Balance of Food

Canadian food ads from 2016 spring MLB Extra Innings free preview

Editor's note: The following is highlights from occasional looks at food ads from our sister blog CanadianCrossing.com. Here is the original story. All content here is with full permission of CanadianCrossing.com.

People singing for their supper can draw your attention in an ad. Using real Cavendish potato farmers to sing about what they hope is part of your dinner, namely Cavendish Potato Fries, was silly but fun.

This ad celebrates the specialness of Prince Edward Island: music and potatoes. Having them together is a dish you don't normally get.

The Cavendish Farms Flavour Crisp wedges and fries come in classic, herb and garlic, and fiery cajun.

You could sample the food yourself on Prince Edward Island: Canada's food island. The food mentioned visually and from our guide is seafood, and there is plenty of seafood. Potatoes get a pass in this ad.

This ad ran on the Ottawa Senators telecasts on TSN5. The Senators region covers the 4 Maritimes provinces, Quebec, and the Ottawa area, so this ad plays on regional travel. Luring Americans and Europeans is a successful practice, but getting to PEI from New Brunswick and Nova Scotia is a lot easier.

A&W Canada didn't set this ad in the Maritimes, but we have noticed that they set their spots in specific Canadian locales. For a wintertime setting, you can't get too much more iconic than Rideau Canal in Ottawa.

Skating around talking about the quality of a fast food burger isn't likely, but you know you are in Canada in these A&W ads. A lot of ads run in Canada with only slight variations. This ad couldn't run in the States, or if it did, no one would get the iconic reference.

A second ad for A&W for the jalapeno chicken burger looked like it was shot in Vancouver. That could be true or wishful thinking.

Tim Hortons is technically a donut shop but the coffee is more of a star in its ads. This ad reflects back on a lot of Tim Hortons coffee over the years as the patriarch writes meaningful dates and moments on cups. The daughter discovers the box full of sentimental cups as they are cleaning out their parents house for a move.

With such a sweet story, you don't need to add sweetener to the coffee.

McDonald's Canada runs nicer ads than their counterparts in the States. This ad touts National Hiring Day by pointing out that they trust Canadian youth to run their restaurants.

Many adults also work at fast food restaurants, so the Canadian youth aren't the only ones working at McDonald's. But the idea of praising the next generation is worth showing this ad.

McDonald's has new chicken sandwiches that don't seem too unusual, yet has a dramatic new name: the 12.

The sandwich has a grilled or crispy seasoned Canadian chicken breast with white processed cheddar cheese, crisp leaf lettuce, fresh tomato, and applewood smoke seasoned sauce on a sesame and poppy seed glazed bun.

"The 12" symbolizes lunchtime, but the name indicates a cool millennial sandwich. Not sure this sandwich qualifies as cool.

KFC Canada tells us their chicken is "hand-breaded," a BS throwaway line. But it was fun watching an ad for KFC that actually talks about the chicken. KFC in the States has forgotten this concept in favor of comedians, Canadian or otherwise, dressed up as Col. Sanders.

This ad for Giuseppe pizza is not particularly Canadian, but my brain can't wrap around the idea that Canadian buy frozen pizza from Dr. Oetker. The sodium levels alone mean a doctor shouldn't be involved. But Canadians don't put as much thought into the company name as I do, a sign that they are truly Canadian.

---

You might notice that some of these ads come from our YouTube channel. Feel free to weigh in on the ads if you would like.

We really enjoy doing this feature but often found ourselves searching frantically on the Internet for an ad we just saw on TV. This way, you get to see the ad rather than have us try and explain an ad you can't see. The plan is to run more videos on our channel, so any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Enjoy!!

---

videos credit: companies in the ads
photo credit: McDonald's Canada

What's Tempting: Overnight oatmeal

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, yet nobody has "time" for breakfast. As someone who couldn't leave the house in the morning without breakfast, somehow I find time to have breakfast.

But even I would like to find an easier way to get what I need before leaving the house.

Overnight oatmeal is something I knew existed but was a bit cynical as to whether the overnight version could taste like oatmeal. Oatmeal is a great way to start the day, but cooking oatmeal when very tired did not appeal to me.

The premise, for those who are unfamiliar with overnight oatmeal, is that the rolled oats soak up the milk overnight so you have oatmeal ready to go in the morning. You could even take the jar with you on the commute or even starting eating the oatmeal if you get stuck in traffic.

I don't deal with traffic in the traditional sense, but if I had a rough morning, the idea of a portable breakfast had some strong appeal.

At my day job, I got a chance to try overnight oatmeal. The rolled oats and vanilla soy milk were enhanced by dried cranberries and slivered almonds. The mixture was satisfying, feeling more like I was eating granola in milk but a lot less sweet. This could be breakfast.

Long-time readers are wondering: you have a standard atypical breakfast that has worked for you. Why would you change something that is working?

Change was in the air for a number of reasons, so changing breakfast had more appeal. Plus the plan was to push the non-traditional breakfast to a later timeslot in the day.

So how do you perform the magic that is overnight oatmeal?

• Find a glass jar. Start with a 1:1 ratio of rolled oats to liquid of choice. Use whatever ingredients you want. For foods that might get soggy, feel free to add those in the morning.
• Combine ingredients; shake heartily. Put in refrigerator. Go to sleep.

The first night, I combined the ingredients, starting with rolled oats and whole cow's milk. Followed the instructions. Woke up the next morning eager to see what refrigerator magic had happened.

8 hours in the refrigerator should have been enough time for overnight oatmeal magic. My first attempt had a lot of milk remaining in the glass jar. The oats weren't crunchy but were very chewy. This smelled like oatmeal but didn't taste like what I had expected.

I bought the oats from the farmers market and kept them in the refrigerator, as instructed. I had used a 1:1 ratio.

If you watch enough food television, you might think everything happens perfectly. That is television. My first attempt was not perfect, but within the realm of possibility.

Trying something new in food doesn't require perfection but learning how to adjust for the next time. I decided that 8 hours wasn't enough for these oats, so I would try 11 hours on the second night.

11 hours was a lot better than 8 hours. I did find on some nights with more than 8 hours, I still had too much milk. None of the batches so far truly feels like oatmeal, but the contents of the glass jar get devoured each morning.

You do have to remember to do the overnight oatmeal before you go out for the evening. You do save time in the morning, but you have to spend some time at night.

You can leave the oatmeal in for longer if that is more convenient, but as we've seen, your mileage may vary.

I add a little maple sugar and some cinnamon that enhance the taste. Chia seeds can help soak up more liquid if you run into the same trouble. Your overnight oatmeal options are endless.

If you want traditional oatmeal, you can cook the oatmeal at night and reheat in the microwave oven in the morning. But overnight oatmeal is a lot easier with no stove requirement. You just have to change your definition of oatmeal and breakfast.

photos credit: me