A French-Canadian Christmas

Written by LizG of Bits 'n Bites.

As Christmas decorations appear on street lamps and in store aisles, and the weather turns cold and damp, hardy stews and other comfort foods are replacing summer fare on the table. The holiday season offers a time to reconnect with friends, family and traditions. I was born and raised in Trois-Rivières, in the province of Québec, Canada. My childhood memories of that time of year include walking in the cold winter air, way past my bedtime, to sing in the midnight mass choir, then coming home to a slice of hot tourtière (meat pie) and cretons (pork paté) on saltine crackers. On Christmas day, my mother would prepare the turkey or the ham for dinner, with pea soup or a small serving of ragoût de pattes (pork hock stew) as an appetizer and bûche de noël (yule log) or tarte au sucre (sugar pie) for dessert. Looking back at it, I’m a little amazed at the meat and sugar content, but these were different times. Life was definitely more active.

We walked to school and played outside everyday and winters were colder; at least, from what I remember. Quebec’s heritage is closely tied to the land. Agriculture and forestry were originally major economic drivers. The diet reflected this, filling hard working stomachs with warm and hearty foods, with a good dose of sugar. Quebecers are known for their sweet tooth. A stat used to float around that Laura Secord stores, a popular candy store (hum…butterscotch lollipops) in Quebec, consistently outsold stores in other provinces. Now the chain seems to be present mainly in Quebec.

I moved to the Westcoast over a decade ago, and though the climate is milder, come this time of year, I look forward to digging into a steaming bowl of ragout and tasting my mom’s tourtière once more. The holidays just don’t feel complete without these dishes. A couple of years ago, I went back east to visit mom and to cook these dishes with her. It was time to pass on this family tradition. It was a blast cooking with my mom and the results were even more delicious. This year mom is visiting for the holidays, so I decided to make the stew on my own. It’s a fairly lengthy process and takes some planning, but the results are sooo worth it.

Classic French Canadian Winter Dishes

Pea Soup

Translated from Jehane Benoit’s dans sa cuisine (1955) cookbook, a classic in Québécois cooking literature

4 tbsps shortening/lard
1 big onion, thinly sliced2 cups dried peas, washed and soaked in water for 2 hours
8 cups of water
1 tbsp salt
1 small piece of lemon peel
½ - 1 tsp of savory spice

Melt shortening/lard in a large pot. Add onions and cook until golden. Add soaked peas, water salt, lemon peel and savory spice. Cover and simmer for 2 hours, until peas are cooked through. For a creamy soup, process in a food processor or with an immersive blender.

Cretons

A pork-based spread. Source: Jehane Benoît

1 lb minced pork, lean
1 cup milk
1 cup bread crumbs (or dried bread, finely chopped)
1 onion, finely chopped to taste,
Salt to taste,
Pepper to taste,
cloves, grounded to taste,
cinnamon, grounded

Instructions:

Mix all ingredients in a saucepan. Cover and cook for 1 hour on low heat. Stir once or twice during cooking time. Store in containers. Can be frozen.

Ragout de pattes de cochon
(Pigs feet stew)

Recipe here.

Tarte au sucre
(Sugar Pie)

1 cup of brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon flour

Mix ingredients in bowl until smooth. Throw in a frozen pie crust and bake at 400F for 30 minutes. Serve with vanilla ice cream. It tastes even better cold, the day after.

Please check out our previous Holiday Articles where you'll find great gift giving ideas (ideas for next year! hee!) excellent recipes, and wonderful stories about Christmas in Italy, Germany and a tourist's view of Christmas in Berlin, Prague and Vienna (with bonus Glühwein recipe!) ENJOY!