Canada Dinner

Simangele Mabena

A traditional Canadian Dinner? What’s that? These are the questions non-Canadian friends asked me (and truth be told, some Canadian friends too!). 

With four Canadians at the helm of the cooking, it was sure to be a feast of note. The first thing I noticed in the kitchen that Friday morning was the amount of chopped vegetables on the counter. The vegetarian in me skipped a beat…Vegetables! The most astonishing thing was the orange and red AND yellow carrots! Who knew? 

Josh and Jeeshan working on the duck

 Now cooking for close to twenty people is a challenge in itself, even for four people, so a few of us helped out in the kitchen cooking meals that were foreign to us. I know they say many cooks spoil the broth, but it was awesome having four head chefs with a group of sous chefs on hand! The feast prepared was worth all the hours of preparation – the scholars and guests were in for a treat. 


Before the festivities began, we went about preparing the dining area by decorating it with the Canadian flag, red and white table decorations and, thanks to Stephanie, Canadian and Quebec flag tattoos. It was quite a sight, seeing groups of people huddles around each other helping to put tattoos on faces, hands and arms in celebrating the Canadian Night. 

By the time it was time to eat, we were greeted by roast duck; salmon with maple syrup, stuffed peppers, stuffing, and salads…it was a feast indeed! 
After everyone had had a plateful, it was wonderful to hearing interesting Canadian historical facts from the Sauvé Scholars Board Member, Nancy Wright. 
 The evening continued with the scholars exchanging thoughts about Canada. Some interesting (and funny) things that came up in describing Canada:

·         Cold,   -30degrees,  Safe,  Maple leaf, Maple Syrup, Eh!, Polite, Celine Dion, Hockey,  Moose.

A Canadian feast would not be complete without dessert and was it a showstopper! The selection of apple crumble, angel food cake with strawberries in the shape of a maple leaf, parfait and the all-important pumpkin pie was a great end to the evening. Needless to say, everyone nearly rolled home as a result of eating so much food but it was a fun night for everyone. Here’s the next National Dinner!


                                              Canadian Dinner in Pictures!

Simangele helping decorate Yimin's face with Canadian flag tattoos

Esmeal (with Charlotte) displaying tattoos on his face

Truly delicious cake!