Canada Day

Canada Day is just around the corner!  And since no celebration would be complete without a selection of cheeses, I would like to suggest a cheese board representing the founding provinces of Canada with one exception and that is Nova Scotia.  There is a wonderful cheese from this province but unfortunately it is not licensed to sell outside of Nova Scotia.  So I have instead selected a cheese from Prince Edward Island which although that province didn't join the confederation until 1873, it was the site of the Charlottetown Conference in 1863 which set the groundwork for the founding of the most wonderful country in the world, Canada!

So without further adieu, here is the selection of cheeses for your Canada Day cheeseboard.  All are available at C'est Cheese Please!

• Avonlea Clothbound Cheddar (PEI) - this thermalized milk cheddar is made in a typically British fashion by binding the wheel of cheese with cloth (this keeps the moisture in the cheese) and since this is from PEI, the cloth that is used are potato sacks!  This gives an earthy taste to the cheese.  Aged 12 months.  Award winning (First prize - American Cheese Society Conference, 2012, Second prize - American Cheese Society Conference, 2013)
• Gai Bleu (New Brunswick) - a raw milk blue that is velvety on the tongue and earthy in taste from La Bergerie  Aux 4 Vents in Camp Doré.  It is named for the Blue Jay's that made the farm their home.
• Le 1608 - Charlevoix region of Québec, this wash-rind cheese is made from the milk of the oldest breed of cattle in Canada, the Canadienne.  This breed is directly descended from a few hundred cattle brought from Normandy and Brittany 400 years ago!  More Canadian than maple syrup!
• Lindsay Clothbound Goat Cheddar - this goat cheddar is aged 12 months.  Creamy, buttery and with that tangy goat cheese flavour, it is no wonder it took Second Place for Best of Show at the 2011 American Cheese Society Conference.

Happy Canada Day!  Joyeux Jour du Canada!

Summertime And The Living is Oh So Easy

These wonderful Chévres just shout "Summer is Here!" don't they?  These flower topped delicacies are from Salt Spring Island Cheese Company and although they have been around for a time, they are still a favorite.

In 1996, David Wood and his wife started selling their handmade goat cheese from their farm on Salt Spring Island, just off the coast of BC.  

Their goal was to make excellent cheese with quality ingredients....and  succeed they have.  The list of ingredients is short:  100% goat milk, sea salt, dairy culture and rennet.  Try pairing these pretty chévres with a Sauvignon Blanc.

Also from Salt Spring Island Cheese Company is Blue Juliette.  This is another of their chévres this time made with half blue culture and half white which produces a mild goat blue.  Try pairing this one with a  slightly chilled Gamay Noir or Pinot Noir. 

Both are in stock at C'est Cheese Please! 

Either one of these on the afternoon cheese platter will have you  singing too!  And just in case you've forgotten just how good Ella Fitzgerald is, here's a reminder!

Bon Appétit!

The Difference in a Name or Why 100% is Better

"Dis-moi ce que tu manges, je te dirai ce que tu es."

(Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are)

Brillat-Savarin (1826)

"Modified milk ingredients also called natural milk constituents are umbrella terms for a group of milk products which have an altered chemical state from that which is naturally found in milk. This includes casein, caseinates, whey products (including whey butter and whey cream), cultured milk products (including yogurt, sour cream and cultured buttermilk), ultrafiltered milk, milk protein concentrate, milk serum proteins and fats. ^[1][2][3] Since the products vary considerably in composition, there is also a large variation in their nutritional value, and this has been a source of public concern as they are sometimes used to entirely replace milk or other more recognizable dairy products."

The above is the Wikipedia definition for modified milk byproducts.  Now, I would like you to have a look at your recent purchase of cheese from your big box store or bulk food store or WalMart or major grocery store especially the "super special" at some ridiculously low price.....is the first ingredient "modified milk byproducts" or "milk solids"?  Then you are eating a product that is made from dried skim milk or whey powder or some combination of these sorts of ingredients. Please note that these ingredients do not have to come from Canada.

