Hot Shots - February 11, 2022

Hot Shots - February 11, 2022
Severin R-B Danieli

Hello all,

I hope everyone's week has gone smoothly, and you and your loved ones are healthy and happy. I'm heading up to Whistler this weekend for some snowy mountain time and I am very excited for that crisp cool mountain air. Hopefully some skiing and snowboarding will be happening, but if I am being honest, I just want to read by the fire.

A co-worker of mine recently reminded me of a book recommendation I had given her back before I went to Italy, and said that she had found the book at a thrift store and had started it. This book is OPEN by Andre Agassi and I recommend it to literally everyone who asks (or doesn't). I think I have read it about four different times, and finally bought it a few days ago so I could have it whenever I had the urge to read it. I am an avid tennis fan, did anyone else see Nadal win his 21st (and record breaking) Grand Slam title recently at the Australian Open?! Just me?

This exchange with my co-worker got me thinking of how much I miss reading in the evenings as a way to wind down and escape into someone's imagination or see life through someone else's eyes. Since the conversation last week, I have read The Great Gatsby (a fav of mine, Scott Fitzgerald has such a unique way with words), and started on Born a Crime, the autobiography of South African comedian, Trevor Noah. I'm only about 40 or so pages in, but I was already in full tears accompanied by hysterical laughter at approximately 10pm last night.

But enough about books, let's take a look at some new arrivals at Disco.

When it was mentioned in the office that these dates were incoming to Disco, I kid you not, there was an uproar of excitement in the office! Apparently these dates have a serious reputation in the produce world.

They are from Azin Foods, which is a family run business since 1984, and are grown in the ancient village of Bam, Iran. Delicate texture and subtle hints of caramel are these unique dates flavour profile.

Azin Foods started with selling pistachios, and is now exporting different types of fruits and nuts to Canada, Sweden, Germany, Denmark, France and more!

The village of Bam has grown fruits for over 2000 years, and are still using the same farming techniques to this day. Interestingly, there was never any pesticide use in this area, and the surrounding mountains supply fresh underground water for irrigating crops.

See the photo below for the beauty of Bam, Iran.

Look at that oasis of fruit trees!

Speaking of beautiful growing areas... has anyone ever seen asparagus growing? It is the oddest thing I have ever seen.

My uncle and aunt, who live out near Harrison Hot Springs definitely jump started my love of organic veggies and fruit. They actually met at an organic delivery company back in the early 2000's! Growing up, my uncle would garden in my family's back yard, and I would follow behind him and pull out all the plants he had just planted. Needless to say, I wasn't the best co-gardener back then.

In present day however, one of my favourite weekend activities is going out to visit their brightly coloured home, enchanting back yard, and swim in the lake just down the road. I was there a few years ago and it was the first time I had ever seen asparagus being grown. I will admit that I didn't immediately know what it was, as it just looks so odd - shooting up, pin straight, from the dirt: one single spear of asparagus.

The asparagus we have in-house at Disco is from Altar organics in 11# boxes, and this farms boasts 500 acres of organic asparagus.

Spring onions! The first signs of spring! Along with snow drops and crocuses...

These are always a fun item to have at Disco, as they are so aesthetically pleasing. I've tried a few different recipes with these guys, but my fav so far is to just fry them up - ideally on a BBQ, but I don't think it is quite BBQ weather yet. Maybe try cutting these top to bottom and searing them on a cast iron pan with a bit of oil and some light seasoning?

These red spring onions are from Coke Farms in 12ct cases.

Cabbage.

Perhaps not the flashiest brassica there ever was, but boy do these guys pack a punch of nutrition and versatility. There are so many ways to prepare cabbage, some include: sauerkraut, raw in salads, steamed, roasted with root vegetables, the list goes on and on!

I recently made a coleslaw which was a delicious decision. It included cabbage, cabbage and more cabbage, and scrumptious dressing. I whipped together olive oil, white wine vinegar, salt, pepper, a small amount of dijon mustard and two scoops of vegan mayo.

Heger Farms is located in the Imperial Valley in Southern California, and was the first organic farm in the region. This valley was built up in 1920's and 30's, and now grows an estimated 80% of vegetables that supply the USA and Canada during the winter when most other production areas are shut sown due to cold weather. Heger Farms alone manages 3000 acres, and 1000 of that is organic production.

Anyone need a boost of vitamin C these days? We've got just what the doctor ordered with these bagged 10x4# navel oranges. They're juicy, sweet and full of flavour. Available from November to April, their peak is January through March - lucky us!

As per the name, while growing, the navel orange actually grows a twin opposite the stem, but it remains undeveloped, which lends itself to the name navel that resembles a human's belly button! An odd name, I've always thought, but a delicious fruit nonetheless.

The orange is actually a hybrid between a pomelo and a mandarin - I did not know this and to be honest, it kind of shocked me! The earliest mention of oranges was back in 314 BC in Chinese literature, and for the navel specifically, their origins can be loosely traced back to a Bahia navel tree that was planted in a Brazilian monastery between 1810 and 1820.

The orange is a very common fruit and citrus variety, and in 2012, orange production made up 70% of all citrus production. More recently, in 2019, 79 million tonnes of oranges were grown worldwide, with Brazil, India and China taking the top three production spots.

These del Cabo paperboard sugar plum grape tomatoes just arrived at Disco, and we already ordering more! They are a hit, and I think it is largely due to the delicious flavour, but also the packaging!

The cardboard is fully recyclable (check out their website page for more info), but also offers a clear window through which you can view the product that is made with entirely with a plant-based cellulose that is also certified compostable both at home and commercially.

Grape tomatoes are easy to incorporate into literally any meal, but my personal favourite is a Greek salad. You could also roast them with different sprigs of herbs and then put them on some fresh baguette? Add them in with some burrata, fresh basil and balsamic reduction?

I'm sure everyone that read last week's Hot Shots is waiting with baited breath to find out how many veggies and fruit I ate this past week... well friends, I am sad to announce that I only managed 19 different varieties.

These include:
Romaine, radicchio, lime, lemon, bell pepper, carrots, celery, cucumber, red/yellow onion, garlic, roma tomatoes, spinach, potato, red leaf lettuce, oranges, cabbage, strawberries, raspberries and blueberries.

Not to shabby, but I will try again this coming week to hit 30. It is harder than I thought!

Thanks for reading along, and I wish you a restful weekend and a productive week ahead!