Celebrate Canada Food Day!
Fraberts Fresh Food for Thought – August 2010 

 So much great local food to celebrate with!
-          Sweet corn from Van Tols
-          peaches, apricots, plums from Niagara
-          everbearing strawberries from Floralane Produce in Elmira
-          blueberries from Simcoe
-          wild blueberries from Sudbury
-          field tomatoes from Leamington
-          new potatoes
-          local veggies
-          and soooo much more!

Fraberts is Hiring!

Kate is returning to school, so Fraberts is looking for an energetic, outgoing, dependable and hard working fresh food enthusiast to become part of the Fraberts family!  Go to www.frabertsfreshfood.com for more information and to download the “Employment Eligibility Questionnaire” (look under “recent posts”).

Canada Food Day – Saturday, July 31

Celebrate local food this weekend and get it all at Fraberts!  Join in the celebration at the Elora Farmers Market this Saturday, July 31 from 9am till 1pm with lots of great free food samples (visit www.elorafarmersmarket.ca for more information).  For more information about Canada Food Day, visit www www.foodday.ca.

Fergus Scottish Festival

The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 275 and Fergus Scottish Festival are presenting A Community Parade of Pipes, Plaid & Pageantry on Thursday, August 12^th through downtown Fergus.  Fraberts will be there barbecuing local sausage and Wally burgers and cooking local corn on the cob for you to enjoy.  When the sun goes down, join us at the Fergus Marketplace on the River for a movie night (“How to Train Your Dragon”) in our parking lot presented by Cherry Hill Entertainment.

Lots going on all weekend – visit www.fergusscottishfestival.com for all the info you need to celebrate your inner Scot!

Farm to Fork – Sunday, August 29

Chef Derek will be there partnering with local farmers Rob and Karen Unsworth of Hav A Heart Beef to create something yummy.  Visit www.optimistclubofpuslinch.com for more information.

 Fraberts Fresh Food for Thought – July 2010

 Fergus RiverFolk Music and Art Festival
Enjoy live music and art throughout downtown Fergus this Saturday, June 26!  Stop by Fraberts for free food, yummy treats from the BBQ, and fresh locally-made real lemonade.

Local Food Fest
Join us in a celebration of local food at the Guelph Wellington Local Food Fest this Sunday, June 27 from 11am till 5pm at the Ignatius Jesuit Centre on Highway 6 just north of Guelph.  Chef Derek will be presenting a cooking demonstration at 12:15.  Check out www.guelphwellingtonlocalfood.ca/fest for more information.

Holiday Hours
Fraberts will be open Thursday, July 1, from 9am till 5pm for Canada Day – get your holiday BBQ supplies here!  Normal hours will resume for the rest of the weekend.

Congratulations…
…to Eric Stevers who won our birthday draw for $50 in free groceries from Fraberts as part of our second birthday celebration.

Fraberts Feeds the Relay for Life
Fraberts was proud to feed the brave and energetic participants of the Relay for Life fundraiser for the Canadian Cancer Society on June 18.  Nothing like Chef Derek’s pulled pork sandwiches to keep you going for 12 hours of relay!

What’s in season?
Lots!  Every week brings more fresh local produce.  Currently we have fresh local cherries, raspberries, red currants, strawberries, tomatoes, spinach, asparagus, lettuce, radish, peas, broccoli, zucchini, cabbage, green onions, herbs, garlic, and new potatoes.  Blueberries and beans are just around the corner!

Fraberts Family Profile – Sharpest Edge on the Grand
The Sharpest Edge on the Grand has been in the sharpening business for over 40 years.  They recognized the need for quality workmanship to take care of the most used tools in any household.  Drop off knives or any other item you need sharpened at Fraberts – all challenges welcome!  In fact, if you drop off something Ron hasn’t sharpened before, you receive a 50% discount just so he can add this object to his “list of capability”.

Visit www.frabertsfreshfood.com for more information.

Fraberts Fresh Food for Thought – June 2010

It’s Our Second Birthday!

Thanks to your support, we have been in business for two years now.  Come by and see how we’ve grown (and I’m not just referring to our family and waistlines!)  We are throwing a party this weekend from Friday May 28 through to Sunday May 30.  Come on by for free food, live music, BBQ, giveaways, and a chance to win free groceries.  We hope to have some of our suppliers on hand to chat, and of course Chef Derek will be here for tips or general banter.

