Michael Olson is a Niagara treasure. Pelham Slow Food enjoyed one of our gourmet outings early in April, trekking out to Benchmark Restaurant at the Niagara on the Lake Campus of Niagara College. Recently re-branded by Michael, Benchmark is more casual, less upscale than the dining room it replaced; in fact, at lunch, tables of students can be seen enjoying a really good hot meal for $10, a meal that blows away anything they could get at a fast food joint for the same or more money. Try “Mild Curry Chicken with Cucumber Raita and Coriander Flatbread” or “Pork Schnitzel with Spaetzle and Sauerkraut” or “Steak Frites with Shallot Butter” each for only ten bucks! No wonder the students are joining discerning Niagara diners for lunch at Benchmark.
Slow Food Pelham’s big dinner was admittedly more lavish, with four delicious courses, featuring a main of “Roasted Filet of Homer’s Black Angus Beef with Maple Glazed Root Vegetables and Horseradish Hollandaise.” And Michael conspired with Maitre d’, Sarah Scott, to create the most convivial of dining experiences at a cleverly designed table setting that encouraged conversation. We had the option of choosing the chef’s wine pairings, which included the College’s own 2009 “Deans List” Chardonnay that won the top honours at this year’s Cuvée.
But quite apart from our glorious gourmet experience created by Michael Olson and his student assistants, in a region that is blessed with great chefs and wonderful restaurants, Michael is unique. He first came to the attention of Niagara diners when he headed Inn on the Twenty, at the time, arguably Niagara’s best upscale dining room. And while there, he was among the first to put the emphasis on local products and fresh ingredients, going so far as to actually put the name of the local producer on the menu. This practice is now commonplace, but back then it was a revelation: a chef crediting the farmers and producers who supplied the food he was presenting! Toronto food critic, James Chatto put it this way: “In Chef Michael Olson’s hands, the produce of local farms and market gardens found new expression – simple, sophisticated, seasonal – a way of thinking that has since inspired the cuisine of the whole region.”
Michael has espoused Slow Food ideals and put them into practice wherever he has presented his enormous culinary skill. I was at the “Cassoulet Eh!” Competition in Toronto where he presented his version of the savoury bean dish to critics, judges, and fellow competitors with a poetic speech on the values of comfort food, the virtues of slow, painstaking attention to detail in cooking, and the joys of convivial dining. This was long before I had heard of the Slow Food Movement, but Michael’s words struck a chord that continues to resonate today. His introductions to the courses at our dinner at Benchmark emphasized the connection to Niagara terroire and showed his enthusiasm for local products and local producers.
Among his many accomplishments, Michael has co-authored several award-winning cookbooks with his wife, Anna. Their Inn on the Twenty cookbook, their first, has pride of place on our kitchen shelf, battered and spattered and well-thumbed though it is. From it, I have gleaned at least a dozen of my all-time favorite recipes: the “Lamb Shanks in Gamay with Rosemary Scented White Beans” is second only to
“Seared Duck Breast in Sour Cherry Cabernet Gastrique”
1 ½ C Niagara Cabernet Franc
1 ½ C red wine vinegar
2 C sugar 1
C Niagara pitted sour cherries
6 duck breasts (boneless, skin on)
For the gastrique sauce, put the wine, vinegar, sugar, and cherries in a saucepan and simmer until the sauce is reduced by 2/3 and coats the back of a spoon.
For the breasts, preheat the oven to 375 and heat an oven-proof sauté pan over medium-high heat. Place the duck breasts skin-side down in the pan and season lightly with salt and pepper. Sear the breasts for 5 minutes and the place the pan, uncovered, in the oven for 15 minutes for medium rare (20 minutes for medium). Remove the duck from the pan and let it rest for 5 minutes (and please save the duck fat to sauté potatoes!) Slice the breasts thinly against the grain and spoon the sauce over to serve.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
March: Baked Beans
March is a heartbreaker. In January, we look forward to it as the beginning of spring, but when it’s here, it often brings some of the nastiest winter weather of the year. I always associate the winter’s most satisfying and heartwarming comfort food with March, because it’s a month when we need to fortify ourselves to get through the last winter storms and over the hump into spring. For that reason, I often make my enormous cassoulet in March and invite friends to share the head-to-toe warmth that lots of beans, duck, and fat can provide. Another favorite March meal is baked beans.
The recipe I use for my baked beans is one that I pieced together from a superb short story written by iconic Canadian author Pierre Berton. According to Berton, baked beans were what fortified the Klondike gold rushers on their long and arduous trek across the Arctic to the gold fields. They would make a huge batch of beans and then let it freeze, gnawing off chunks of the bean-sickle as they struggled across the rugged trail.
