Co-op cooks up partnership with Top Chef Canada winner

SASKATOON, Sept. 17, 2014 /CNW/ - Twice-baked chili-stuffed potatoes and rosemary parmesan soft pretzels are not your typical game day snack, but are among the delicious and easy recipes from Co-op and Top Chef Canada winner Dale MacKay that you can prepare at home.

Other mouth-watering recipes and cooking tips from Chef MacKay will be featured on recipe cards in Co-op food stores across Western Canada and on Coopfood.ca, a new online destination where everyday food lovers can get video tips from MacKay.

"It's been decades since Co-op published its original recipe book, which became a staple in many western households," said Ron Welke, Associate Vice-President of Food, Federated Co-operatives Limited. "We are bringing a modern twist to today's homes thanks to this special partnership with a home-grown and talented chef. Like Co-op, he values quality food and is committed to being local."

Co-op shoppers will also find more tasty options at their local Co-op store thanks to the new relationship with MacKay, who is lending his expertise to tasting, testing and developing Co-op Gold private label products.

"People are turning the corner by getting back into the kitchen and back to the basics," said MacKay. "I want to help them along with some fun, different recipe ideas," said MacKay, who will soon be offering Thanksgiving and festive holiday recipes.

Although the partnership is only beginning, MacKay said it already feels right.

"In the restaurant, it's important for us to share the same interests and feel at home because we're working so closely with each other," said MacKay. "I feel the same way whenever I go into a Co-op store. When I talk to the people there, it's clear that they care as much as I do about being local, sustainable and part of the community. That's hard to find anywhere else these days."

MacKay grew up in Saskatoon, Sask., before he began his culinary career as a fry cook in Vancouver, B.C. He then moved to London, England, where he started working at Gordon Ramsay's Claridge's, followed by stints at other Ramsay restaurants. After winning Top Chef Canada and starting a Vancouver restaurant, MacKay came back to his hometown to open Ayden Kitchen & Bar, which was named the second-best restaurant to visit in Canada by Huffington Post.

About Co-op
More information on Federated Co-operatives Limited and the 225 local retail co-operatives that form the Co-operative Retailing System (CRS) is available at www.coopconnection.ca.

For recipes and videos from Dale MacKay, see www.coopfood.ca.

For high-resolution photos of Dale MacKay and recipes, visit www.flickr.com/coopfcl.

SOURCE: Federated Co-operatives Limited

For an interview, contact: Cam Zimmer, Communications Manager, FCL; Phone: [phone] Email: [email protected]