Eating Seasonally for Organic Month
Happy Organic Month!
The COG Team loves September for plenty of reasons: the busy hustle of harvest, the planning for next season’s crops, and perhaps most especially, the fact that the entire month is dedicated to celebrating organic food.
Buying organic is a great way to celebrate organic month, but you can make a big difference this September by buying local. When you put your money in the hands of local farmers who grow food next door, you are empowering your community through mutual connections and by contributing to a local food system. When money circulates in our local economies, this provides direct security to our farmers so that they can continue to grow food right here at home. These are key considerations to make year-round, not only during Organic Month.
For this edition of Eating Seasonally, we are focusing on buying local and eating with the season. Last week, we took a trip to the St. Jacob’s Farmers Market to engage with local farmers and growers who were more than eager to share their bounty with the community. September is a wonderful time to explore your local farmers market if only for the amazing diversity of crops available to eat — cucumbers, tomatoes, berries, corn, potatoes, you name it! There’s no better place to do your weekly grocery shopping than at your local farmers market.
This month’s Eating Seasonally recipe is all about the star player in the stone fruit game: peaches. These delicious fruits are typically in season from June to September across Canada, depending on location. Peaches are a fantastic ingredient in many dishes, and they are not only limited to desserts. The juicy nectar plays a fantastic role in balancing out savoury dishes, adding a sweet twist to a salty meal. So this time, we are making focaccia bread with peaches, Brie cheese, and thyme.
What You Will Need:
- 1/2 cup of olive oil
- 1 cup of warm water
- 1 Tbsp of traditional yeast
- 1 tsp of sugar
- 2 3/4 cups of flour
- 1 tsp of salt
- 1 peach, sliced
- 1 small wheel of double crème Brie cheese, sliced
- Handful of thyme sprigs
Peach and Focaccia Recipe:
Step 1: Assemble and measure out the ingredients to make the bread.
Step 2: Combine the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Whisk until fully incorporated.
Step 3: Add the water and olive oil to the bowl and gently mix until dough has formed.
Step 4: Dust a clean surface with flour, and lay out the dough for some kneading. Knead for about 3 minutes, or until the dough is elastic.
Step 5: In a separate large bowl, coat the inside with oil so that the dough doesn’t stick. Place the kneaded dough in the bowl, cover with a clean, moist cloth and set in a warm place to rise for about half an hour.
Step 6: Once the dough has doubled in size, remove from the bowl and place on a greased baking sheet, or a nonstick baking sheet. Set the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit (or about 230 degrees C). Spread the dough across the sheet so that every part of the dough is evenly stretched out.
Step 7: Drizzle with a little bit of olive oil, and using your fingers, press deep pockets into the surface of the dough, like you’re playing chords on a piano. Create these dimples across the dough surface for that classic focaccia appearance.
Step 8: Once the dimples are all formed over the dough, add your toppings. Place the peach slices and slices of Brie cheese evenly around the dough. Then, either lay down the entire sprigs of thyme across the dough, or crush the thyme evenly across for more flavour in each bite. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt.
Step 9: Place in the oven for 13-15 minutes, until golden brown.
Step 10: Wait for the bread to cool before digging in. Enjoy this focaccia with your favourite jam, slices of meat with arugula, or any way you’d like!