Berton’s short story included his version of the Klondike beans recipe, but, in keeping with the rough and ready methods of the gold rushers, he was extremely vague about amounts and measures. His instructions included things like “a handful” of this or “a nice amount” of that or “enough” of something else, and, memorably, “pork cut into cubes the size of marshmallows.” It took me a long time and many experiments to develop a recipe from his tale, and I have added a few touches of my own that don’t appear in his short story. The result is a concoction that I have been using for late winter meals for many years. It freezes well (naturally) and should be served with lots of fresh bread to mop up the juice.
Pierre Berton’s Klondike Baked Beans
1. Soak 1 litre of dried white navy or Great Northern beans overnight
2. Drain and rinse the beans, then put them in a large pot, adding fresh water to cover by 3cm. Add 2 bay leaves, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 – 2 Tbsp each of oregano, thyme, chili powder, parsley, and 1 tsp of ground cloves.
Simmer at low heat for 2 hours.
3. Drain the beans and reserve the liquid. Put the beans in a large casserole or baking crock and add ½ kilo of bacon chunks* cut into cubes (marshmallow size)
4. Put the liquid into the pot and add 3 tomatoes, ½ Cup of chili sauce, 1 can of tomato paste, 4 onions (2 chopped fine and 2 chopped coarse), 1 Tbsp of dried mustard, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 Tbsp of celery seed, 1 Tbsp of Tabasco sauce, 1 Cup of dark molasses, and ½ Cup of maple syrup
Simmer at low heat for about an hour, then pour the reserved liquid over the beans
5. Cover and bake at 325 for about 4 hours
6. One hour before serving, add 1 Cup of sherry or dry red wine and lay 6 bacon strips on top. Half and hour before serving, remove the cover to crisp the bacon (use the broiler at the end if the bacon isn’t crisp enough).
*You can ask the butcher for the end pieces of slab bacon, which are smokier than the middle portions. Alternatively, use smoked turkey leg instead of the bacon. Klager’s in Fonthill is very accommodating at supplying either.
The recipe I use for my baked beans is one that I pieced together from a superb short story written by iconic Canadian author Pierre Berton. According to Berton, baked beans were what fortified the Klondike gold rushers on their long and arduous trek across the Arctic to the gold fields. They would make a huge batch of beans and then let it freeze, gnawing off chunks of the bean-sickle as they struggled across the rugged trail.
Berton’s short story included his version of the Klondike beans recipe, but, in keeping with the rough and ready methods of the gold rushers, he was extremely vague about amounts and measures. His instructions included things like “a handful” of this or “a nice amount” of that or “enough” of something else, and, memorably, “pork cut into cubes the size of marshmallows.” It took me a long time and many experiments to develop a recipe from his tale, and I have added a few touches of my own that don’t appear in his short story. The result is a concoction that I have been using for late winter meals for many years. It freezes well (naturally) and should be served with lots of fresh bread to mop up the juice.
Pierre Berton’s Klondike Baked Beans
1. Soak 1 litre of dried white navy or Great Northern beans overnight
2. Drain and rinse the beans, then put them in a large pot, adding fresh water to cover by 3cm. Add 2 bay leaves, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 – 2 Tbsp each of oregano, thyme, chili powder, parsley, and 1 tsp of ground cloves.
Simmer at low heat for 2 hours.
3. Drain the beans and reserve the liquid. Put the beans in a large casserole or baking crock and add ½ kilo of bacon chunks* cut into cubes (marshmallow size)
4. Put the liquid into the pot and add 3 tomatoes, ½ Cup of chili sauce, 1 can of tomato paste, 4 onions (2 chopped fine and 2 chopped coarse), 1 Tbsp of dried mustard, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 Tbsp of celery seed, 1 Tbsp of Tabasco sauce, 1 Cup of dark molasses, and ½ Cup of maple syrup
Simmer at low heat for about an hour, then pour the reserved liquid over the beans
5. Cover and bake at 325 for about 4 hours
6. One hour before serving, add 1 Cup of sherry or dry red wine and lay 6 bacon strips on top. Half and hour before serving, remove the cover to crisp the bacon (use the broiler at the end if the bacon isn’t crisp enough).
*You can ask the butcher for the end pieces of slab bacon, which are smokier than the middle portions. Alternatively, use smoked turkey leg instead of the bacon. Klager’s in Fonthill is very accommodating at supplying either.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
February: In Praise of Pizza
Pizza is one fast food that even a dedicated Slow Food member can love. Just because it doesn’t take very long to prepare, and is sometimes served in a shopping mall food court should not ban it from the Slow Food menu. Pizza can be nutritious, can be made entirely of local ingredients, and can be a wonderfully convivial meal… slow food perfection! The fact that it sometimes contains unhealthy, imported ingredients, and is often eaten in less than convivial settings and styles (ie. in front of the TV or in an ugly fast food “restaurant”) is not the fault of the dish.
Pizza comes in an array of styles and varieties that range from the bready “deep dish” Chicago style right through to the wafer thin, crisp, wood-fired version. And toppings! Pizza has been garnished with every imaginable food item.
