“Add some sizzle”
summer campaign
What’s the best way to get a fun summer get-together going? With music, of course! LPC’s ‘Add some sizzle’ campaign is kicking off with a swing, so tune into your local radio station where you might hear LPC’s catchy new jingle. The campaign will run for three weeks in July and early August on the following stations: Vancouver (103.5 QM/FM), Calgary (Country 105), Toronto (104.5 CHUM FM) and Edmonton (103.9 CISN FM). For our loyal fans who don’t live in those markets, we’ve included a link to the jingle.
Click here to hear the LPC jingle
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Also, watch your front door for LPC’s door hanger coupons.
Some 130,000 lucky households across Canada will receive a coupon for $1.00 off any LPC products. Now that should get some sizzle going!
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New retail bin program
LPC has always tried to grab consumer attention in the produce section with our smart, eye-catching packaging. We’re also well underway with a new retail bin program in stores across Canada. These new, bright, colourful display bins can’t be missed, so be sure to tell friends and family who haven’t tried our product where to find them!
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Little Potato of the Month: The Piccolo
Choosing the potato of the month is no easy task. With so many delicious varieties how can you choose just one? This month’s potato variety was picked with summer in mind – a potato that’s at home in the pot, in salads, and on the grill. Only the lustruous, creamy, sinfully smooth Piccolo can do all that – and leave your family and friends asking for more.
Check out our expanded summer potato recipe section for great menu ideas using the Piccolo and LPC’s other delicious varietie
Easy summer entertaining
Brunches, barbeques, picnics, parties, no-fuss everyday suppers – summer gives both the cooking enthusiast and the time-pressed multitasker plenty of opportunities to serve up the best of what the season has to offer. Though one typically doesn’t associate summer with comfort food, there aren’t too many people who don’t love to tuck into a big bowl of potato salad. Stand alone or on the side, potato salad is a welcome addition to almost any gathering and occasion – plus it’s easy to make ahead, can be served cold or room temperature, and is so incredibly versatile. Here are a few fun recipes to add to your repertoire. Bon appétit and pass the chardonnay!
Lemony Potato Salad
A fresh, zesty take on the traditional mayo-based potato salad. Perfect with grilled chicken or fish.
2 pounds Piccolo potatoes
3/4 cup chopped celery (about 3 ribs)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup finely chopped chives
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon sugar
Cover potatoes with water in a large pot and season well with salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer until tender, 12 to 15 minutes.
While potatoes cook, stir together celery, mayonnaise, chives, lemon zest and juice, sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and 3/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl.
Drain potatoes and cool completely, then halve or quarter. Add to dressing and toss to coat.
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Texicana Potato Salad
Did anyone say BBQ? People may just pass on the ribs and opt for seconds of this smoky,slightly spicy potato salad.
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 ears of corn, husked
1 chipotle chile in adobo
2 large red bell peppers
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
3 pounds Amandine potatoes
6 green onions, chopped
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Whisk vinegar and garlic in small bowl. Gradually whisk in olive oil. Season vinaigrette to taste with salt and pepper.
Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Place corn and bell peppers on grill. Cover and grill until corn kernels are tender and bell peppers are blackened on all sides, turning frequently, about 5 minutes for corn and 12 minutes for bell peppers. Transfer vegetables to 2 baking pans. Cover bell peppers; let stand until cool. Cut corn kernels off cobs; transfer to medium bowl. Peel, seed, and coarsely chop bell peppers; add to bowl with corn. DO AHEAD: Vinaigrette and vegetables can be made 1 day ahead. Cover separately; chill. Bring vinaigrette to room temperature and rewhisk before using.
Stir cumin seeds in small dry skillet over medium heat until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Transfer to small bowl; set aside. Cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water just until tender when pierced with knife, about 12-15 minutes. Drain. Rinse under cold water. Drain and cool slightly. Halve potatoes. Transfer to large bowl. Add grilled vegetables and vinaigrette; toss to coat. Add cumin seeds, green onions, and cilantro and toss. Season generously with salt and pepper. Cover; chill at least 2 hours. DO AHEAD: Can be made 8 hours ahead. Keep refrigerated. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
Salmon, olive, bean and
potato salad
Roasted red peppers can be purchased in jars or from the deli section of most grocery stores, or try roasting your own.
1 lb PICCOLO potatoes
8 oz (250g) green beans, trimmed
12 oz (375g) salmon fillet, skin removed
olive oil for brushing on salmon
salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup roasted red peppers, drained and sliced
1/4 cup black sun dried olives
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MAPLE WINE VINAIGRETTE
1/3 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
salt and freshly ground pepper
To make the maple wine vinaigrette, put all ingredients in a jar and shake well until combined.
Cook potatoes in a large pot of salted water over medium-high heat for about 15 minutes or until tender: drain. Cut cooled potatoes into thick slices.
