GE Café Chefs Series: Masters of Food
Second Tuesday of the Month
January 15–December 10, 2013
6–9pm
Workshops include intimate and interactive cooking demonstrations, wine tastings with Stratus Vineyards and Somewhereness Group and discussions exploring important issues for the modern food movement—all while you enjoy a delicious, gourmet dinner!
Chefs play an important role in the development of a local, sustainable food system. They love food and work every day to educate their customers around seasonal foods, fresh ingredients and healthy eating in a fun and delicious way. They help us taste the difference!
Fees
$75 each workshop
$420 for 6 workshops (save $30)
Schedule
| January 15 | Regional Italian Cuisine with Giacomo Pasquini |
| February 12 | Building Community Through Food with Chris Brown |
| March 12 | Maple Madness with Matthew Demille |
| April 9 | Raw & Wild Spring with Doug McNish |
| May 14 | Gastro-Homesteader with Ryan Crawford **SOLD OUT** |
| June 11 | Clean and Fair Fish with Kristin Donovan **SOLD OUT** |
| July 9 | Past, Present & Future of Canadian Cuisine with John Higgins |
| August 13 | Ups and Downs of Opening a Restaurant with Michael Caballo |
| September 10 | Stratford and Perth with Yva Santini |
| October 8 | Preserving Techniques with Jacob Sharkey Pearce |
| November 12 | Local Indian Cuisine with Hemant Bhagwani |
| December 10 | Kitchen Party, East Coast Style with Geoff Hopgood |
Workshop Descriptions
January 15: Regional Italian Cuisine
Since the Roman times, food has played a large role in shaping Italian culture, and tooday, Italian cuisine is well known around the world. True Italian cuisine is very regional and the terroir is celebrated in both the array and quality of ingredients and foods. Join chef Giacomo in a conversation about his regional Italian influences and how he has adapted them to Toronto.
Growing up in a traditional Italian household, Chef Giacomo Pasquini began his career as an apprentice at age 14, devoting his life to working with some of the top chefs in Italy. In 2003, Pasquini travelled to Toronto to work closely with chef and proprietor Gabriele Paganelli of Romagna Mia. In 2006, Pasquini returned to Toronto and is now the head chef of Vertical.
February 12: Building Community Through Food
Featured Winery: Norman Hardie Winery and Vineyard – Wellington, ON
Good food prepared with love and ingredients bought from local farmers not only ensures a delicious meal, but builds connections between local growers and their community. This is what Chef Chris Brown has been doing at The Stop Community Food Centre. Not only feeding the hungry and respecting the farmers, but most importantly building a community that connects the two.
Chris Brown was hired by The Stop in 2009 and given the task of developing a catering company in one of Toronto’s largest not-for-profit organizations. Here he realized a charity could be self-sustaining through creating a profitable company, and last year alone they raised over $250,000 for all the various programs held at The Stop.
March 12: Maple Madness
Featured Winery: Flat Rock Cellars – Jordan, ON
Prince Edward County has a unique terroir within southern Ontario. The region’s landscape is comprised of a limestone sheet that juts out into Lake Ontario and features soil and weather conditions that favour both dairy farming and hardy fruit crops. This March, Prince Edward County celebrates maple syrup—Canada’s favourite ingredient. At EBW, we will be celebrating with chef Matthew Demille and his maple-inspired menu!
Matthew DeMille's interest in food began at a young age, cooking alongside his mother in their home kitchen. After graduating from George Brown in 2004, DeMille joined Toronto's Canoe and Biff's Bistro, and in 2006, became the executive sous chef at Le Select Bistro. In 2009, he accepted the position of chef de partie at Parts and Labour, and in 2011 became the chef de cusine at Enoteca Sociale. Recently, Matt relocated with his young family to Prince Edward County and is chef at Pomodoro Trattoria in Welington.
April 9: A Raw and Wild Spring
Featured Winery: Malivoire Wine Company – Beamsville, ON
Spring has sprung and we are ready to shed our winter weight! Join executive vegan chef Doug McNish and learn how to create a raw and organic vegan meal from spring’s bounty.
Challenging mainstream thought on diet and ethics, Doug McNish creates inspired dishes using the highest quality ingredients possible, taking healthy, organic, plant based cuisine to a whole new level. He has been featured as a contributor to various magazines, has made appearances on national television, is a plant based consultant and an internationally published author.
May 14: Gastro-Homesteader **SOLD OUT**
Featured Winery: Tawse Winery – Vineland, ON
GastroHomesteader is Chef Ryan Crawford’s new and exciting endeavor. With his wife Beverly Hotchkiss, Crawford searched the Ontario wine region for a place to expand their farm and open a small restaurant where the people meet the land and the land meets the people through a peaceful and intimate exchange. Learn how to create and cook from the ground up, and taste their commitment to the land!