My favorites include the very plain and simple “Margarita” which was named for the 19th Century queen of Italy because it has the three colours of the Italian flag: white (mozzarella cheese), green (fresh basil), and red (sliced tomatoes). The Pie Plate restaurant in Virgil makes a great version of the Margarita, which they cleverly call “Boot Queen.” (Boot – the shape of Italy on a map + Queen = Italian Queen or “Margarita”… get it?) At the other end of the scale, The Pie Plate serves a seasonal special pizza, which, during the fall and early winter is a concoction of apple slices, cheddar cheese, walnut pesto, and a drizzle of maple syrup! You really have to be daring to try it, but once you do, you’ll order it again and again.
Lorenzo’s Fine Foods in Fonthill makes a delicious gourmet pizza, too, and Lorenzo’s tomato sauce is perhaps the best in the business. I learned recently that he is so picky about the tomatoes he uses that he has enlisted the help of the horticulture experts at NTEC in Port Robinson to grow a specific strain of tomato (San Marzano) just for him, so he won’t have to import them from Italy.
But you don’t have to rely on the creativity of others to get unique and delicious pizza. Pizza is easy to make at home, whether you opt for the simplicity of topping flat bread, choose a frozen crust, or go all the way and make your own pizza dough. The latter, by the way, is very easy to do in any bread maker: just follow the instructions to make the dough, roll it out, top it with your favorites, and pop it in a pre-heated oven for 15 or 20 minutes.
One of my all time favorite pizzas is “pissaladière,” a no-cheese version that is not from Italy at all, but originated in the South of France in the area around Nice. Cut into bite-sized pieces, it makes a great appetizer.
Pissaladière
thin crust pizza dough or flat bread for one pizza… usually rectangular rather than the traditional round pizza
olive oil
3 large onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
12 black olives
¼ Cup of pine nuts
2 - 3 Tbsp of fresh thyme
12 - 20 anchovy fillets
1. Sauté the onions and garlic in olive oil at low heat until caramelized, about an hour, stirring occasionally
2. Spread the onion mixture on the pizza and lay the anchovy fillets on top in a grid pattern making 12 squares (you may need more or fewer fillets, depending on their length)
3. In the centre of each square formed by the anchovies, place an olive
4. Scatter the pine nuts and thyme evenly and drizzle the pizza with a little olive oil
5. Bake at 450 degrees for about 15 – 20 minutes, until the edge of the crust is golden
6. Serve hot or at room temperature
Pizza comes in an array of styles and varieties that range from the bready “deep dish” Chicago style right through to the wafer thin, crisp, wood-fired version. And toppings! Pizza has been garnished with every imaginable food item.
My favorites include the very plain and simple “Margarita” which was named for the 19th Century queen of Italy because it has the three colours of the Italian flag: white (mozzarella cheese), green (fresh basil), and red (sliced tomatoes). The Pie Plate restaurant in Virgil makes a great version of the Margarita, which they cleverly call “Boot Queen.” (Boot – the shape of Italy on a map + Queen = Italian Queen or “Margarita”… get it?) At the other end of the scale, The Pie Plate serves a seasonal special pizza, which, during the fall and early winter is a concoction of apple slices, cheddar cheese, walnut pesto, and a drizzle of maple syrup! You really have to be daring to try it, but once you do, you’ll order it again and again.
Lorenzo’s Fine Foods in Fonthill makes a delicious gourmet pizza, too, and Lorenzo’s tomato sauce is perhaps the best in the business. I learned recently that he is so picky about the tomatoes he uses that he has enlisted the help of the horticulture experts at NTEC in Port Robinson to grow a specific strain of tomato (San Marzano) just for him, so he won’t have to import them from Italy.
But you don’t have to rely on the creativity of others to get unique and delicious pizza. Pizza is easy to make at home, whether you opt for the simplicity of topping flat bread, choose a frozen crust, or go all the way and make your own pizza dough. The latter, by the way, is very easy to do in any bread maker: just follow the instructions to make the dough, roll it out, top it with your favorites, and pop it in a pre-heated oven for 15 or 20 minutes.
One of my all time favorite pizzas is “pissaladière,” a no-cheese version that is not from Italy at all, but originated in the South of France in the area around Nice. Cut into bite-sized pieces, it makes a great appetizer.
Pissaladière
thin crust pizza dough or flat bread for one pizza… usually rectangular rather than the traditional round pizza
olive oil
3 large onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
12 black olives
¼ Cup of pine nuts
2 - 3 Tbsp of fresh thyme
12 - 20 anchovy fillets
1. Sauté the onions and garlic in olive oil at low heat until caramelized, about an hour, stirring occasionally
2. Spread the onion mixture on the pizza and lay the anchovy fillets on top in a grid pattern making 12 squares (you may need more or fewer fillets, depending on their length)
3. In the centre of each square formed by the anchovies, place an olive
4. Scatter the pine nuts and thyme evenly and drizzle the pizza with a little olive oil
5. Bake at 450 degrees for about 15 – 20 minutes, until the edge of the crust is golden
6. Serve hot or at room temperature
Saturday, January 1, 2011
January: Community Supported Agriculture
Here’s an idea whose time has come. Buy your vegetables or meat or cheese by pre-paying the farmer in the winter, then collect the food you’ve paid for during the year, when it’s freshest and best. This is the essence of the CSA or Community Supported (or Shared) Agriculture system. Basically, we, the consumers, are advancing the farmer the funds with which to produce his or her crops and collecting a return on our investment in produce. Talk about win-win!
