The Eklectic Kitchen

Fake Real Food or Real Fake Food?

2010-11-11T22:39:00.000-08:00

by KAREN BURSON

August 20- 26, 2009
A Slickly Seductive Mayonnaise Sales Campaign Gets Whipped Up for the Facebook Generation

A while ago I saw a TV commercial that grated on my nerves for reasons that I found difficult to define at the time. “Corporations don’t start movements!” I yelled at the TV. I’m kind of what’s known as a local food activist. I certainly understood that I was probably reacting negatively to the Hellman’s mayonnaise “Real Food Movement” advertisement because of how it was cleverly co–opting the messaging behind the Slow Food movement. Slow Food is a non–profit international organization that celebrates the pleasures of the table, and promotes the value of food that is “good, clean and fair”. This food company was painting its promotion of community gardening in eco–chic colours, and by doing so, hoping to promote their brand in the process. “Was it cheeky irreverence or more like cheap, unflattering imitation?” I wondered, and thought little more about it.

Based on a colleague’s sincere recommendation, I visited the Hellman’s Mayonnaise “Eat Real Local” web site about a week ago. It is well–designed, highly interactive, folksy and welcoming. It is also overtly patriotic in its appeal, in the same way that Tim Hortons’ TV commercials are designed to make you feel like a proud Canadian every time you order a double–double or whatever. Then it hit me: I was looking at a sophisticated deflection of the aims of the sustainable local food movement.

The site is slick. It turns the visitor’s attention away from my movement’s news about better environmental stewardship, respect for rural life and small farms as well as regional food producers of all kinds, improved food access for all communities – and instead points visitors towards the same old message that says that you can buy an idealized lifestyle in your supermarket. It amounts to a mass–consumerist endorsement of the food system’s destructive, inequitable, and unhealthy status quo. Check it out: at http://www.eatrealeatlocal.ca/

It urges me to “TAKE ACTION NOW”, and then virtually leads me down a shiny supermarket corridor of rustic–looking digital imagery while making people think that they are somehow making a real difference to the promotion of local food and farming by taking the site’s four ‘pledges’.

We as visitors are urged to:

1) “Commit to eat real food.” (Translation: continue to consume, which is easy enough, and especially commit to eating Hellman’s mayonnaise).

2) “Eat seasonally”, which is generally good advice (the upshot here: they want you to use their online–only digital food availability chart, which means you get to receive even more cheerful prompts to buy their mayonnaise). Annoyingly, this page cheekily urges us to “spread the word” by sharing this “real food” promotion on Facebook, Twitter and also via convenient e–mail links (in English: use the internet to harass your friends into buying more mayonnaise, too).

3) “Get your grocer on board” – to save us the trouble of interacting with grocery store managers, they promise to contact the grocer on our behalf with a request for more local food at your supermarket. The request for more local food will be made for us as soon as we provide our names, our e–mail addresses, and the names of our favourite grocery stores (i.e. you help Hellman’s collect free marketing data). What a thinly veiled way to collect personal information from consumers!

4) “Create with local food.” We are encouraged to cook. Okay, that’s not a bad thing, I guess. At this point we are asked to submit our recipes for “local variations” on “great Hellman’s recipes” (i.e. underlining the point, which as you may be able to guess by now: they almost seem to want you to bathe or shower in mayo at least twice daily).

Finally, the skeptics among us would naturally ask about the local food campaign. “Why are we involved?” Hellman’s asks us to ask them. So we click on the little mayonnaise bottle icon. The answer offered there contains a lot of drivel about how they care about local food, blah, blah, blah… While they offer us abundant, exciting reasons for engaging in such advertising efforts as this web site, they manage to leave out the only explanation that gets to the truth of the matter: they must be struggling for market share. The global economic downturn must be having a negative impact on consumer spending on non–essential foods like high priced supermarket mayonnaise.

