Whole Foods Market celebrates the ‘re dei formaggi’ – Parmigiano Reggiano
One of Italy’s most famous culinary jewels, Parmigiano Reggiano, is taking centre stage at Whole Foods Market throughout the month of February as talented cheese mongers sharpen their skills for a variety of in-store tastings and the much-anticipated ‘parm cracking’ ritual!
In an attempt to break its own Guinness World Record set in 2008, Whole Foods Markets across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. will simultaneously break into hundreds of wheels of 24-month-aged Parmigiano Reggiano on February 27 at 12 p.m. PST. Using traditional tools from Italy’s Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano Reggiano, cheese mongers will carve and portion each 85-pound wheel in approximately half an hour – truly a sight to be seen.
A versatile cheese featuring nutty and sweet flavours and a creamy and crystalline texture, Parmigiano Reggiano makes a perfect addition to a variety of recipes or a delightful treat all on its own. Whole Foods Market is proud to offer the best Parmigiano available – hand-selected with the help of artisan producers in Italy, the cheese is carefully aged for two years to bring out the richest flavour possible.
Leading up to the big event on February 27, Whole Foods Market is creating a series of fabulous recipes using this incomparable cheese – we’ve included our favourites below – and is hosting tasting events throughout the month. Customers are also invited to participate in an online recipe contest for a chance to win a $500 shopping spree, authentic cheese knives and gift baskets. From now until February 10, shoppers can go to Whole Foods Market’s Behind the Rind website www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products/behindtherind/ to share new and innovative ways to enjoy delicious Parmigiano!
Did you know?
- A traditional product dating back almost 1,000 years, only Parmesan cheese made in one area of northern Italy can bear the name Parmigiano Reggiano.
- After one year of aging, each wheel that passes the test is branded with an oval certification mark and then left to continue aging. Whole Foods Market only carries 24-month aged Parmigiano – 12 months beyond the time required to prove authenticity.
- The unique crystals found in Parmigiano, called Tyrosine, are formed when the proteins in the milk break down during the aging process.
- ”Parm cracking” is a centuries-old art of opening the cheese wheel so that the internal crystalline structure, with its characteristic crumbly texture, is left fully intact.
- Old Italian cheese mongers say that breaking into a 24-month aged Parmigiano is like “cracking open happiness.”
- Parmigiano is a practical decadence for those watching budgets and calories and the cheese can last for weeks in the fridge.
In its first-ever attempt, Whole Foods Market set the Guinness World Record for “Most Parmigiano Reggiano Wheels Cracked Simultaneously”, with nearly 300 wheels opened at 176 stores.
Pairings and Recipes
Parmigiano Reggiano is excellent on its own – broken up into cubes or slivers on a cheese plate – or as a perfect complement to soups, salads and entrees. Here are some delicious serving suggestions and recipes that highlight the subtle bite, sweet nuttiness and “pleasant fireworks” it ignites on the tongue.
- Pair with wine jelly, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar reduction, thickly sliced charcuterie, fresh fruit, nuts or honey
- Sprinkle slivers on a salad of sliced fennel and oranges with toasted walnuts and extra virgin olive oil
- Grate over grilled zucchini, butternut squash or pears
- Add slivers to an omelette with sautéed mushrooms and prosciutto
- Serve with a light-to-medium red wine such as a Chianti or a sparkling white wine such as Prosecco
Parmigiano Reggiano Crisps
Makes about 20 crisps
http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/81
These savoury crisps are a simple and irresistible snack with a glass of wine or a decadent garnish for risotto, Caesar salad or creamy soup. Can be prepared several days ahead of time and stored in an airtight container.
Ingredients
1 cup grated (not shredded) Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
Pinch of cayenne pepper, espelette pepper or freshly cracked black pepper (optional)
Method
Preheat oven to 300°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Mix cheese with thyme (and pepper) in a bowl. To form each crisp, spoon 2 to 3 teaspoons of the cheese mixture onto a baking sheet, spacing the piles 2 to 3 inches apart. Lightly press cheese with the back of a spoon or your fingers to flatten each pile into a 2-inch circle.
Bake until slightly browned on top – 8 to 12 minutes. Remove baking sheets from oven and cool for a few minutes to let crisps firm up. Slide parchment off baking sheet and use a spatula to loosen the crisps. They should be slightly flexible, but will harden as they finish cooling. Repeat process with remaining mixture.
Allow crisps to cool completely before storing in an airtight container, layered between sheets of waxed paper.
