Fresh & News April 30th

A year has nearly passed since Foragers has opened its doors. Over the next few issues of Fresh & News we would like to share with you what we have learned from our customers in identifying coming trends.

Perhaps the most interesting point we found was the rise in importance of food provenance or the notion of who the producer is and/or where the producer is located. Consequently the importance of food provenance has taken over from such labels as “organic”, “natural” and even “local”.

For instance many of our Forager customers know that all of our pork products are drug, hormone, steroid free and raised by Matt Metzger at his closed barn system near Dashwood. Matt raises his hogs from beginning to end beside the field that produces his feed. Metzgers pork does not move from barn to barn as is the case with most hog production, therefore his closed barn system is considered disease free.

At Foragers you can always expect an informed answer as to exactly where all of our fresh products come from and who the grower is. See you this weekend!

Fresh and News

Cheese
We are excited to bring in St Honore. The creamy cows milk cheese has replaced the Riopelle as our triple cream Brie. In our opinion the St Honore can stand up to most French Brie’s albeit with a better price.
For blue cheese lovers be sure to try Bleubry. The pasteurized cows milk cheese from Quebec is similar in look and texture to a Cambozola but with more of a blue cheese taste and decadency.

Pasta
From our Pasta supplier in Toronto we have brought in several new varieties of handmade, organic ravioli, medaglioni and agnolloti. You can now find: Smoked Salmon, Wild Mushroom, Pumpkin, Goat Cheese & Sundried Tomato, Wild Mushroom. Foragers also has two non-dairy varieties; wild mushroom parve and eggplant & zucchini parve.

Mapletons Organic Ice Cream

Mapletons dairy is located near Harriston and for years has been the “go-to” ice cream destination for mid-western Ontario. Now you can enjoy three varieties of organic ice cream and three frozen yoghurts. Successful Forager product testing has taken place this past week at all hours of the day and night! Available in ½ litre containers.

Keep Foraging,

Bill, Sam, Sara & Jeremy

Fresh and News April 15th

At Foragers there have been positive changes in the past few months and some even better changes to come going forward. For example, next week we will start opening everyday with the exception of Tuesday.
As well you will see the smiling faces of Bayfield natives Bill Crowley and Jeremy DeMers behind the counters more often as a result of the new “brother” store Olliffe in Toronto, as Sam will be there during the week. This summer you can expect to see Sam, Bill and Jeremy at the store brainstorming up ideas on prepared food recipes, providing new local products and creative options for the grill.

In Store Contest
You may remember Bill from TV as a Jeopardy champion! On the next two Saturdays we are having a contest (April 18 & 25). The first person to stump Bill on an American history trivia question wins a Forager Foods $25.00 gift certificate. One winner will be picked this Saturday and the other on the 25th.

New & Re-Stocked Cheeses
We have two new cheeses from Quebec this week for you to try; Madawaska and Clos St Ambroise. Made with cow’s milk, the Madawaska is from the same cheese makers as the Clandestin we carried at Christmas. You may remember the cow/sheep milk Clandestin as having a distinct pungency, the Madawaska has similar characteristics although even softer and more delicate.

The Clos St Ambroise is a beer washed rind made of cow’s milk. The beer used for the semi-firm cheese is from one of Quebec’s micro-breweries, Macausland Brewery. The beer gives a terrific aroma yet yields subtle flavours at first and lingers with a big finish.
We are now re-stocking the Evanturel Cheese from Thornloe Dairy we discussed last week. As well, the Ile Aux Grue Five Year Raw Milk Cheddar is back for you to enjoy.

Sausage of The Week
The forecast is good for this weekend and our Sausage Making Team can’t wait for summer grillin’. In this spirit we are making a Mediterranean Style Pork Sausage stuffed with feta, fresh oregano and kalamata olives. Get out the tzatziki, see you this weekend!

News From Ruth at Monforte Dairy

April 14, 2009
You are the first to hear our fantastic news. Monforte Dairy has a new home!
Monforte is thrilled today to be able to say that we now officially have a home in Stratford and a building that will be started this year. Monforte’s new facility will be built at 211 Lorne Ave. and we start production as soon as the milk starts to run in 2010. In the meantime, as soon as the dairy is built we are anticipating a school for cheesemaking.

The most important thing I can say today is thank you to Tom Melanson and Perth Community Futures. This morning I had four meetings with different banks, including leftwing, government supported institutions as well as conventional banks and credit unions only to be told by each and every one of them that my debt to ratio was not appropriate and even with the offer of my pregnant Clydesdale I didn’t have enough security against my business. This with five years of sound financials.

All I can say is thanks heavens for grassroots movements like CSAs and Perth Community Futures, and of course to all of you who have supported Monforte with money and passion.