CSA farms are mostly vegetable producers, and there are lots of them, though they tend to fly under the radar in our supermarket-dominated environment. (One estimate has about 500 CSAs in Canada, more than 12,000 in the U.S, of which the largest, in California has 3000 families as members!)
Typically, CSA members go to the farm each week during harvest season and pick up the baskets of fruit or vegetables that they have paid for. Sometimes they get to select from the week’s varieties of produce, but in other cases, they pick up their basket of whatever the farmer has on offer that week.
The advantages for the consumer are many, freshly picked fruit and vegetables right from the farm every week being the most obvious. High quality food, often produced organically or biodynamically, is an attractive alternative to imported, days old, factory farm produce. Beyond that, a real sense of where our food comes from and a closer relationship with the farmer is an important, though intangible, benefit. CSA members also report that kids who are vegetable-resistant suddenly take an interest in the veggies on their plates once they have visited the farm and seen “their” food being grown right before their eyes.
For the farmer, the advantages of CSAs are even more important. Having the money up front to produce the food, make necessary capital expenditures, and budget labour and materials costs is an enormous benefit. Then there is the idea of shared risk: the farmer is usually the only member of the food chain who takes the risk of crop failure and pays the price if the worst happens. With the CSA system, that risk is shared with the “investors” who acknowledge that an early frost might wreak havoc on the spring lettuce or excessive rain might damage the tomatoes… and hope for a bumper crop of asparagus or raspberries or squash.
But vegetable producers and consumers aren’t the only ones to benefit from the CSA system. Recently, Monforte Cheese of Stratford launched a CSA, offering cheese lovers a chance to invest in their new dairy and cheese-making operation in return for certificates that could be used to buy the cheese that would eventually be produced. Locally, Lake Land Meats on Regional Road 81 in St. Catharines offered their first CSA in 2009 for their vegetable production. Now they are launching another to get the capital for a new culinary studio and production kitchen. Investors can use their certificates to buy Lake Land meat and game over a five year period, getting a nice return on the original investment. (lakelandmeats.com)
Other local CSAs include Tree and Twig Gardens in Wellandport, specializing in heirloom produce (treeandtwig.ca); Creek Shore Farms in Vineland, growing a wide variety of vegetables (creekshorefarms.ca); Fair Wind Farm in Sherkston, also producing a wide variety of vegetables and berries (fairwindsfarm.ca); and Sexsmith Farm in Ridgeway, offering vegetables, berries, herbs, and flowers (sexsmithfarm.ca)
Here’s an opportunity in the dead of winter to invest in good, wholesome, local food, support local farmers, connect with the food we eat, and save the planet! What’s not to love about CSAs?
CSA farms are mostly vegetable producers, and there are lots of them, though they tend to fly under the radar in our supermarket-dominated environment. (One estimate has about 500 CSAs in Canada, more than 12,000 in the U.S, of which the largest, in California has 3000 families as members!)
Typically, CSA members go to the farm each week during harvest season and pick up the baskets of fruit or vegetables that they have paid for. Sometimes they get to select from the week’s varieties of produce, but in other cases, they pick up their basket of whatever the farmer has on offer that week.
The advantages for the consumer are many, freshly picked fruit and vegetables right from the farm every week being the most obvious. High quality food, often produced organically or biodynamically, is an attractive alternative to imported, days old, factory farm produce. Beyond that, a real sense of where our food comes from and a closer relationship with the farmer is an important, though intangible, benefit. CSA members also report that kids who are vegetable-resistant suddenly take an interest in the veggies on their plates once they have visited the farm and seen “their” food being grown right before their eyes.
For the farmer, the advantages of CSAs are even more important. Having the money up front to produce the food, make necessary capital expenditures, and budget labour and materials costs is an enormous benefit. Then there is the idea of shared risk: the farmer is usually the only member of the food chain who takes the risk of crop failure and pays the price if the worst happens. With the CSA system, that risk is shared with the “investors” who acknowledge that an early frost might wreak havoc on the spring lettuce or excessive rain might damage the tomatoes… and hope for a bumper crop of asparagus or raspberries or squash.