Nutrition
Per serving (5 crisps/20g-wt.): 90 calories (50 from fat), 6g total fat, 3.5g saturated fat, 20mg cholesterol, 310mg sodium, 1g total carbohydrate (0g dietary fiber, 0g sugar), 8g protein
For more information on Parmigiano Reggiano please visit the Whole Foods Market website at
http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products/parmigiano-reggiano.php
Ganache Patiserrie Saint Valentine Velours Rouge
Ganache Pâtisserie is pleased to announce its newest creation for this upcoming Valentine’s Day. Saint Valentine Velours Rouge ($21.95) takes the simple Red Velvet cake to another stratosphere. Layers of moist red velvet cake are entwined with a dark chocolate passionfruit mousse studded with fresh strawberries and encased with a tangy cream cheese buttercream, and then coated entirely in a red chocolate velvet. Saint Valentine Velours Rouge will be available starting February 6th and pre-orders are strongly recommended for pickups on Sunday February 14th.
Ganache Pâtisserie’s entire menu and all contact information can be found online at www.ganacheyaletown.com or just visit Ganache at 1262 Homer Street in Yaletown.
Loblaw Superstore Moves to Sustainable Seafood
Loblaw Companies Limited is giving customers in The Lower Mainland some food for thought by unveiling some changes at its fresh seafood counters in select stores today as part of its commitment to sourcing ALL seafood from sustainable sources by the end of 2013.
Starting today, consumers at Real Canadian Superstore Coquitlam and Real Canadian Superstore Burnaby, along with 17 other stores across Canada will begin to notice empty trays at seafood counters where fish Loblaw deems to be at risk and no longer sells were once displayed. Until sustainable sources can be found, consumers will instead be encouraged to try alternative options.
Announced in 2009, Loblaw’s commitment to sustainable seafood is guided by a 12-month action plan that involves establishing a sustainable procurement practice focused on responsible sourcing in every seafood category and categories that contain seafood. So, in addition to canned, fresh, frozen, wild and farmed seafood, Loblaw’s commitment also covers products where seafood may be an ingredient such as pet food, vitamins and juice.
The empty fish trays are part of Loblaw’s consumer education program aimed at helping consumers make better choices when purchasing fish and seafood. The program also offers information on the state of our oceans and sustainable seafood options through in-store brochures, signage and a Facebook page.
Vista D’Oro Farm News
Happy Belated New Year! Hope you all had a wonderful holiday.
Santa brought us a new equine friend for the barn, wave to Jesse next time your passing by, he’s the cute Paint (bay & white) pulling down fences in the back.
We are busy in the kitchen working on the Winter Line. Blood Orange with Campari & Vanilla is my handsdown favourite (yes, I know I shouldn’t pick favourites) so delicious over cottage cheese for a ‘healthy’ breakfast!
Patrick is bottling the 2008 Syrah in the next couple weeks and it’s tasting great straight out of the barrel! We have a couple other surprises coming up shortly, stay tuned.
We’ve re-opened the Farmgate Shop & Tasting Room early this year and hope you’ll stop in for a visit and taste soon!
Patrick & Lee
PS – you can now follow Vista D’oro on Twitter –
Upcoming Events & Tastings
February 14th – 28th – Vista D’oro Open 7 days a week – 10am until 4pm
February 17th – Sutton Place Wine Merchants – Wine Tasting 3pm – 7pm
February 19th – Pacific Spirits – Wine Tasting 3pm – 5pm
For updated event listings be sure to check our website events page at www.vistadoro.com/events.html
Farmgate Shop & Tasting Room – Special Olympic Hours
In case you have friends and family in town for the Olympics and want to do a littlewine tasting & touring in between Luge events, Vista D’oro Farmgate Shop and Tasting Room with be open 7 days a week from
February 14th until February 28th, 2010 – same hours 10am until 4pm.
Am I allowed to say – Take home a gold…D’oro??
New In Store – Marco Ropke Chocolates & Cookie Doughs!
Vista D’oro – 4th Annual Operation – Cookies for Kids – Update
Thank you to all of you who helped and supported our 4th Annual Operation – Cookies for Kids Fundraiser. We raised a little over $10,000, bringing our total raised to over $40,000 in the last four years. We couldn’t do this without the generousity of our amazing chefs, bakers and students….
This year’s Baker elves included: Beyond @ The Century Plaza, Bishop’s Restaurant, Culinary Capers, db Bistro Moderne, Elixir – Opus Hotel, Krause Berry Farms, Les Amis du Fromage, Northwest Culinary Academy, O’Doul’s – Listel Hotel,Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts, Pane E Fromaggio, Pourhouse Restaurant, Terra Breads Bakery and Toast of Town Catering.
