Sharon Lawrence and Barbara Gregory have forged a friendship through reminiscing about family activities and food traditions. There were the holidays but also the fall harvest, with its pickling and preserving of fruits and vegetables.

 

The two have put their love of storytelling and food together and authored Canadian Culinary Treasures 1867-2017.  The cookbook celebrates Canada’s 150th birthday but, as Lawrence says, it is also to educate people today about “how our ancestors ate, spring, summer, fall and winter … and rekindle some of these skills people don’t know about or have lost.” 

 

She adds the book is a keepsake, and hopefully the recipes will be passed down through the generations. 

 

Gregory jokes they started out with a goal of 100 recipes but Sharon put the push on for 150. 

 

The book, which is available at Pine Reflections in Carnarvon, Wintergreen Maple Syrup and Pancake Barn on Gelert Road and Abbey Gardens off of Highway 118 W, is selling quickly. In addition to locals, it’s making its way to other countries.

 

“Heirloom recipies are the treasures of the kitchen. If you have your grandmother’s recipe box full of stained cards and anecdotes, consider yourself lucky. Recipe cards, instructions on scraps of paper and old cookbooks with notes in the margin are more than just recipes, they are a link to our past and our connection to special people and events,” the two say in the introduction to their book. 

 

 

 

Meanwhile, Lawrence and local cottager, Patricia Miller will be at a book signing at Master’s Book Store in the Village Barn in Haliburton on Canada Day. Both are featured in Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Spirit of Canada: 101 Stories of Love and Gratitude by Amy Newmark and Janet Matthews.

 

This is the second Chicken Soup for the Soul book about Canada's history, but that one did not have any locals featured in it, according to Kathy Stouffer of Master's Book Store.

 

Stouffer also says, "This book is a great way to celebrate Canada's 150." 

The book signing is July 1, from 2-4 p.m.