If you do occasionally crave the creamy taste of real mayonnaise, why not bypass the Hellman’s website and their fake “Real Food” campaign altogether and make your own mayonnaise? It’s easy! I’ve tinkered with the recipe a bit by using apple cider vinegar instead of the traditional lemon juice, because I’m trying to cut down on my use of imports. I’ll be honest with you: making this at home with the high quality oils and other ingredients that I like to use does cost a little more. That’s fine, because it makes sense to treat this food like the luxury item that it is, by using it in moderation. The original recipe can be found at Recipezaar: http://www.recipezaar.com/Blender–Mayonnaise–110610

BLENDER MAYONNAISE

Ingredients:
2 eggs (room temperature)
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (lemon juice is more traditional)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups grape seed oil (for a mild tasting result, but you can use any vegetable oil)

Directions: Use the best quality ingredients that you can. Combine eggs, juice and salt in a blender at high speed for one minute. Slowly add 1 tsp oil while blender is set on medium. Continue adding the rest of the oil until mayo is emulsified. Store the mixture in the fridge in a glass jar for up to three days. So many variations: olive oil instead of grapeseed, garlic, herbs, a dash of cayenne or curry powder… go for it! I can’t wait to try making this with local verjus from Niagara.

Do not serve uncooked egg dishes like this one to the very young, the elderly, or the immuno–compromised.

V [KAREN BURSON]

_______________________________________________________________________________
For the online versions of the article (including the super-easy recipe for Homemade Blender Mayonnaise) please click on one of these links: Fake Real Food or Real Fake Food? or visit The Ram's Horn for a slightly surreal editorial cartoon that accompanies the article.

Movie Night at ManoRun Farm

2009-06-08T22:36:00.000-07:00

"Do It Slow" Banchetto Launches Slow Food Canada's National Meeting 2009

2009-05-09T10:32:00.001-07:00

The "Do It Slow" Banchetto was hosted by Slow Food Toronto. It was a spectacular affair, with Chef Jamie Kennedy leading 25 of the city's best chefs in the creation of the banquet. Delicious regional wines were paired with the evening's incredible seasonal dishes.

The lighting at the Banchetto made picture taking a challenge, so these photos begin on Saturday May 2, with our workshop day. The views from my 23rd floor corner room at The Metropolitan Hotel were spectacular. Our meeting was held at the brand new "Chef's House" dining room and teaching facility at George Brown College.

All photos are by *karen b except pics

of Jamie Kennedy and Rosewood Estate Winery

Anise Docherty (r) of Slow Food Halton-Peel and Legal Advisor to Slow Food Canada

breaks it down.

Signor Carlo Petrini, Founder of the Slow Food Movement inspires the troops,

well- translated by the lovely Lilia Smelkova.

Rebecca LeHeup-Bucknell of Slow Food Prince Edward County with Daniel Speck

of Henry of Pelham Family Estate Winery.

Front and centre is Arlene Stein of Slow Food Toronto, in the background: Sinclair Philip of Sooke Harbour House (B.C.) and Canadian Councillor to International Slow Food Board, Mary from Slow Food Thunder Bay, Derek from the Lailey Vineyards winery.

Mara Jernigan, acting President of Slow Food Canada, on the left.

The bubbly we sipped that afternoon was named in honour of Speck's ancestor, Catharine Smith.

We were also fortunate enough to visit Rosewood Estate Winery, where we were led through

a delicious tasting of three kinds of mead by Sommelier Karen LaVigne (not pictured).

Johane Germain from Quebec is snap-happy as we visit the delightful "Taste of Niagara" food boutique. We were met by the owner, some of the food vendors, and Lynn Ogryzlo, author of the sensational and award-winning Niagara Cooks.

Food and Climate Change -- with Dr. Wayne Roberts of the Toronto Food Policy Council

2009-03-14T22:10:00.000-07:00

Our food supply has become one that places convenience before taste, cosmetic appeal over nutrient value, and worst of all profits before people.

Awareness of the impact of climate change on our current unsustainable global food system is growing, while the cheap resources and economic conditions that have supported it are abruptly shifting. Our food security isn't something that we can take for granted anymore.

Can our individual food choices and habits make a difference -- and a siginficant one -- before climate change reaches that certain 'critical' point and becomes permanent climate disorder?

Add your voice to the growing global, national and community-wide conversations about the future of our food. Opening remarks by Zsuszsi Fodor of OPIRG PEAS, presented by *karen b.

Sponsored by: Slow Food Hamilton, Hamilton Eat Local, The Sky Dragon Community Development Cooperative, OPIRG McMaster, The Eklectic Kitchen, and RevWear.

The Incredible Miss Edna Lewis

2009-02-21T19:43:00.000-08:00

A hero of regional cuisine, Miss Edna Lewis is the grande dame of Southern cooking, which forms just part of the basis of classic American soul food.

She passed away on February 23, 2006.

