Maximize Your Summer Menu with Artisanal Provisions

Whether you want your summer menu to encourage a kickback ambiance or you’d like to feature items with a little extra kick, Artisanal Provisions expert Roland Ulrich is back with his top five summer product picks to differentiate your dishes. With just slight menu modifications and enhancements using these specialty ingredients you can add value to drinks, appetizers, desserts and specials (D.A.D.S.) to improve customer experience while increasing the transaction average.

These smoky, buttery, tender and juicy artichokes are the essence of summer. They are perfect tossed in salads and pasta or on pizza. Divina artichokes stand well on their own topped with Parmesan, parsley and a squeeze of lemon or simply served cold with a lemon Aioli.

Beautifully layered much like the Entrada Sandstone of the Canyonlands, this Utah cheddar is tumbled with Hatch Chiles and complex flavors. Red Butte is creamy yet smoky, thanks to New Mexico Hatch Chiles in the paste, and the coriander in the rind rub gives it a mellow lemony undertone. Applications are equally delicious on cheese boards, sandwiches and burgers.

Despite their small size, Del Destino Fire Roasted Piquillo Peppers are more akin to bell peppers than chili peppers. They are first roasted over embers, giving them a distinct sweet and spicy flavor. After being peeled, they are grilled again for extra flavor then marinated with salt, pepper and olive oil, and de-seeded by hand. Piquillo peppers are often stuffed with meat, seafood or cheese and served as tapas.

Unlike traditional clotted creams, Devon cream is smoother and less buttery in texture. Made in England from fresh cow’s milk, Coombe Castle Double Devon Cream contains 48% milk fat. It’s hearty enough to use as a butter substitute and has no preservatives or artificial flavors. Pour it over fresh summer fruits and puddings, or whip and pipe onto cakes and other desserts. It’s also incredible simply spread on a warm scone. However you use it, Coombe Castle Double Devon Cream adds the perfect finishing touch to sweets and treats.

Cordillera means “mountain range” and being named as such, this chocolate pays tribute to the rich soil of Latin America countries. That’s where this brand’s cacao beans are hand-harvested using sustainable practices. Cordillera’s 59% bittersweet chocolate stands out for its notes of almonds and hazelnuts, and aromas of flowers and fruit. Ideal uses include chocolate preparations such as bonbons, ganache, brownies, cakes and fillings.