My Weekend With Walter

I'm not a particularly big fan of Caesar's, I am, on the other hand, a big fan of the weekend.  So when I got asked if I would possibly be willing to take home some Walter Caesar mix to give it a test go, I thought, just maybe I could bring my own twist to the Canadian Classic.  So it was going to be a weekend with Walter.

Walter, a natural, small batch crafted, Caesar mix, produced in British Columbia, comes in a 725 ml glass bottle, available in two temperatures, mildly or well spiced.  Heads up, you gotta shake these bad boys really well, if you want to really taste their elements.  I stood them up side to side, at room temperature and gave them a go..

First impressions; these are definitely seasoned, although I prefer the Well Spiced version and for those who want to brave into bold spaces, you can kick it up a notch, by adding some hot sauce.  It's all a personal preference.  Right now I'm digging No. 7.  As for the Mildly Spiced, it was ok, and ultimately became delegated for other purposes in my pantry.

Secondly; the consistency surprised me. I'm so used to the smoothness and liquidity of the mix that is commonly used in most bars we wander in to, including those in our own homes.  Walter was akin to having a drink made with Gazpacho. It made me wonder if I could really drink a large glass of this as a cocktail, that has this much much body in it. For those who love "virgin" Caesars, Walter would take it out of the park. Who needs vodka? So I began to think about ways that Walter could be a part of life, not only in cocktail glass but a real, multi tasking kind of guy.

I wasn't joking about Walter being like Gazpacho. It could be used for an Amuse Bouche at a dinner party. Half filled shooters.  How you to choose to dress it, is up to you.  That goes for the cocktails.  Celery sticks have been the industry standard.  Pffft. to that.  You can use everything from Manning Canning's pickled carrots sticks to pre-made, food swizzle sticks from the likes of Sable & Rosenfeld.  Or as I did, I went hog wild and cooked up some bacon stirrers.  Kind of decadent but it goes well with the nature of Walter.

A small trick, if you are using Walter for cocktails then I would highly recommend using lots of ice.  I used lots of ice and a martini shaker.  Shake, shake, shake and pour in to prepared glass.  The melting ice helps to dilute the drink so you won't miss any of it.  I prefer to use rock glasses, so drinks are approximately 3-4 ounces, plus an ounce of Vodka.  So 750 ml. would yield approximately 8 cocktails

Some like it hot!  Kicking it up a notch.  

Going Hog Wild!  Loving the Bacon Stirrer! 

A cooking tip with Walter;  I've used the Mildly Spiced Caesar Mix in a few other pots in my kitchen.  I use approximately a level cup (250ml) and added it to Soup (Shrimp Bisque), Stew (filling for pot pie); Beef Bourguignone, which by far and away was my favorite dish.  I suspect it would be a great add for crock pot dishes such as Chili or braised foods.  Where I used it, the results have been good.  So just be brave and bold, think of where you could toss in a cup of Walter.  Did I mention to give it a good shake first before you pour?

Walter isn't cheap, than again, neither am I.  The 725ml bottle retails for between $8.00-$9.00.  But as I pointed out earlier you could easily stretch the bottle to 8-9 cocktails.  I recognize good value, multi purposes, a well made product and I'm happy to support a Canadian small industry. Pricy, without question. Still, less than what we fork over for a glass wine when out with the girls. So I guess you just have to decide where you want to spend your hard earned money for what you take and send out of your kitchen or off your bar.  #FoodIsLove

If you like more information about Walter visit waltercaesar.com  I'm not sure of the retail sites but in Toronto I do know that Walter is available at Fiesta Farms.

