3rd Annual Foodbuzz Festival: Day 2 Highlights!

Day 2 of the 3rd Annual Foodbuzz Festival kicked off with a delicious breakfast and a fantastic panel of speakers.  I honestly enjoyed every singe session I attended and learned a few new things that I tweeted & Facebooked to you all. 

Day 2 is ALWAYS my favorite because I LOVE the Tasting Pavilion and getting a chance to meet up with everyone.  This year though, I have to say the BIGGEST Highlight of my day however, was actually meeting Tyler Florence and having him give me a signed copy of his cookbook!!!

Foodbuzz has  very impressive spread for their light breakfast.

I LOVE that they went GREEN with compostable everything including forks!

After the content sessions wrapped up we headed over to the Metreon for the Taste Pavilion.

We actually arrived early so we walked around a bit and snapped a few pictures to entertain ourselves…..

CHEEESEEEEE!

For anyone who has not yet had the chance to go to the Foodbuzz Fest, the Tasting Pavilion is the one event you have to go to.  They open this event up to everyone so you can bring your friends.

Several vendors get together in one building to hand out samples of the recipes they have made using their products.

Translation ~ 3 hours of sampling!

One of my FAVORITE recipes was the Mango Lime Ponzu Salsa provided by Kikkoman.  It was salty, sweet, crunchy and refreshing all in one.  I am definitely making this one soon with my Christmas Tree Mangos !

Oren’s Kitchen creates these deliciously natural flavored nuts that would be awesome in salad, on top of soup or as a snack.

The coconut chili macadamia was by far the best flavor.

If you are a Kombucha fan, try Cascal ~ it’s the same.

Biscotti….

Do you all remember the first year when I was raving about Healthy Bread in Five Minutes A Day by Jeff Hertzberg??? I absolutely LOVE his book and the concept even if I have only ventured into Garlic Knots.

He has a new book out for Artisan Pizza in 5 Minutes a Day. Biz ~ I know you would be all over this book since you LOVE his first book….plus it’s all about pizza!

For the first time ever, I tried Tonic Water…..

and gin……

It was really “gin-ny” LOL…..I thought I would like it, but, I am not sure I did.

The absolutely BEST FOOD of the day for me goes to Alaska Seafood.

We actually had a chance to meet their crew the first night at the Cocktail Party so I sorta knew I wanted to try the spread they had lined up for us at the Pavilion.

California Roll Sushi Lettuce Wrap complete with AVOCADO, sticky rice and pickled ginger ~ I could’ve eaten these all day long and had nothing else ~ LOVE!!!

Fish “Nachos” and the creamiest, crunchiest fish cake I’ve ever eaten.

All washed down with apple juice!

The girl & the fig actually had a booth which I was really excited about.  I have always wanted to eat at their restaurant……

It was awesome they brought tastes for us to try ~ pork rub skewers complete with “fig” dipping sauces!

Ticings are a super cool way to decorate your baked goodies ~ you “design” the fancy tops like the brownies they had up for sample.

Can I just say these brownies were phenomenal ~ they were dense, chewy and loaded with big chunks of chocolate!

The CRAZIEST food I ate at the Pavilion ~ these shortbread cookies that were made with mushrooms.  The Candy Cap mushrooms actually smell and taste like maple syrup so the cookie was sweet and buttery like maple ~ crazy!

I also NEED to find Wild Elderberry Shrub!  It’s slightly sweet and tart, but, really good for you.  It is perfect for when you make “mocktails” ~ just add ice & fizzy water.

I am pretty sure The Husband would’ve been camped out at the Pickled & Hot Dog Station.

Earl’s Gone Wild really figured out one delicious secret for making VEGAN Split Pea Soup taste just like it has bacon it in…..it was amazing!

As in I’d actually give up my smoked ham/sausage to have this soup instead.

COOLEST new creation that I am totally going to head out and buy ~ Alexia’s Sweet Potato Puffs (think tater tots!)  The kid in me totally LOVED eating these again ~ yum!

Did I mention they are only 3 points+ a 3 oz serving (about 2/3 cup)

After all that deliciousness, we stopped for flavored Honey Drop Teas ~ lightly sweetened with HONEY tea.  I like that it tasted homemade, not bottled.

The Jarlsberg folks had the COOLEST display and tastiest cheese + figs….did you all know that Jarlsberg Light Swiss is only 1 points+ a slice?

It pairs perfect with Judy’s Breadsticks Crackers

We finished our day at the Godiva stand….not for chocolate, but, for COFFEE! 

Oh and  Mission Mini Cupcake……

I opted for the Meyer Lemon……LOVE!

I am pretty sure that Tracey almost fell over when she saw Tyler Florence (her major Celebrity Crush) walk in the door. 

He made a special guest appearance at the Tasting Pavilion to sign a few of his Family Meals Cookbook.

Ummm, I totally was not shy and asked to snap a cheesy picture with him

SO COOL! 

A special Thanks to Tracey for sharing half of everything with me so we could try it all….nope, we totally didn’t plan to both wear gray jackets

Then again, neither did Melissa of Trying to Heal and I either ~ Like minds LOVE Old Navy! 

Isn’t she a doll….Melissa, you look more amazing each year

Tracey and I were pretty much stuffed so we decided that we didn’t “need” to stay in the city for the Gala Dinner.  Plus, I knew I had to get home to fix the American Airlines mess up with our trip (they left off one of our return flights so ummm, we would have had to stay in the Caribbean ~ good, bad?! LOL)…..

Today has been BUSY!  I was up bright & early to make Lemon Cranberry Mini Muffins to take to my Weight Watchers meeting to share…..

Then, we spent the afternoon taking care of things to get ready for our trip (we leave Friday!!!) and prepping for the Luncheon I am hosting at work tomorrow.

The Husband helped me whip up HUGE Salads for 50+ people……

Plus Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies!

Ironic, right?! Don’t worry, I am serving up more than salad and cookies

THIS WEEK’S MENU is pretty limited, but, here is what I am thinking:

* Carne Asada Steak Salads

* Vegan Chorizo, Pepper, Potato & Egg Tacos

* Breakfast

Playing Catchup ~ Here is my Foodbuzz Festival Day 1 Recap

Night all!