Chef Gus Stieffenhofer-Brandson says that when it comes to a fat B.C. peach, there are B次元官网网址渆ndless possibilitiesB次元官网网址� for a fruit that signifies summer.
Maybe a salad? B次元官网网址淭hey play so nicely together with nice blackcurrant leaf oil and maybe some rose vinegar and crunchy salt and some fresh shiso (Japanese mint) and basil,B次元官网网址� said Stieffenhofer-Brandson, who has earned a Michelin star for Published on Main in Vancouver, regularly listed among CanadaB次元官网网址檚 best restaurants.
Perhaps peaches on top of crispy focaccia paired with whipped ricotta, or roast peaches with seared foie gras? And peach desserts never disappoint, said Stieffenhofer-Brandson, as he described blending plump poached peaches with almond cream and rose granita, in a B次元官网网址渞eally lovely combination.B次元官网网址�
But not this year.
Stieffenhofer-Brandson and other top chefs in B.C. who pride themselves on seasonal and local fare are working without some of their favourite summer ingredients after the provinceB次元官网网址檚 stone fruit harvest was almost wiped out by a January cold snap.
Others, such as Matt Gostelow, head chef at The Acorn, an acclaimed Vancouver vegetarian restaurant, preserved some of last yearB次元官网网址檚 stone fruit crop.
He said stone fruit from the Okanagan had been a staple on The AcornB次元官网网址檚 menu every year, and it was B次元官网网址渄evastatingB次元官网网址� to hear of the cold snapB次元官网网址檚 impact.
B次元官网网址淟uckily, we have some preserved apricots we canned ourselves at their peak last summer that are currently on our menu. However, with none coming in this year, we are treating them like gold.B次元官网网址�
In spring, the B.C. Fruit GrowersB次元官网网址� Association predicted a 90 per cent loss for peaches, apricots, nectarines and plums, while the B.C. Cherry Association predicted harvests would be B次元官网网址渄ramatically reduced.B次元官网网址�
Summerland, B.C., fruit farmer Sukhdeep Brar, who has 100 acres of cherry and peach trees in the Okanagan region of the B.C. Interior, said there would be B次元官网网址渘o single peachB次元官网网址� coming out of B.C. farms this year.
B次元官网网址淭his year is going to be really, really tough to get B.C.-grown stone fruit, and thereB次元官网网址檚 nothing else that we can do now,B次元官网网址� said Brar, who is vice-president of the fruit growers association.
Their absence is being felt on grocery shelves and menus across the province.
Chef Rob Feenie, who recently took over the kitchen at Le Crocodile in downtown Vancouver, said that whenever he bites into a peach or nectarine, his thoughts turn to childhood visits to the Okanagan, where his aunt owned a cherry orchard.
His mother would hoard peaches, nectarines, apricots and plums.
Feenie said the ruined harvest this year meant he would find ways to adapt.
One of Le CrocodileB次元官网网址檚 dishes is kobujime hamachi, a fish dish that usually features stone fruit, as well as white soy, yuzu, chili and celery ice.
B次元官网网址淚 can put strawberries with it. I could put grapefruit with it. I can put oranges with it,B次元官网网址� said Feenie.
B次元官网网址淔or me, I will just be a little bit more creative in the fruit that I put with it, right? So doesnB次元官网网址檛 have to be stone fruit.B次元官网网址�
Feenie said he doesnB次元官网网址檛 change his menu quickly, so he needs to work B次元官网网址渁 little more carefully B次元官网网址� with whatB次元官网网址檚 happening.B次元官网网址�
Stieffenhofer-Brandson noted that weather is a B次元官网网址渂ig driverB次元官网网址� of what the menu looks like at Published on Main.
B次元官网网址淲e miss having peaches and plums and nectarines and all those beautiful things that kind of mark the entrance of summer,B次元官网网址� he said.
He said he doesnB次元官网网址檛 like to force anything and will lean into whatever ingredients are available instead.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e sad we donB次元官网网址檛 have peaches right now, but itB次元官网网址檚 just the fact of the matter that climate change is affecting us and our growing season here, and itB次元官网网址檚 just something we need to be dynamic (about), to be able to work around,B次元官网网址� said Stieffenhofer-Brandson.