Taking farm to table cuisine one step further, Crawford raised the bar for the Niagara region though his work as executive chef and sommelier at Niagara-on-the-Lake’s premier gastro-bistro the Stone Road Grille, helping the restaurant become one of Niagara’s most sought after food destinations. In 2012, he received the Terroir 2012 award for Outstanding Chef, and was the winner of Iron Chef Niagara 2012.
June 11: Clean & Fair Fish **SOLD OUT**
Featured Winery: 13th Street Winery – St. Catharines, ON
Families around the world are fishing oceans, seas and lakes, using specific regional techniques to maintain a strong cultural identity, while safeguarding a deep wisdom. Join Slow Fish Toronto, Chef Kristin Donovan and special guest for a tutorial on aboriginal fishing history, practices and cookery. Come prepared to be outside, as we will be cooking in the outdoor oven!
Kristin found her passion for cooking in the back woods of Northern Ontario. Currently, she is co-owner of Hooked, Inc., a sustainable fish supply shop, which she opened in March 2011 with her husband Dan.
July 9: The Past, Present & Future of Canadian Cuisine
Featured Winery: Cave Spring Cellars – Jordan, ON
Passing the knowledge and experience from one generation to the other is key to improving, growing and strengthening our food system. Join Chef John Higgins in a meal that promises great food and conversation around the past, present and future of Canadian cuisine that is fostering the new generations of cooks, chefs and hospitality service providers.
Before joining Toronto’s George Brown Chef School as director and corporate chef, Higgins spent time working at Buckingham Palace, the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington D.C., and The King Edward Hotel in Toronto.
August 13: The Ups and Downs of Opening a Restaurant
Featured Winery: Bachelder – Niagara, ON
In 2012, husband-and-wife-team Michael Caballo and Tobey Nemeth decided to open up a new restaurant, embarking on a journey full of joy and challenges. Join them for a fantastic evening full of delicious food, stories and shared experiences.
Opened in 2012, Edulis Restaurant works with artisanal producers, foragers, farmers and fishers, to produce a local seasonal menu. This commitment has paid off, and in 2012 they were named Best New Canadian Restaurant by Enroute Magazine and one of Canada’s 50 Best Restaurants by Macleans Magazine.
September 10: Stratford and Perth’s Terroir
Featured Winery: Hidden Bench Winery – Beamsville, ON
With fall’s bounty at its fullest, September is the perfect time for letting local and fresh ingredients take center stage. Join chef Yva Santini as she teaches how to make delicious seasonal dishes featuring local Perth County produce, inspired by her Italian heritage. Come prepared to be outside, as we will be cooking in our outdoor oven!
Chef Yva Santini is entering her second season as executive chef at Pazzo Ristorante in Stratford. Pazzo's menu is influenced by her Italian heritage and passion for celebrating excellent local ingredients. Chef Santini strives to build strong relationships with her producers to ensure that each Pazzo guest can savour the true taste of what the ingredients have to offer.
October 8: Preserving Techniques
Featured Winery: Southbrook Vineyards – Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON
When we think of preserves, most think of tomato sauce and jams. But from fermenting and dehydrating to curing and salting, chefs are experimenting more in the kitchen. With so much fresh bounty available, it’s time to plan and learn how to preserve these fall flavours so they can be celebrated and enjoyed in the winter. Join chef Jacob Sharkey Pearce as he plays with these techniques and give us some tips to stir us in the right direction!
Jacob Sharkey Pearce is a chef with a special interest in agriculture and nutrition, where our food comes from and what it contains. After years spent working in professional kitchens, he began to develop a skill set influenced by food science, the economy and culinary traditions. In 2012 he opened Ursa in Toronto to demonstrate and further explore these interests.
November 12: Local Indian Cuisine
Featured Winery: Charles Baker Wines – Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON
Creating dishes from other cultures can seem time-consuming and challenging, but with some guidance and tips, you’ll learn how to prepare worldly dishes using the best local ingredients of the season.
Having completed his studies in Switzerland and Australia, Chef Hemant Bhagwani moved to Toronto in 2000 and noticed Indian food did not command the same respect it receives in other parts of the world. Bhagwani decided to open up high quality Indian restaurants, pairing wines with Indian food, and now helms the Amaya Group of Restaurants and Amaya naan breads and sauces.
December 10: A Kitchen Party, East Coast Style
Featured Winery: Stratus Vineyards – Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON
Good food, good wine and of course, good family and friends. Whether you’re hosting a religious gathering, family reunion or a simple affair, good moments are always around a table. Learn new dishes to impress your loved ones using local seasonal ingredient.
Born in Halifax Nova Scotia, Geoff Hopgood grew up loving seafood. After attending culinary school, he was fortunate to get an apprenticeship at the Royal York Hotel, later transferring to Vancouver`s C Restaurant where his eyes and mind where opened to the possibilities of what food could be. Since then he has worked at restaurants like Fuel in Vancouver and The Hoof Cafe in Toronto, and has opened his own Maritime inspired restaurant, Hopgood’s Foodliner.
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