How much do we love Strawberries?

We go through a lot of strawberries in our family. So far this season I think that we've gone through about 45 quarts of strawberries already...and it's still only June.

What have I done with them all? Well, I've made 6 jars of jam (3 of them are for my daughters' teachers), I've frozen 5 large bags of them for winter use, I've made smoothies for breakfast every day, I've made a pie, bread pudding, used some in oatmeal, with my yogurt and granola, had lots of spinach and strawberry salads, raw on their own or with sugar on top as a treat and, finally, in my new favorite drink - strawberry-rhubarb lemonade.

Making strawberry-rhubarb lemonade is a free-form type of recipe. It's really hard to pin down the measurements and such because I typically throw everything into a pot and adjust the flavour as I go. I begin by putting a two-to-one mix of strawberries to rhubarb. To that I add some sugar and add enough water to cover the fruit. Simmer until the fruit has softened and then put the mixture through a sieve to separate the chunks from the syrup. Let the syrup cool. Add the juice of 3-4 lemons and fill up the container with water. Taste and adjust the sugar if needed. The leftover chunks are great as a topping for ice cream or on toast. Don't let them go to waste.

On the weekend we fed our strawberry addiction by going to Heeman's to pick our own berries. Typically, I'll pick up my flats at the main greenhouse but I like going out at least once a season to pick some ourselves. Heeman's is definitely my farm of choice. I've been getting my berries there for a couple of years now and have recently had the opportunity to meet many members of their family.


Will, one of the Heeman's, is the man behind the tweets on Twitter (@Heemans). He is very involved with the family business and has done a great job promoting the farm this year. I think he's been in every local paper, on the radio, and even on TV. Gotta spread the word on the Ontario strawberry!

His most recent news? Raspberries are now available! And cherries are not too far behind; they'll be available by this weekend. Although they aren't grown at the farm, Heeman's sells many different local fruits and berries (as well as potatoes and corn) throughout the season. I love this because I know that I can make a stop over there any time I need to stock up on my fruits without having to wait for my market run on Saturdays. Besides, they have the best prices in town in my opinion.

I think that one of their best kept secrets is that they have strawberries available until mid-October!! Most people are under the assumption that Ontario strawberries are only around for a limited time in June. Not so! It depends on the variety. Yes, there are some varieties that only grow in June, but there are others that grow into late Summer/early Fall too. They have them! Although the pick-your-own is only open for a limited time, ready-picked strawberries can be bought at the greenhouse until the end of the season.

There was a lot of excitement out on the fields while I was there. Everyone around me was talking about how great the berries tasted and how big they were this year. It's so much fun to watch people eat their first Ontario strawberry of the season. Their eyes just light up when they realize how much better these berries are to the imported ones they've been eating all winter. It's the moment they realize what strawberries are supposed to taste like. Yay for Ontario strawberries!!

My daughter feels the same way...

To check on berry availability or for some great strawberry recipes check out their website at http://www.heeman.ca/ . They've added a couple of my recipes on their site. Can you guess which ones they are?

Who's up for some Culinary Camping?

There's a new festival concept coming to southwestern Ontario. It's a culinary camping weekend at the Springwater Conservation Area in Alymer July 22rd, 23rd and 24th 2011.

The event will have chefs, musicians, a glamped out campsite, a fishing derby and an onsite farmers’ market. Specifically, the programming will include:

* Cooking demos featuring both celebrity chefs and award winning musicians
* Farmers' Market on site so all the ingredients can be purchased fresh and local during the weekend
* Gourmet competitions
* Campsite cooking trends
* Glamped out site includes pedicures, manicures and product demos
* Charity breakfast for the food bank
* Activities such as hiking, kayaking/canoeing, food tasting, etc..

The music line up will include Juno award winners Barney Bentall, Stephen Fearing and Tom Wilson from Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, Emm Gryner, Lynn Miles and Joe Fournier plus more. Celebrity/Musician and in house CTV Chef Michael P Clive will be on site to emcee and to coach the performers with their culinary skills and then join them on stage to offer his bass playing abilities.

