Favourites from the Good Food And Wine Show 2014

The Good Food And Wine Show (GFS) is an annual show where there is lots of different food and drinks on show. There were also cooking demonstrations and eatery to eat at. This year, the Sydney GFS was held at Sydney Olympic Park and this is what we found.

What is a healthy food product that I would recommend as a Dietitian from GFS?

Egg White Carton

I have seen this product at the Sport & Fitness Expo before, but always thought that it would be expensive and irrelevant. Why would I buy a carton when I could crack my own eggs? I understand now. Firstly, it is ease. You can avoid the mess of cracking eggs. Secondly, it is high in protein, so great for those who exercise or want to lose weight.Thirdly, one carton actually makes 4 omelettes (and one carton =16 egg whites). They are good size omelettes too. I was amazed. Fourthly, you can use it to make pavlova.

What were some strange food items that you saw at GFS?

Edible insects, sugar-free donuts, alpaca meat.

Edible insects, like what? Yes, edible insects. You can get edible insect in your salt & pepper shaker, or in your ice-cream, or in candy, or in cookies. You can't buy them as yet in stores. But I was excited at the innovation. The pamphlet we got encourages eating bugs because they are better for the environment. "They use less water, less space and less feed to produce and high in protein and low in fat." Apparently, the ants have an explosive flavour in your mouth because of the formic acid. I suppose this is a non-vegetarian product but I never equated insects with meat. See ediblebugshop.com.au

Bugs in ice-cream

Different insect seasonings.

Sugar-free donuts - brand "Noshu". It was a doughy texture. This is probably because they were gluten free. They are "natural" - naturally sweetened and natural colours and natural flavours. It is a lower energy snack, equal to a piece of fruit, but not as healthy obviously. It just wasn't sweet enough. My mind was expecting sweet donut icing but it was disappointed. I could probably adjust if I ate them for 2 weeks, but I don't love donuts, and probably eat less than 1 a year. So I see no point of them in my life.

Alpaca meat. I have eaten crocodile, kangaroo, and camel meat. And now I have eaten alpaca. It was in the form of a steam bun. It was eatable. I actually thought it was alright. I am not fussy about meat so would eat them again. I think it tasted like red meat but for me to buy them I need to be convinced of its nutritional benefit.

Alpaca steamed bun

What did you buy? 

Thomas Chipman chips, No Worries Curry. Hoyts tartare sauce.

I am naturally drawn to savoury snacks so I bought chippies. I bought them because they are organic and there is no MSG in them. This doesn't make the chippies healthy but it is my treat and they sustain me for the late night studies. I think the Sweet Chilli Flavour is one of my favourite chips at the moment.

We also bought No Worries Curry to try. We love curries and thought it would make easy dinners. We haven't tried them yet so not sure how they would turn out, but the ingredients sound good.

Mike also wanted to buy the Hoyts tartare sauce because it taste different to the ones available in Supermarkets in Sydney. Unfortunately, this item isn't available outside of Victoria. Mike thought it was stupid for advertising food items that you can't buy.

And what do you want to buy later?

Vanilla protein shake called "Life plus shake"- taste like ice cream milkshake and contains a whooping 45g of protein per carton (600mL). I would probably drink half of a carton after exercise because I am a small person. http://www.lifeplusprotein.com.au/

Gourmet soft caramel in a jar. It can be used on roast meat and toast. It was delicious off a spoon. See www.caramelicious.com.au

Jordans Crispy Oat Cluster cereal. I love clustered cereals. It stays crunchy and doesn't go soggy in milk. It was really tasty - I tried the berry flavour. http://jordanscereals.com/en-au/what-we-make/crispy-oat-clusters/

Beak & Son Chorizo. We have been eating them for a while but they are still delicious. Interestingly their sausages taste better because they use the whole animal (ie. they use the expensive cuts as well as the cheap ones). They have included burgers and meatballs in their range which is available from IGAs. www.mrbeaks.com.au

Procal Burst - Iced coffee - it is a really nice tasting iced coffee (see picture below) - Mike says it's possibly the best tasting iced coffee he's tried. It is not available to buy as yet but I was told that it is coming out soon and should be available at Coles and Woolworths.

Procal Burst flavoured milk.
As you can see the one on the right, which is the iced coffee, is all empty. 

What about non food products?

Coca Cola Glasses

I don't actually drink soft drink regularly but I just love the idea. I think it is cool, however a friend pointed out that it might not improve the flavour, unlike alcohol glasses for different alcohols. Does it retain the fizz better?

Anything else?

Yes, I would love to visit the Butter factory in Myrtleford, Victoria. I tried their "Smoked viking salt butter" and it was yum. I could eat it off the spoon. It is really salty so if you love salty things you will love this too. Otherwise, they have a normal butter or an unsalted butter. I would really like to go on a butter making tour. I love learning more about how food are made. www.butterfactory.com.au

There were also lots of alcoholic beverages such as beers, wines and ciders to try but I am didn't try them so can't tell you what they were like. We had a fun day walking around and eating. It was educational as we got to ask question and hear about how they make the food and what makes their product better than everybody else.