Y'all, I hosted my first event in Toronto! I dubbed it Comfort Classics Vegan Supper Club, and I intend to host a few more.
If you're following me closely on social then you might have noticed I moved back to Toronto, Canada. After living in Los Angeles for five years—can you believe it—I decided it was in my son's best interest to return to safe (and boring) Canada. Given the political climate in the USA right now, I was feeling very uneasy. Canada being boring is a good thing! And as it turns out, it was also in my best interest to return to Canada. The response has been overwhelmingly positive and honestly, work has picked up like crazy since the day I landed!
This cozy night of delicious plant-based dishes at my first Comfort Classics Vegan Supper Club was hosted at Rily Kitchen. It's a beautiful open-concept kitchen in the Junction Triangle. It was a sold-out 22 person event and I served popular dishes from my debut best-selling cookbook, Vegan Comfort Classics. The evening was memorable and full of good vibes. Friends, family, and colleagues all bought tickets to attend, as did some original hot for foodies from the city. It was so wonderful!
The menu was french onion soup with mozza toast, crispy crabless cakes with horseradish dill aioli, pulled pork tostada with jalapeño lime slaw and pickled onions. For the pulled pork I used a new incredible product called Chunk Foods. They are making the best vegan steak in the game right now! This was a special treat for guests because you can't get the product in Canada anywhere. I continued on by serving two dishes family style, a warm shaved brussels salad with miso mustard vinaigrette and smoked gouda mac & cheese with shroom bacon and a kettle chip crumb. For dessert everyone got a lemon meringue tart with aqua faba merinque and the cutest edible flower garnish!
I had my friend Priya Rao of @socialherbivore join us to pour vegan wine pairings and it was the perfect touch to the meal! A huge thank you to my sous chef and good friend Jason Skrobar. I couldn't have done this without him!
Here's a video recap of the evening.
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Lauren Toyota
Lauren is a plant-based powerhouse, a former TV host turned wildly successful food creator, best-selling cookbook author, and the woman responsible for making vegan comfort food a thing worth craving. Through her blog and YouTube channel, hot for food, she’s amassed a dedicated following by recreating all the nostalgic, indulgent dishes we love—mac & cheese, burgers, cinnamon rolls—but making them entirely plant-based. No compromise on taste, no weird ingredients, just damn good food.