Fondly,
Ruth Klausen
Monforte Dairy Company


Keep Foraging,

Sam, Sara, Bill & Jeremy
www.foragerfoods.ca 519.565.4866

Fresh and News April 9th

Easter Weekend is here and there is much to celebrate. At Foragers we love holidays when friends and family gather as our customers come into the store to chat, suggest recipes and test us on how far our reach is to get that hard to find product.  Good food relies on good ingredients, Hoppy Easter!

The store will be open everyday this weekend albeit we will be closing at 4pm on Friday and Sunday.

Fresh & New

La Quercia Pancetta

We have found the best pancetta outside of Italy sourced from La Quercia, the same producer as our proscuitto rossa.  Using the organic heirloom Berkshire breed the new pancetta has a mellow, almost sweet aroma yet yielding big flavour. Be sure to cook on low and don’t be put off with the amount of fat because we know that you know fat is where the flavour is.  Use a slice for salad topping, cube up a thick slice for pasta, or better yet top off your handmade Forager Burger with a slice. The La Quercia pancetta is stocked for a trial period.

Evanturel Cheese

In Wednesdays Globe and Mail life section, Sue Reidl's cheese column featured Evanturel Cheese from Thornloe Dairy in New Liskeard.  Forager is proud to say that we have consistently stocked this deliciously creamy cheese. However the timing of the article is not the best due to the fact that the dairy's last production ran out a few weeks ago making it very hard to source! Be sure to stop into the store next week as Foragers will be receiving a few wheels. Side note: Foragers currently stocks the cultured Thornloe butter also featured in the article: salted and unsalted.

New Pate & Rillette

We have switched from our regular pate supplier, Maison de Gibier, to another Quebec charcuterie house, Palme d’Or because we find the quality higher.  For this weekend hors d’ heovres plate you can start with a Five Peppercorn Country Pork Pate and/or Duck Rillette with Foie Gras. FYI, the difference between a rillette, pate and mousse are the consistencies, from coarse to fine.

Sausage of the Week

While working at our sister store Olliffe, our Sausage Making Team will be giving a nod to an excellent butcher there by re-creating Jay’s Lamb Sausage with stilton and apple. Always using fresh herbs and ginger, this sausage will be a hit on the barby with a bun or in your favourite Asian styled dishes.

Keep Foraging,

Sam, Sara, Bill & Jeremy

Easter Hours

We're open all weekend long!

Tomorrow 10 am - 6 pm
Good Friday 10 am - 4 pm
Saturday 10 am - 5 pm
Sunday 10 am - 4 pm
Monday 10 am - 6 pm

Fresh and News April 2nd

Burgers, striploins, kebabs and fire roasted peppers, with the exception of Friday the weather forecast is looking good to fire up the ol’ barby.  At Foragers we are continually considering what we stock in the cold cases. This spring you can expect interesting combinations of chicken, sausage, game and marinades all designed for a great experience with friends and family.

  

Lake Huron Fish Report

Our fish supplier Scott from Bayfield Fish & Seafood has reopened after being temporarily closed due to the Bayfield River flood. Scott says that late winter and early spring are the best seasons for whitefish and lake trout. 

In about a month or so we will start seeing a little perch and pickerel. That being said, sometimes the fishing tugs do cast nets at this time of year for perch and pickerel but it is still a little out season.

 

At Foragers you will soon be seeing some changes in the fish counter. Our Forager Chef is currently testing some semi-prepared LakeFish entrée recipes that will be uncooked and ready for the grill, pan or oven.  Also because of some good feedback from customers, we will no longer be vac-packing the fresh lake fish.

 

Sausage of The Week

This week our sausage making team will be stuffing a French Country Sausage. The sausages are perfect for the grill and will be delicately seasoned with fresh Herbes de Provence and local garlic from Gadshill. 

 

Thunder Oak Gouda

Last Autumn we were hesitant about buying more Thunder Oak Gouda due to positive reviews in the Globe and Mail and some trade publications. 

Simply put, the skyrocketing popularity was hindering supply. As a consequence the Thunder Bay based fromagerie increased production but they were mostly selling 3 month (mild) gouda and not the aged product, which we previously enjoyed.

The dust has now settled and Foragers is stocking the medium aged (6 mos) gouda again. In addition to the medium aged gouda we have the Smoked Thunder Oak gouda that has a mellow, soft, smokey taste and is perfectly suited for a local Bison burger, available at Foragers of course!

 

Butterflied Lemon Pepper Chickens

We love to test recipes and think a winner has been found! Be sure to stop in this weekend for a marinated Lemon Pepper Whole Chicken. We have butterflied the chicken for you, so cooking on the grill is just as easy as a steak. Remember, at Foragers all of our chickens are drug, hormone and steroid free but most importantly, they taste great.

 

Keep Foraging,

Sam, Sara, Bill & Jeremy