Special thanks also goes out to tin sponsors Leo & Mary Patchett of Patchett Excavating Ltd., Nancy Wilson of Fit to be Tied for the beautiful bows and again to Chef Julian Bond & the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts for the all the extra help and space for assembling the tins!
We also wish to thank all those who helped make this possible through your generous donations to purchase the cookie tins, essentially putting your Christmas dollars to work.
We sincerely appreciate your support and wish you all a very happy & prosperous 2010,
Patrick & Lee Murphy
Vista D’oro Farms & Winery
New from XOXOLAT (chocolate shop)
It’s a tradition that most of us make resolutions at this time of year usually involving big changes, sometimes even difficult ones.
If your resolution is to eat healthier, we can help – after all, dark chocolate is one of the healthiest foods for you. No kidding, dark chocolate has almost 10 times the amount of antioxidants found in blueberries! Flavonoids and antioxidants can help to protect you from heart disease. Think of it this way… cocoa beans are plants, which means they have many of the same health benefits that you get when you eat vegetables.
Of course, we believe that everything should be eaten in moderation – even the healthy stuff – which is why we’re so well known for our two totally delish bacon bars: a Westcoast Breakfast one with bacon and espresso in dark chocolate, the other with a kiss of chili for a subtle wake-up call. Health benefits of bacon? Not many. Serious pleasure? You betcha.
So there you go, a new year’s resolution you can look forward to keeping. Paraphrasing author Michael Pollan: Eat chocolate. Not too much. Mostly dark.
Here’s to a happy and healthy new year!
XOXO,
Xoxolat
P.S. Chocolate news, reviews, musings and more… all on Twitter!
| 5 easy steps to hot chocolate bliss! | |
There are some significant differences in the ingredients between drinking chocolates – mainly emulsifiers. It’s one of those good news/bad news things. The good news is that when emulsifiers and the like are added, it makes it easier to mix the chocolate with milk or water. The bad news is you’re getting things other than what you need. Our drinking chocolate is just chocolate, which is why it has to be melted so it will blend well. Here are 5 easy steps to hot chocolate bliss: 1. Use only premium dark chocolate. (one to three ounces/person) 2. Melt slowly in a pan on the stove. We’re talking really low temperature. If chocolate melts at body temperature, then the heat from a stove on low is going to work just fine. Keep in mind that chocolate burns at 125˚F. 3. Add the water or milk. Don’t overheat it, and never boil it. For water (yes, you can use water), we recommend no more than a 1.5:1 ratio to the chocolate. Use milk if you prefer it to be less thick. 4. Pour into a cup or mug. Add a shot of your favourite flavour or liquor if you wish, and/or a dollop of whip cream. 5. Sit back and savour the chocolate. Share it with a friend. Make it part of your daily routine – it’s great for breakfast! We did our best to take beautiful photos of how to make the perfect drinking chocolate, but after our test kitchen volunteer melted enough chocolate to send her entire family into a chocolate coma without being able to get a good photo, we decided to post the stock photo (see above) featuring mouthwatering drinking chocolate for breakfast. Here are the actual photos – they sure aren’t stock ones!
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| CHOCOLATE 101 – know what you’re eating! | |
| Emulsifiers, antioxidants, flavonoids… and more.
Find out what’s really in chocolate – and what shouldn’t be. Join us for a Chocolate 101 session on the healthy benefits of chocolate, sample award-winning bars from around the world, and then indugle in unique pairings of gourmet fare (in chocolate, of course!). Upcoming Chocolate 101 classes: Thursday, January 21st and Thursday, February 18th. Class size is limited to 12 people and advance reservations are required. To reserve a space, or for more information, please email xoxo@xoxolat.com ($15 per person) |
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| Feature Truffles Special (while quantities last!) |
| We’ve got some packages of truffles that we’re almost giving away – 16 truffles for just $15. When we run out, we’re out so hurry on in.
And, we’re putting Santa on sale, along with the snowmen and the other holiday chocolate items. But you’d better not shout (quantities are limited), you’d better not cry (when they’re gone, they’re gone), you’d better not pout (why would you when premium chocolate is on sale?), we’re telling you why (yup, 35% off!)…. Share this coupon – email it to your friends so they can enjoy the savings, too! To do what we can to save a few trees, the coupon isn’t required for the discount. Just tell us you saw it in our newsletter! |
2391 Burrard Street (at 8th)
Vancouver, BC
604 733 2462
