Haida Feast...Connections and Stories

by Libby

‘The women of both clans have done a traditional Haida feast for you, Chief Inspector.’ (The Brutal Telling, Kindle, p.420)

Gamache is in the Queen Charlotte Islands pursuing some possible connections to the murder investigation in Three Pines; with a trail of references to 'Charlotte', Woo' (and by association, the artist Emily Carr) and the Hermit's red cedar carvings all pointing to the Islands. It seems quite a leap of faith to Beauvoir who disapproves, in his inimitable way.

We have plenty of clues to follow without thinking about a monkey, a hunk of wood and some godforsaken island the hell and gone across the country.’ (The Brutal Telling, Kindle, p.410) 

I love a feast, being able to pick and choose and sample a variety of savoury and sweet foods. I really enjoying putting one on, too. I guess it's my way of making a fuss of others. We always hold a feast in the new year to celebrate our connection to certain friends, and to look forward to the possibilities of the next twelve months. I also like the challenge of discovering and experimenting with different flavours and dishes, and broadening my culinary horizons.

The Haida feast is one I would have happily attended, full of bounty from the sea. I live in a coastal area that has an abundance of seafood, too. And crabs are in season right now. So I decided to make the crab cakes that were offered at the feast. Crab meat (I used blue swimmer crabs) has a delicate taste that is easily overpowered so it's best not to be heavy handed with other ingredients. Lightly fried, the crab cakes go well with a mayonnaise or savoury dipping sauce.

Hmmm...I might have got carried away with the photographs for this post, but they do help to explain things at a glance!

Crab cakes

250g/9oz of crab meat (I used 4 freshly cooked crabs)

1 tablespoon of chopped coriander leaves/cilantro

1 tablespoon of finely chopped spring onion

1 egg, lightly mixed with a fork

1 tablespoon of crème fraîche

½ teaspoon of lime juice

½ teaspoon of fish sauce

1 cup of fresh breadcrumbs

¼ cup of extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon of unsalted butter

Sorry, I only need 4 crabs!

1.  Combine all the ingredients except the breadcrumbs and oil/butter.

 
 2.  Shape the mixture into cakes and coat each one with breadcrumbs. 

The fresh breadcrumbs make all the difference. They give a light, crunchy coating when fried.
 

 

3.  Refrigerate for at least an hour for the cakes to 'set'. 

4.  Heat the oil/butter over medium heat and fry the cakes until browned on both sides. Adjust the heat if necessary.

They need less than two minutes on each side. Drain on kitchen paper.  

Serve with your choice of dipping sauce.

Dipping sauce  

I made a light Vietnamese sauce that has a lovely flavour balance of sweet/sour/salty/hot (easy on the chilli, though) that works very well with the crab.

1½ tablespoons of fish sauce

1½ tablespoons of rice vinegar

1 tablespoon of sugar

¼ cup of water

1 tablespoon of lime juice

1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
half a small red chilli, finely sliced

Stir the fish sauce, rice vinegar, sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and simmer point is reached. Cool and then add the lime juice, garlic and chilli, to taste.

These crab cakes are ideal as a starter or appetiser, and they can be made well ahead of time. But I don't think you can beat eating a crab, simply straight from the shell! 

Gamache's entree to the Haida community provides an insight to their connection to the land, their totem art, their fight to stop the decimation of their ancient forests through logging and their continuing protection of the wilderness and their culture.

'The sea feeds our bodies, but that feeds our souls.’ He opened his hands in a simple, small gesture towards the forest. (The Brutal Telling, Kindle, p.429)

It is through learning about the Haida totems, and the stories and history they document in an 'ordered way', that Gamache is able to make a connection to the Hermit's carvings, recognising that they too have an order, that a story is being told, with the power to convey feelings of fear, hope, betrayal.

This murder was about fear. And the lies it produced. But, more subtly, it was about stories. The tales people told the world, and told themselves. The Mythtime and the totems, that uneasy frontier between fable and fact. And the people who fell into the chasm. (The Brutal Telling, Kindle, p.470)

The ramifications are resounding.

At any feast there is always dessert to consider...among other things.  

Over cake, fresh bumbleberries and Cool Whip Gamache told them about the murder.  (The Brutal Telling, Kindle, p.420)

I like to make a bit of a fuss with desserts, as we normally don't eat them on a day-to-day basis. They're always a little bit special! I love their aesthetic possibilities; the play of flavours and textures, the look. I couldn't resist making this dessert, but I could certainly resist the Cool Whip (13 ingredients, highly processed). 