Fergus Marketplace Spring Celebration – Saturday May 29 and Sunday May 30

Many of our neighbours here in the gorgeous and historic Fergus Marketplace on the River are also celebrating spring this weekend.  Lots to do!

• Legge Fitness – free therapy treatments
• Grand River Troutfitters – great in store sales, free fly tying and casting demos all day
• Cherry Hill Entertainment – huge outdoor sale
• Goofie Newfie – great food with a great view!
• Grand River Running – sidewalk sale – shoes starting at $49 – 8:30am Saturday run club; 10:30am Sunday prediction run
• Natural Choice Health Fair – Friday, May 28 – meet and talk to local practitioners, 10% off progressive product, gluten free cookie taste test, draw for a gift basket

Ontario Strawberries are Here!

…need I say more?  Local spinach, fresh from Collins’ Farm, is also back, as well as Birkbank Farms asparagus, Floralane Produce tomatoes, and Sunset Farms rhubarb.  Ahh…. summertime is here.

Elora Farmers’ Market

The Elora Farmers’ Market begins June 12 and runs through till Thanksgiving every Saturday from 9am till 1pm.  Fraberts will be there again offering up local treats.  Lots of new vendors this year – see how the “prettiest little farmers market in Ontario” has grown!  Visit www.elorafarmersmarket.com for more information.

Local Food Fest – Sunday, June 27

Join us at the Guelph Wellington Local Food Fest on Sunday, June 27 from 11am till 5pm at the Ignatius Jesuit Centre, 5420 Hwy 6, just north of Guelph.  Chef Derek will be doing a local food cooking demo and we will be participating in the Farmers Market also.  For more information visit www.guelphwellingtonlocalfood.ca/fest.

Hope to see you this weekend!

Chef Derek and Jackie

Fraberts Fresh Food for Thought – May 2010

Ontario Asparagus has Arrived!

We just brought in the first asparagus of the season – the taste of spring!  We’ll have fiddleheads by the weekend and local spinach is just around the corner…..  It’s a great time of year!

 Thank You for Making Fraberts “Small Business of the Year”!

We were thrilled to receive this honour from the Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce at last week’s Awards of Excellence gala.  The theme of the gala was “Outstanding in our Field” so I enjoyed dressing in my old Aggie gear to celebrate.  Held on Earth Day, it was a fitting tribute to the wonderful farmers that make our job easy by providing delicious food for us to sell. 

Thank you for making us Centre Wellington’s Small Business of Year!

Mother’s Day – May 9

Treat your mom to a homemade meal – with or without Chef Derek’s help (we won’t tell!).  He can help with his popular lasagnes, quiche, salads, etc.  We will be selling flowers for your mom – cut or in planters – grown locally by the good folks from the Elmira Produce Auction Cooperative.  We are open Mother’s Day Sunday just in case you leave it till the last minute….

Fraberts Turns Two!

More details on our birthday celebration to come …..

 Happy Spring!

Chef Derek and Jackie

Fraberts Fresh Food for Thought – April 2010

Every week is earth week at Fraberts, where we offer local foods that have been produced in an environmentally responsible manner.  Take some time this week to contemplate your impact on the environment – it can be as simple as turning off unneeded lights, planting a tree, enjoying a locally produced meal, cleaning up garbage in your area, or simply getting outside and enjoying the gorgeous natural spaces we are so lucky to have in Centre Wellington and beyond (the weather is perfect for that right now!).

“Spring Cleaning” Freezer Sale

Chef Derek’s frozen ready-made meals and sauces are half price – but there aren’t many left!  Steaks, sausage, lean ground turkey, chicken breasts, duck breasts, and an 11lb turkey are $2 off.  This sale only lasts until the freezer is cleaned out, which won’t be long….

Selection of Scottish and Other UK Foods Expands

Following the success of Tartan Day last weekend, Fraberts is now carrying scotch pies, bridies, pork sausage rolls, potato scones, and steak & kidney pies.  Come in and try some!

Local Produce Update

It`s that time of year, fresh local produce is on its way!  We`ll keep you posted via our monthly newsletter, or check our website at www.frabertsfreshfood.com anytime.  Right now we have our famous local tomatoes and grape tomatoes from Floralane Farm near Elmira.  Local asparagus, spinach, and rhubarb are just around the corner….

