Who are you?

I am a Scottish-Cree from Northern Alberta and member of Sucker Creek First Nation. My mother is a Cardinal (from her paternal side) and my grandmother was a Willier. I have many uncles, aunts and cousins who are also members of Sucker Creek First Nation. I was born in High Prairie, Alberta but moved around a lot, always remaining in Northern Alberta.

Did you grow up making bannock with your mom?

Sadly I did not. When my parents split, my mother moved out and we were relegated to less than yearly visits with her. When we did visit, family and food were always important and these are the memories I choose to keep. I have given my bannock mix to my mom and she absolutely loves it but refuses to make it with anything other than water and lard as her mom made it for her. This makes me happy.

Is this your recipe?

Yes it is. An old friend and I tried many different variations and came up with one that we loved that reminded us the most of the taste I remember from my youth and at many indigenous events. Since then, I have refined it further to truly make it my own recipe.

Why did you start miskamâsowin?

I have been on a very long journey back to reclaiming my heritage. It hasn’t been easy, it hasn’t always been kind but it has been enlightening and fulfilling. I wanted to share a piece of our heritage with other people like me - folks that have lost their community, culture and language whether due to Indian Residential Schools, the Sixties Scoop, intergenerational trauma or others. The response has been phenomenal and it brings me great joy to give them a taste of home that they can easily make themselves.