Toronto…the finale

So I told you I had fun when I was away right?  But unless you follow me on Twitter or on Facebook (Judy Chiappini) you may not know what exactly I was up to…

It was a friend of mine’s birthday and he invited me to a party at his house…

We had some dips (roasted red pepper and egg plant)…

Some marinated and grilled shrimp…

Grilled Octopus…

Salads…

(Photo courtesy of Paula @ Dragon’s Kitchen)

(Photo courtesy of Paula @ Dragon’s Kitchen)

Grilled Pork Belly…


Homemade Chicken Gyro’s…

with homemade tzatziki, tomatoes, and onions…

And then came the cake…

You see how lucky I am???  Have you guessed who’s birthday it was yet?

Peter @ Kalofagas had a birthday!!!

and I got to meet Paula @ The Dragon’s Kitchen

And Jasmine @ Confessions of a Cardamom Addict
 
photo courtesy of Paula @ Dragon’s Kitchen

Can you believe how lucky I was to be invited to this Greek feast?  Peter single handedly prepared and served us all night long.  Paula did make the birthday cake and it is by far one of my all time faves…Lemon Meringue Cake!

We were able to meet up with Paula and Peter once again but just for a quick bite to eat after we went to the Science Center to see Harry Potter The Exhibition!  Still a little bit of time with 2 of my favorite bloggers and friends is better than no time at all…

photo courtesy of Paula @ Dragon’s Kitchen

Loved meeting Paula (xoxoxo) and Jasmine and seeing Peter again!!!  Thank you for making this a memorable trip for me and can’t wait to do it all again next year…lamb on a spit right????

Okay so it's been a while...

Peter - (Kalofagas-Greek Food and Beyond) and I at his secret favorite food spot!

We are currently on vacation as I said in my last post and boy have we been having fun. We spent 4 days with T.'s family in the Pittsburgh area of PA and we are now in Toronto spending some badly needed time with my family. Has it ever been a blast.

Toronto is probably one of the best foodie towns in all of North America!!! Go ahead challenge me on this... I make this incredibly bold statement with authority! Here you don't have to rely on Whole Foods or any other type of chains to get yourself good, healthy and fresh food. We have Markets throughout the whole city. My favorite has always and will always be the St.Lawrence Market but yesterday I had the opportunity to explore another great foodie market that I had not been to in years (probably about 25 but hey who's really counting?) with a fellow foodie that I had the great opportunity to meet up with while I was here.

This is the rear parking lot for the St. Lawrence Market

Some of the deliciuos fresh produce that we got at St. Lawrence Market. I'll post some recipes when I get home.

This was T. buying some Proscuitto and Serano ham to go with the cheese we bought for dinner!

See the delicious ham and the homemade Portuguese sausage that we got from a bakery that I used to go to when I was a little girl?

Nice dinner huh?

Just a small portion of the produce that is for sale at various different vendor's throughout the market!

T.'s favorite thing at the whole market and one of his favorite Canadian foods. Peameal Bacon Sandwiches. Peameal is a sweet pickled pork shoulder rolled in peameal. Fried up and put on a nice tender bun with some mustard...Yummmm!

We got to spend yesterday afternoon with Peter from Kalofagas-Greek Food and Beyond. He very graciously agreed to meet T., myself and the 2 children at one of his favorite food sites in the city. It truly was a hidden gem and someplace that I would probably have walked by a hundred times without ever stopping in. Good thing we were in the know...the food was incredible!!!! We very wisely went with the daily specials that they were offering (on Peter's recommendation!!!). The food was incredible. I am not sure if Peter wants his hidden gem being made public so if you are in the Toronto area and want the name of this place send me and email and I can give it to you.

We are going to be leaving here on Monday so I am not sure if I will have enough time to post between now and then but I have a ton of recipes to post!!!

Peter's lunch of Lamb Shank on a bed of braised lentils!

T's lunch of Osso Bucco with fries and poutine!!!

My lunch of shitake encrusted halibut on a bed of asian noodles!!!

Peter also very kindly took us for a tour of Kensington Market which is in an older area of the city but was incredibly wonderful. He took us to his favorite Greek fish store and we were able to buy 7 nice sized yellow tail snapper to cook up for our dinner tonight!!! Thanks again Peter and Happy Birthday!!!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy

www.nofearentertaining.com