Grand Taste Event

It’s not too late to get your tickets to the culinary event of the spring!  Held at the Grand River Raceway on Sunday April 25^th from noon till 4pm, this is an opportunity to sample what the wonderful chefs of our area (yes, including our own Chef Derek) have to offer while helping raise money for the Groves Hospital Foundation CT Plus Campaign.  Fraberts will be offering its famous pulled pork sandwiches and delicious sweet potato cake.  Tickets are $25 and are available at the Scotiabank in Fergus, The Elora General Store, or The Uptown Cafe in Elora.

Fraberts Nominated for Small Business of the Year

Fraberts is honoured to be nominated for “Small Business of the Year” for the second year in a row as part of the Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce Awards of Excellence program in recognition of our contributions to the community.  The awards gala takes place on April 22 (tickets still available through the Chamber).  A big thank you to the community for all of their support over the past year!

Congratulations to “Curl for the Cure“

Fraberts was proud to feed the great folks who made Curl for the Cure another huge success.  Congratulations to Bruce Hawkins and his committee on once again breaking last year’s fundraising record with over $32,000 raised!

Fraberts Family Profile – Local Food Plus

In honour of earth week, our “Fraberts Family Profile” this month is not about one farmer or supplier, but a new program called Local Food Plus (LFP) that many of our suppliers participate in.

The LFP program was developed recently as an initiative to help consumers source responsibly produced local food.  To meet the criteria of the LFP program, a farmer must:

-          Be local

-          Farm in an environmentally responsible manner

-          Conserve energy and cut greenhouse gases

-          Ensure fair conditions for farm workers

-          Provide humane care for livestock

-          Preserve farmland and wildlife habitat

-          Foster a strong local economy

We support the LFP program because it fits in with our own values of supporting the local economy and environmental sustainability.  Currently, our tomatoes, grape tomatoes, potatoes, popcorn, and Mapleton’s dairy products are all certified by the LFP program, and most of our other suppliers would also qualify.  For more information on LFP, go to www.localfoodplus.ca or ask Jackie about it next time you are in the store!

Happy Spring!

Jackie and Derek

14 Gold Medals = Winter Olympic Record = 14 Winners at Fraberts!

Congratulations to all of our wonderful Olympians who made us so proud in Vancouver!  What a great group of ambassadors for our country – an inspiration for us all to be active and to dare to dream.

As our gold medals piled up, we drew the winners for our “Good Food Olympics”. Congratulations go to Lindsay Burnett, Joanne Wooddisse, Michelle Offer, Avis McFarlane, Colleen Cox, Patti Klein, Diane, Kathy Fitzpatrick, Dianna Burns, Jane McDougall, Lois Lanktree, Heather Pederson, Melissa Seagrove, and Angela Murphy who all won $20 in Fraberts bucks!

“Pasta Party” Cooking Class

Learn how to make great pasta dishes!  Our next cooking class is scheduled for Monday, March 22, 2010 from 7-9pm.  Cost is $45 which, as always, includes a fun (and informative) night out, yummy food, Fraberts pasta tips and recipe book, and you take home what you make.  Sign up early to avoid disappointment by calling 226-383-7374 or stopping in to the store, our classes book up quickly!

St Patrick’s Day – Wednesday, March 17

Come by Fraberts for some hearty Irish treats…Guiness Beef Stew Pies, Irish Stew, Belfast Ham etc….  everything but the green beer!

Easter Weekend – April 2-5

Order your fresh, local lamb, turkey, ham, pork or beef roasts – whatever you need, we can get it.  If you need some extra help with fixings (mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, Fraberts Famous Drunken Cranberry Sauce, veggies, salads, starters) let us know.  Deadline for ordering turkeys and other meat is Friday, March 26.

Recipes

We are still looking for your favourite recipe(s) – don’t be shy!  So far we’ve received two recipes that Chef Derek is working on, soon to be featured in the store.  Monthly winners will receive a $25 gift certificate….and bragging rights, of course!

Scottish Foods

More Scottish and British foods are arriving at Fraberts – stop in for some yummy chocolate, toffees, and biscuits.

Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours

Fraberts hosted the latest Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce “Business After Hours” session.  About 20 people learned about our business while mingling over great Fraberts food.  We’d like to thank the Chamber of Commerce for everything they do for us and our community.

Cheers!

Jackie and Chef Derek

Fresh Food For Thought – February 2010

 Superbowl – Sunday, February 7

Let Chef Derek help you feed your football fans!  Chili, nachos, wings, guacamole, chips and dip – whatever you need to accompany the big game.  Order by Wednesday, February 3 to avoid disappointment, 226-383-7374.