Fried Chicken and Sweet Potato Pie

-- The Story of Miss Edna Lewis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cl6JVMoMN44

21:52

Gettin' My Share - A CSA Proves to be the Way

2009-01-28T17:54:00.000-08:00

My bi-weekly surprise delivery of incredibly fresh, widely varied top-quality local-only organic vegetables -- it doesn't get much better than this!

What is a CSA? CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. Aside from picking the produce yourself, it's one of the most direct ways that you can support local farmers. In fact, according to some CSA models, members are required to put in some volunteer time! But CSAs can vary a great deal, so try to one that suits your needs best. Pricing, proximity, agricultural practices, delivery and payment terms are all reasons to choose one CSA over another. And once you start you could get hooked. It represents more than just a healthy, sustainable choice: in many ways, it helps to safeguard our community's short and long term food security.

It started a couple of months ago and I don't want it to ever stop. I've been purchasing home-delivered organic foods and it's one of the smartest decisions that I've ever made. A basic Winter CSA Share from Plan B Organic Farm costs only $25.00. To this I'm perfectly happy to add $5.25 for home delivery, customize to more root vegetables instead of white potatoes, and choose the local food only option at no additional cost. Some CSAs include local, organic produce from a group of growers, sometimes CSAs a grown by a single farm.

For a reasonable price, I have:

the convenience of delivery

incredibly fresh food

better nutrition with less shipping (most of our food travels 2000km)

and inspiration to experiment and regularly renkindle my love of cooking

given tangible support to our local rural economy

My basket contains an ever-changing variety of local organic produce, featuring, but not limited to: apples, carrots, cabbage, broccoli, parsnips, sweet potatoes, russet potatoes, hydroponic lettuce, hydroponic herbs, pumpkin, red onions, sweet onions and squash.

There's a new baked goods option that I'm going to ask Plan B about this week.

Hamilton and Area CSA farms include:

Plan B Organic Farm: 1377 5th Concession WestRR2 Branchton ON N0B 1L0http://www.planborganicfarms.ca/, info@planborganicfarms.ca or call (905) 659-2572

ManoRun Organic Farm: 782 Hwy #52 RR#2 Lynden ON L0R 1T0 http://www.manorun.com/ (905) 304-8048 manorun@hwcn.org

Simpler Thyme Organic Farm: 1749 Hwy #6 RR#2, Hamilton L8N 2Z7
905-659-1576 simpler_thyme@hotmail.com

Savouring Ottawa: The ByWard Market - Gastro Alley - Oz Kafe

2008-11-18T18:52:00.000-08:00

Who doesn't love taking the train?

Okay, this poster has nothing to do with food either...

The ByWard Market is situated at the city's heart and an important part of the history of our nation's capital. The manager is banking on a local-foods only approach, to ensure that the market has a bright and lasting future.

Below: Our parliament buildings are in the background and to the left, "The Laff"-- both a part of my Ottawa (I studied political science at Carleton U).

***

North of the main market is a Murray Street, which has been nicknamed "Gastro Alley". The street is known for its leading edge cuisine, sincere emphasis on shockingly fresh local and artisanal ingredients, and an atmosphere of casually laid back cool: http://foodmode.com/online/index.php/2008091981/news/latest/gastro.html

Sweetgrass Aboriginal Bistro came as a tasteful yet colourful surprise. I'm sad that the photos were so blurry so I'm not going to share any. You can check out their website, however: http://www.sweetgrassbistro.ca/ A husband and wife team have created a welcoming place where it's easy to experiment with new ingredients and combinations. Get this: "he" is Jamaican like me -- now that's eclectic!

***
Saturday night out with the ladies... dinner at Oz on Elgin Street.

Cast-iron grilled bison flank steak, roasted parsnips and more... wow. I should have snapped one of our cute-but-not-quite-competent waiter, too!

OPIRG PEAS "Seed to Scrap" Bus Tour puts Local Food Issues in Motion

2008-10-13T20:40:00.000-07:00

The OPIRG PEAS "Seed to Scrap" Bus Tour was an event organized by members of a new OPIRG working group based at McMaster University. Tour organizers put together a well-orchestrated first hand experience that contributes to our community's understanding of the importance, intricacies, and opportunities inherent in Hamilton's exisiting and future food system. The tour ended with a a reception that included a delicious meal with contributions from Hamilton Food Not Bombs, Eat Local Catering (wicked soups!) and others.

photos by *karen bHeart's Content Farm: horses pull ploughs, sheep mow lawns... everyone lends a hand!

Dundurn Castle's Heritage Garden where urbanites dig into gardening with gusto...

