The Festival du Voyageur has begun! This week our whole school will be enjoying a taste of pea soup, bannock and maple syrup. Thank you to the many parent volunteers who have made this possible.

If are not are able to make it to the Festival du Voyageur as a family to taste some of the French Canadian delicacies, why not try some at home? Here is a recipe for pea soup that was posted on this blog in previous years:

Pea soup

1 pound dried split peas, approximately 2 1/4 cups (I used green split peas. Sort through and check them as occasionally there are small stones that need to be removed!)

8 cups water

1 large onion, chopped (about one cup)

1 cup finely chopped celery

1 smoked pork hock (I purchased some from Miller's Meats; one ham bone with a bit of meat on it is an alternative)

3 medium carrots

1/4 tsp pepper
1 heaping tsp or more of summer savory

salt and maple syrup to taste

Rinse the peas. Bring peas and 8 cups of water to a boil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Boil uncovered two minutes; remove from heat. Cover and let stand for one hour.

Stir in onion, celery and pepper. Add pork hock/ham bone. Heat to boiling, then reduce heat and cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until peas are tender.

Remove pork hocks/ham bone. Remove meat, cutting it in 1/2" pieces. Stir meat and carrots into soup. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer until carrots are tender and soup is of desired consistency, adding salt to taste.

Students, don't forget to dress up in your best tuque and plaid shirt Wednesday. During chapel we will be singing the Voyageur song. Will the "oui, oui, oui" or the "non, non, non" voyageurs be the loudest?

Enjoy this Festival du Voyageur promo:

Festival du Voyageur

Why do we have the Festival du Voyageur? Here's some historical background from the National Film Board:

History of the Voyageurs

Now for the hard work I mentioned at the beginning of this blog entry. The Grade 4-6 students are reminded to bring a photo or a drawing of the person that they are featuring in their projects. Grade 7 and 8 students need to complete and bring to class a drawing or prototype of their invention to class on Thursday, Feb. 23. All students will be working on the good copies of their written work.

Finally, où est le drapeau français?