But vegetable producers and consumers aren’t the only ones to benefit from the CSA system. Recently, Monforte Cheese of Stratford launched a CSA, offering cheese lovers a chance to invest in their new dairy and cheese-making operation in return for certificates that could be used to buy the cheese that would eventually be produced. Locally, Lake Land Meats on Regional Road 81 in St. Catharines offered their first CSA in 2009 for their vegetable production. Now they are launching another to get the capital for a new culinary studio and production kitchen. Investors can use their certificates to buy Lake Land meat and game over a five year period, getting a nice return on the original investment. (lakelandmeats.com)
Other local CSAs include Tree and Twig Gardens in Wellandport, specializing in heirloom produce (treeandtwig.ca); Creek Shore Farms in Vineland, growing a wide variety of vegetables (creekshorefarms.ca); Fair Wind Farm in Sherkston, also producing a wide variety of vegetables and berries (fairwindsfarm.ca); and Sexsmith Farm in Ridgeway, offering vegetables, berries, herbs, and flowers (sexsmithfarm.ca)
Here’s an opportunity in the dead of winter to invest in good, wholesome, local food, support local farmers, connect with the food we eat, and save the planet! What’s not to love about CSAs?
Friday, December 3, 2010
December: It was a very good year
It seems to be a common theme in the media at this time of year to look back at the past year as though to sum it all up and package it away for the history books. We at Slow Food Pelham have compiled our own list of highlights for 2010. Looking back over the year helps to bring into perspective how busy we have been as a group; it has been a very active year under the guidance of our indefatigable leader, Renée Girard.
Pelham Slow Food has meetings like any other organized group, but at our meetings, “business” is conducted informally and in about fifteen minutes; then we get down to the real purpose of our gatherings: eating, drinking, and conversing with friends. To give each meeting a focus, we decide on a theme for the food and drink, and everyone prepares a dish to share. It’s potluck with an international flavour. This year’s meeting themes were Scandinavian, Spanish, and Tex-Mex, and members outdid themselves with creative, delicious, and imaginative dishes that reflected the cuisine of each location.
In April, we gathered at Alvento Winery in Vineland where Bruno and Elyane Moos hosted an evening of matching Alvento wines to cassoulet. This is the second cassoulet evening held by Slow Food Pelham, and it reflects my enthusiasm for a dish that seems to me to embody all the principles of Slow Food. It uses exclusively ingredients that were local to the area where it originated (the southwest of France, specifically the town of Castelnaudary)… and it’s possible to make it from ingredients local to Pelham. It requires lots of time and care in its preparation (the very antithesis of Fast Food), and is best when prepared in large quantity, so should be consumed with a gathering of friends. In this instance, Bruno and Elyane turned over their tasting room for the event, and beautifully matched their big, flavourful red wines to the weight of the beans, duck confit, and pork that are the essential ingredients of cassoulet. It was a perfect meal for the end of winter.
In June, Renée organized an exclusive visit to one of Niagara’s most celebrated wineries, le Clos Jordanne. There, winemaker Sebastien Jacquey led an informative and delicious tour and tasting of the winery’s small batch production, emphasizing the importance of “terroir”… the unique flavours and characteristics imparted to the wine by the specific location of the vineyard. Our tour was not long after the winery’s chardonnay had shocked the world of wine criticism by being the consensus winner of a blind tasting in Montreal that put it up against the very best of France, California, and Australia.
July brought another winery tour and tasting, as Slow Food Pelham attempts to work its way through tastings at every Niagara wine producer! This time, we ventured out to Niagara on the Lake to Southbrook Vineyards, and their unique and impressive winery on Niagara Stone Road… a structure that has recently been awarded the SAB Award for its sustainable design, architectural excellence, and technical innovation. Just as impressive were the wines that we tasted, produced from organic and biodynamic vines.
In September, we once again produced our flagship event, the Featherstone Lamb Roast. Dave Johnson and Louise Engel turned over to us their gorgeous wraparound verandah at Featherstone Winery on Victoria Avenue, and provided one of their vine leaf-fed lambs to be spit-roasted over coals of vine cuttings and charcoal. Salads, vegetables, and desserts were created by members of Slow Food Pelham, and Featherstone 2007 Merlot was a perfect accompaniment to a superb meal. This event, too, is a perfect example of what the Slow Food Movement is all about: local produce, creatively and painstakingly prepared, and enjoyed in convivial company. As several people remarked, the thirty or so diners gathered around the long table on Featherstone’s verandah overlooking the vineyards could easily have been in Tuscany or Provence.
In October, the members of Slow Food Pelham gathered at About Thyme Bistro in Vineland for a meal of local delicacies prepared by chef Ryan Shapiro. Ryan introduced each of the four courses, and detailed his innovative method of “sous vide” cooking that produces the tender and flavourful duck confit which was featured in the main course.
Finally, in December we celebrated Terre Madre Day on the 10th by gathering for one of our “meetings” and sampling a spectacular array of finger foods created by our members. Terre Madre is a day specified by Slow Food to put into practice the principles of the movement and for the more than 100,000 members across the world to join together in a single day of celebrating food, those who produce it, and those who try to preserve food traditions and traditional foods.