The urban agriculture project on West Avenue was undertaken by three young people determined to feed themselves this summer with food grown in their own backyard: Andrew Flaman, Julie Fleming and Molly Mcdonald show how they put their plans into action!

Tasty preserves and dried ingredients from calendula to home-grown beans will provide local food well into the fall and winter

Closing remarks at the reception at tour's end held at The Eva Rothwell Resource Center, led by Zsuzsi (PEAS Coordinator) and Matt Thompson

The Ontario Food Terminal: Where Dinner Begins!

2008-08-31T21:22:00.000-07:00

Recently I was fortunate enough to be able to tag along on an unusual adventure. One of my favourite food journalists is Katrina Simmons, who writes about food and food security issues. She is a regulary featured columnist for The Hamilton Spectator who provides excellent coverage of the Eat Local movement in our region.

Katrina's purpose was to accompany The Ancaster Old Mill's genial Head Chef Bryan Gibson, as he purchased ingredients for a local food cooking class he would be teaching that night in West Hamilton. We met at the Tim Horton's at Main and Dundurn at 4am. It was still pretty dark when we arrived at the terminal, just outside Toronto.

There was considerable hustle and bustle everywhere. A surprisingly large area of the terminal was being used by local farmers who were selling their produce by the case and in bulk to restauranteurs and other food industry purchasers.
This market is special in that it is not open to the general public: not even Katrina could visit unless she was in the company of a chef, restauranteur, buyer or manager. Bryan was clearly in very familiar territory, and seemed to be among old friends with so many of the guys there saying "hello", so Bryan would sometimes pause to pick up on this or that bit of family or business news.
The fact that there were almost no women in the facility was pretty noticeable.
Here's some of the gorgeous Ontario produce that we saw...

Fresh and juicy fruit from the Niagara Region was everywhere, such as these succulent blueberries. I purchased a whole case of assorted farm fresh Ontario raspberries from a different vendor: red, golden and black ones, too! These re-useable wooden crates are a great way of keeping packaging use and costs down for farmers. They seem to be a better idea than the cardboard boxes that usually show up at restaurants and grocery stores. Based on what I've seen they mostly end up in landfill... sadly, recyling them takes more time and effort than many cost-focused establishments are willing or able to invest. Preserves, poaching, platters, pies, pancakes, parfaits -- all perfect for Ontario's pretty and plentiful peaches!

Personal Chef at Work! A Pre-Renovation Party at The Piggott Building

2008-08-20T21:29:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine decided to renovate her fabulously located apartment in the historic Piggott Building, on James Street South in downtown Hamilton. Lacking in period features and looking like a very plain space in need of updating, the amazing Ruth Chen (an assistant professor at McMaster University and Locavore extraordinaire) undertook renovations that began this month.

Her plan is pretty cool. The invitation that she sent out to her guests sets the scene:

It’s exciting because I’ve realized how this project is shaping up to
reflect several of the things that are really important to me: environmental
sustainability, recycled products, local artisans, aesthetics and design... what
I value even more than those things are community engagement and good food! and soooo, I’ve decided to hold a two-part party. Part I will be *pre-reno.* It will
be a catered affair ...and will showcase the skills of a wonderful personal
chef/foodie/founder of Slow Food Hamilton, Karen Burson, who was recently (just yesterday!) featured in the Hamilton Spectator http://www.thespec.com/article/392895 . She will be incorporating local and/or organic products, producers and food from community gardens into her offerings for the evening.

Our very busy day started with a trip to Simpler Thyme Organic Farm (documented in photos shown a few entries below this one). The hostess arranged for a friend to be both DJ and photographer that night, so that Ruth could concentrate on entertaining her guests, which proved fortunate for me: all photos taken while the party was in progress are by Tala Strauss. Thank you, Tala! And I really like your photographic style!

Thanks most of all to an Ruth for inviting me to cook for her friends -- Ruth, you are an incredibly attentive, kind and caring hostess. I always appreciate your support and encouragement as I do my best to demonstrate how tasty and exciting local cuisine can be.

2008-08-06T20:39:00.000-07:00

L-R: Margaret's book, event host Ian Graham, participants in the book signing area provided by Brian Prince Bookseller, and a partial view of the farm; two photos each by Katrina Simmons and Ian Graham, respectively.

