Bear Paws, beaver tails: snacking skaters dig in
Last Updated: Monday, February 11, 2008 | 5:02 PM ET
CBC News
Most skaters on Ottawa's Rideau Canal skateway are familiar with Beavertails, a fried-dough treat sold during Ottawa's annual Winterlude festival from kiosks on the ice.
But this year, some other fried dough snacks — bear paws — are taking a swipe at that tradition.
In 2008, Winterlude is celebrating aboriginal culture in the capital, and has invited more than 100 aboriginal performers to take part in activities that range from throat singing to fish smoking — to frying up some bear paws.
"You can actually find them at a lot of community powwows and events. It was a recipe we had seen online with Cooking with the Wolfman, a cooking show on APTN [Aboriginal Peoples Television Network]," said Trina Mather-Simard, president of Turtle Island Tourism, which organized the aboriginal entertainment at Winterlude.
"We thought people would know what it meant when they thought of Beavertails. They would know it's fried bread."
The snacks, served with a side of blueberry sauce, were popular with skaters over the weekend.
Still, many continued to line up for beaver tails, a fried flatbread snack that's served with toppings such as cinnamon and lemon.
Beavertails may be synonymous with Winterlude, said Chantal Comeau, spokeswoman for the National Capital Commission, Winterlude's organizer.
"But we certainly have room for more traditional treats," she said.
Winterlude runs on weekends from Feb. 1 to 17, featuring attractions such as skating on the Rideau Canal, concerts and snow and ice sculptures.