Pelham Slow Food has meetings like any other organized group, but at our meetings, “business” is conducted informally and in about fifteen minutes; then we get down to the real purpose of our gatherings: eating, drinking, and conversing with friends. To give each meeting a focus, we decide on a theme for the food and drink, and everyone prepares a dish to share. It’s potluck with an international flavour. This year’s meeting themes were Scandinavian, Spanish, and Tex-Mex, and members outdid themselves with creative, delicious, and imaginative dishes that reflected the cuisine of each location.
In April, we gathered at Alvento Winery in Vineland where Bruno and Elyane Moos hosted an evening of matching Alvento wines to cassoulet. This is the second cassoulet evening held by Slow Food Pelham, and it reflects my enthusiasm for a dish that seems to me to embody all the principles of Slow Food. It uses exclusively ingredients that were local to the area where it originated (the southwest of France, specifically the town of Castelnaudary)… and it’s possible to make it from ingredients local to Pelham. It requires lots of time and care in its preparation (the very antithesis of Fast Food), and is best when prepared in large quantity, so should be consumed with a gathering of friends. In this instance, Bruno and Elyane turned over their tasting room for the event, and beautifully matched their big, flavourful red wines to the weight of the beans, duck confit, and pork that are the essential ingredients of cassoulet. It was a perfect meal for the end of winter.
In June, Renée organized an exclusive visit to one of Niagara’s most celebrated wineries, le Clos Jordanne. There, winemaker Sebastien Jacquey led an informative and delicious tour and tasting of the winery’s small batch production, emphasizing the importance of “terroir”… the unique flavours and characteristics imparted to the wine by the specific location of the vineyard. Our tour was not long after the winery’s chardonnay had shocked the world of wine criticism by being the consensus winner of a blind tasting in Montreal that put it up against the very best of France, California, and Australia.
July brought another winery tour and tasting, as Slow Food Pelham attempts to work its way through tastings at every Niagara wine producer! This time, we ventured out to Niagara on the Lake to Southbrook Vineyards, and their unique and impressive winery on Niagara Stone Road… a structure that has recently been awarded the SAB Award for its sustainable design, architectural excellence, and technical innovation. Just as impressive were the wines that we tasted, produced from organic and biodynamic vines.
In September, we once again produced our flagship event, the Featherstone Lamb Roast. Dave Johnson and Louise Engel turned over to us their gorgeous wraparound verandah at Featherstone Winery on Victoria Avenue, and provided one of their vine leaf-fed lambs to be spit-roasted over coals of vine cuttings and charcoal. Salads, vegetables, and desserts were created by members of Slow Food Pelham, and Featherstone 2007 Merlot was a perfect accompaniment to a superb meal. This event, too, is a perfect example of what the Slow Food Movement is all about: local produce, creatively and painstakingly prepared, and enjoyed in convivial company. As several people remarked, the thirty or so diners gathered around the long table on Featherstone’s verandah overlooking the vineyards could easily have been in Tuscany or Provence.
In October, the members of Slow Food Pelham gathered at About Thyme Bistro in Vineland for a meal of local delicacies prepared by chef Ryan Shapiro. Ryan introduced each of the four courses, and detailed his innovative method of “sous vide” cooking that produces the tender and flavourful duck confit which was featured in the main course.
Finally, in December we celebrated Terre Madre Day on the 10th by gathering for one of our “meetings” and sampling a spectacular array of finger foods created by our members. Terre Madre is a day specified by Slow Food to put into practice the principles of the movement and for the more than 100,000 members across the world to join together in a single day of celebrating food, those who produce it, and those who try to preserve food traditions and traditional foods.
Monday, November 1, 2010
November: Bad News for Carnivores
For those of us who are devoted meat eaters, the news is increasingly bad. A recent New York Times article entitled “Rethinking the Meat-Guzzler” has made this abundantly clear by comparing the impact of old gas-guzzling vehicles to that of meat eaters. Most of us understand that eating too much meat is bad for us, but we are hearing more and more that it’s bad for the planet, too. However, amid the nasty reports of greenhouse gas, water pollution, and deforestation, there is hope that improved methods and sensible practices may make our meat habit less negatively impactful on the planet… and, if we eat meat in moderate amounts, less negatively impactful on ourselves.
First the bad news. It is estimated by the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization that 30 per cent of the world’s ice fee land is directly or indirectly used to produce meat. Furthermore, nearly 20 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gasses are generated by livestock production… that is more than transportation!
Meat production is extremely inefficient: to produce the same number of calories as a kilo of grain, a kilo of meat requires two to five times the amount of grain. In the United States, agriculture (much of it devoted to the production of meat) causes almost 75 per cent of all the water quality issues in that nation’s rivers. (Consider that, according to the New York Times, in the state of Iowa alone, hog factories create 50 million tons of excrement every year!)
