it's my goat

Last month, Katie and I found ourselves at the Stratford farmer's market -- as we do most Saturday mornings -- with the goal of procuring some of our favourite market items. In the winter, these will often include some or all of the following: 

- apples, of the scrumptious variety

- jam when we're out of it; raspberry has been a favourite of late

- one 'Morning Glory' muffin, made with olive oil instead of butter, to share (one each when we're feeling bold)

- any root vegetables that look decent, like carrots, potatoes, or beets

And of course, our Achilles' heel: cheese.

Buying local products is really the sine qua non of shopping at a farmer's market; but when it comes to cheese, you'd be hard-pressed to find something that has been made within an hour's drive of home. Thankfully Stratfordites are a bit spoiled on this front. 

Over the past few years cheese made by Monforte Dairy has made its way into the markets, stores and restaurants of Stratford and the surrounding area. I use the past tense here because Monforte is in the process of moving from their previous base of Millbank, Ontario. 

While this may be a story for another time, suffice it to say that the Monforte table at the Stratford farmer's market has on countless Saturday mornings tested our resilience in the face of deliciousness. Monforte, of course, being a rough translation of "my strength," is aptly named for the willpower one must summon to resist its sinfully addictive goodness. 

This day there was no strength. Upon approaching the table I noticed a new addition to their selection of displayed cheeses: a relatively nondescript-looking container with the word 'Spadina' written in marker on its cover.

"What's Spadina?" I asked Rachel, the young woman running the table.

"It's my goat," she answered.

"This cheese comes from your goat?"

"From her milk, yes. Then we flavour the cheese with honey."

Naturally we bought Spadina's cheese. And sure enough the creaminess of the cheese was nicely complimented by a sweetness subtle enough to remain savoury. 

Here I will be so bold as to claim that there may not be a better topping for post-market toast than creamy cheese that has been made from the milk of a goat -- Spadina the goat, to be precise.

Katie’s Bachelorette Bistro Supper

So it was snowy last night. That isn’t surprising for Ontario in February. I was feeling lazy. Despite having a 5k race looming that isn’t so surprising either. Plus I was alone because Eric is in Montreal being a rock star. Boo.

When I was a student with limited culinary aspirations I probably had crackers in the cupboard, maybe some canned peaches. Now that I am a grownup (heh) I have a full pantry and a half-full fridge! Yesterday I still felt like I had nothing to cook with, but what do you know – I had enough for a fab meal.

Roasted Balsamic Onions
Salad with herbs and mustard dressing
Lightly Fried Egg (Market Fresh)

Preheat over to 375 degrees

Peel and cut an onion into wedges…any onion will do, I had a sweet one on hand and it was delicious

Place onion in an oven safe dish

Coat the onion with olive oil (extra virgin)

Pour over some balsamic vinegar

Salt and pepper (kosher salt; freshly ground black pepper)

Cover with foil and bake for at least an hour, maybe even 90 min., stirring occasionally until soft and sweet

Dressing for salad (approx measurements): 1/2 c olive oil, ¼ c balsamic, salt and pepper, tsp of Dijon mustard and a pinch of sugar, dash of sesame seeds, whisked

Throw in some greens – I also added a handful of chopped fresh dill, this took the dish to bistro level – take that Rundles

Heat a small pan, add some butter (butter is key, about 1 tsp)

Fry one egg – I had a brown free-range med. market egg, it was amazing and made me feel good about eating it, and it wasn’t too big which was perfect. Fry lightly (you don’t want it too browned) over med heat. Add onto your salad. If the yolk is still runny when you cut the egg it will add to your dressing and this is AMAZING. Trust me.

Eat, enjoy, forget that your boyfriend is in Montreal without you and eat some cheese (eating cheese is optional, you should feel full from this meal, I swear, but I’m a girl, and sometimes we like to snack on cheese, ok?).