italian

The 4 Top Toronto Restaurants Everyone Should Experience

November 21, 2014 by Kathryn 43 Comments

Toronto is a city that really has a bit of everything, and that’s especially true when it comes to food. Virtually any culinary creation imaginable is available in the city, from exotic cuisine to locally sourced delicacies. Needless to say, deciding which restaurant to visit when evening rolls around is no easy task! But these four highly acclaimed choices are sure to satisfy your craving for great food when you’re touring the T-Dot.

four toronto restaurants to visit

Best Thai Restaurant – Golden Thai

The popular Golden Thai restaurant is conveniently located in downtown Toronto and has been a top destination for food-lovers for more than twenty years. There are a variety of Thai specialties to choose from and literally something for everyone considering the menu has over sixty different categories! While the Phad Thai is a favourite for its enticing blend of flavours, the Golden Thai Classics are a great choice for couples or families that want to try a bit of everything. [Read more…]

Celebrate Summer’s Occasions with Creamy Greek Pesto Pasta Salad

May 25, 2014 by Kathryn 53 Comments

The food of summertime is one of my favourite things about the season and here in Saskatchewan, we’re enjoying summer weather in full force. While we’ve had plenty of barbequed meals already to celebrate this month’s many special days, there’s so much more to summertime food than just barbeque and for a cool and refreshing meal on a hot day, there’s nothing better than a hearty salad.

Personally, I tend to favour pasta salad recipes since they’re so versatile. I’m actually not overly fond of the traditional pasta salad with ham and cheese that so many seem to love. But a pasta salad loaded with vegetables is a hit with me every time and so this weekend I decided to put a few twists on the Creamy Pesto Pasta Salad recipe on the Kraft What’s Cooking website to create a Greek-style pasta salad perfect for a light summer supper.

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Readers Review the Tim Hortons Extreme Italian Sandwich

March 6, 2014 by Kathryn 16 Comments

Recently I got the chance to dream of Italy while reviewing the Tim Hortons Extreme Italian Sandwich. The sandwich was originally introduced as a limited-time special, but it was so popular that the company decided to offer it as a permanent lunch item! My boys both loved this flavourful sandwich and I loved introducing them to some fresh new flavours.

But Tim Hortons wanted to know what you thought of the Extreme Italian Sandwich too, so the company provided ten of my readers with a $10 gift card so that they could give it a try and share their thoughts. The reviews are in and here’s what readers had to say!

The toasted parmesan herb bun was crusty on the outside, yet soft & moist on the inside with lots of flavour. The abundant layers of ham, capicollo, genoa salami, & pepperoni were very fresh and extremely tasty all melded together. The mozzarella cheese, shredded lettuce, tomatoes, & creamy sundried tomato sauce truly enhanced the delightful taste of all of the ingredients, to ensure that the sandwich is moist and bursting with a bold zesty essence. We will highly recommend it to all of our friends and family to try. ~Roseanne R.

I split the sandwich with my daughter and half a sandwich was more than enough. It was very filling. I actually would have preferred a little less meat. That’s something I don’t think I have ever had to say before! The sauce was great. I would definitely buy it to use at home if it was available. The bun was a little disappointing. We were hoping for a bit more flavour. We didn’t find it that much different from their regular buns. Overall though, we both enjoyed it. It has lots of taste and is such a nice change from the same old thing. ~Lori J.

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Spoil Your Valentine with an Italian Sausage Borsetti with Bacon and Arugula Recipe

January 25, 2014 by Kathryn 22 Comments

I adore a peaceful and romantic meal on Valentine’s Day as much as anyone else, but creating a delectable dinner takes time and like every parent with young children, I don’t have much time to spare when it comes to dinner preparations. That’s why I love Olivieri pasta and sauces. The products are fresh with a great gourmet flavour and cook up in just minutes so that creating a romantic meal can be done in a flash.

It’s said the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, but I’m pretty sure the way to most men’s hearts is through bacon. So I decided to create a decadent yet hearty Valentine’s Day dinner using sausage-stuffed pasta, bacon, arugula and pesto. This meal is meaty and filling but still fancy enough for a date-night dinner. Best of all, it contains just four ingredients and only takes about twenty minutes to prepare!

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Tim Hortons Extreme Italian Sandwich is a Little Taste of Italy at Lunch-Giveaway

January 2, 2014 by Kathryn 235 Comments

If there’s one thing I love about Tim Hortons, it’s the way that the company is always switching up its menu to provide new taste sensations for Canadians. In August, Tim Hortons introduced the Extreme Italian Sandwich for a limited time. Canadians loved it and so now the sandwich is back for good as a permanent lunch menu item! This sandwich combined robust Italian flavours including ham capicollo, genoa salami, pepperoni, mozzarella and sundried tomato sauce, served on a Parmesan and herb bun. I recently received a Tim Hortons gift card and some fun Italian goodies so that I could take my boys to check out the sandwich and see what we all thought.

Now I have to admit that I’m not a big fan of deli meat, but my boys both love it and happily agreed to taste-test the meat-packed sandwiches for me. I wasn’t sure what they’d think of the sundried tomato sauce since they tend to prefer quite simple food and both have a tendency to be picky. But to my delight, they devoured their sandwiches and told me that the meal was delicious. I was excited to see that these sandwiches were a hit with my meat-loving boys! [Read more…]