Grilled lamb burgers with cucumber yogurt

1 lb. (500 g) ground lamb

1 small onion, finely minced

1 farm fresh egg

½ c. (125 ml) seasoned breadcrumbs

1 tsp. (5 ml) ground cumin

salt and freshly cracked black pepper

4 whole-grain hamburger rolls

Mix the lamb with the onion, egg, breadcrumbs and cumin. Season with salt and pepper and form into 4 large patties.

Heat a grill to high and cook the patties for 6 minutes per side. Serve on rolls with the cucumber yogurt. Serves 4. Serve with Calamus Estate Winery Red (www.calamuswinery.com).

Cucumber yogurt

½ English cucumber, peeled, seeded and grated

½ c. (125 ml) plain, whole-milk yogurt

2 tsp. (10 ml) fresh verjuice (the sour juice of crab apples or of unripe fruit like apples or grapes)

2 tsp. (10 ml) fresh mint, chopped

1 small garlic clove, minced

salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Mix all ingredients together and chill.

Serve on or with lamb burgers.

Liz Black wanted to feed her family healthy food and before she knew it, she was farming. That was 20 years ago.

Today, Goshen Farm (33433 Sider Road, Wainfleet) raises lambs as naturally as possible. They’re fed by their mother for their first two months, after which crushed grains, hay and pasture grass are introduced to their diet.

The lambs roam free, grow slowly, eat naturally and are drug free.

You can find Liz at the Port Colborne, Ridgeway and Grimsby Farmers Markets, or buy direct from Goshen Farm.

Parmesan crusted cauliflower

1 cauliflower, washed and broken into florets

1 farm fresh egg

2 egg whites

¾ c. (180 ml) breadcrumbs

1 tsp. (5 ml) fresh parsley, chopped

½ c. (125 ml) Parmesan cheese, grated

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place the cauliflower florets in a steamer or colander over water and steam, covered, for 10 minutes. Allow to cool.

Meanwhile, whisk the eggs together in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.

Place the breadcrumbs, parsley and Parmesan cheese in a freezer bag.

Roll a cooled floret in the eggs then drop in the bag with the breadcrumb mixture.

Shake the bag to completely cover the floret.

Place the floret on a baking sheet and repeat until all the cauliflower is coated in breadcrumbs.

Bake in a preheated 350°F (180°C) oven for 20 minutes or until browned. Serves 4.

Warner Orchards (4817 Lincoln Avenue, RR#3, Beamsville) is a 40-hectare fruit farm owned by the Warner family for generations. On the farm you can buy an assortment of just-harvested produce including strawberries, sweet cherries, apricots, nectarines, raspberries and pumpkins. Vegetables range from eggplant and cauliflower to zucchini and fresh corn. You can buy right from the farm or at the Grimsby farmers market.

Dirty peach cobbler

1 vanilla bean, cut into 1-inch
(2.5-cm) pieces

2 tbsp. (30 ml) all-purpose flour

¾ c. (180 ml) sugar

5 c. (1.25 L) tree-ripened peaches, gently peeled and cut into ½-inch (1.25-cm) chunks

1½ c. (375 ml) all-purpose flour

1½ c. (375 ml) sugar

2½ tsp. (12.5 ml) baking powder

¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) baking soda

½ tsp. (2.5 ml) salt

4 farm fresh eggs

4 tbsp. (60 ml) whole milk

3 tbsp. (45 ml) peach nectar

1 tsp. (5 ml) vanilla extract

6 tbsp. (90 g) unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 325°F (170°C).

Process the vanilla bean and flour in a coffee grinder until finely ground.

Put the sugar in a large bowl, add the vanilla/flour mixture and whisk together. Add the peaches and toss to coat.

Transfer the mixture to 13 x 9 x 2-inch (33 x 23 x 5-cm) glass baking dish. Bake until bubbling, about 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.

Whisk the eggs together with milk, peach nectar and vanilla in a medium bowl.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until smooth.

Fold in the melted butter.

Pour the batter over the hot peach mixture.

Return to the oven and continue baking until the top is golden and a tester inserted into centre comes out clean, about 45 minutes longer. Cool slightly and serve. Serves 12. Serve with Legends Estate Winery Goldrich Apricot (www.legendsestates.com).

Kurtz Orchards Market (16006 Niagara Parkway, Niagara-on-the-Lake, www.kurtz orchards.com) is Niagara’s gourmet farm market located on the Niagara River Parkway on the outskirts of Niagara-on-the-Lake. It’s been run by the Kurtz family for over half a century.

Over 40 hectares of orchards and farmland produce strawberries, cherries, peaches, plums, raspberries, apricots, pears and plenty more. Inside the large retail barn are their own homemade jams, jellies and preserves, as well as antipasto, chutney and spreads packed with their own label.

Pick up a sandwich, enjoy the farm scenery and take home a few jars of preserves.