By Erin Trainer
WEST KELOWNA – “Don’t panic, we have bannock!” Bannock? There’s a good chance the last time you heard that word you were a kid sitting in your social studies class, or around a campfire. Sharon Bond, the owner of Kekuli Aboriginal Café in West Kelowna, has built her brand around those childhood memories. Her restaurant is one of a handful of eateries in B.C. that serves up bannock. It’s a tasty, versatile flat bread with cultural significance, and a flavour that compliments just about anything, or satisfies as a treat on its own.
Precious memories of bannock are one of the reasons Sharon decided to open Kekuli in 2007. Sharon is a member of the Nooaitch First Nation near Merritt. The aroma of her mother’s fresh bannock brings back feelings of comfort and happiness – the kind of good vibe she aims to recreate in her café. At Kekuli, she’s created a menu of homemade food that incorporates you guessed it - bannock.
For centuries, the bread has been a staple in the First Nations diet. Traditionally, they would make a more rustic version by grinding up available ingredients including roots or corn and mixing it with syrup (made from sap) and berries. Some rolled the dough in sand (to protect it from dirt), and cooked it in an open pit (brushing off the sand before eating it.) Others baked it in clay or rock ovens, or cooked it over a fire.
When the first Europeans arrived in North America, they brought their own styles of bannock, and introduced Aboriginal people to flour, cast-iron frying pans and leavening agents. Many of their recipes originated in Scotland, where bannock was made from oatmeal, barley or flour, and baked on a griddle. Today, First Nations bannock recipes are a blend of traditional and European influences. Sharon says the bread is served at family gatherings or potlatches, and is usually fried.
Every day, Kekuli staff mix enough dough to create between 300 and 600 pieces of bannock. By hand, they cut out each piece on a large maple wood board. The bannock then goes to into a deep fryer for a few minutes, before it cools and is ready to eat.
Kekuli’s bannock is made from the five basic ingredients with no preservatives or additives. Many customers enjoy bannock with their coffee because it contains less fat than most doughnuts and muffins. Sharon says just about anyone can make the bread – but it’s the right combination of flour, sugar, water, salt and baking soda that sets apart the good from the bad. After much trial and error, she’s developed her best tasting recipe – something her parents would be proud of.
Most of the bannock Kekuli sells is plain, but Sharon is always coming up with new toppings to delight her regulars. The most popular, and my favourite, is the cinnamon coating. The bannock is coated in sugar and spice moments after its deep fryer bath – creating the most mouth-watering combination of sweetness, steaminess and chewiness. Other toppings include Saskatoon berry, huckleberry cream cheese and maple nut. There are no rules. If there’s a jam in the cupboard or a spice on the rack, she’ll give it a try.
Sharon’s relationship with bannock benefits her in two ways. It allows her to raise awareness about her culture, and build a brand that sets her apart from others. The latter is incredibly important, especially when running a small business in a city monopolized by big box stores. Not to be deterred, Sharon has carved out a niche for her product, promoting her café as the place to get “bannock,” an affordable lunch, and friendly customer service. Authenticity is one thing those “big guys” can never replicate.
Kekuli Aboriginal Café – 505-3041 Louie Drive, West Kelowna, BC V4T 3E2
(250) 768-3555
You can find recipes for bannock at:
http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/rsi/fnb/fnb.htm
For centuries, the bread has been a staple in the First Nations diet. Traditionally, they would make a more rustic version by grinding up available ingredients including roots or corn and mixing it with syrup (made from sap) and berries. Some rolled the dough in sand (to protect it from dirt), and cooked it in an open pit (brushing off the sand before eating it.) Others baked it in clay or rock ovens, or cooked it over a fire.
When the first Europeans arrived in North America, they brought their own styles of bannock, and introduced Aboriginal people to flour, cast-iron frying pans and leavening agents. Many of their recipes originated in Scotland, where bannock was made from oatmeal, barley or flour, and baked on a griddle. Today, First Nations bannock recipes are a blend of traditional and European influences. Sharon says the bread is served at family gatherings or potlatches, and is usually fried.
Every day, Kekuli staff mix enough dough to create between 300 and 600 pieces of bannock. By hand, they cut out each piece on a large maple wood board. The bannock then goes to into a deep fryer for a few minutes, before it cools and is ready to eat.
Kekuli’s bannock is made from the five basic ingredients with no preservatives or additives. Many customers enjoy bannock with their coffee because it contains less fat than most doughnuts and muffins. Sharon says just about anyone can make the bread – but it’s the right combination of flour, sugar, water, salt and baking soda that sets apart the good from the bad. After much trial and error, she’s developed her best tasting recipe – something her parents would be proud of.
Most of the bannock Kekuli sells is plain, but Sharon is always coming up with new toppings to delight her regulars. The most popular, and my favourite, is the cinnamon coating. The bannock is coated in sugar and spice moments after its deep fryer bath – creating the most mouth-watering combination of sweetness, steaminess and chewiness. Other toppings include Saskatoon berry, huckleberry cream cheese and maple nut. There are no rules. If there’s a jam in the cupboard or a spice on the rack, she’ll give it a try.
Sharon’s relationship with bannock benefits her in two ways. It allows her to raise awareness about her culture, and build a brand that sets her apart from others. The latter is incredibly important, especially when running a small business in a city monopolized by big box stores. Not to be deterred, Sharon has carved out a niche for her product, promoting her café as the place to get “bannock,” an affordable lunch, and friendly customer service. Authenticity is one thing those “big guys” can never replicate.
Kekuli Aboriginal Café – 505-3041 Louie Drive, West Kelowna, BC V4T 3E2
(250) 768-3555
You can find recipes for bannock at:
http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/rsi/fnb/fnb.htm
