Mitji-Let's Eat!

The welcome call of "Mitji" can be heard by Mi'kmaw children, hungry workers, family, and friends when dinner is ready. This book, too, is an invitation to celebrate and practice Mi'kmaq foodways: the recipes passed down from one generation to the next; the way traditional foods and medicines are gathered, hunted, and cooked; and the lived experience of ancestors and Elders about how to nourish the spirit and body through Mi'kmaw culture and knowledge. Mitji-Let's Eat! Mi'kmaq Recipes from Sikniktuk offers over 30 traditional and popular Mi'kmaq recipes, arranged seasonally-like Fish Cakes and Eel Stew in spring; Blueberry "Poor Man's Cake" and Stuffed Salmon in summer; Swiss Steak with Moose Meat and Apple Pie in fall; and Molasses Cake and Wiusey Petaqn in winter. Each recipe is contextualized with its origins, contributor information, food stories, and detailed preparation instructions, and throughout the book are short essays on Mi'kmaw cuisine, drawing a picture of how Mi'kmaq foodways were influenced by colonization, on the one hand, and how food became and remains a significant vehicle of resistance, on the other. Whether a novice or well-seasoned cook, Mitji is a feast for the reader: a bountiful introduction to, and celebration of, Mi'kmaw cuisine.

Margaret Augustine was born in Malta and first made a connection with Atlantic Canada when she started her Master's degree in Island Studies at the University of Prince Edward Island, which is where she met her now-husband, Dr. Patrick Augustine, of Elsipogtog First Nation. Margaret has been a community member in Elsipogtog for many years. There, she has taught in the Aotiitj programme, which is destined for youth interested in pursuing higher education at St. Thomas University, and she has spent much time among the Elders in the community learning from their wisdom.