creole | Fat Girl Food Squad

Writing and photos by Megan Stulberg.

Earlier this month I had the opportunity to attend a meet-and-greet with award-winning American chef Emeril Lagasse, hosted by Chatelaine Magazine and The Shopping Channel. It doesn’t seem like too long ago that my grand idea of helping my mother cook in my parents’ kitchen was yelling an Emeril-inspired “Bam!” every time an ingredient was added to the pot.

Appetizers and beverages provided by bottlegreen, DAVIDsTEA and Jelly Modern Doughnuts.

Before entering the Chatelaine test kitchen, I and other media types were treated to quite the spread of drinks and appetizers. What called to my sweet tooth was the spread of holiday-themed doughnuts brought in from Jelly Modern Doughnuts. Heavenly. Beverages were provided by bottlegreen and DAVIDsTEA.

Chatelaine food director Claire Tansey and chef Emeril Lagasse.

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Chatelaine food director Claire Tansey and chef Emeril Lagasse.

After devouring the treats we all headed into the kitchen, where Emeril was waiting to answer some of our questions in a discussion led by Chatelaine’s food director Claire Tansey and to demonstrate the new Emeril XL Grill. Throughout, Emeril raved about the thing that both he and we all love most: food! Early on in the Q&A he mentioned several of his “culinary heroes”, including Larry Forgione and Alice Waters.

So friendly and surprisingly soft-spoken, Emeril’s answers revealed that he is completely down to earth. When asked about his favourite thing to eat for breakfast, Emeril referred to himself as a “simple guy” who likes eggs over medium, good quality bacon and black coffee. He joked, “A ham and cheese omelette goes well with it — that’s usually when I’m hungover. Lots of Bloody Marys.” He also let us in on a little secret: he’s working on a special project at home with his kids at their beach house: they are making their own sea salt! According to Emeril, the evaporation process is relatively straightforward: it just takes “…patience, sun and those little rakes”. He really is a family guy. At home, he’ll usually whip up a quick spaghetti dinner for everybody with crushed red pepper, egg, bacon, onion, olive oil…the works! Quick and easy. Love it.

CityNews’ Stella Acquisto and chef Emeril Lagasse.

Ingredients before the grilling! Wild salmon with a medley of orange segments, apples and pine nuts, and duck breast with wild rice, roasted carrots and parsnip.

Next, the new Emeril XL 1700-Watt Electric Grill by T-Fal was introduced, which is now available through The Shopping Channel. Emeril told us that he did a lot of research before settling on T-Fal to manufacture with, due to their “incredible reputation”. Together, they started Emerilware.

The Emeril XL grill is pretty much perfect. Why? It’s huge, with 230 square inches of cooking surface, and is extremely powerful at 1700 watts. Additionally, the grill’s two heating plates and drip trays are dishwasher-safe. Emeril uses the grill himself at home! It’s perfect for camping, dorm rooms, small apartments or for anybody who wants quick and tasty grilled food.

To finish up the evening, CityNews‘ Stella Acquisto interviewed Chef Emeril live during the XL Grill demonstration. Emeril used the grill to sear some wild salmon with salt and pepper, and then served it on top of a medley of orange segments, apples and pine nuts. Next, he seared a duck breast: first until it was almost rare, then seasoned it with his famous nine-spice essence and seared it again. He served the duck over wild rice with roasted carrots and parsnip.

To view the CityNews segment online, click here.

The Emeril XL Grill can be purchased from The Shopping Channel at $249.99.