Erin Ireland is the owner of To Die For Fine Foods and the creator of To Die For Banana Bread. Over the weekend I attended her banana bread launch at Caffè Artigiano on Main Street in Vancouver to try samples and speak with Erin.
I had been to the cafe with my friend Stephanie back in February for the first time and loved it.
Going back on a beautiful Saturday summer morning for treats and hearing foodie stories sounded like the perfect weekend foodie adventure.
Erin’s business partner came to support and help with the launch… her mom! She was clearly impressed and proud of her daughter’s success and dedication to her high quality product and foodie standards.
The star of the show was the banana bread of course. Erin told me all about it, how she only uses organic bananas, cage-free eggs and olive oil.
Lots of bloggers and press came out to interview Erin and find out more about her and her product.
We all got to sample the chocolate macadamia banana bread and I can tell you, it is super impressive. I do not think being disappointed was even possible. It was so moist and flavourful and, as I told Erin, you could taste the love in it. Seriously. You know I am picky and this bread has heart and soul.
Before she was ready to launch full time, Dragons’ Den was already approaching her to be on the show. Since then other large food corporations have offered to carry her products and… she has said no. She does not want anything to impact the quality of her product and she wants to maintain ties to the smaller more local companies than go to the big boys. Bravo Erin!
Caffè Artigiano definitely fits the bill. The Italian-themed coffeehouse with their high standards and artisan-inspired coffee beverages makes this a perfect foodie/coffee combo.
I was very grateful at the launch they shared their Ethiopian coffee as iced coffee and a beautiful ginger-spiced iced tea on ice! It has been damn hot and dry in Vancouver so these were the perfect accompaniment for such a rich and luscious dessert loaf.
Is it ever decadent! With zero reason to feel guilty when it comes to the ethics of the ingredients, the quality of the product and the environment it is sold in. Made with wheat flour, brown sugar…
Erin has taken every precaution to use the best and healthiest components possible.
Chocolate goodness mixed with real macadamia nuts sprinkled on top — seriously, this loaf is perfection. Oh and there is a hint of cinnamon too which gives it that homemade flavour and scent.
The only problem? It is so tender that pieces did fall apart as I tried to carefully remove them to photograph. No worries though, this ended up being my breakfast!
Click here to find out where you can purchase the banana bread
If there really is a banana loaf worthy of dying for, Erin has created it and is dedicated to protecting its integrity and quality. Both she and her loaf are foodie rock stars.
I do not know if the supremeness of the beauty of this loaf comes from all the environmentally-friendly and high quality choices or if they come from Erin’s passion. All I know for sure is, this is a damn good loaf of banana bread and ours is almost gone already.
I give this product five out of five wooden spoons.
Erin is a fabulous woman with a great story. You can read the interview in Chatelaine with her here. She is also a food reporter and has worked for 102.7 The Peak Radio, CTV Morning Live and BC Living Magazine. Her banana bread is available at these 60+ locations in the Vancouver area.
I’m probably the only person in the world who does not like chocolate in my banana bread. But man, I would go for those macadamia nuts on top — that sounds de-lish!
You’re not the only one Debra. I don’t like chocolate in anything and my pet peeve is that all energy bars and things like it are all so sweet! Where are the savoury lovers of this world!
Jenny, that’s a good point, energy bars are all sweet, aren’t they? Interesting…
I wasn’t sure the chocolate was going to work but that fudge-y topping? OMG! With the macadamia nuts? So good! Jenny, that’s a good point, energy bars are all sweet, aren’t they? Interesting…
Wow!! What a glorious event. You can feel the love through your photos, Suzie. Thank you for sharing this tantalizing experience!
Thank you Jamie!!! I’m so glad you enjoyed the post and I’m happy to share. It’s one of my favourite things, to share foodie stories.
It looks yummy, but I also agree that i like my banana bread without chocolate chips. Great article. Thanks!
Thanks Debbie!
God I love her glasses. As a bespectacled lady myself I appreciate snazzy frames and those are just gorgeous. I hate bananas on their own but love banana bread or muffins – that looks incredible. So sad I’m in Ontario far away from where it’s sold 🙂
She is pretty damn cool Amy! Isn’t that funny you only like bananas in baked goods. Sorry it’s out of your reach though!