Disclaimer:  
Yes, Walter was gifted to me, but as always, my opinions, thoughts and the pics, were all my own.  #JustSaying

Remembering Sean

I first officially met Sean D'Souza about a year ago, along with his lovely bride, Beverly Ann D'Cruz(@flotch) at a social media food event at Menchie's. We had been invited by Mary Luz Mejia to come on out and compete to create an official Menchie's yo-fro creation. Crammed in next to each other we sampled our Menchie's custom creations and those two rascals managed to beat me out for the big prize (an iPod Nano) with their "Tropic Thunder" sundae. Ok, I'll admit it, that exotic fruit concoction towered over my "Some Like It Tart" dessert. One can never begrudge a champion their prize. Little did I know that as the year would unfold I would share a different kind of journey with Sean and Beverly.

Reel Eats - From Screen to Table

The idea of taking film about food and translating it in to real time, real life and better yet, real food makes me as giddy as Dr. Sheldon Cooper (The Big Bang Theory) would be at the thought of being locked in ComicCon after hours. Bazinga!. I'm such a gastro-nerd of the most fun kind, a moniker that I must say, I much prefer over the label of being called a Foodie.

Mary Luz Mejia & Mario Stojanac of Sizzling Communications introduced the inaugural series of Reel Eats by kicking it off with film director Ang Lee's "Man Woman Eat Drink". Hosted out of the working loft of Chef Vanessa Yeung's Aphrodite Cooks and co-anchored by

Getting me some South American loving in the rolling hills of Caledon

There's gold up in them 'thar hills of the Caledon Niagara Escarpment. I'd take my fork over to that Credit river area any day of the week if Chef Rossy Earle of the Belfountain Inn promised to cook me up a batch of her Chupe de Chorizo. Talk about love in a bowl. It was a lovely summer evening as we headed over to the Belfountain Inn to join Mary Luz Mejia (maryluzonfood) and Vanessa Yueng (aphroditecooks), my tweet divas, along with their partners in organized food crime to enjoy a South American inspired menu by Chef Rossy Earle. The Amuse Bouche was a an Empanada de Pino. I could have chowed down a plateful of these mini empanadas made with lamb and beef and perfectly spiced. Next up was pure comfort in a bowl of Chupe de Chorizo which is basically a Spanish sausage, potato & vegetable chowder. The chorizo was not grizzly, fatty or chewy. You could taste that smoked paprika. I love how nonchalant Chef was when we asked about where the chorizo came from and she so matter of factly said "I made it of course.....". Oh of course, how silly of me to wonder where you sourced it. Then came my personal favorite course of the evening, a Steak & Palmito Salad. I'm going to be honest here, I've never been a big fan of hearts of palm but in this salad they work beautifully. This salad is strips of Argentinian styled Chimichurri beef atop a bed of hearts of palm, tomato salsa and a guacamole cream, dressed with a sweet onion vinaigrette.



Seafood Ceviche can be a wonderful thing, when it's done right. I've had ceviche that had me feeling like I was gnawing on rubber bands but Chef nailed it tonight. The ceviche was one of the best I've had in ages. Maybe it was the size of the serving. Sometimes I get to feeling like Goldilocks...too big....too small...just right. Then came the real test. My daughter Meg who lived in Chile for a year told me that Pastel de Choclo was akin to being Chile's national dish. Oh oh. Pastel do Choclo is the Chilean version of Shepherd's Pie except it is made with chicken and pork and topped with a sweet corn crust. This little individual casserole was really delicious. The crusted corn topping added a real sweetness to the finish and I have to say that this isn't anything like I thought it would be. One doesn't really think about this type of dish to be something connected to South America. We finished off the meal with a Passion Fruit Creme Caramel. My favorite part of this dessert was how the chef did a burn on the sugar and orange sauce on the plate because it creates such an interesting balance for the richness of the dessert. If there was a weak spot in this dinner I'd have to say it was in the wine flights. We are on the cusp of Summerlicious and I have to say, dollar for dollar, this food tasting, at $35.00 per person was an absolute bargain. Six courses, all beautifully presented was an absolute delight for this price point. Thank you Chef for this wonderful effort. I want you to know that my daughter Megan particularly appreciated it. Memories of Chile! It just warmed my heart listening to her prattle in Spanish with Mary Luz!