CNE Greasy Madness

At age 32 I finally made it out to the Central Canada Exhibition in Toronto for the first time in my life.  Since I was used to the much smaller Ottawa Super Ex, the CNE proved to be a complete sensory overload....but one I am glad to have finally experienced.

Of course, my main focus of this trip would be the ridiculous food pavilion.  So here's a few pics of the madness...

My burger choices...

What I came to the CNE for!  Bacon cheeseburger w/fried egg on 2 Krispy Kreme donuts.

 As horrifying as that burger sounds, it was actually pretty damn good.  Messy, but good.  And yes, I would totally eat one again...but not before a a lengthy period of dieting!  The "Behemoth" burger advertized above was sandwiched between two grilled cheeses.  Unfortunately there was not enough room in my stomach to try that one.

Dessert choices...

Deep fried slushy!

For those wondering how deep frying drinks is possible, there's a simple answer.  They take your beverage of choice and mix it will batter...than dump it in balls into the fryer.  So no, it isn't full of slush or coke that explodes in your mouth, but simply flavoured dough,  It was honestly a lot less offensive that it looks and sounds.  And definitely not too sweet.

After dinner, I wandered the fair grounds.  As to be expected, there were tonnes of games, rides and vendors selling everything from bootleg DVD's to incense and ball caps.

In the vendors area I grabbed a few kangaroo pepperettes.  There was also camel summer sausage available, and I regret not buying any, however I was already starting to run low on my frivolous CNE money.  The pepperettes were nothing too exciting and for all I know they could have been beef and or pork. 

Thankfully I did have a couple extra bucks to grab a pickle on a stick!

Let's be honest...everything tastes better on a stick.







Next stop was to see the cute little animals.  The "Pig Mobile" greeted me at the farm building and for a minute I thought that the Food Truck Eats event had started a day early!

Bacon in training.

 With the evening winding down, my day wouldn't have been complete without one final greasy snack...

The Deep Fried Mac n' Cheese Curds was by far my favorite food at the CNE.

At almost 10pm, the line ups for food were just as big as ever. 

Overall I had a great time.  The food did not disappoint and the crowds were not so crazy that I wanted to leave immediately after getting there.  Definitely something that I think everyone should check out at some point.

And foodies...don't be afraid let yourself enjoy some wild, crazy, and unhealthy food every once and a while!!!

Food Truck Eats

My latest blog post of the Food Network Canada site for the show Eat St.

http://eatst.foodnetwork.ca/blog/kathys-food-truck-eats-review.html

Po' Nuts (Beast Restaurant) Maple Bacon Donut

I Heart Lamb

With my collection of random meats accumulating in the freezer, I figured it was time I got down to cooking...and experimenting with new ingredients and recipes!   I'm lucky enough to have a small farmers market set up every Saturday only a couple blocks away from my home, so I try to take advantage of this any chance I can get.  This week I picked up some "Red Russian" kale, yellow cantaloupe, and a chocolate croissant from Art-is-in Bakery.  (Mmmm...buttery goodness..)

However,  the item I was most excited about was the small lamb heart I purchased from the Canreg Station Farm and Pasture.

No bigger than the size of my fist, I was excited to prepare this little gem.

 I learned about butchering hearts from the king of offal, Chris Costentino.  

 

 

So, I cleaned up my little heart and prepped the rest of the ingredients for a tartare.

I decided on a side of brussel sprouts sauteed in butter and bacon.

Probably not the best choice, because those flavours are very strong and could overpower the delicate lamb, but the sprouts looked amazing in the store, and well...bacon makes everything better.











I minced the lamb heart and mixed it with olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon zest, salt, hot peppers (from my garden...yay!) and parsley.  It turned out being a little spicier than I planned, but still good none the less. I toasted some multigrain baguette to  eat the tartare with, and tried to plate it up all pretty and such.

Here is the finished product....

So, I think it turned out pretty good...but then again, I'll eat anything.  Next time I would lay off the peppers a little and I would try to remember ALL the ingredients I bought.  (I had some capers I planned on using as well...)  I'll be back at the market next Saturday to buy another little heart, and will probably try a grilled preparation next.

For now...I need to figure out what to do with the other random meats in my freezer....