Tag Archives: fundraiser

November 29, 2012 · 7:00 am

2012 Chef’s Challenge-the ultimate foodie fundraiser (I’m going! I’m tweeting!!)

2012 Chef’s Challenge

I am totally pumped to have been invited to be a Chef’s Challenge social media reporter for this Saturday’s event. 

If you haven’t heard about it, the Chef’s Challenge is an amazing fundraiser for Mt. Sinai Hospital focusing on women’s health and raising money for breast and ovarian cancer research.

He’ll totally be meaner than this on Saturday.

Picture a kitchen stadium where celebrity chefs Lynn Crawford, Chuck Hughes, Mark McEwan, David Rocco and Michael Smith work with foodie fundraisers to battle it out during a three-course meal service under the eagle eye of  Guy Fieri who will be commenting through the event (hopefully there will be some yelling and mockery even).  Each course must be delivered to a set of celebrity judges that will score the plates on taste, presentation and the crew’s work style and skill.   There will be cameras, there will be commotion.

To attend the event you have to qualify by raising a minimum $2500 each.  The Top 50 fundraisers get to test their kitchen skills on stage with one of the above Chef’s as team leaders.

Personally this sounds beyond stressful and I’ve worked in a kitchen, so I am eager to see how everyone fares under pressure.  It was a love/hate deal for me.  Maybe more hate.

Chef McEwan with Chef’s Challenge co-chair Simmie Antflick (photo courtesy of  Nick Lee)

There were several pre-events leading up to this Saturday, one was hosted by reigning champion Chef McEwan.  Click here for more deets.

The hour of judgement for Chuck Hughes (photo courtesy of Nick Lee)

Then there was the cookie battle judged by Chuck Hughes (cookies! Chuck Hughes! can this be a monthly thing? Or even daily?)

It’s a kitchen party… (photo courtesy of Nick Lee)

And the very first event was at Chef John Cirillo’s Culinary Academy where some aspiring chefs got a few lessons in the kitchen.

Hopefully I have peaked your interest and you can follow my tweets  Saturday night (@sueriedl) and also sign up to follow @chefschallenge for daily updates.  The radiant Ivy Knight (  I was torn between radiant and luminescent)  is part of the team organizing this event and you can follow her @ivyknight or at @Swallow_Food

For more information on the event please go to:

chefschallengeforacure.com

facebook.com/ChefsChallengeCanada

twitter.com/ChefsChallenge

Huge thanks to Nick Lee for letting me use his photos of the events.

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July 3, 2012 · 10:21 am

July 7–better than the Canada Day Long weekend (Farm, music, chefs) GROW FOR THE STOP FUNDRAISER

Better than the long weekend? Uh-huh.  In case you hadn’t heard, The New Farm’s 5th Annual Fundraiser for Grow For The Stop is happening this Saturday July 7.  Montreal band Stars will be performing amongst delicious, organic local food prepared by some of Ontario’s top chefs.  Here are the deets:
Saturday July 7th, 2012
Gates Open and Dinner: 5:30
Opening Band: 7:30
Stars Perform: 8:30
Admission: $45, plus eventbrite ticketing fees – http://www.eventbrite.ca/event/3540334235
Food and drink sold separately – cash sales

  • Rodney Bowers of Hey Meatball, Organic French Fries with Ketchup and Mayo
  • Chris Brown of The Stop Community Food Centre – Twin Creeks Grilled Pork Sausages with New Farm Cucumber Slaw
  • Kristin and Dan Donovan of Hooked – Fish Tacos served with Luis Valenzuela of Torito Tapas Bar’s Fresh K2 Milling Corn Tortillas
  • Matt Flett of Georgian College – New Farm Pulled Pork on Brick Street Bakery’s Artisanal Buns
  • Brad Long of Cafe Belong, New Farm Salad Greens and Spring Vegetables with Brown Butter Dressing
  • Giacomo Pasquini of Vertical Restaurant – Fenwood Grilled Chicken with Panzanella Salad
  • Aaron Bear Robe of Keriwa Cafe – New Farm Fried Green Tomatoes with Snap Pea Guacamole
  • John Sinopoli of Table 17 and Escari –  Spring Vegetable Frittata
  • Caesar Guinto of the soon to open, Creemore Kitchen – Heritage Grain Donuts with Sweet Beet Filling
  • Mapleton’s Organic Ice Cream
  • Ingredients distributed by 100km Foods Inc.
Bar Selections Generously Provided by:
  • Creemore Springs Brewery
  • Martini Bar by Tag Vodka with Local Flavours
  • Wine by Innisikillin
  • Organic, Fair Trade Coffee by Merchants of Green Coffee 
  • Cider by Avalon Orchards
  • Dairy by Organic Meadow 

  • The New Farm is a small diversified organic farm, near the Village of Creemore. Three years ago, The New Farm formed a partnership with The Stop Community Food Centre in Toronto, a wonderfully innovative and inspirational organization that works to increase access to healthy food in a manner that maintains dignity, builds community and challenges inequality. The New Farm does many things to support their work, including holding events on their farm that feature great music, dram and delicious food. They built a stage in their 100 year old bank barn and have had bands like Fred Eaglesmith, The Sunparlour Players and Elliott Brood perform. To date, The New Farm has raised over $50,000 for Grow for The Stop’s Food Program, where 100% of the money raised goes towards buying the best organic food grown in Southern Ontario for use in the Stop’s many programs and Foodbanks in Stayner and Collingwood.This year, The New Farm hopes to raise $25,000 on July 7th, with an event that will draw 500 people. The renowned Montreal Band, Stars will perform and this year, the event will showcase a variety of different food stations featuring a number of Ontario’s top chefs and restaurants.



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