The Yum Yum Factor

First things first: On October 3 I am going to host my first in a series of cooking classes called "Not Your Grandmother's Rutabaga" at The Kingston Social in the east end of the city. I have spent years listening to friends complain that they don't know what to do with half of the produce they find in their CSA boxes come late fall and they end up throwing half of it out. Look, I get it. I grew up eating turnip twice a year, boiled and mashed with butter and brown sugar as part of our turkey dinner and hated it. It never occurred to me that what I was eating was actually a rutabaga and that there is so much life beyond boiling and mashing. Let me help you. I will continue this series over the winter and strive to wow and delight and turn you into a root vegetable lover by the end of it all. Click here to register and come learn how to teach some old dogs some new tricks The highlight of my week was the first ever Food and Wine Show right here...

Seeds of Persephone featuring Dillon's White Rye and their Absinthe created by Chantelle Gabino at Parts and Labour The week was almost entirely about TIFF for me. The Toronto Film Festival is always a busy time for me and it usually means that I don't eat much since dinner usually means a couple of glasses of wine when I finally get home before I crash following a steady diet of coffee and candy during the day. Thank god I don't smoke or else I would need to be put on a respirator at the end of the festival instead of just needing to dry out and sleep for a week. my week in shoes So, this week was actually a treat since, apart from a couple of quick little jobs on my down days, I spent the entire week taking care of one actor. When that one actor happens to be a charming and handsome man who is surrounded by lovely people, that means that I am having a great time. Add to that, getting photos like this out of the gig - makes me ALMOST want to hashtag #bl...