LOCAL PRODUCTS COME TO THE TABLE
Collaboration with St-Méthode Bakery
More than ever, consumers are looking to include local Quebec products on their plates. Encouraging the local economy, ensuring quality, and reducing one’s environmental impact are among the reasons motivating our choice to eat more foods from Quebec. As St-Jean Baptiste Day approaches, putting local products on the summer menu can only reinforce our love for our belle province!
7 Tips for Putting Quebec on the Menu
► Start the day with a 100% Quebec-based breakfast
What could be better than starting the day with local products? Choosing a St-Méthode bread is a tip of the hat to the hundreds of employees who make their way—in the early morning hours—to the plant in Adstock (in the Beauce region) to make the many varieties of bread that entice and delight Quebecers’ palates. Made with local wheat and oat flours, Boulangerie St-Méthode’s breads deliver the great taste of Quebec along with their nutritional properties. Spread some Riviera cream cheese on your toast and top it with some fresh-picked strawberries!
► Visit farmers’ stalls
Many vegetable producers have stalls at their farms where they generally sell much more than just what they grow. In addition to fruits and vegetables grown on the farm, you can also often find homemade products like jams and jellies, pies, tomato sauce, and more. It’s a great way to meet the farm family, with younger members often running the stall for the summer season!
► Keep your eye on crop schedules
To eat local products, you need to be aware of their harvest periods and their arrival at food markets. It’s easy to stay up to date with the the harvest schedule posted on the Association des producteurs maraîchers du Québec website.
► Pick your own
What could be more fun than a family visit to a U-pick farm? It’s a great way to spend some time outdoors, meet fruit and vegetable farmers, save some money, and treat yourself. In addition to berries, you can pick your own tomatoes, zucchini, corn, and beans during the summer season! As harvest times vary depending on the produce, you can plan several outings over the course of the summer!
► Look for the Aliments du Québec certification
Two out of three consumers look for the logo that confirms a product is local… so it’s no surprise that several companies have joined the big movement promoting this buy-local initiative. Such is the case with Boulangerie St-Méthode, whose products display the Aliments du Québec or Aliments préparés au Québec certification logos. Nestled in the heart of the Beauce region, St-Méthode has always been noted for its values and its mission. Explore recipes with local flavour: CLICK HERE
See certified products: CLICK HERE.
► Learn where foods come from
In cases where the provenance of food products is not identified, ask your butcher and fishmonger where the food you’re buying is from. Feel free to ask for local alternatives… which are often available!
► Have a local-themed picnic
June is a great time to be eating outdoors. For a festive local meal, why not try a shrimp roll? Choose your preferred St-Méthode bread and top it with Nordic shrimp from Sept-Îles, a celeriac rémoulade, and some fresh-picked lettuce. Doesn’t Quebec taste great.
See my recipe for local shrimp rolls HERE
Would you like to know more about Boulangerie St-Méthode's product line? CLICK HERE
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