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A fromagerie in our midst by Shelagh Damus
The Uxbridge Cosmos, February 9, 2011

The Passionate Cook’s Essentials has endeared itself to local foodies with their cooking classes, celebrity guest chefs, and their quality food preparation implements. And now they are also a fromagerie – otherwise known as a cheese shop, complete with their own cheese manager!

It all started when owner Lisa Hutchinson brought in cheese from the Monfort Dairy, a local dairy that specializes in small batch artisan cheese. “A few months in, there was heightened interest, and I worried about relying on sales reps,” says Hutchinson. “Artisan cheeses require care. They need someone
with a wealth of knowledge and experience to deal with researching, buying, storing, and maintaining the cheese and educating the consumer about all things cheese.” Enter Uxbridge local Cecilia Smith, the Passionate Cook’s new cheese manager. A life long foodie and admitted cheese lover, Smith jokes that she “received an A level in Home Economics back in Britain.” In her experience, Europeans have “more exposure to fine cheeses than their North American counterparts.” Smith began making cheese for her
own pleasure, then enrolled in George Brown College for some cheese-related courses. By the end of this year she will graduate with a professional fromagerie certificate which she likens to getting a sommelier certificate.

“Cheese is still alive, much like wine” says Smith. High end restaurants and hotels have sommeliers in charge of their wine cellars. “Like wine, cheese changes its flavour as it ages. An 18 month old Gouda tastes entirely different than a six month old.” There is a lot to know when selecting cheese. Age is only one factor. Just the variety of types is astounding. Fresh cheese is only days old (e.g ricotta), bloomy cheeses are lightly pressed and form a soft white exterior (e.g brie/camembert) and washed rind cheese imports flavours from the beer, wine, brandy it is bathed in (e.g munster/toscana).
Some cheeses are cooked and the heating changes the texture to something more chewy (e.g. gouda/edam). Holey cheeses are formed via a chemical reaction that releases carbon dioxide which leaves holes in the final product (e.g. Swiss). There are hard cheeses like cheddar and parmesan and the blue cheeses
that get their distinctive colouring and flavour from introduced mould. Within each category there are myriad choices, tastes, and variety.

Small dairies make small batches, by hand. They use milk from their own farms or known farms that believe in a more natural approach.

This limits the number of things the producer can influence and the differences tend to be subtle. For example in small batch dairies, the flavour of the end product can be altered by a cow’s seasonally influenced diet: a dry summer may produce a more delicate flavour than from the milk produced during a lush spring. The homogenized flavour of mass produced cheese is dull and completely predictable in comparison.

We eat a lot of cheese but are more single minded and less adventurous than Europeans: cheddar, mozzarella, cheese slices, a bag of shredded Tex Mex and maybe a round of brie inhabit our fridges. There are exceptions and their numbers are swelling. Since expanding their cheese inventory, from a few local dairies to cheeses from all over Canada and around the world, and hiring Smith as cheese manager, the tiny cheese counter at Passionate Cook’s Essentials has been generating around 30% of the store’s revenue. That says something. There is a movement afoot, a veritable cheese revolution.
And once again Canada is on the forefront of an emerging lost art. Canadian cheeses have
been taking a place on the world stage, winning awards just as they have for many years with
their wines. Once again, another merchant is making it worth the drive to Uxbridge… lucky
for us we are already here! The store will be offering cheese tasting and
education evenings as well as offering a new selection of regional cheeses monthly. The
cheese counter is stocked and ready to tease your palate into sublime submission.
If Lisa and Cecelia have their way we will soon be the cheese eating capital of Canada! The
Passionate Cook’s Essentials is located at 68 Brock Street W., 905-862-3359.

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Decemeber 2011 -Top chef Lynn Crawford is coming to Uxbridge Canada’s top female celebrity chef, Lynn Crawford, is coming to Uxbridge to visit popular kitchen store, The Passionate Cook’s Essentials this January. The Passionate Cook’s Essentials carries a variety of neat cooking tools and high-end finds.
Lisa Hutchinson, the storeowner, also hosts cooking classes and collaborates with Blue Heron Books for special events.
This January Crawford will release her new book, Pitchin’ In about her road trip across North America and her search for ingredients, while meeting people, exploring the land and the food. The Passionate Cook’s Essentials is teaming up with Uxbridge’s independent bookstore owner Shelley Macbeth at Blue Heron Books to bring food and literature together. Read more…

November 7, 2011 – Sarafino: Bringing Italy to UxbridgeWith cattle grazing on pasture and puppies sleeping contently under a tree, the peacefulness of the Tramonti farm is enveloping. The farm, located on Goodwood Road, is also the headquarters of Sarafino Inc., the family’s business and passion.

Sarafino is the culmination of Vincenzo Tramonti’s deep ties to his hometown of San Giorgio Morgeto, in the Calabrian region of Italy. In 1965, a need for work forced 18-year-old Vincenzo to immigrate to Canada. He couldn’t have predicted that decades later he would start a successful business importing goods from the very place that he was forced to leave. Read more…

October 21, 2011 – We did it! The Centennial Celebration and Conference, hosted by the Lucy Maud Montgomery Society of Ontario last weekend, was a wonderful success. Speakers and delegates and guests came from far and wide, and enjoyed the autumn scenery around Uxbridge and Leaskdale, as well as the hospitality provided by our bed and breakfast and billet hosts.

Dignitaries were on hand on Thursday afternoon to cut the ribbon and open the newly-refurbished manse. Sponsors of each room in the house were shown the brass plaques in place recognizing their contribution. A special plaque dedicated to Wilda Clarke was unveiled, lauding her pioneering efforts to have the Leaskdale sites preserved for their historic significance. Read more…

August 2011 – Become a Passionate Cook For the foodie looking to expand their recipe collection and cooking expertise, owner Lisa Hutchinson of the Passionate Cook’s Essentials teaches in-store cooking classes. The store location on 68 Brock Street West in Uxbridge has all kinds of knives, cookware, bakeware, wine accessories and sooo much more. Read more…

September 1, 2011 – Celebration of the Arts returns to Uxbridge

UXBRIDGE — Admire the delicate stroke of a brush, the distinct masterpieces made by the hands of a sculptor or the brilliant words of an author at this year’s Celebration Of The Arts. From Sept. 16 to Oct. 8, Uxbridge will play host to the 26th annual art extravaganza.

“We really tried to encompass as many genres as we could for everyone’s different taste,” explained Rita Jackson, co-chairwoman for The Celebration of The Arts. Read more…