Winners Announced at Taste Canada Food Writing Awards

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TasteCanadaAwards_VegQuinoa

TORONTO — It was a time of celebration and good food last night as Canada’s food-writing community converged on Toronto’s Arcadian Court for the Taste Canada Food Writing Awards.

“I’m so very delighted to be here with you this evening as we celebrate our 16th year,” said Karen Gelbart, national chair, Taste Canada, upon welcoming guests to the awards ceremony. “We have identified and celebrated 64 books from a talented stable of writers — a brilliant snapshot of the vibrancy and diversity of Canadian culinary publishing.”

The CBC’s Stefano Faita led the presentation of nine book awards. The winners were: Cabane à Sucre Au Pied de Cochon: Le Sirop d’erable, by Martin Picard (Single-subject Cookbooks, French); The Book of Kale: The Easy-to-Grow Superfood, by Sharon Hanna (Single-subject Cookbooks, English); French Kids Eat Everything (And Yours Can Too), by Karen Le Billon (Culinary Narratives); Burma, by Naomi Duguid (Regional, Cultural Cookbooks); Toqué! Les Artisans d’une Gastronomie Québécoise, by Normand Laprise (General Cookbooks, French); Canada’s Favourite Recipes, by Rose Murray and Elizabeth Baird (General Cookbooks, English).

A moment was also set aside to commemorate influential writers, past and present. Two posthumous Hall of Fame awards went to Mère Emélie Caron and Helen Gougeon, while Elizabeth Baird was honoured for her current achievements. The Canadian Living magazine food editor and author of more than 30 cookbooks was flattered by the win. “It’s the sharing of food, and the love that goes into it, that is really one of the most important things in the world,” she said.

The book awards’ presentation wrapped with a People’s Choice Award, which was presented to Mairlyn Smith for her work on The Vegetarian’s Complete Quinoa Cookbook. And, culinary student teams were applauded and awarded for their work recreating recipes from Taste Canada’s 2013 short-listed books in a competition that took place this past weekend. The wining team was from Ontario’s Liaison College Oakville, runners-up were Ontario’s Loyalist College team and Montreal’s St. Pius X Culinary Institute team, respectively.

The night ended with a celebratory reception featuring a handful of chef stations showcasing sweet and savoury delights.

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