And, of course, the connection between heart disease and some cancers and meat consumption has been well established. Furthermore, cattle, pigs, and chickens are fed a diet of hormones to increase their meat production and antibiotics to keep them healthy in factory farm conditions… drugs that find their way into our diet with potentially nasty effect.
The good news is that “it need not be so.” We can make a positive impact on the environment and our own health by choosing what (and how much) meat we choose to eat. First, most of the environmental degradation caused by meat production comes from enormous factory farms. We can insist on buying grass fed beef from grazing animals… but we’d have to eat less of it because gazing cannot produce anywhere near the amount of beef that a factory farm can. And we’d have to pay much more for it. Small scale production from humanely treated animals not only produces higher quality meat, but significantly reduces the environmental damage that raising it causes… but it comes at a cost. Locally, we can source grass fed beef without hormones, antibiotics, grains, or pesticides from CW Acres on Silver St. in Caistor Centre (www.cwacres.ca)
Can we reconcile our demand for meat with our concerns for the planet? The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization produced a study called “Livestock’s Long Shadow” in which it says “There are reasons for optimism that the conflicting demands for animal products and environmental services can be reconciled. Both demands are exerted by the same group of people ... the relatively affluent, middle- to high-income class, which is no longer confined to industrialized countries. ... This group of consumers is probably ready to use its growing voice to exert pressure for change and may be willing to absorb the inevitable price increases.”
I wonder if Canadians are ready to break our almost half-pound daily habit of meat consumption for a saner portion… from more humane and sustainable sources… at a higher cost.
First the bad news. It is estimated by the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization that 30 per cent of the world’s ice fee land is directly or indirectly used to produce meat. Furthermore, nearly 20 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gasses are generated by livestock production… that is more than transportation!
Meat production is extremely inefficient: to produce the same number of calories as a kilo of grain, a kilo of meat requires two to five times the amount of grain. In the United States, agriculture (much of it devoted to the production of meat) causes almost 75 per cent of all the water quality issues in that nation’s rivers. (Consider that, according to the New York Times, in the state of Iowa alone, hog factories create 50 million tons of excrement every year!)
And, of course, the connection between heart disease and some cancers and meat consumption has been well established. Furthermore, cattle, pigs, and chickens are fed a diet of hormones to increase their meat production and antibiotics to keep them healthy in factory farm conditions… drugs that find their way into our diet with potentially nasty effect.
The good news is that “it need not be so.” We can make a positive impact on the environment and our own health by choosing what (and how much) meat we choose to eat. First, most of the environmental degradation caused by meat production comes from enormous factory farms. We can insist on buying grass fed beef from grazing animals… but we’d have to eat less of it because gazing cannot produce anywhere near the amount of beef that a factory farm can. And we’d have to pay much more for it. Small scale production from humanely treated animals not only produces higher quality meat, but significantly reduces the environmental damage that raising it causes… but it comes at a cost. Locally, we can source grass fed beef without hormones, antibiotics, grains, or pesticides from CW Acres on Silver St. in Caistor Centre (www.cwacres.ca)
Can we reconcile our demand for meat with our concerns for the planet? The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization produced a study called “Livestock’s Long Shadow” in which it says “There are reasons for optimism that the conflicting demands for animal products and environmental services can be reconciled. Both demands are exerted by the same group of people ... the relatively affluent, middle- to high-income class, which is no longer confined to industrialized countries. ... This group of consumers is probably ready to use its growing voice to exert pressure for change and may be willing to absorb the inevitable price increases.”
I wonder if Canadians are ready to break our almost half-pound daily habit of meat consumption for a saner portion… from more humane and sustainable sources… at a higher cost.
Monday, October 11, 2010
October: Slow Food and Slow Cycling
While there is absolutely no official or obvious connection between Slow Food and bicycles, as an avid fan of both, I always look forward to this time of year. There is nothing like a bike ride on a fine, warm day in October to remind you of the beauty of the area we are fortunate enough to live in. The bike gives you ample time to savour the smells of autumn as well as to observe the incredible diversity and abundance of the food that the Niagara Region produces.
Recently, Alan Wheeler (another of Slow Food Pelham’s members, and an avid cyclist) and I mapped out a leisurely ride through some of Pelham’s most beautiful areas, taking us past many of the food producers, retailers, and farmers that Slow Foodies treasure.
We began with a tour of the Short Hills area, along Effingham, Roland, and Hollow Roads. This stretch took us past White Meadow Farm, a landmark for its maple sugar products; Bow Ridge Herbs, one of the area’s leading suppliers of herbs and herb seedlings; and a short detour out to Howell’s Pumpkin Farm. Doubling back to Hollow Road, we wound along that lovely street for a rest at St. John’s Conservation Park before continuing to Williams Orchards where Hollow turns into North Pelham.
