Top 5 Things I learned at The Great Canadian Cheese Festival

This was my first year having a booth at The Great Canadian Cheese Festival in Picton, Ontario and I went into it not really knowing what to expect. I had never attended the event in the past so I went in hoping for the best but expecting the worst. What did I learn this year?

Honey…you ain’t in Toronto any more

So on Saturday morning just before event load in, I realized that I had forgotten my disposable gloves for sampling. Gulp! Now what? A quick drive down main street Picton and I realized that about the only thing opened at that hour was Sobey’s. A quick run up and down the aisles and it was clear I wouldn’t be finding disposable gloves there. What next? On the way towards the exit, I spotted an employee coming from the meat counter and she has disposable gloves on. So I decided to ask her and without skipping a beat, this lovely woman tells me that they don’t have them in the store but that she will give me a box. I repeat – GIVE ME A BOX.

We walked out of there shaking our heads and wondering what had just happened. The people of Picton are lovely. Thank you for your hospitality.

Lots of nibbles but I had been hoping for more bites

I lost count as to the number of samples of my products I put out over the two day period. But I do know that at times it was all we could do to keep up. We would refresh one plate and begin on another only to find the last plate empty once again. It was a voracious crowd who were there to taste all there was to taste. They were happy, energetic and ready to listen. But they were also overwhelmed by the sheer number of vendors and weren’t ready to purchase a jar of preserves at the start of their day and then carry it around. Some returned at the end of the day and some did not.

So I handed out my business cards, told my story many times over and gave the samplers as many ideas about how they could use my product in the hopes they would remember me at a later date.

Pack a lunch and wear comfortable shoes

This may seem obvious and not something that should have been a lesson, but it was ;). I had assumed there would be lulls in the volume of people and there would be a chance to visit the food tent. I was wrong.

From the moment the doors opened, it was constant. People just continued to pour through the doors, which is a testament to the wonderful job the organizers of the event did at promoting the event.

My thoughts of visiting to food tent or even sitting were quickly dashed.

Make the samples you are giving out worthy of a ticket

Visitors to the cheese festival buy tickets in order to sample the goodies that vendors have brought. So if your samples are enticing enough, people will be willing to part with a ticket to try them. This is a great way to recover some of the cost of sampling.

Do your shopping from other vendors before the event begins

If you are hoping to load up on some of the amazing products that are at the Cheese Festival either over staff your stall so you have a chance to steal away and wander around the event or do your shopping between 10-11 when it is open to press but not yet the public.

It was a busy but wonderful weekend. I met some amazing people and made some great connections and hope to return to the festival again next year.

Pickled Asparagus

This is what happens the day after Withrow Market in my house ;)

Fantastic Day at Withrow Market

It was my first day back at Withrow Farmer's Market, so it was up and at 'em this morning. It was a windy and cool day even though the sun was out but it was fantastic to see some old familiar faces and meet some new people even if I had to hop back and forth from one foot to the next just to stay warm.

It was a particularly special day for me because my mom and my Auntie Dena who drove all the way out from BC and Alberta were there with me...they were my sample ladies and it was great for them to see Manning Canning in action even though they threatened to go on strike due to poor working conditions due to weather. Ha.

I continue to read through my Grandma Manning's journal and her entries for today in the years 1937-1942 were as follows:

May 25, 1938

Public speaking with Grandpa in Bennet wagon. Jeanne 2nd and Rita placed 2nd in elocution. Haverstock judge and critic. Very good. Kenny lost purse and 90 cents.

May 25, 1939

Sunshine at last. Iron in the forenoon. Finish seeding garden in afternoon. Roy ploughing, ride to Delange after supper

May 25, 1940

Hot and windy. Dust blowing. Francis discing in forenoon. Take her and Jeanne in for permanent at noon. Back for them in evening and get mine done as well. Delange stuck in truck in grade. Get tractor to pull them out.

May 25, 1941

Sun and cloudy. Light shower in morning and evening. Help Frnaces with lessons. Allan does gymnastics in hay loft. Snow in southern Alberta. Little chicks in pig pen.

May 25, 1942

Cloud and cloudy. Roy drilling last of Harrison place. Jeanne and Rosemary ride on magpie hunt - 12 feet, 11 eggs. Charlie and Ken hoe rhubarb and strawberries, then off to magpie hunt. Peas up. Carol and I seed pumpkins

For the record, this was the house my grandpa, grandma and 11 children lived in. Wow.

