The Apple of Canada’s Eye

Sonoma County might come to mind, and so might Normandy, while traveling through the Monteregie, also known as Le Jardin du Quebec (the garden of Quebec). Like its counterparts in California and France, the Monteregie is known for its cornucopia of home-grown products, from apples to hard cider.

Barely 45 minutes from the heart of Montreal, hundreds of acres of apple trees blanket the soft rolling hills of the Monteregie and banks of the Richelieu, one of the tributaries of the mighty St. Lawrence. Amid the orchards, in the hamlet of Rougemont-les Pommes, Les Quatre Feuilles restaurant opened its doors almost 10 years ago.

Under the enlightened leadership of chef Louis Tremblay, Les Quatre Feuilles has gained a large following among both Quebecois and the American visitors who flock to the restaurant. For many, the restaurant’s elaborate buffet lunch, based on the local bounty, is part of a circuit gourmand (gourmet tour) that includes visits to a cider maker, a vinegar maker and a jam factory.

At lunch, the large barn-like building that houses Les Quatre Feuilles echoes with the happy cries of children and the steady hum of animated conversations in French and in English. No linguistic aptitude is necessary, however, to enjoy Tremblay’s all-you-can-eat buffet.

His philosophy is simple: “I want to seduce through history and novelty. I like to add new touches to traditional dishes,” says the mediagenic Tremblay, who sports an apple logo on his chef’s coat. This means using apples from his orchard and maple syrup from a local sugar shack to add a Canadian touch to French dishes as well as serving up Quebecois stews and sugar pies. Cider vinegar from a nearby vinaigrerie (cider factory) adds a delicious tang to the tender emince de volaille aux pommes (strips of chicken breast with apples), while the chef’s applesauce, Rougemont-style, enhances the stuffed mushrooms.

The hard cider used at Les Quatre Feuilles is prepared a few miles down the road at the Cidrerie Artisanale Pierre Jodoin. Michel Jodoin is the fourth generation of farmers to grow apples on the flanks of the Mont Rougemont behind the cider house. In 1902, his great-grandfather Jean Baptiste purchased 100 apple trees at auction. His grandfather Ernest increased the family plantings by adding 4,000 Lobo, McIntosh, Golden Russet and Cartland apple trees.

Selecting the best apples for cider was the challenge Jodoin faced when he succeeded his father, Jean, in 1980. To refine his knowledge of cider making, he headed for the Champagne region of France, where he learned to manufacture sparkling cider following the methode champenoise. Upon his return to Rougemont, he produced a sparkling white and a sparkling rose cider, as well as a still cider called Delices d’Automne, almost as smooth and sweet as a muscatel wine.

Like Champagne, each bottle of sparkling cider is turned by hand three times a day for three weeks and is left to age in oak casks in a vaulted cellar behind the tasting room. Jodoin’s craftsmanship was rewarded in 1989 when the sparkling Le Pedoncule was voted the best hard cider in Quebec.

During business hours, the light acidic smell of fermenting apple juice permeates the air of the cidrerie and of the tasting room jammed with cider lovers from far and wide. The ponytailed Jodoin looks over the crowded tasting room with a wide smile, greeting a friend and pouring a generous sample of cider into a thin Champagne flute for an appreciative patron.

Because of government regulations, cider makers in Quebec may sell their product only from their own premises. This doesn’t discourage Jodoin, or his colleagues, for whom cider making is a passion as well as a livelihood. For Jodoin, the challenge has been met, because patrons have made his cidrerie one of the most popular destination points in Rougemont. As for the cider maker himself: “We take cider baths, and we go to bed wrapped in the aroma of cider,” he says, jokingly.

The same passion governs the life of Pierre Gingras, who manufactures apple cider vinegar according to age-old methods at his vinaigrerie artisanale. The health-conscious Gingras spent four years developing the formula for his yeast-free vinegar. He handpicks the apples, grown without pesticides in his orchard, and squeezes apple juice in the large press humming in the barn. Like his neighbor Jodoin, he uses oak casks for the aging process.

