Pickering Food Truck Festival

My first real food truck experience and it did not disappoint!  I was expecting maybe 5 trucks maximum but boy was I in for a surprise when I saw lineup after lineup of trucks as well as names I recognized either from food network, Instagram or even individuals I've followed since the beginning of their journey, like MENU truck! Yay!

Hoping to be able to try their fried rice balls next time. Everyone seems to have a set menu that changes depending on the day. There was a lot of Pokemon so I went with their Pokeballs and they did not disappoint! We got their pulled duck Poutine too, with crackle, can't go wrong with that!

The chimneys were probably our favourite, and a bit hit among everyone there. We went early so no lines but I kept hearing about the long lineups later in the day.

A yummy combo we created on our own was Wickedly Sinful's #SmokeyMapleButterFries then grabbing a berry Chimney and just dipping the buttery, smokey, salty fries in ice cream and going back and forth between the two. Yep, we're a little kookie that way :D   It was my husband's idea to try the fries, I don't know if I would have been drawn to them otherwise. Good call, Ben!

Food wise we got Untamed Chef's  #thefreshprincecheesesteak and Koi Gourmet Inc - Fried chicken on a sort of Paratha or green onion Pancake! Delicious!

Speaking of Paratha, is it the new food trend or something? I saw it almost all throughout, being served up by many trucks in different ways. How cool is that?!

So all in all there was lots of Mexican/Latin/Tacos... your "trendy trucks", many of them serving up stuff with an asian/Korean flare and then gourmet trucks, poutine, lots and lots of Poutine to choose from, PORK... everywhere and we stayed clear of it, a couple of vegetarian options and halal (need more halal!) and your standard fair/carnival treats.

We can't wait for next year! 

Brunch Tomatoes

So happy to be able to share this post! It's been pending as a draft since last summer and I was finally able to share.

This recipe is super fantastic! Easy, filling, yummy and you can do a lot of it ahead of time and cook all at once, it serves a bunch of people too and looks beautiful on your brunch table.  The best part is that it's kind of a little meal and you can eat it all up, you got the egg, bread and tomato, flavour bomb!

Brunch Tomatoes

- Large firm vine ripened or hot house tomatoes, hollow out and set in your baking dish

- Bread croutons, it's easy to make from scratch. You need about half a slice for one tomato so it's pretty simple, slice in squares and toss with a bit of olive oil and salt + pepper. Bake on 350 until lightly golden and crisped. 

- Fave herb, I like using chives, or you can use parsley

-Olive oil

-Salt & Pepper

-Garlic, optional, try brushing the croutons with some fresh garlic or garlic butter.
-Grated cheese, optional, Parmesan Reggiano or Peccorino Romano work nicely 

-Fresh Eggs, one per each tomato

After hollowing out the tomatoes, place the insides in a sieve and squeeze the flesh to allow the juice to come out. You want a couple of tbsp of the juice to moisten the crisped bread croutons. 

Mix the herb and cheese with the bread and fill the tomatoes. Drizzle a little extra EVOO

Bake in a glass dish on 450 for 15-20 minutes. Now remove out of your oven and break an egg in each one, if you need to remove some bread or create a little nest feel free to do so.

Bake until egg is to your likeness.  Garnish with more fresh herb. 

Serve and enjoy!