 Valentines Day – Sunday, February 14

Plan a romantic night in – let Fraberts help you feed your sweetheart. Whether you are an expert gourmet and just need the raw ingredients, or could use a little help from Chef Derek with some ready-made options, come to Fraberts for inspiration.

 Family Day – Monday, February 15

Celebrate the only long weekend of the winter with family, friends, and great food!  Order local fresh chicken, duck, pork or beef roasts to feed the gang.

 Share in the Olympic Spirit at Fraberts with a chance to win free groceries!

To celebrate, Fraberts is hosting the “Good Food Olympics”.  Come by the store and enter our draw for free groceries.  We will pull a ballot every time Canada wins gold – so the more Canada wins, the better your chances of winning!

 Winter Cooking Classes

It didn’t take long for the “Easy Appetizers for Entertaining” class on February 8 to fill up!  We are currently planning for a March cooking class – details to come.

 Remember, we also do cooking classes for groups – get your friends or colleagues together for a fun night out.

 We’re waiting for your recipes!

We are looking for your favourite recipe(s)!  Maybe it’s a family favourite, a cultural tradition, or simply something you are proud of.  Every month we will pick 1 or 2 favourites and feature them in the store.  So start digging out those recipes and bring them into Chef Derek or email them to droberts@frabertsfreshfood.com (make sure you include your name and phone number).  Monthly winners will receive a $25 gift certificate….and bragging rights, of course!

Holiday Meal Planning

Order your fresh local turkey, ham, roast, lamb, goose or duck. Fresh turkeys will come in on Wednesday, December 16 (order by Thursday, December 10) and Wednesday, December 23 (order by Thursday, December 17). Fraberts tofu loaf with wild mushroom gravy is a hit for the vegetarians in the family.

Fraberts can also help with all the fixings – from our famous “Drunken Cranberry Sauce” to cheesy (or not) mashed Smoyd Farms potatoes, roasted local acorn squash, honey mustard heirloom carrots, stuffing, gravy – you name it, Chef Derek can help! Order ahead to avoid disappointment.

Entertaining?

We’ve got Christmas baking, appetizers, cheese trays, mixed nuts and fresh bread. As always we have our fresh selection of fruit, vegetables, meats, cheeses, and gourmet items. Stock up on ready-made meals and soups to keep your holiday guests, family, and returned students well fed.

Gift Baskets and Certificates

We’ve got gift baskets of all shapes, sizes, and price ranges – build your own or buy one ready-made. For that person who has everything, give them the gift of healthy, fresh food – we have gift certificates of any denomination.

Second Annual Festive Fresh Food Drive

Fraberts would like to welcome you to help us provide fresh food for those in need during the holiday season. Contribute to our second annual “Fresh Food Drive” to provide apples, oranges, bananas, onions, carrots and sweet potatoes to the Centre Wellington Food Bank and we’ll match your contribution.

Fraberts Family Profile – Our Turkeys

We source our fresh turkeys from a number of family farms in the Woodstock area via a local family run processor “Southern Pride”. Everyone we’ve talked to about our turkeys have thoroughly enjoyed them. They are moist and tasty. By working with Southern Pride, we can offer a good range of sizes – from 7 to 25 lbs.

Like all turkeys raised in Ontario, our turkeys are hormone free and are not kept in cages. They are housed in large airy barns and tended to by caring farm families.

If you would like to learn more about turkey farming in Ontario (and take a “virtual tour” of a turkey farm), visit http://www.farmissues.com/virtualTour/

Holiday Hours

We will be open 9am-5pm on Christmas Eve and will be closed Christmas and Boxing Day to celebrate the holidays with our families. We’ll re-open on Sunday, December 27 from 10am-5pm.

The Fraberts family wishes you a happy holiday and all the best in the new year!
Jackie and Derek

Fraberts has been very busy, thanks to your support over the past summer and fall and especially during the busy Thanksgiving season. As some of the local produce winds down, don’t forget that we always have local meat, root veggies (potatoes, carrots, onions, parsnips, etc), apples, tunnel tomatoes and local garlic boasting amazing flavour. Chef Derek’s homemade soups are a great treat on these cool fall and soon-to-be winter days. His classics are back – his famous butternut squash soup, pea soup, mushroom, and beef barley. He has created some new ones too – have you tried his Thai soup yet? It is delicious!

