Edmonton Folk Music Festival 2018

Folk Fest food (clockwise): fried gnocchi with tomato sauce from The Crazy Italian (satisfying but a bit salty); split peas and spicy lentils with injera from Langano Skies (very flavourful); potato chips from Lunchpail Catering (needed more dill dipping sauce; otherwise very average); fried cauliflower, veggie fried chicken, and spring rolls from Padmanadi (a perfect vegan snack). #yeg #yegfood #yegfoodie #yegeats #nofilter #folkfest #festivalfood

A post shared by Paula E. Kirman (@livingsanctuary) on Aug 13, 2018 at 8:11pm PDT

Folk Fest Food: Vegetarian Rice from Hakuna Matata

Vegetarian Rice, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

I wanted to put some spice in my life on Saturday evening during the Edmonton Folk Music Festival. The line up to the East Indian eatery was so huge, that I decided to try East African food instead. Alberta Avenue-based restaurant Hakuna Matata offered rice with several options, including vegetarian, which is what I went for. The sauteed vegetables were very flavourful but not too hot and the rice was perfectly cooked. I'll have to pay the restaurant a visit in person one of these days.

Heritage Festival 2012: Beef Kebab and Plantain

Heritage Festival 2012, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

I was intrigued by the delicious smells of grilled meat coming from the Afrika OYI pavilion, and saw the skewers being cooked on open grills. I also saw a lineup that was long, but manageable. I originally was only going to have a beef kebab, which featured seasoned chunks of meat for six tickets - a bit pricey for only one skewer, but very robust in flavour.

When I saw the caramelized plantain, I found myself craving some as well. So, for an additional six tickets I had a generous scoop of the banana-like fruit, which was cooked to a golden brown crust. The plantain was at once crispy, chewy, sweet, and savoury, depending on where I bit in. Definitely one of the highlights of the weekend's food.