Balance of Food

Putting Canadian ketchups to the taste test: French's vs. Heinz

Canadians showed an unusual level of national pride earlier this year … over ketchup.

For those who don't remember this story, Heinz Canada and Leamington, Ontario tomatoes were an ideal match for 90 years. Then, Heinz announced the company wouldn't produce ketchup in Leamington.

Fast forward to the present, French's ketchup is made with Leamington tomatoes. I enjoy Heinz's in Canada because the regular recipe is made with liquid sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup (glucose-fructose in Canada).

But I like the idea of supporting a Canadian ketchup if French's ketchup is better.

Canadian ketchup war based on pride, not taste

On my last trip to Canada, I ended up with a pair of situations to try French's. While most of the ketchup at Shaw Field in Winnipeg is from Heinz, one vendor had several bottles of French's ketchup. So while watching the minor league baseball Winnipeg Goldeyes lose on a rainy Tuesday night, I got to try the ketchup.

The second place was a bar/restaurant in Regina, Saskatchewan. I asked how long French's had been in place there. My server said they had gone with French's for about 3 weeks. I did follow up with whether the move was patriotic, but she didn't know.

Ketchup can be subjective so I factor that into my consideration. I use Heinz Canada as my baseline for comparison.

French's is sweeter than Heinz in Canada. You might like that difference. Heinz used to have vinegar as the 2nd ingredient; now sugar is #2 and vinegar #3. Still, Heinz isn't as sweet as French's.

While French's was too sweet, the ketchup has quite a bit of flavor for a sweet ketchup. Too many bad ketchups use sweetness, usually high-fructose corn syrup, to mask any ketchup flavor or taste.

The French's ketchup had an aftertaste. This wasn't like a Stevia aftertaste, nothing that serious. The ketchup taste shouldn't last that long.

I would pick French's Canada over any mainstream U.S. ketchup with high-fructose corn syrup, though that is faint praise.

National pride, no matter how noble, won't convert you to a different ketchup. But national pride will make you want to try the new ketchup. Heinz is the dominant market leader but a business decision pushed customers to try the alternative. Even if you win out on taste, you will lose some customers, either through national pride or a better tasting ketchup.

photos credit: me

Discovering the world of Saskatoon berries

My Canadian adventures have introduced me to unusual foods, and my latest trip provided more fodder to the ever increasing list. Food is a wonderful way to experience new destinations.

My customs officer asked why an American tourist would come to Winnipeg. If I had known what Saskatoon berries were all about, I would have included them in my answer.

Saskatoon berries remind you of blueberries but with a reddish hue. The Saskatoon Berry Institute tells us that the berry is "more closely related to the apple family."

The institute describes the taste of the actual berry as a "sweet, nutty almond flavor." They are being kind. The berries don't have much of a taste. If blueberries are too tart, and wild blueberries are too flavorful, Saskatoon berries are the taste of nothing.

So why are we heralding the Saskatoon berry?

Like similar looking berries, the Saskatoon berry is rich in the usual of fiber and antioxidants. The institute lists more amazing nutrition traits of the Saskatoon berry, but we'll leave the homework to you if you want to learn more.

The magic behind the Saskatoon berry is not by themselves but mixed in with other ingredients.

This Saskatoon berry pie was from the Regina Farmers Market on a Saturday morning. The structure was purely outdoors at the north end of Victoria Park.

The ingredients are simple. The phone number is whited out to protect the individual farmer. Here is what is needed to make those berries into something beautiful.

Saskatoons, flour, sugar, lard, lemon juice, and cornstarch.

Yes, wonderful beautiful lard. The sugar and lemon juice bring out the best in the Saskatoon berry. I enjoyed this pie along Lake Wasacan, which is actually in the city of Regina.

The pie was the ideal mix of berries and sweetness but definitely not too sweet.

Not every farmers market has homemade goodies such as this Saskatoon berry pie but I found a lot of homemade goodies in the Winnipeg farmers market on Thursday as well as Regina farmers market on Saturday.

The light purple draws your attention inside the glass case in the cafe. This accidental stop produced a gold mine of baked goods.

My sweet tooth isn't that strong, but I'm a sucker for shortbreads. Their simple butter flavor, provided you've used really good butter, is lovely goodness. Mix in the impact of Saskatoon berries and you have Saskatoon berry shortbread.

This was so good that after the 2 cookies I got as a snack, I got 2 more cookies for breakfast the next day.

My first experience with Saskatoons were snacking on them. That became boring quickly. But I was highly glad to have them in desserts. They would be great in smoothies since they add fruit goodness without a distracting taste.

The summertime is the height of the Saskatoon berry season. I want to find out if someone will ship Saskatoon berry pies outside the Canadian Prairies.

