If Music be the Food of Love, Play On: Food Day Canada 2012

[The aftermath]

Did you get a chance to celebrate Food Day Canada this past Saturday?

When Anita Stewart, strong promoter of all things Canadian on our dining plates, initiated The World's Longest BBQ in 2003, who knew the concept would still be going strong a decade later.

I was at one of those celebratory BBQs in 2003 and considering the size of the steak, we took our our show of gratitude to Canadian beef very seriously! That was one big piece of meat.

[World's Longest BBQ Dinner August 2, 2003]

Anita and her son, Brad, morphed The World's Longest BBQ event into Food Day Canada as a tribute to all Canadian farmers and all that they do to provide us with beautiful product for our banqueting enjoyment.

We have had friends in before to celebrate Food Day Canada but this year we decided to pull out all the stops. Our CSA food basket from Roots and Shoots Farm had just arrived a few days before and we had plenty to share. I also made trips to the markets for extra produce.

By contrast to our 2003 meal, 2012 was much lower on protein and high on vegetables.

There was something satisfying about putting in many, many hours of hard work as a show of respect for the extraordinary effort put in for us, particularly in this drought-ridden growing season.

We chose friends to join us that have unique loves of food - grape growers, amateur high-end chefs, and those that choose to eat great food in humble appreciation. No one knew each other beforehand, but not surprisingly, food does unite.

Our Texas heat meant that we could easily sit out for the entire evening with no fear of night dew setting in on us.

It was a magical evening. And not one photograph of the event, save the shot of the kitchen the morning after.

As we worked our way through the leftovers in the days that followed, I did manage to capture our menu from that night.

Our special thanks for our meal on Saturday goes to Roots and Shoots Farm, Butterfly Sky Farms, Harmony Organic Dairy Products, Brome Lake Ducks, Clarmell Farms, Vicki's Veggies, The Wilson Farm, Michel Diotte Farm, Portuguese Bakery, Happy Goat Coffee Company, Nanuk, Sunset, Allberry Farms, Aquafuchsia, Quebec maple syrup, Parkdale Market, The Byward Market, Herb & Spice Shop, Produce Depot, Cave Spring Cellars, Peller Estates Winery, Angels Gate Winery. And a big thank you as well to Anita Stewart and her team for their tireless efforts as Canadian culinary activists.

Bon appétit!

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CANAPÉS

Roasted Beets, Clarmell’s Chèvre Cheese, Praline Pecan in Butter Lettuce Wrap with Maple Citrus Dressing