Throughout the day, a number of tour buses following the circuit gourmand stop by the warehouse-tasting room, disgorging dozens of visitors eager to stock up on Gingras’ fragrant herb vinegars, jellies and honeys and, of course, gallons of fragrant apple cider vinegar. In addition to selling on the premises, Gingras and his pesticide-free products are a fixture at one of Montreal’s beautiful farmers’ markets, the Marche Jean Talon.

The following apple-based recipes, provided by chef Tremblay of Les Quatre Feuilles, showcase some of the flavors of the apple producers of the Monteregie.

APPLE SOUP LES QUATRE FEUILLES

The addition of apples to the broth lends this unusual soup a delicate and sweet flavor.

2 tablespoons butter

2 stalks celery, diced

1 small leek, cleaned and diced

2 boiling potatoes, peeled and diced

3 tart apples, peeled, cored and diced

1 quart chicken stock

1 cup milk

1 cup half and half

Salt, pepper

Grated nutmeg

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat. Add celery and leek and cook, stirring, until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add potatoes, apples and chicken stock. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook until potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Remove from heat and cool a few minutes. Puree vegetables with stock in several additions in blender or food processor until smooth. Return mixture to pan. Add milk and half and half. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Heat through but do not boil. Serve hot, with sprinkle of ground nutmeg on top.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Each serving contains about:

297 calories; 988 mg sodium; 43 mg cholesterol; 16 grams fat; 31 grams carbohydrates; 10 grams protein; 1.27 grams fiber.

CHICKEN BREASTS IN CIDER SAUCE (Emince de Volaille au Cidre)

6 boneless chicken breast halves

3 tablespoons butter or oil

1 onion, finely diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced

1 cup hard cider or apple juice

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon soy sauce

2 teaspoons chicken broth granules

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 cup milk

Salt, pepper

Place chicken breasts between 2 sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper and lightly pound to flatten. Set aside.

Melt butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until golden, 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Transfer to platter and keep warm.

Add onion, garlic and mushrooms to skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add cider, honey, soy sauce and chicken broth granules. Cook, stirring, 8 to 10 minutes.

Blend cornstarch with milk in small bowl. Add to simmering sauce. Cook, stirring, until sauce thickens slightly, 4 to 5 minutes. Return chicken to pan and heat through. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Each serving contains about:

557 calories; 1,033 mg sodium; 164 mg cholesterol; 30 grams fat; 22 grams carbohydrates; 49 grams protein; 0.80 gram fiber.

APPLE-STUFFED MUSHROOMS

1/2 cup hard cider

2 tablespoons kirsch or Calvados, optional

2 tablespoons oil plus additional for brushing caps

5 shallots, minced

1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves or 1/4 teaspoon dried

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

4 slices white bread, crusts removed, cubed, or 1 1/2 cups coarse, unseasoned bread crumbs

Salt, pepper

18 large mushroom caps, washed

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 onion, finely diced

1/2 cup applesauce

Bread crumbs for dusting

Mix well cider, kirsch, 2 tablespoons oil, half of shallots, thyme, cloves, bread crumbs, and salt and pepper to taste in medium bowl. Set aside until all liquid is absorbed.

Remove stems from mushrooms and chop stems fine. Dry caps. Set aside.

Melt butter in large skillet. Add onion and remaining shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add chopped mushroom stems, applesauce and bread mixture. Stir well. Continue cooking until mixture separates from sides of pan. Remove from heat.

Lightly brush mushroom caps with oil. Dust inside with bread crumbs. With spoon, fill caps with equal amounts of stuffing. Arrange on baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees until lightly browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve immediately.

Makes 18 stuffed mushrooms.

Each serving contains about:

71 calories; 76 mg sodium; 4 mg cholesterol; 4 grams fat; 8 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram protein; 0.25 gram fiber.