employment in the culinary industry in their efficient kitchen.  

It really does come full circle to helping the local community.  It helps local vendors know the people that purchase their products and vice versa and in training young chefs to know how to cook everything they receive in terms of products used to generate less waste it will in turn make them better chefs and more employable in the culinary world.  And the ripple effect on the planet will thank them in the future if other restaurants adopt this same model.  Imagine if every food service industry operated this way.  There might be food for all for generations to come.

Not only does this operation #DOGOOD it also Tastes Good.  

I was so impressed with everything about this restaurant.  I have never been to the restaurant before but I have tried small bites of their food at festivals and events so I knew it would be good but I was blown away at how perfectly seasoned and thoughtful everything was.  The plating was gorgeous to say the least but the flavours weren't bland or overpowering.  I prefer things to be less salt and more natural flavour and this is how these dishes were prepared.  If you have a salt addiction you may want to add salt but I think this really is the better way to do it.  Add your own to taste because you can't take it out if it's too much.
.I had a fantastic meal that had many of my favourite vegetables as the main ingredient.

The Menu included:

• Bar Snack - Pickled eggs, tumeric and grape juice.  I loved them.
• Cauliflower 3 ways with deep fried crunchy florets that just crunched in your mouth.
• Roasted bone marrow with lardons and mini caramelized brussel sprouts
• Roasted butternut squash topped with fried shallots
• Schmaltz Carbonara with Chicken
• 3 potatoes, red, purple and fingerling with radish
• Cereal coated fried chicken and slaw (not pictured)
• Panna cotta with chocolate and pumpkin sauce (not pictured)

My only thing that I wished was that the lighting which is gorgeous for people and really interesting
but it's not great for instagramming pics of their fantastically plated dishes.  I didn't post the chicken and the dessert because they lights went down even more so I couldn't get a good enough photo to post.

I returned to Hawthorne once again and tried a few other things like their Burger and spiced fries and this fish dish and fantastic potato croquettes.

This restaurant concept is similar to Jamie Oliver's Fifteen restaurant in the UK but really is more about the local community and helping young chefs that need a break.

Location:  Hawthorne Food and Drink
                 60 Richmond Street West
                 Toronto, ON
Website:  http://www.hawthorneto.ca
Closed Sat & Sunday.