In 1826, the famous gastronome (or in other words, one of the original Foodies) Brillat-Savarin made the observation above.  Today, we are inundated with the "latest" pronouncement on the food that we eat -  so much so that we are driven crazy trying to eat well and live long.  May I weigh in with a few thoughts?  Food, the preparation and eating of should be a source of joy and pleasure...of the family around the table, sharing and talking together.  If we look at the Mediterranean Diet (which is basically The Canada Food Guide) , we see that people eat just about everything, ENJOY everything, live long and generally, healthy lives but the emphasis is on fresh, real food.  There is no scientific evidence that removing gluten, dairy or whatever the latest buzz is does anything to improve the average person's life.  Only those with those specific intolerance's receive any benefit.  Remember that author's of books are trying to sell their books, TV personalities are trying to promote their programs - everyone has their angle.

Here at C'est Cheese Please! all of the cheeses are 100% milk of country of origin, olive oil is 100% olive oil, and the products here, many of which come from small, local producers, taste great - that is my guarantee to you, my valuable customers.  Does this make a difference to the taste and quality of the cheeses?  Absolutely.  Is it more expensive?  Yes, but remember that you get what you pay for - quality always does come with a price tag.

And remember that the Blue Cow symbol only appears on products made of 100% Canadian milk.

Is 100% better?  My answer is c'est vrai!  My customers are worth it.

Bon Appétit!

It's a Home Run!

In 10 short years, the Morin family of Fromagerie du Presbytère have achieved levels of success that are unmatched.  Year after year, the cheeses produced by Jean and Dominic have won accolades and many honours.  In 2010, I wrote about Le Bleu d'Elizabeth which since has been awarded the Caseus Emeritus at the  2013 Sélection Caseus (founded in 1999, this is a provincial contest for Québec cheeses).

Another cheese from Fromagerie du Presbytère is Louis d'Or, a wash-rind cheese named for the Morin family farm . Louis d'Or was awarded the Caseus Emeritus in 2012 as well as being awarded the 2014 Grand Champion at the Canadian Cheese Grand Prix.......and a year later, Laliberté (pictured above), the latest addition to the repertoire at Fromagerie du Presbytère has won the 2015 Grand Champion at the Canadian Cheese Grand Prix.  Talk about a home run!

The farm (Louis d'Or) has been in the Morin family for four generations and the mixed herd of primarily Holstein with a few Jersey's thrown in for good measure, provide the milk that is used for the production of the cheeses.  The cheeses are created in what was a former Presbytery which sits in front of the farm...perhaps this is the key to great cheesemaking....being blessed from above!

Laliberté is in stock at C'est Cheese Please! 

Bon Appétit!

A Canadian Success Story

 

A couple of years ago, 2 young women came into my store and introduced me to a 100% Canadian product, Three Farmer's Camelina Oil   - they were wonderful to work with and I have proudly carried this product at C'est Cheese Please! ever since.  This has been a Canadian success story including a pitch to the "Dragons" on Dragon's Den  (a shout-out here to Arlene Dickinson for her investment in this company!)

 

My daughter, Ainsley LOVES this product and uses it all the time.  It has a much higher burn point than  peanut oil which is the usual suspect when doing a stir-fry plus it is high in the Omega-3 oils and vitamin E and thus is a great choice when sautéing or stir-frying.  But maybe I should let Ainsley speak for herself!

 

""Cooking, at times the thought is daunting.  Long hours of work at demanding jobs, heading home to the waiting family or those errands and trying to fit in a trip to the gym...sometimes the question is "Do I have time to cook?"  In recent years my interest in food, cooking, presentation and all those other subjects has become a guilty pleasure.  Wouldn't it be nice to have all the time in the world to cook....a bit of a dream right now but for now with all those tasty dishes to try, I will keep on dreaming!  One of my go-to dishes is a simple pesto pasta - fresh vegetable, garlic, onions, zucchini, red pepper, spinach, artichokes and tomatoes (fresh from the garden when available but try cherry tomatoes  on those frosty winter nights!).  Sounds simple, but one evening I used a new oil to sauté that changed the taste of my dish in an incredible new way!  I had "borrowed" the sample bottle of Three Farmer's Camelina Oil  from my Mom - amazing!  It leaves such a smooth finish, coating the vegetables without that unpleasant oily taste, enhancing but not over-powering.  So if you are looking for a little tweak for an ol'standby dish, why not try Camelina Oil ($19.99 a bottle)?  Available at C'est Cheese Please!  A simple change for our hectic daily lifestyles!"   