Tickets for the event are available on line at www.ticketscene.ca

For more information contact Michelle Fournier at 519 782-7260 or via email at  info@culinarycampingevent.com

Website: http://www.culinarycampingevent.com/

This sounds like such a great event. I'm hoping to attend on the Saturday! What foodie/locavore wouldn't be interested?

Have you been to the new Market on Southdale yet?

Have you heard? London has yet another farmers' market and it's in the South end of the city.

Located in the parking lot at Southdale and Adelaide, the market recently opened on Sunday, June 12th and will be open every Sunday until Thanksgiving. The market is an initiative between London's Child and Youth Network, residents of the Westminster neighborhood, and the London's Farmers Network.

The project aims to encourage healthy eating and physical activity in children and families within this neighborhood which has been considered to be a food desert, due to a lack of grocery stores. With the new market in place fresh foods are now within reach.

I had a chance to visit the market this past weekend and was happy to see so many vendors there. There were strawberries, asparagus, potatoes, apples, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and the first of this season's zucchini. In addition to produce, there were also brownies, buttertarts, coffee, breads/bagels, cookies, and popcorn.

I really think it's great that this new market has opened up. It'll be good for people living in this area of the city and having a farmer's market open on Sundays will definitely have its perks as well.

Have you been out to the new market yet? Did you know about it?

A Sunday Visit to the Stratford Slow Food Market

Due to a work event on Saturday I missed my regular farmer's market run. That's okay though because it was a great excuse to head out to Stratford on Sunday for their Slow Food Market.

I love visiting Stratford. There's such a great vibe there and there are just so many people who are motivated about local food and about everything that their region has to offer. The Slow Food Market is a prime example of that. Located in Market Square and run by the Slow Food Perth County Convivium, the market is open from 10am to 2pm. Their focus is on good, clean and fair food!

When we were there we spoke to Pam from Kawthoolei Farm. She had several sprouts available and was even able to convince my daughter to try one; and she liked it!

Another vendor that we were excited to see was Simple Fish and Chips. We had been meaning to visit their restaurant for a while now but since they're closed on Sundays we were able to visit them at the market instead. They sell (and serve) sustainable fish with one concept in mind - good for you. and good for the environment. We bought a container of their ready-made clam chowder and later that day we had it for dinner along with some gruyere croissants from Lindsay's Bakery (another vendor at the market).

What else did we get? Hmmm..well, we got some asparagus from Megens, a jar of vanilla maple rhubarb compote from Koert Organics, bacon from Erbcroft Farm, and some goat's milk gouda from Monforte Dairy.

While we were there I also had a chance to speak with Steve Stacey, who is the Local-Come-Lately blogger (http://www.local-come-lately.blogspot.com/) . Like me, he was provided with a copy of Lynn Ogryzlo's new book "The Ontario Table" to promote. In fact, he let me know that Lynn will be doing a book signing at the Slow Food Market on Sunday, June 26th. Here's a picture of Steve with his copy of the book!

After we were done our shopping at the market we thought it would be a good idea to have some lunch prior to making our way back to London. As per Steve Stacey's recommendation, we decided to try the new Brunch menu at The County Food Co. This was our first time visiting this particular restaurant and upon entering I knew that this was the place for us. It was obvious that their focus was on local and seasonal foods.

Check out the menu! 

I got the fresh asparagus omelette filled with ricotta cheese and chives with bacon and yukon gold home fries on the side. Isn't it pretty?

My husband, on the other hand, had the County Foods Special - homemade potato pancakes topped with smoked salmon, 2 fried eggs and fresh tomato salsa. I really love the addition of the chives - it makes all the difference.

We had a great day visiting Stratford. We bought some great food at the market, chatted with some farmers, had a wonderful meal and just enjoyed our Sunday.