There is nothing like wholesome Fraberts comfort soups, stews, curries and meat pies to huddle down with during the dreary days of November.

Thank you for your generosity!

Thanks to our generous customers for raising nearly $90 for the Centre Wellington Food Bank. Fraberts will match this amount and top it up to $200. This will provide fresh bananas, apples, and oranges for the Food Bank to get them through until our Christmas Food Drive begins.

Cooking Classes will return

We will again be hosting cooking classes this winter to help you warm up and beat off the winter blues. Stay tuned!

Fraberts has launched its website

Check us out online at www.frabertsfreshfood.com. Let us know what you think of the site and if there is any way we can make it more informative for you.

What’s New at Fraberts

Derek and I attended the Culinary Tourism Summit at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair last week and made some new connections with farmers and artisan food processors – watch our shelves over the next few weeks as we bring some delicious and unique new local and Ontario products to the store in time for the Christmas season.

We had the pleasure of representing “Savour Elora and Fergus”, our local culinary tourism initiative, at the Royal last week along with Best Baa. We are now carrying Best Baa’s sheep milk products – delicious and unique cheeses, milk, and yogurt. With all the fabulous local farmers, food producers, and restaurants in Centre Wellington – it’s very easy to promote our area as a culinary destination worth checking out!

Christmas is Around the Corner

Start thinking about how you want to celebrate with your family. We will send more information on how to order turkeys, chicken, roasts, pork, lamb or anything else to make your Christmas delicious with our next newsletter in a few weeks.

Thanks for your support!
Jackie and Derek

Celebrating the Harvest
Fraberts Fresh Food for Thought – September, 2009

It’s a great time of year to buy local!  Fraberts has it all – virtually all of our fruits and veggies are local right now – and our meat is local year round.

Back to School Busy

September is a busy month – let Fraberts help you put healthy meals on the table to fuel your family.  Chef Derek’s ready made meals (lasagna, curries, meat pies, etc) contain no preservatives and are chock full of simple, healthy, local ingredients.  Need help with those school lunches?  Most of our deli meats are made right in our store.  Our roast beef is a big favourite – prepared (and tastes) just like Sunday dinner leftovers.  Add some crisp Ontario apples (new crop now in!), cheese, and local veggies and you’ve got a lunch that’s healthy for you, your kids, your community, and your environment!

Second Annual Fraberts Harvest Celebration and Rural Romp – September 26, 2009

Join us as we celebrate the harvest along with the “Wellington County Buy Local Buy Fresh” program.  On September 26 from 11am till 4pm join us for delicious local food samples.  Taste what Chef Derek has on the menu for this fall.  Meet some of our farmers and other suppliers.  Visit www.guelphwellingtonlocalfood.ca for more information.

Thanksgiving Just Around the Corner

Thanksgiving weekend is October 10-12 this year.  Be sure to order your local turkey or roast from Fraberts.  If you need some help from Chef Derek, give us a call at 226-383-7374.

Centre Wellington Food Bank Drop Off Bin….

….is now located in our store.  Bring in your non-perishables, garden bounty, or purchase fresh food from Fraberts and place it in the bin for the many families in need in our community. 

Cheese Course

Want to learn more about cheese?  Cheese Education Guild is coming to Guelph.  Register now for “Cheese Appreciation 1”, a special 8-week session starting Wednesday, September 30.  Visit www.artisancheesemarketing.com for more details.

Fraberts Family Profile – The Van Tols

Local sweet corn is finally in – unfortunately due to our cool summer, it was about 2-3 weeks late this year.  Corn really needs heat – something that was in short supply this summer.

We get our sweet corn fresh daily from the Van Tols, a hard working farm family located between Fergus and Belwood.  Our family has been buying sweet corn from their roadside stand since we moved to the area and it is simply the best sweet corn we have ever had! So naturally, it was what we wanted to provide to you once we opened our store.

The Van Tols grow sweet corn, wheat, soybeans, field corn, and romano beans on approximately 148 acres of land along Fourth Line of West Garafraxa Township, just south of Wellington Road 18 and Belwood Lake.  They have been farming there since 1997.

Like all of the farmers we source directly from, the Van Tol family has completed an Environmental Farm Plan, ensuring that they are minimizing their impact and maximizing their benefits to the environment through responsible farming practices.

If you haven’t tasted Van Tols local, fresh picked daily sweet corn yet, make sure you do soon – only a few weeks left in the season!