Tasty patriotism for Canada Day
Monday, June 30, 2008 | 01:34 PM ET
by Jessica Wong, CBCNews.ca
On Canada Day, many will take a moment to ponder what defines our country.
The Dominion Institute — the national, charitable institute that thinks about this issue year-round — has started the ball rolling with its national survey of Canada's cultural touchstones (unsurprisingly, perhaps, finding the maple leaf to be our defining symbol).
Heading to a friend's BBQ on Sunday afternoon, I laughed as a local rock radio host riffed on the survey and polled his listeners on "Who would make Canada's ideal rock 'n' roll ambassador?" (He eventually chose Neil Young).
When you think about it, this brand of patriotism can extend to every avenue, including the food world.
For instance, two Canadian bloggers have called on their blogosphere colleagues and readers to answer the following: "Which foods and drinks — savoury or sweet — say 'Canada' to you?"
The question put out to food bloggers and readers: What foods or drinks say 'Canada' to you? (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press).
"Is it the first meal you had when you landed at Pearson? Can it be found in the handwritten notes your grandmother brought with her when she docked at Pier 21?" asks Jasmine of the blogs Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Sensual Gourmet.
"What about the local food co-op that brings local, organically grown food to its members? Do the memories of the meat pies, smothered in gravy at your hometown's little ma and pa diner immediately spring to mind? Do you think Canada tastes like one of our many craft breweries or wineries?"
Both Jasmine and fellow blogger Jennifer of The Domestic Goddess will post their compilation of entries, of course, on July 1.
Unlike the other lists, I get the feeling that these two round-ups will be less about winning or losing and more about celebrating memories and stories.
Personally, I'm looking forward to being introduced to new "tastes" — or perhaps being reminded of classics — that will make me proud to be Canadian.
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From trends and culture to politics and nutrition, Food Bytes serves up tasty tidbits about food and the issues surrounding it that flavour our everyday lives.
About the writers
Amber Hildebrandt writes for CBCNews.ca in Toronto. Growing up on a farm in Manitoba, she acquired an insatiable appetite, but it was during a stint in Japan that she developed her discerning tastebuds and "foodie" ways.
Andrea Chiu is an associate producer at CBC Radio Digital. Though she loves to eat, cook and discuss food,
don't ask her to bake. It never turns out well. She tweets as @TOfoodie on Twitter and organizes food and wine events in Toronto called FoodieMeet.
Tara Kimura is the consumer life reporter for CBCNews.ca, covering a wide range of issues that range from rising food costs and the growing organic movement, to new trends in the marketplace.
Andree Lau is a CBC web reporter in Calgary. Her journalism career includes seven years as a CBC-TV reporter. Her own blog called "are you gonna eat that?" chronicles her eating adventures (including sampling snake and camel hoof tendon).
Jessica Wong is a CBCNews.ca writer who loves to eat and cook, as well as discuss, read and watch programming about food, sometimes all at once.
Kevin Yarr, CBCNews.ca's writer in Prince Edward Island, wrote about food and beer for national and regional magazines before joining the CBC. He acquired a desire for new tastes on his first trip to Europe, and an appreciation of eating locally and in season when he finally settled down on P.E.I.
Elizabeth Bridge is a writer with the CBC Digital Archives in Toronto. She first ventured into the kitchen as a child to indulge a sweet tooth by baking cookies and making fudge. A student budget compelled her to be a vegetarian (for a while) and instilled in her an ongoing curiosity about food and cooking.
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Comments
jasmine
Canada
Jessica, `
Thanks for the links to the Mmm...Canada events. We had good response from Canadians, expats and (as we declared them) honorary Canadians--somewhere in the 60-70 range.
And you are quite right, our events aren't competitions or conests...we just wanted to celebrate our nation with food and memories.
jasmine
Confessions of a Cardamom Addict
Posted July 1, 2008 09:45 PM