This week on CBC’s Recipe to Riches, Alcide Desveaux impressed the crowds, and more importantly the judges, with his incredibly delicious Acadian Meat Pie and won $25,000! Find out more about this week’s winner in our Tastemaker Q&A…

Give us a snippet about you. What should people know?
I am a proud Acadian grandpa and a self-proclaimed jack-of-all-trades. I believe in doing things the slow, old-fashioned way, which is a philosophy I apply to renovating my house, making my own wine, or playing golf. In the kitchen I always stress the importance of ‘real cooking’ with wholesome ingredients, and prefer to let my heart guide my pots and pans rather than following recipe directions to the letter.

What was your experience on Recipe to Riches like?
My experience on Recipe to Riches was like a dream from beginning to end; I still pinch myself to find out if this is real.

What was the first thing that came to your mind when your name was announced as the winner?
I felt very good, but at the time I felt so bad for my competitors. Shocked is probably the best word.

How did you come up with your Recipe to Riches winning recipe?
The recipe was in my family well before I was born. But Acadians in my neck of the woods have many variations and mine is a combination of my mom’s and trial and error of my own.

What were the biggest challenges and best rewards about being a part of the show?
The biggest challenge was the batch up in an industrial kitchen. Making one pie in an hour and making 100 in three hours is unrealistic. I never dreamed it could be done, but reality sank in and I did it.

Another challenge was getting through the many interviews. I was never an outgoing person and not a public speaker; so many times I was left lost for words. The biggest reward is having people come to me with compliments and congratulations about my adventure – and of course the money.

What are you most excited about for the future?
Winning the $250,000 certainly would be a life changer. I am very happy with my lifestyle at the moment; I love my house which I bought a year ago and my 2004 Cadillac which I bought for $5,000, so the future would be a life of living without bills. Giving money to my grandchildren would make me happy as well.

Can you give any tips to home chefs who aspire to be as successful as yourself?
Cooking success is hard to define. Cook what you like to eat and what your friends enjoy is my best tip. Don’t be afraid to experiment.

Outside of your winning dish, what is your favourite food?
A lobster dinner or pork hocks are my favourite foods.

Finish this sentence. I love Toronto because…
…Toronto has given me the thrill of a lifetime with Recipe to Riches and it has everything a person could want.

What are three things you can’t live without?
My wife (Lise) would be number one and then the facility to perform activities that are dear to me: gardening, playing golf, wood working, etc. And finally the freedom to live a good life.

What are some of your favourite restaurants and why?
The Keg and Red Lobster are two of my favourites; they have good food that satisfies my palate. Being from the Maritimes, fish is my favourite food as long as it is fresh.

Congratulations Alcide!