In a world where we are constantly submerged in technology and visual distractions, taking a moment to reconnect with your friends and loved ones has become a basic necessity. There’s something ceremonial about sitting down at the table to eat together where food is the much-needed alchemy that grounds us.
With my recent move to Toronto, I’ve been lucky to reconnect with longtime friends who up until recently, have only been accessible through said digital space. One of our favourite things to do together is eat – because most of us are Italian, of course. Thanks to our roots, we grew up with a community-based mindset where we always look out for one another and practice self-care. Part of this self-care involves eating right so we can be cautious with what we put into our bodies and exercising our buying power by maintaining awareness of where we spend our money.
We support local farmers by shopping at the markets in Toronto and maintain these efforts that give back to the community. Keeping with this tradition, I wanted to make our brunch extra special and incorporate a little piece of home by bringing some of my most loved Montreal-based products to the table. OKA cheese has long been a favourite of mine and I was fortunate to be living so close to the west island – not far from Oka itself.
I recently learned that Agropur employs 3,290 farmers throughout Canada and 6 billion dollars generated within the company remains within the Canadian economy. It’s not hard to appreciate that Agropur’s company values are aligned with my own and knowing that when I buy OKA cheese or any other products from Agropur, I’m contributing to the Canadian economy.
For brunch, we created a beautiful frittata with OKA’s own original cheese, fruit and granola parfaits with added protein by iögo yogurt and washed it all down with cinnamon turmeric lattes using Natrel milk. Given that the spring season has been a slow rollout, this menu did the mind body and soul a whole lot of good.
Latte recipe
Turmeric cinnamon latte
3 cups milk
1 TSP ground turmeric
4 dried turmeric flakes
3 small sticks of cinnamon
1 TSP honey
3 cardamom pods
Pinch black pepper
In a pot over stove top, add milk turmeric, cinnamon, and black pepper. Set temperature to medium/low, paying attention to not let boil over. Stir periodically over 45 minutes; set aside for several minutes before serving.
Pour milk and foam into turmeric teacup. Sweeten with honey, if desired.
Brunch is a popular activity on the weekend but the best ones happen right at home and include savoury and sweet dishes. Always grateful to enjoy these tender friend moments when good food is involved, and you can see for yourself that it wasn’t that hard.
*Sponsored blog post in partnership with Agropur*