Canning, It is in my genes

Up until very recently, I always gave credit to my mom's side of the family for my love of gardening and preserving. It seemed like a natural assumption. My nona was Italian and she canned almost anything and everything including Pickled Chicken's Feet. Growing up, I honestly don't believe that we EVER had store bought jam in the house because my mom was always making her own. So I put 2 and 2 together.

But what I didn't take into consideration was my dad's side of the family. See, my dad died in a plane crash when I was 3 years old and naturally we spent more time with my mom's family from that point onwards.

My mom is here visiting me now and on my request she brought my Grandma Manning's journal (1937-1942) along with her and I have been enjoying reading about her life on the farm; everything from how the kids were doing in school, to reading about my dad's first steps to what her daily life was like and what she did with her time.

I wasn't really surprised when I read the first entry dated August 12, 1937.

Thursday - Canned beans this morning. Francis and Charlie picked saskatooms. Jean and I raspberries. Hot 7 and windy. Grandpa and Grandma and the Beckers arrive 11pm. Gab fest and confusion

With each passing page I am pulled deeper into her daily life. Her first child, my Auntie Francis born in 1923 and then the 11th child born in 1943 she was a busy woman. In 1937 when this journal begins she would already have had 9 children, my father having been born in June of the same year the journal entries start . I find myself flipping to today's date throughout the 5 year period to compare our activities.

May 21, 1938

Warm and sultry. Dense smoke clouds from bush fires. Take Grandma and Grandpa to Amisk in afternoon. Shoes for Carol with her silver dollar. Very proud of them.

May 21, 1939

Cool and cloudy. Rest and read. Baby Robins hatch. School meeting in evening. Decide to ask for more mature teacher. Jeanne and Charlie on the cow hunt. Bring home lizards and other treasures

May 21, 1940

Hot and dry wind. Mosquitos getting bad. Roy combining. Takes lunch. Grandpa having trouble with drill. Breaks wheel. Ironing finished and bread baked

May 21, 1941

Windy and clear. Hurry through washing to get it dry before the dust starts. Finish ironing. Too windy for gardening until evening. Roy, Carol and I seed more corn. Wrestle with quack grass.

May 21, 1942

Cloudy and close but no rain. But wheat coming and first radishes and lettuce showing. Apple tree in garden a mass of blooms. Another with a few blooms. Charlie's war savings certificate comes.

Now fast forward to May 21, 2013

Weather shifts from clear and sunny to rain showers with the threat of thunderstorms. Just got the garden planted. Preparing for tomorrow's day in the commercial kitchen where we will make Spicy Zucchini relish. Bought a Blackberry Q10. Spaghetti for dinner with my mom, aunt and uncle who are here visiting from BC and Alberta. Chives close to flowering.

I am trying not to read ahead as I want to continue the comparisons throughout the summer to see how our canning, preserving and gardening schedule compares.

What did you do to today?

Tips and Tricks for low sugar preserves

With only 4-6 weeks left before strawberries are in season here in Ontario and with the rhubarb in my garden growing noticeably with each passing day, I have been starting to think about all of the jams and jellies I will make this summer. I have also been thinking more and more about the sugar that goes into each of them. I have done a post in the past about the role of sugar in preserving because I think it is important for people to understand that it actually has a very important role and that it isn’t just part of the recipe because people expect jam to be sweet. Generally the fruit is sweet enough.

But even though sugar plays a role, there are options out there for people who want to reduce the amount of sugar in the preserves they make at home and there are a couple of great blog posts written that include some pretty fabulous resources as well as a couple of pretty tasty recipes that you can start off your low sugar preserving with.

Aimee does a great job in this post of outlining resources that are available to those that are interested in learning more about low sugar preserving and she includes a pretty tasty recipe for Apple Butter

http://simplegoodandtasty.com/2011/11/15/low-sugar-preserving-for-the-jam-lover

Dr. Williams overview on Pamona’s Pectin and how it works in low sugar preserving as well as her recipe for Organic low sugar strawberry jam makes this post well worth the read.

http://foodsforlonglife.blogspot.ca/2009/06/how-to-make-organic-low-sugar.html

If you are interested in learning more about low sugar preserving, want to see Pamona's Pectin in action and feel like trying your hand at it first hand, I am offering a class at The Depanneur on Monday, May 27^th. It will cover the following:

Understanding the role of sugar in preserving is an important first step to understanding how you can reduce the sugar in your jam without sacrificing quality and taste. In this very hands-on class, we will look closely at the role sugar plays and make a full sugar as well as a low sugar jam so you can examine the difference in taste, texture and consistency. You will walk out of this class with the basic understanding of jar sterilization, safe canning practices and important do’s and don’ts of canning and preserving. You will also get a copy of both recipes to take home and at least 1 jar of jam each.