Welcome to our next "Celebrity Chef" column. It is our pleasure to
introduce you to "Celebrity Chefs", Jean Charlton and her daughter Nicole.
Jean and Nicole created a simple but elegant dessert they named "Strawberry
Delight" when we asked them if they would like to be the next "Celebrity
Chefs". The dessert showcases fresh Ontario strawberries and tastes great.
"It's really light", states Nicole and her Mom adds, "pretty and simple to
make". The idea came from a recipe Jean tried many years ago but could not
find.
Nicole laughed as she said, "quick and easy and hurry up and let's go".
That's the motto at their house, as like most farmers they are extremely
busy. Jean and her husband Murray milk 40 cows and cash crop. Their
daughters Jennifer and Nicole help out as much as possible.
In 2010 they became the third farm in Brant County to move to robotic
milking. Most dairy producers milk twice a day (morning and night). A
robotic milker is a voluntary milking system operated by a computer. When
the cows are ready, they move into the milking area and the robotic milker
takes over. It performs all the jobs that the Charlton's used to do
manually. According to Jean it helps to reduce the workload and gives them
more flexibility. "It works for us and is cost effective" she said, adding
that she thinks more small to medium size dairy farmers will use this
technology in the future.
Nicole is a second year student studying nursing at Western University. She
likes to cook and experiment and try new recipes. "We just experimented and
it worked" she said.
So if you are looking for a quick and easy dessert ...here it is. Enjoy! Be
sure to check out www.bountifulbrant.ca to find a listing of local farmers
who have fresh Ontario strawberries for sale and/or offer pick your own.