B次元官网网址淲e never plan a menu without knowing what ingredients weB次元官网网址檙e gonna have and weB次元官网网址檙e very inspired by the ingredients. So, we cook within the seasons, and if somethingB次元官网网址檚 not available, we just use something else.B次元官网网址�
For example, Stieffenhofer-Brandson said there have been B次元官网网址渂eautiful squashB次元官网网址� with a variety of zucchini coming from local farms, as well as strawberries and tomatoes.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e using quite a bit of fava beans and English peas, and we were using a lot of local green asparagus. We kind of play within the seasons for sure and we just celebrate the things that we have that are available,B次元官网网址� he said.
He also pointed out the B次元官网网址渋ncredible morel seasonB次元官网网址� this year, with the harvest of the wild mushrooms going strong and likely to last until August.
B次元官网网址淚 think itB次元官网网址檚 just a matter of being flexible, dynamic, and being able to accommodate what Mother Nature gives us,B次元官网网址� Stieffenhofer-Brandson said.
Just a few blocks away on Main Street, Gostelow said his team was constantly bouncing ideas off each other and will likely pivot their menu due to the lack of stone fruit, canned apricots notwithstanding.
B次元官网网址淥ne way we will adapt is to focus on vegetables with natural sweetness and look at how we can exploit those flavours in a unique way,B次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淲e have used onions in caramel sauce, carrots in ice cream, parsnips in pannacotta and corn in creme br没l茅es.
B次元官网网址淭here might not be anything better than a perfectly ripe peach from Klippers Organics (an Okanagan farm), but one thing we have discovered by committing ourselves to a locavore food system is we are constantly finding creative ways to use what is grown around us.B次元官网网址�
On a sunny Canada Day afternoon, chef Roger Ma from the Boulevard Kitchen and Oyster Bar in downtown Vancouver was preparing a new signature summer dish B次元官网网址� Loong Kong chicken, cooked over charcoal after soaking in a sauce for 24 hours, deboned and served with local morels and English peas.
A chef for more than 20 years at different high-end restaurants in North America, Ma said he was feeling the absence of B.C.B次元官网网址檚 iconic summertime stone fruit this year.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 definitely going to affect what we cook with seasonally,B次元官网网址� said Ma.
Ma recalled previous summers when cherries, peaches and nectarines would be B次元官网网址渢hroughout the menu.B次元官网网址� They would buy B次元官网网址渃ases and cases and casesB次元官网网址� of cherries, pitting and pickling them so they would last until September and be used in dishes such as cherries with foie gras.
This year, the stone fruit shortage meant Ma and his team would have to be B次元官网网址渃autiousB次元官网网址� about whether they would be on the menu.
B次元官网网址淚 feel like whether we get them from California or somewhere else, the difference is, I think, fresh is always best and local is always best, so thatB次元官网网址檚 gonna be difficult,B次元官网网址� said Ma.
Ma said pastry chef Kenta Takahashi loved using as many local products as possible for the restaurantB次元官网网址檚 desserts, but he had to rethink the menu and make adjustments this year.
B次元官网网址淚 think for the most part, he is pretty good at adapting, but itB次元官网网址檚 definitely gonna affect what heB次元官网网址檚 gonna do,B次元官网网址� said Ma.
Ma said Takahashi told him this week he would use local berries, including blueberries, raspberries and strawberries as much as possible, but would also try to buy from the U.S.
Brar said many farmers like him had pivoted to growing ground crops, including pumpkins, watermelons and cantaloupes, and hoped that these options could inspire local chefs.
He noted reports that some farmers had resorted to buying U.S. stone fruit and mislabelling it as B.C.-grown.
B次元官网网址淚 wouldnB次元官网网址檛 be able to sleep that night if I ever did that. I want to grow my own fruit. I want to be able to sell my own fruit, and I want my fruit displayed by the chefs who do an absolutely amazing job with the Okanagan stone fruits that we have,B次元官网网址� said Brar.
Chef Feenie said he was less worried about his menu than he was about the growers in the Okanagan.
B次元官网网址淭he priority is what happened. How can we help the growers so that this kind of thing doesnB次元官网网址檛 happen in the future?B次元官网网址� said Feenie.
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