Meet Margaret Webb, Author of

Apples to Oysters: A Food Lover’s Tour of Canadian Farms

“Apples to Oysters: A Food Lover’s Tour of Canadian Farms” signals the arrival of a rising star in food literature circles. Margaret Webb skilfully regales us with her tasty tales of travel, her hunger for the ultimate in Canadian foods, and most importantly here, a loving respect for those who produce it.

…Webb enjoys a certain, almost comical notoriety for documenting the life-altering experience: the act of eating a spectacularly good carrot, freshly pulled from the ground and offered by its grower; this direct experience of a farmer’s work and the remarkable taste of that carrot resonated with her… even though (and perhaps because?) the soil that it had been grown in still clung stubbornly to its length! Her book makes for surprisingly sensual reading. The chapter called “Johnny Flynn’s Oysters”, available for reading on her website practically made me blush.
This book also has heart. This may stem from the fact that of all of the thousands of dedicated food producers in the country, Margaret chose one type of food to represent each province, and conducted research. In the end she relied on word-of-mouth and reputations among peers to choose the producers that she would come to refer to as “her farmers”. She spent one intense, experience-filled week working alongside each and every one of them. Through her book we appreciate the wealth of knowledge and dedication that it takes for these individuals to produce and protect the bounty of this land. She encourages us to lend a hand. We are further rewarded by the fruits of her labour: savouring them as individual book chapters, with each concluded with recipes to help us recreate her gustatory discoveries in the comfort of our own kitchens.

An Interview with Margaret Webb:

*karen b: First of all, what made you think it would be okay to bite into a raw carrot, straight from the ground, that still had dirt on it?

Margaret Webb: Good question! But how could I not eat the carrot! David Greenberg ate one first. And he spoke pretty lovingly of the compost it grew in. I trusted the farmer.

*kb: How old were you when you first discovered your inner foodie?

MW: When I remember work on my family's farm, I remember saddling up my horse and riding beef stews and tomato sandwiches out to my dad in the field, the corn roasts we had after a day of haying, the maple fudge I made at Christmas from my great grandmother's 100-year-old cookbook – using the maple syrup my father made from the maple trees on our farm. I remember my uncle, a high school teacher in Toronto, commenting that everything we were eating for one Saturday night roast beef dinner came from our farm and I was very proud of that. That was all before I was 12. When I was in university, I would walk to Kensington Market Saturday mornings just to stare at the sides of beef in the butcher's shop and the mounds of vegetables in the market stands. But that word "foodie", I never applied that term to myself until I started writing this book about farming.

*kb: Has the experience of researching, writing and talking to people about "Apples to Oysters" changed you in any way, or revealed to you any surprising truths?

MW: Yes. I've developed an eating disorder. Who's the farmer who grew my food? I want to know that before I eat it. Also, I realize how much I miss the farmI grew up on and the food that came from that farm. I wish my dad were alive so that I could talk to him about that. I wish we could reconsider the last 50 years of Big Agriculture "advancements."

*kb: Are you planning a return visit to any of the locales that you wrote about so lovingly? Which one first? Do you feel now that you might have "missed a spot" -- could there be a sequel?

MW: Launching the book across the country allowed me to visit with many of "my farmers" and that was amazing. We traded stories, we drank some wine. Wanted to know how they were all doing. This summer, I am spending time in my own backyard of southern Ontario launching the book and meeting farmers and foodies here. There is some interest in the book as a TV series. I have a farm novel in my filing cabinet. And I have another food book idea, in a pumpkin patch somewhere! Deciding which crop to plant or animal to raise might be a farmer's hardest decision. Why should mine be easy?!

*Originally published in Mayday Magazine, June 2008. Margaret was kind enough to appear as a guest speaker at Slow Food Hamilton event that I co-hosted with the local chapter of The Canadian Organic Growers (COG). For pictures and more visit http://www.slowfoodhamilton.com/

Both Ann Lannigan and Simpler Thyme Organic Farm are becoming well known for their beauty and down-to-earth charm

2008-07-23T17:13:00.000-07:00

This is one of the pleasures I'm lucky enough to enjoy both in my work and as part of my involvement with Slow Food... I love being here.

On this day I was shopping with my friend Ruth (at right, Ann is in the middle). We needed rainbow chard. There was none in the store. Minutes later, we had the freshest stuff you could imagine, to be turned into savoury tarts and served piping hot that evening. The workers there are clearly proud of their produce.

You've never had this kind of fun at the supermarket!

City meets country...

Do your spirit good: do some of your grocery shopping with Ann Lanigan and the amazing folks at Simpler Thyme Organic Farm. Do consider being part of the action: participate in their yearly CSA program --

it's like a weekly subscription to good eating.

