October 18, 2009 - 9:00am
Where to find ingredients in Canada?
Hi there -- I'm new to artisan bread baking, and really enjoying this new hobby!
My trouble is that I cannot track down high-quality ingredients, or specialty items, here in Ontario (I live a 2-hour drive from Toronto). I can get basic white-bread flour and whole wheat, and some dark rye, but that's the extent of it. Nothing organic (for bread), or high-protein bread flours. I also cannot find things like malt powder to make bagels and such.
Wondering if any fellow Canucks know where I might find some of these products? Or if I can order them online from somewhere?
Thanks a bunch!
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Is there a Planet Organic near where you live? That's where I find most of my organic ingredients for baking.
"2 hours from Toronto" could put you in Buffalo, London, Owen Sound or Kingston.
If you are west of Toronto and can get into Hamilton, there's a place called Traynor's Bakery Wholesale where you can nab large bags of flour and other baking items. 905-522-2730
191 Victoria Ave. S, Hamilton L8N 3C8
You WILL want to find it on Google maps before you head there. Print out both the "TO" and "FROM" directions (they'll be different) and get an arial view map so you can see how to get at (and from) it. It is NOT easy; it's a mega pain in the backside to drive to because of all the flippin' 1-way streets in Hamilton. But it is a goldmine when you get there.
It's wholesale and a warehouse, they're open during normal business hours only, they don't have an online site to peruse their stock. But you can walk in and buy a couple of 20K bags of whatever flour you want and pay cash, they don't demand you be a "business". I picked up 40k of unbleached flour (20k bread, 20k AP) for $27.20 total.
I've yet to see unbleached bread flour in a grocery store. They ALL carry the same thing: bleached and max 5kg in your choice of Robin Hood, Five Roses or Monarch - all three made/owned by Smuckers. If you look at Robin Hood's AP and bread flour, they are both 4g protein per 30g serving; AP and Bread are both "high" protein flours. The bread flour differs because they add "improvers"; even their own site says you can replace their "Best for Bread" flour with their AP.
If you're not near Hamilton, however, I haven't looked for other places (I'm in Burlington) so I can't help you much there.
Malt powder: Find your local brew-your-own-beer shop. Beer making uses malt, in powder and/or liquid form. They get it in bulk and usually sell it in half-liter amounts. If you find malt in, say, a health food store, you'll easily pay four or five times more.
Thank you for the suggestions! I am in Belleville (so closer to Kingston) -- should have mentioned that lol!
I forgot about Red Fife, I remember hearing about it -- there is a place in this area (I believe) that sells it, otherwise I'm sure I can track it down in Ottawa. I will try it. And thanks for the tip on the malt powder at a brew shop! If I am in Hamilton, though, I will definitely check out Traynor's.
Glad to connect with fellow Canuck bakers!
There's a Bulk Barn in Belleville - no place is better for variety of flours. In Ottawa my local Metro store carries Bob's Red Mill and Red Fife. I've never found diastatic malt locally.
John looking for flour out west... where out west are you? Edmontonian here.
I have purchased flour from these people: http://anitasorganic.com/products.php
It was from soft white wheat (before I started making bread) and it was delicious. They do have wheat berries and flour from hard red and white wheat. I'm not sure about shipping costs.
I agree with you on Anita's. They have amazing products. I stocked up last week and baked a few different breads with the goods. VERY good quality.
John
Okay I did some searching... found one near Peterborough and they have retailers in the Toronto area:
http://www.merrylynd.com
I may give them a try. I don't know what to expect price-wise so what do those veterans out there think about these prices?
I'm a little late coming into this discussion, but Little Tee I understand your problem. I live in Northern Ontario which is even farther from good sources. However I have found a variety of flours at Bulk Barn. I'm sure there's one in Kingston or Ottawa. I was in one in Barrie last week and came away with several different flours. Good luck.
I am close to Vancouver so I can not help you out locally. Here are some places I purchase from.
Amazing organic flour, grains, etc. Great prices too:
http://anitasorganic.com/
A few of my bakes using their flours and grains:
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/31891/40-fraser-valley-organic-medium-rye
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/31758/my-first-danish-rye-rugbrot
I noticed a HUGE difference in using their flours compared to store bought flours such as Robin Hood.
As for proofing baskets and brotforms, I ordered online from this site. Very cheap but the international shipping hurts.
http://www.luckyclovertrading.com/tray-baskets-c-1_5.html?page=1
Good luck!
John
Hi John, that's a good link. Which ones did you purchase? I'm interested in the cloth covered ones. I remember buying the cloth covered ones at Ikea years ago for a loonie a piece. I still dream about them. Thanks.
Hi fellow Vancouverite. A loonie a piece??? Wow.
I got a few of each of the brotforms and the linen lined baskets. I only wish I did not get item #0297D. Way too large for any loaf.
Just be careful, as you have to make a $50.00 minimum order and the shipping is rediculously expensive. After everything, it still ends up being cheaper than the other sources I have looked into online.
Take care.
John
I'm about 2 hours NNW of Toronto. Anyone know of a good source for diastatic malt powder and unbleached organic flour north of Toronto, or in Toronto itself?
PS. A flour mill in Beeton, not far from Toronto, has some interesting products:
http://k2milling.blogspot.ca/
Got an email back from the K2 mill. They sell not only flour, but diastatic malt! A road trip is in the planning stage...
Sounds very interesting...I couldn't see the hours on the site for k2milling - did you get them in the email?
We are open Mon - Fri: 930 - 430 and Sundays 11 - 2.
We have diastatic malt flour as well. Flour is available in 3, 10, 20 and 40 pound bags.
I plan to visit K2 mill tomorrow. Flour, malt and sourdough bread (maybe they'll sell me some starter...) on the shopping list...
Got 10lb of Red Fife flour and 10lb of a local, hard spring wheat flour today. And a small bad of freshly ground malted barley. Oh yes, and a boule of sourdough bread from a nearby bakery...
Made another trip to the Bulk Barn today, as well as as the local Fresco grocery store. BB has jars of Eden malt syrup for about $8. The label says its diastatic. They also have two organic flours, one labelled a "bread" flour. Fresco also sells packages of organic flour.
You might double check that "diastatic" on the Eden malt syrup, just to avoid confusion. As I recall, there is some confusing language on the label but I don't think Eden sells a diastatic malt syrup(to retail consumers).
Maybe something different in CA though.
My apologies. I think you are correct. I read the label too quickly and saw the word "enzymes" which made me think it was diastatic. I checked the website and it doesn't seem to be anything but a sweetener.
Would like to 2nd ichadwick’s recommendation of K2 Milling flour. Went to cooking school and worked in pastry, making my way up to pastry chef and thought I understood flour until I went on a tour of K2 Milling through Slow Food Toronto, not only did I basically had to learn milling and flour all over again, but I now JUST use K2 Milling flour. The colour, texture and flavour is something else, the flour is out of this world. And what is so simple, milling flour, and then changed into, lack of better word ‘industrial flour’, once you feel and taste K2 flour, you can’t go back to even stone milled flour.