Entering Fonthill, we saluted Klager’s butcher shop and Zest Restaurant, scene of one of our memorable Slow Food dinners, turned onto Pancake Lane and rode past the pick-your-own blueberry farm and vegetable stand before turning left on Effingham to pass Gwennol Farm (more pick your own berries) and eventually all the way out to the Welland River. There we turned left for a short detour to see Zeta Farms on River Road, producers of organic lambs and eggs, then doubled back, admiring the new O’Reilley’s bridge on our way past. Along the way we were amazed at the amount of soy bean we produce in Niagara; field after field along River Road and many of the other roads on our route… all devoted to production of soy… that’s a lot of tofu!
Our tour then took us out along River Road west to Wellandport, where we passed Tree and Twigg where more than 1000 varieties of heirloom vegetables are grown. Turning back east along Canborough Road, we whizzed past Tom Ball, out in the field of Rural Roots, in Boyle, where he produces the organic veggies he sells at Pelham Market. Just past Rural Roots, we crossed Victoria Avenue and entered Greater Metropolitan Fenwick.
Chez Fromage Etc. in downtown Fenwick is a Pelham treasure where Nathalie Kita offers an amazing variety of gourmet cheeses, curds, and breads from Québec, across Canada, and around the world. Fenwick Subs and Bakery across the street features local fruit in their pies and tarts, and between Fenwick and Ridgeville, the verandah at Berry Patch Tea Room is a hugely popular spot for lunch and afternoon tea. Further along Canborough, on the edge of Ridgeville, Town and Country Farms vegetable stand is one-stop shopping for whatever is in season in southwestern Niagara.
And that brought us full circle to Ridgeville, where the village shops feature chocolate creations at Sweet Thoughts, baked goods and lunch treats at Nature’s Corner Bakery, and all the kitchen supplies you could want at Whisk and Ladle… along with delicious lunch specials at their Knife and Fork Garden Café.
While Alan and I didn’t have time to stop and enjoy any of the goodies along the route, or the space to carry any of the produce that we might have bought, we enjoyed the 60km route for the scenery and the connection it provides to our food and those who grow, produce, and prepare it. Cycling enables us to make that connection vividly.
Recently, Alan Wheeler (another of Slow Food Pelham’s members, and an avid cyclist) and I mapped out a leisurely ride through some of Pelham’s most beautiful areas, taking us past many of the food producers, retailers, and farmers that Slow Foodies treasure.
We began with a tour of the Short Hills area, along Effingham, Roland, and Hollow Roads. This stretch took us past White Meadow Farm, a landmark for its maple sugar products; Bow Ridge Herbs, one of the area’s leading suppliers of herbs and herb seedlings; and a short detour out to Howell’s Pumpkin Farm. Doubling back to Hollow Road, we wound along that lovely street for a rest at St. John’s Conservation Park before continuing to Williams Orchards where Hollow turns into North Pelham.
Entering Fonthill, we saluted Klager’s butcher shop and Zest Restaurant, scene of one of our memorable Slow Food dinners, turned onto Pancake Lane and rode past the pick-your-own blueberry farm and vegetable stand before turning left on Effingham to pass Gwennol Farm (more pick your own berries) and eventually all the way out to the Welland River. There we turned left for a short detour to see Zeta Farms on River Road, producers of organic lambs and eggs, then doubled back, admiring the new O’Reilley’s bridge on our way past. Along the way we were amazed at the amount of soy bean we produce in Niagara; field after field along River Road and many of the other roads on our route… all devoted to production of soy… that’s a lot of tofu!
Our tour then took us out along River Road west to Wellandport, where we passed Tree and Twigg where more than 1000 varieties of heirloom vegetables are grown. Turning back east along Canborough Road, we whizzed past Tom Ball, out in the field of Rural Roots, in Boyle, where he produces the organic veggies he sells at Pelham Market. Just past Rural Roots, we crossed Victoria Avenue and entered Greater Metropolitan Fenwick.
Chez Fromage Etc. in downtown Fenwick is a Pelham treasure where Nathalie Kita offers an amazing variety of gourmet cheeses, curds, and breads from Québec, across Canada, and around the world. Fenwick Subs and Bakery across the street features local fruit in their pies and tarts, and between Fenwick and Ridgeville, the verandah at Berry Patch Tea Room is a hugely popular spot for lunch and afternoon tea. Further along Canborough, on the edge of Ridgeville, Town and Country Farms vegetable stand is one-stop shopping for whatever is in season in southwestern Niagara.
And that brought us full circle to Ridgeville, where the village shops feature chocolate creations at Sweet Thoughts, baked goods and lunch treats at Nature’s Corner Bakery, and all the kitchen supplies you could want at Whisk and Ladle… along with delicious lunch specials at their Knife and Fork Garden Café.
While Alan and I didn’t have time to stop and enjoy any of the goodies along the route, or the space to carry any of the produce that we might have bought, we enjoyed the 60km route for the scenery and the connection it provides to our food and those who grow, produce, and prepare it. Cycling enables us to make that connection vividly.
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