Do you ever visit any neighboring towns to check out their farmer's markets? I'm hoping to visit a few more this year - I'm thinking St. Thomas, Exeter, Aylmer, etc..

Don't forget - If you buy $10 of local food this month take a picture and post it to my Facebook page to get a chance to win Lynn Ogryzlo's new book!

Foodland Ontario Calendar - June (Strawberry Cheesecake Shake)

It's time for another Foodland Ontario 2011 Calendar recipe! For the month of June the featured recipe is the Strawberry Cheesecake Shake.

I have been looking very forward to this recipe since January when I started blogging about the calendar. And then I finally got a hold of some of the first strawberries a week or so ago. Yum, yum, yum!! Unfortunatelly, they got eaten up before I had a chance to make the milkshake. Oops!

I've since gotten my second batch of strawberries (from Heeman's of course!!) and made sure I'd have some available tonight to make this delectable treat. It wasn't just about the strawberries though. I went the extra mile with this one and got some fresh locally-made ice cream, cream cheese, and even grinded up my own graham cracker crumbs!

For the ice cream I made my way to the Covent Garden Market to The Ice Creamery. The Ice Creamery, with locations in London and Sarnia, makes their ice cream from scratch with natural ingredients and without preservatives. And they make ice cream cakes too! On this trip, I bought some of their vanilla bean ice cream.

For the cream cheese, I made my way to Smith Cheese (also at the Covent Garden Market). Smith cheese carries several varieties of cheeses, both local and imported. They have feta, cheddar, asiago, gruyere, buffalo mozzarella, bocconcini cheese, etc.. No matter what type of cheese you're looking for...Smith Cheese will definitely have it. One of my favorites is the salsa cheddar from Thornloe Cheese. Yum!

The graham cracker crumbs were processed from my very own homemade graham crackers . I had made a batch a couple of weeks ago and saved the leftover dough for this very purpose. I took the dough out of the fridge, rolled it out and cut them into pieces to bake at 350F until browned. Once cooled, I put them into the food processor to make the crumbs. The remaining crumbs can be kept in the freezer to be used another day.

So now that you know where I sourced out my ingredients, here is the recipe (finally!).

• 3 cups halved Ontario strawberries (mine were from Heeman's)
• 2 cups vanilla ice cream  (locally-made from the Ice Creamery)
• 3/4 cup Ontario milk (Organic Meadow from Guelph)
• 1/2 cup light cream cheese (locally-made from Smith Cheese)
• 3 tbsp graham cracker crumbs (made by me!)
• 1 tsp lemon juice (totally not local...but post coming soon about a local alternative)
• 4 Ontario strawberries to garnish

In a blender, combine the strawberries, ice cream, milk, cream cheese, graham cracker crumbs and lemon juice. Process until smooth and creamy. Serve each shake garnished with a strawberry.

This recipe serves 4 but I ended up dividing up the recipe since it was only my daughter and I here this evening.



Next month's recipe for July? Spicy Garlic Bok Choy Stir-Fry

For an electronic version of Foodland Ontario's 2011 calendar see: http://www.foodland.gov.on.ca/english/calendar/2011/index.html

January - veggie chips
February - Parsnip, Apple and Brie Soup
March - Breakfast Ham 'n' Cheese Egg Wrap
April - Potato Toppers
May - Grilled Proscuitto and Asparagus Bundles

Please don't forget to buy your $10 of local foods this week! I've got some entries for my contest to win Lynn Ogryzlo's book The Ontario Table. 'Like' me on Facebook, post a pic of your local food and you may get a chance to win!

The Ontario Table - Rhubarb Applesauce Tart

Since receiving my copy of Lynn Ogryzlo's new book 'The Ontario Table - featuring the best food from around the province', I managed to make one of the recipes this weekend.

I decided to try the Rhubarb Applesauce Tart. It sounded yummy and rhubarb is in season right now so it just made sense.

