Taste the harvest: pantry traditions alive at Aurora
By Sean Delaney
Summer may still be holding on, but the harvest season is already beginning to shape the way many Emery families cook. Tomatoes are being gathered, sauces prepared and pantry shelves considered with the cooler, shorter days ahead. At Aurora Importing Limited, that tradition can be approached on any scale—from a family preserving a full season’s crop to someone who simply wants five or ten jars of dependable tomato sauce.
Aurora’s range includes canned tomatoes, passata and sauces, along with olive oils, pasta, beans, antipasti, crackers and other staples that make a well-stocked pantry useful long after local gardens have finished producing. Italian cheeses add another part of the harvest table, whether grated over pasta, served with crackers or paired with preserved vegetables.
The company’s online Culinary Corner offers ideas that connect fresh late-summer produce with pantry ingredients. One pizza concept combines tomato paste, diced fresh tomatoes, garlic, oregano, Parmigiano and extra-virgin olive oil. A panzanella-style platter brings crostini together with tomatoes, peppers, artichoke hearts, balsamic glaze and olive oil. Polenta rounds topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella and pesto provide another simple option as evenings begin to cool.
Those examples point to a practical harvest lesson: preserving the season does not always require a full day of blanching, peeling and bottling. Canned tomatoes and a good olive oil can provide the foundation, while fresh herbs, garlic, cheese or vegetables allow each household to make the meal its own.
For Emery cooks, the weeks before Thanksgiving are an ideal time to check the pantry, replace what has run low and plan several flexible meals. A tomato sauce can become pasta one evening and pizza the next. Beans and lentils can move into soups. Olive oil, cheese and crackers can turn a few preserved vegetables into an easy gathering plate.
Harvest cooking is ultimately less about quantity than readiness: having ingredients on hand that bring warmth, flavour and a sense of tradition to the table as one season gives way to the next.
Aurora Importing
350 Clayson Road
North York, ON M9M 2H2
416-401-2055
info@auroraimporting.com
www.auroraimporting.com