(Notice my very detailed shopping list?)

You'll find fresh eggs, produce, maple syrup and more, much of it produced on that very farm. Ann believes in bio-diversity, so that means a staggering variety of cultivated and wild plants flourish across their acres. Inside the farm store there are some imported organic foods, as well as jams, preserves and dry goods of all kinds.

Check with Ann about placing orders in advance for large items or extra quantities of seasonal goods.

The shady store provides some relief from summer's heat.

Ann works with two business partners and a dedicated team of farm hands, some of them WOOFERS (young international agricultural workers, who are combining learning about new cultures and languages while gaining agricultural experience, some of them travelling around the globe).

Try the amazing eggs. Supermarket 'farm-fresh' labelling is meaningless once you've enjoyed the brightly coloured, nutritious and flavourful little gems that these birds produce!

This beautiful guy is such a show-off!

If it's not easy for you to get up to see the farm in person, you can always get that 'straight from the farm' experience in the heart of Downtown Hamilton.

The Simpler Thyme farm stand is a regular feature of the

James St. North "Makers Market"

which is held occasionally throughout the summer (there's a new mini-market on some of the non-market saturdays -- details of both markets are online).

P: 905.529.2323 E: themakersmarket@gmail.com

To reach the farm directly:

Simpler Thyme Organic Farm, 1749 Hwy #6 RR#2, Hamilton, L8N 2Z7, 905-659-1576

Please note the change in their hours. Simpler Thyme is officially open Thursday and Friday 12:30pm-3pm and 4pm-6:30pm. This is for box pick up and market customers alike. All the rest of the time is the honour system. Please feel welcome at all times.

On the Set of "Pressure Cooker": My Brush with Reality TV

2008-07-19T20:36:00.000-07:00

The teaching kitchens of Niagara College Culinary Arts Department served as the main locale

Recently I was invited to attended the first day of orientation and rehearsal for a new 'reality based' tv show called "Pressure Cooker TV" created by Hamilton's own Forevergreen Productions. Evergreen is known for its "The TV Wine Guy" and "Extreme Golf" series. As a 'stand-by' cast member, I was on hand in case anyone couldn't make it.

The producers assembled a cast of accomplished and dedicated chefs to participate in a week's worth of competitions and filming. Each participant would be paid a fee for each match in which they participated, and 'eliminated' participants would be forced to stay on the lush, scenic campus of Niagara College, the production's home base. They would be taken on tours of wineries, restaurants and "perhaps even play a little golf", according to the orientation guide received by each finalist. To me, even getting to that level would have been a dream come true:

There are 9 culinary ‘matches’ in total. Each match is an elimination event. If you are eliminated earlier than you’d hoped, you will have some opportunity to be toured throughout the region. Wine tours, local chef establishments, Niagara Falls, Niagara escarpment Ball’s Falls, Old Forts or other historic sites, Welland Canal. Your nights are free to do as you please. The location is 10 minutes from the historic town of Niagara on the Lake , the Shaw Theatre, the spirited Port Dalousie night life or the city of St. Catharines and unlimited very good golf courses.

There's a luxurious food holiday for the second prize winner, and the grand prize of $10,000 goes to whoever is strong enough survive and win against some pretty fierce competitors, sixteen in all.

Cast member Anne-Marie Ellis (left) with

Production Assistant Anneke taking a lunch break, with crew member Hugh in the background

Too stormy for lunch outside but some were willing to face the elements...

(left) A rain-soaked participant drawing a poker chip to pick his team, with Producer Alan Aylward of Forevergreen Communications, a Hamilton-based production company. Alan was also responsible for "The TV Wine Guy" and "Extreme Golf"

(below) Two members of the Kitchen Judge Team, who observed kitchen practices and behaviour to award points to the contestants. There is also a panel of three high-profile restuarant chefs who will be the tasting judges throughout the week

The four teams assemble and assess as their kitchen orientation begins

Setting themselves up for success?

The show's heart monitor expert adjusting the sophistcated devices worn by each of the competitors; individual heart rates will be part of the excitement as the action unfolds

Wireless microphones, to be worn by judges and contestants alike

The picture of the video technicians was shot through a glass wall overlooking two of the competition's kitchens; a seamstress applies finishing touches to our monogrammed and custom-tailored uniforms; and my favourite souvenir...

Warning: poor audio quality in this clip I shot!