Now, some people would wonder...what about the apples? It's not Fall so apples aren't in season, right? Incorrect. In Ontario, apples are pretty well in season all year round. Apples may be harvested in the Fall but they are kept in cold storage and sold at the markets and some grocery stores from September into August. Many farmers have likely run out by the summer but they're still around.

Here's the recipe for the tart:

• 5 fresh Ontario rhubarb stalks, 9-inches long
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3 Ontario Royal Gala Apples (I used Ida Red)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp Ontario butter, melted
• 2 cups homemade applesauce (don't forget to use Ontario apples)
• 1 cooked and cooled tart shell
• pinch of cinnamon

Heat the oven to 400F. Toss rhubarb in sugar and roast for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, peel, core and very thinly slice the apples. Toss the apples with the brown sugar and the melted butter. Spread the applesauce in the base of the the cooled, baked tart shell. Add rhubarb pieces into the applesauce and arrange the sliced apples over top. Brush the apple with any remaining butter and sugar remaining in the bottom of the bowl and lightly dust with cinnamon.

Bake until the apple slices are very soft and golden, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool slightly. Serve warm or completely cool for a firmer tart.



Did you buy any local food this weekend? If you spent $10, don't forget to take a picture of your purchase and post it to my Facebook page - Southwestern Ontario Foodie. You'll have a chance to win a copy of the cookbook!

The Ontario Table & My First Giveaway!

Guess what I pulled out of my mailbox yesterday?

I received my special pre-launch (hot off the presses) copy of the book 'The Ontario Table - the best is close to home' by Lynn Ogryzlo. The book doesn't launch until June 22nd at the Nathan Philips Square Farmers' Market in Toronto from 12 noon to 2 pm, but as a blogger I was the lucky recipient of one of the first copies to be made available.

Lynn had contacted me a few days ago and asked if I would promote her new book and blog about it for the month of June. How could I refuse? Actually, I'm already in love with this book!

The book contains more than 100 recipes that use only ingredients that can be found in Ontario; recipes like Asparagus Grilled Cheese, Cranberry Beef Stew, Garlic and Thyme Braised Cauliflower, Vodka Chicken, Rainbow Trout Taco, and more. It's not just a cookbook though. It's more than that. In the book Lynn takes us on an culinary journey with visits to different areas of the province and introduces us to the farmers and producers in those areas. She visits Northumberland County, Chatham Kent, the Ottawa Region, Thunder Bay, Sudbury, Halton, Middlesex, Perth, Waterloo, Essex, etc.. In total, there are over 100 farmers, producers, and organizations profiled in the book.

In an exerpt from her book, Lynn defines local food and sustainability as follows:

"For the most part, the search for local food started as a quest for safer and healthier food. There are others who buy local food for reasons of principle--environmental, animal welfare and sustainability. But the overarching priority is agricultural sustainability. It's the sustainability issue that deserves defining, for if we talk local but don't buy local, sustainability will never be achieved and we will lose our local food opportunities forever. For this reason the definition of local food can only be judged by the bottom line dollar. By this I mean you must follow the money trail. If the money you're spending on local food stays in the hands of a local farmer, then that's sustainability. But if the money you spend on food locally goes to a company outside the province, then it's not sustainability."
She goes on to say that 'if every household in Ontario spent just $10 of their grocery budget on local foods each week, there would be a $24 billion dollar influx into the provincial economy each year!'

Here is my challenge to you: I want you to spend at least $10 per week on local foods this month. And, if you 'like' me on Facebook (Southwestern Ontario Foodie) and post a picture of your purchase(s) you'll be entered into a draw to win a copy of the book. The contest is open for the month of June and the winner will be announced on July 1st (Ontario residents only).

For the next month I'll be blogging about the book; I'll visit some of the farmers/producers profiled, I'll try some of the recipes, and will (hopefully) encourage more people to eat and buy local foods in Ontario.

A preview...did you know that there is such a thing as Ontario salt? Have you heard of Verjus? Locally-produced Soy Sauce? Stay tuned!