Posted by Sheryl Kirby in SOLE food, charities, events, events upcoming, farm to table on September 8, 2008 at 7:45 am

There is just no better way to celebrate the harvest season than a picnic. In mid-September, when the days are still kissed with sun, yet there’s a certain crispness in the air, there’s time to stop and celebrate the glorious season and the delights it has created, and to thank the people who grow our food for their tireless efforts.

Guests at this year’s Picnic at the Brickworks hosted by Evergreen and Slow Food Toronto will have the opportunity to do just that this Sunday as farmers and food producers from across Ontario team up with some of Toronto’s top chefs to create a mouth-watering and memorable event featuring some of the best food our city – and province – has to offer.

Posted by Sheryl Kirby in charities, events on June 4, 2008 at 8:37 pm

We hear about the global food crisis on a daily basis, with news of riots in other countries, and the price of commodities like rice skyrocketing. But it's important to remember that people are hungry here at home as well. Hundreds of thousands of Canadian use food banks each year, and many of those people are children, seniors, folks with disabilities and the working poor.

When we, as individuals, have enough to eat, it's easy to forget that others don't, and National Hunger Awareness Day was created to remind us all to do what we can to help.

The Hunger Awareness Day website has a list of suggestions that everyone can do to promote hunger awareness and to help raise funds for food banks in their area. Visitors to the site can sign a petition, volunteer their time at a food bank, make a donation in the form of food or money, or host a fundraising event. More information on hunger in Canada, as well as food banks and their role in the community can be found at the website for the Canadian Association of Food Banks.

Posted by Rebecca Zamon in charities, events, events upcoming on May 30, 2008 at 4:56 pm

Between food shortages (and their consequent price increase) around the world and local food diets that keep avocados from ever entering our dishes again, it's a relief to find a program that lets dining out turn into a good deed. Amnesty International's Taste for Justice, now entering its fourth year and taking place June 1st to 15th, helps raise money for the organization's Stop Violence Against Women campaign by asking restaurants across Canada to donate a portion of their proceeds to the cause. A separate "Dine In" option encourages homeowners to host dinner parties where guests donate money.

So what is the tie in between Amnesty's good works and eating out in restaurants? Nothing on the surface, per se, except that it does afford one's usual dining to become part of a larger whole. And taking a look at the restaurants involved, it also gives these businesses the opportunity to put their money, as it were, where their mouth is. It's no coincidence that many of those participating are the ones who tout a vegetarian-friendly, organically produced table setting.

Posted by Greg Clow in charities on December 9, 2007 at 8:52 pm

Like many restaurateurs and chefs, Splendido co-owner Yannick Bigourdan (pictured with his sons, Leo and Ty) has a charitable streak a mile wide. In addition to obvious food-related charities such as Second Harvest, he and business partner/chef David Lee have been long-time supporters of Bloorview Kids Rehab, Canada’s largest children’s rehabilitation hospital where over 7,000 patients and their families are served each year.

After several years of raising money via an annual charity dinner, Bigourdan took his fundraising efforts to a new level last year with Recipes for Possibility, a 2007 calendar featuring recipes from a number of Ontario's top chefs. And it looks like it may become an annual tradition, as an edition for 2008 is now available.

Chefs contributing recipes this year include David Lee, Didier Leroy (Didier), Bruce Woods (Centro), Michael Stadtländer (Eigensinn Farm), Mark McEwan (North 44 & Bymark), Jamie Kennedy (Jamie Kennedy Wine Bar), Keith Froggett (Scaramouche), Claudio Aprile (Colborne Lane), Michael Potters (Harvest), Anthony Walsh (Canoe), Lino Collevecchio (Via Allegro), Massimo Capra (Mistura) and Jonathan Gushue (Langdon Hall). Copies of the calendar can be purchased at Bloorview Kids Rehab (150 Kilgour Road), or ordered using the PDF order form on the website.

Posted by Sheryl Kirby in books, charities, news and media on July 19, 2007 at 7:48 am

Who better to feed the hungry than some of the city’s top chefs?

A Gift From the Stars cookbook is a collection of recipes from chefs in Southern Ontario, plus a few celebrity guests. Chef Daniel Racine has produced the book with the intention of raising $500,000 for the Daily Bread Food Bank.

The book is divided into four sections with recipes from celebrity chefs such as Michael Smith, Christine Cushing, Lynn Crawford and Gordon Ramsay at the beginning, and then appetizers, mains and desserts from restaurants around southern Ontario.

Posted by Sheryl Kirby in charities, events on June 5, 2007 at 2:06 pm

Tomorrow, June 6th, is Camp Day at Tim Horton's. Every cent in coffee sales made tomorrow will go toward sending kids to summer or winter camp.

On Camp Day, customers have the opportunity to buy a coffee and help send over 12,000 kids on the camping adventure of a lifetime. Campers aged nine to 12 years attend a 10 day summer camp session, or a seven day winter camp session, at one of the Foundation's six camps. All children who attend camp are selected by Tim Hortons store owners who work closely with local youth organizations and schools to identify kids who would most benefit from an experience at camp.

Now we're not fond of supporting big chain corporations that sell junk food here at TasteTO, but if there's any day you find yourself needing a donut and a cup of Timmie's magical brew, please make it tomorrow. The Tim Horton Children's Foundation does a lot of great work, and if you're buying a coffee anyway, why not let it do some good?