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I also saw jams made from seabuckthorn and chokecherry fruits. I saw High Bush Cranberry jam. I'm pretty sure I saw more fruit products than actual fruit. I saw a stall from British Columbia at a Saskatchewan farmers market. For those who don't know Canada, Alberta is in between the two provinces, and Regina is in the middle of southern Saskatchewan. That is a long drive to bring this relatively local fruit.

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photos credit: me

Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Trump on how they approach food

The political conventions wrapped up last week, so we know the official presidential nominees of the two major political parties.

The bar for food and the President of the United States has been set by Barack Obama, who will leave the post in January 2017. Neither Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump will live up to that standard. You might be surprised how similar their food patterns reflect their personalities and the notable exceptions.

5 questions you should ask presidential candidates about U.S. food policy

Let's examine the food patterns of the two presidential candidates as seen through the eyes of The Washington Post food critic Tom Sietsema. We'll start in the order of the candidates from the conventions.

Donald J. Trump

Donald Trump might be a billionaire; then again, probably not. But his food tastes run the blue-collar route.

Breakfast is his least favorite meal of the day. Bacon and eggs or cornflakes are top breakfast choices. Lunch is at his desk, Sietsema noted. The infamous taco bowl picture shows Trump at his desk eating lunch.

You shouldn't be surprised that Trump doesn't like vegetables and doesn't eat a lot of them. As Sietsema said, "If he eats anything cruciferous, it’s a mystery, right up there with how he combs that hair."

While eating pizza with a knife and fork caught Jon Stewart's eye, Trump was eating just the toppings, avoiding the crust to cut down on calories.

In truly American fashion, "flavor and nutrition appear to be afterthoughts, while food safety is a priority."

As many as his food sins might be, the worst one might be extremely well-done steaks. Trump extols in his commercials for Trump Steaks that steak is his favorite food. Pity the cow who gave up his life for a chef to overcook an otherwise lovely steak. That is sadly consistent with "food safety" but not with good taste.

The world is Trump's oyster, but he prefers Filet-O-Fish

Why Hillary Clinton eats a hot pepper every single day

Hillary R. Clinton

Hillary Clinton might not seem that exciting on the campaign trail, but her diet has a daily dose of spice.

Clinton told a town hall on ABC's Good Morning America, "I started using hot sauce back in 1992, because I read an article that said it would help my immune system stay healthy." The former secretary of state also eats a hot pepper each day.

Sietsema reports that Clinton’s favorite hot sauce is the sriracha Ninja Squirrel. She also enjoys hummus, fish, and food from India and Mexico.

With a vegan husband, the Clintons differ on their approaches to food. Clinton describes her husband's diet as "vegan-ish" in the article. Sietsema notes that Hillary Clinton enjoys "everything in moderation, including moderation."

For snacks, Clinton enjoys dark chocolate and Goldfish crackers. Hopefully, they aren't consumed at the same time.

Clinton says she is a lousy cook but can do pretty good soft scrambled eggs.

One of these presidential candidates has done a McDonald's commercial, 2 Pizza Hut spots, and an Oreo commercial and it's not Hillary Clinton.

You can absolutely argue that Donald Trump is promoting food he would actually eat in real life. Of those 4 spots, he is only seen eating the product in the Pizza Hut stuffed crust pizza, and without a knife and fork.

Then again, Bill Clinton and McDonald's were synonymous in the 1990s, though without any commercials. Post White House, Clinton fought to reduce the number of soft drinks in schools.

If you believe a president should be a role model, electing a president who has actively promoted fast food would be the opposite direction from Barack and Michelle Obama.

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Cindy McCain, Bill Clinton, and Michelle Obama submitted recipes in the First Spouse tradition in 2008. McCain's recipe was plagiarized from the Food Network Web site. Bill Clinton got his recipe from his cook Oscar Flores who apparently got the recipe from Betty Crocker. To no one's surprise, the only candidate not tied to plagiarism was Michelle Obama.

Hillary Clinton famously referred to baking cookies in 1992 as a remark about women's role in the outside world versus being a homemaker. Clinton later submitted a recipe for oatmeal chocolate chip cookies that got rave reviews.

In 2016, what the president or first spouse can or can't cook isn't relevant. The approach to food by the First Couple is important. Before Michelle Obama became the Let's Move advocate, I touted that the First Spouse should help Americans reduce alarming obesity levels. Glad Michelle Obama took my advice.

‘First Spouse’ should focus on reducing obesity levels

The First Lady, er, Spouse, needs to make a difference

You do wonder if what a presidential candidate eats affects their perception of food. If you rarely eat vegetables, you might not see the goodness in growing fresh vegetables, especially on the White House grounds.

photo credit: Barbara Kinney and Michael Davidson via HillaryClinton.com
video credit: McDonald's