Blanch beans in large saucepan of boiling water for about 2 minutes or until bright green. Place in iced water and let stand for 5 minutes or until cold; drain.
Brush both sides of salmon with oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook in large heated grill or frying pan for 3 to 4 minutes each side, depending on thickness of salmon, until salmon is just cooked. Break salmon into large flakes.
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, drizzle with dressing and toss gently. Serves 4.
Warm potato salad with creamy mustard dressing
This potato salad is as good served cold as it is warm, making it perfect to take on picnics and for barbecues.
CREAMY MUSTARD DRESSING
3 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
1 tablespoon honey
1 garlic clove, minced
salt and freshly ground pepper
WARM POTATO SALAD
2 lbs TERRIFIC TRIO POTATOES
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper
1/3 cup thinly sliced green onions
1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted
To make the creamy mustard dressing, whisk all ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.
To make the potato salad, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 400 F (200 C). Combine potatoes, oil, salt and a pinch of pepper on prepared baking sheet and arrange in a single layer. Roast in preheated oven for about 35 minutes or until golden and tender; cut in half if desired.
Add potatoes to the dressing. Stir in remaining ingredients. Serve warm or chilled. Serves 8.
Click here to learn more about the Piccolo and get some great recipes!
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LPC’s CEO Angela Santiago named Global Television’s Woman of Vision
As LPC fans, many of you are likely aware of the ‘dirt to dynasty’ evolution of The Little Potato Company as it exists today. For those of you who may not know the story, here’s the condensed version:
Angela’s father, Jacob, had an incurable craving for the small creamer potatoes he enjoyed growing up in Holland. Noting that nobody in Canada seemed to be familiar with them, he convinced his |
recently-graduated daughter Angela to test drive a sample crop on a borrowed acre of land. That first harvest was dug and picked by hand, washed in the family bathtub, and sold to customers across Alberta, including the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.
Now with a 30,000 square-foot processing facility from which a half-million small potatoes a week which are shipped to major grocery chains across Canada, ‘the rest is history’, as they may say, but not without significant growing pains along the way. Crop failures, moving the entire operation five times to accommodate growth, investments of hundreds of thousands of dollars to modify processing equipment for a product that heretofore did not exist in North America – these are just some of the logistical hurdles Angela has had to overcome in the last 12 years. And she became a mom of four along the way to boot.
It’s hard not to be proud of a product that has been so well received in Canada, that as CEO and mother Angela knows is convenient, wholesome and nutritious. For Angela, it is also |
tremendously satisfying to have grown the company to the point of being able to give back to the community, donating some 2,000 pounds of potatoes a month to Edmonton’s Food Bank. The experience has also been humbling, with staff from the packing line to management remaining loyal through thick and thin.
Angela’s vision for little potatoes has not slowed down: next step for the company is to open a second processing plant in California to help penetrate the lucrative US marketplace.
Angela has been nominated for and the recipient of numerous business and industry awards of late, but to be named ‘Woman of Vision’ and be in the company of other women whose action and determination have made our community a better place is truly an honour. So once again, our thanks to you, LPC fans, without whose support and encouragement our vision would not have become a reality.
Click here to watch a video and learn more about Angela and The Little Potato Company. |
Canadian potatoes: a thriving industry
Did you know that potatoes are the number one crop in the world? And that Canada is the world’s twelfth largest producer of potatoes, totaling Five million metric tonnes (2006)? They can’t all come from PEI – though most do – but Canadian potato farmers can be found coast to coast, growing dozens of different varieties of potatoes destined to become table potatoes, processed foods, and dehydrated potatoes for export.
So who’s buying all these potatoes? During 2005-2006, the United States accounted for 91% of export value of Canada’s fresh table potato exports. Runners-up, interestingly, were Thailand, Trinidad-Tobago, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Barbados. In the processed potato category, the United States gobbled up 78% of export volume, followed by Japan, Mexico, Venezuela, and China. In all, Canadian fries were shipped to more than 64 countries around the world. |
Mr. Potato Head makes
the Superbowl
For football fans, the Superbowl is the Holy Grail of sporting events. For the rest of us, there is the halftime show – or extravaganza – and billions of dollars worth of new advertising to offset the tedium of the game itself. (In case you didn’t know, special tv ads are produced just for the event,
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and often times advertisers will step outside their comfort zone to generate valuable post-Superbowl street-level buzz).
Lovers of all things potatoes, weren’t we delighted to see Bridgestone poking a little fun at husband and wife road trip dynamics using our hero: the one and only Mr. Potato Head. We’re |
not saying it did anything to boost potato sales, but it was sure fun to see our favourite food included among the glittering ranks of Apple, Budweiser, Coca-Cola and the like.
It’s worth a giggle – you can watch the spot on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IV--ISqrMLs
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