LCBO Food & Drink Holiday 2021

TRADITIONS

“ I am sharing my Indigenous food knowledge with anyone willing to learn.”

Chef Tawnya Brant is a Kanyen’kehá:ka (Mohawk) woman of the Tekarihoken Turtle clan. She lives on the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory in southern Ontario, where she uses her catering company, Yawékon Foods, and YouTube channel (youtube.com/tawnyalbrant) to share her work in the Indigenous food sovereignty movement. “My family makes these pancakes and wintergreen sun tea for the winter solstice,” she says. “Haudenosaunee [the name by which the Iroquois/Six Nations often refer to themselves] have a large variety of corn and squash they use for many dishes.” They’re harvested along with walnuts during autumn for the winter months. Chef Brant’s blue corn and pumpkin pancakes are a delicious mid-winter dish that connects us to the harvest. Tawnya Brant, chef and owner of Yawékon Foods cheftawnyabrant.com

BLUE CORN, PUMPKIN &WALNUT PANCAKES

Recipe on page 252

From the chef’s kitchen

Four Ontario chefs go back to their roots to share heritage-inspired dishes that offer a personal taste of home.

By Amy Rosen | photography by james tse

Canada is home to countless cultures with delicious holiday traditions, so we asked the chefs featured here to share their signature festive dishes with us. From Indigenous pancakes and Panamanian tamals to Hakka croquettes and Indian biryani, it’s time to cook up some new holiday traditions this year.

PORTRAIT BY LISA MACINTOSH

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FOOD & DRINK HOLIDAY 2021