 

The link  for the Dragon's Den episode here                                  

 

 

Bon Appétit!

 

 

 



Milestones

On October 31st, 2009 the doors to C'est Cheese Please! opened for the first time and the adventure began.  I would like to thank all my loyal customers for their support and of course my family and friends who have been there when I needed a few positive words of encouragement.  I would also like to thank my daughter who has written a beautiful piece for my blog which I will share with you now.

With the change of the season it seems like the right time to sit down and reflect on what has happened in the past and what is currently happening as of this moment. It becomes a time, in my life in particular, when I start to think of where my life is heading over the next little while, what I want to accomplish and how to get there. However, at this moment, I don’t find myself thinking so much about only me, but instead my mother. The end of October will mark her three year anniversary as the owner and creator of C’est Cheese Please! Three years she has been passionately running her store in Galt, Cambridge and from what I can see has never looked back. This is where my mind has been over the last little while. It inspires me to think that she took such a leap of faith and did what her heart told her to do. Yes, she works hard, yes she is there day after day ensuring that her business succeeds, but when you do something you love, does it not just become a labour of love?

            Over the past three years I have been privileged to witness her hard at work, interacting with the customers, sharing her wealth of cheese knowledge, and daring those who are willing to try, incredible cheeses that one would not find in the grocery store aisle. She has built her business on something that is hard to compete with, knowledge. She truly walks the talk, sharing stories about where the cheeses originate, why they were named the way they were, health benefits, pairings, and so much more. She never rushes a customer, only taking the time to educate them on their choices, offering something new and different to try, and making sure they walk out the door satisfied and excited about their experience at her store.

            I know this may seem like some sort of sales pitch for C’est Cheese Please! But in fact, it is a sort of ode to the store, and my mother. There is something so incredible about this store, I get that feeling inside me that makes me so proud to be her daughter. I can only hope that one day I find a passion as strong as hers and have the strength to go after it, make it my own.

            Lastly, I want to congratulate her on her three year anniversary of C’est CheesePlease! It has been a lot of work, but I know that this is what she was meant to do.

 

Big news is coming in a few days!

 

Bon Appétit!

Smokin'

I love smoked cheese and I have lots of selection here at C'est Cheese Please!  Of course there are the usual suspects - Applewood Smoked Cheddar from England and also Applewood Smoked Cheddar from Scotland but I also carry some fabulous cheese that I have custom smoked for C'est Cheese Please!  These include Gouda and Spiced Gouda, Ontario cheddar and the Red Hot Chili Pepper Cheddar as well as a low fat Mozzerella.  One of my person favs is the Smoked Spiced Gouda.  The gouda is spiced with cumin and that combined with the smokiness is in one word, yummy!  I really enjoy this melted on the fresh asparagus that is just hitting the local markets now.  I add some slices of toasted Asiago Pepper Bread ($4.99 a loaf) that I stock in the freezer along with my favorite red wine, Ripasso as my "Spring Has Sprung!" treat.

Try the smoked Red Hot Chili Pepper Cheddar melted on your nachos and the C'est Cheese Please Custom Smoked Cheddar is amazing on a bowl of chili.
I also stock a smoked blue cheese, Blue Haze.  This is a Québec blue cheese from the Abbaye Saint-Benoit-du-Lac (this is a link to a previous blog that I did on the cheeses made by the monks of the Abbaye) which is then smoked in Ontario using a blend of Ontario hardwood chips.  Burnt carmel notes on the outside contrasting with the creamy, piquant interior - great on your next hamburger or steak!

For something a little different, here is my recipe for Cheddar Biscuits - you could easily substitute the cheddar for Applewood Smoked Cheddar or the Smoked Red Hot Chili Pepper Cheddar.

Cheddar Biscuits

2 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup shortening (cold)

3/4 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese

1 egg

2/3 cup of milk

In large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.  Cut in the shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Stir in the cheese.  In small bowl, beat together the egg and milk.  Add to the flour mixture mixing lightly until the mixture just comes together into a soft ball.  Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and knead gently 20 times.  Roll out the dough to a thickness of 1/2 an inch.  Cut with a floured round cutter approximately 2 inches in diameter.  Bake in a preheated 450 degree oven 8-10 minutes.  Will make approximately 2 1/2 dozen.

Bon Appétit!