My take on this dessert is a sponge, filled and covered with a mix of pure cream and home-made mascarpone (which is actually a coagulated cream and easy to make) and punchy flavoured berries and currants. I used blueberries and strawberries but also added white and red currants, because I had some fruiting in pots in my garden. I also wanted to have a slightly tart contrast to the sweeter berries.

Sponge cake with mascarpone cream and berries 

Let's eat cake!!

Sponge cake 

The trick to getting a sponge to be light, rise and hold its shape is mostly in the beating of the eggs. I've tried a number of different recipes and techniques but this is the one I favour. I'm not even sure where I got it from. I made just one sponge cake and then halved it, to add the filling. Alternatively, you can make two smaller cakes. 

6 free range eggs, at room temperature 

185g/6.5oz caster/superfine sugar*

165g/6oz all purpose flour

1 teaspoon vanilla extract, or use caster sugar* that has been stored with vanilla beans in it

Zest of one lemon 

 1.  Lightly butter a springform tin or other cake tin/s and line with baking paper. Pre-heat the oven to 170C/340F.

 2.  Starting on low speed, whisk the eggs with the sugar until well combined.

3.  Turn up the speed to medium and continue whisking for several minutes until thick and creamy, and any bubbles have reduced to a very small size.

4.  Add the lemon zest and vanilla and continue whisking until the mixture is glossy and falls in ribbons. Sieve the flour onto a sheet of baking paper and then pour half into the creamed mixture.  

5.  Very gently fold in with a spatula until all the flour is incorporated. Repeat with the other half. Pour gently into the prepared cake tin/s.

6.  Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or 20 to 25 minutes if you are using two cake tins. 

Mascarpone

I made the mascarpone in the morning and it was ready in the afternoon.

1.  Heat 300ml/10.5fl oz of pouring cream/single cream (35% milk fat) in a saucepan and bring to a simmer.

2.  Add 3/4 tablespoon of fresh strained lemon juice and cook for 1 minute, stirring over medium heat. 

3.  Remove from the heat and cool completely. 

4.  Pour into a muslin-lined strainer that is perched over a bowl, to drain. Refrigerate for several hours. Discard the liquid.

Mascarpone and cream 

1.  Use a spatula to gently mix together 300ml/10.5fl oz of mascarpone with 300ml/10.5fl oz of pure cream that has been lightly whipped. 

2. Fold in 2 tablespoons of sifted icing/powdered sugar and the seeds of one vanilla bean. 

 Blackcurrant spread 

This adds an intensely rich, sweet flavour to the dessert in contrast to the berries and tangy currants.

Gently warm half a cup of blackcurrant jam (I used a jam full of whole blackcurrants...yum!) until it melts. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Add two tablespoons of Crème de Cassis (blackcurrant liqueur) and mix to a spreadable consistency. Its deep, concentrated flavour is an important element in this dessert. 

Mixed berries 

Mix together a selection of in-season, unsweetened berries/currants of your choice. Slice any larger berries. 

Assembling the sponge

Spread the bottom half of the cake with the blackcurrant spread. Add a thick layer of mascarpone cream and then a generous layer of mixed berries. 

Sandwich with the other half of the cake and then cover the entire cake with the remaining mascarpone cream. Heap all the remaining berries into a generous mound on top of the cake. Simple but gorgeous! Refrigerate, then take out 20 minutes before serving.

Cut into big, fat generous slices! There's a wonderful explosion of flavour contrasts in this dessert.

What was interesting for me about this episode in the Queen Charlotte Islands, were the revelations about the Canadian artist, Emily Carr. It was amazing how she ventured alone into the wilderness and expressed her responses to it, the ancient forests, and the First Nation people in Haida Gwaii (the Queen Charlotte Islands), with a unique 'voice'. The stories she had to tell through her works were powerful, persuasive and inspirational.

... Carr, the woman who had captured Canada’s shame, not by painting the displaced, broken people, but by painting their glory. (The Brutal Telling, Kindle, p.383)

She worked mostly in isolation and with great originality, developing a modernistic, boldly coloured style with simplified forms, that eschewed a literal representation of what she observed and experienced. 

Here is a little background and some of Carr's works across three decades, at a glance.

http://rusart.ca/history/carr.php

https://www.vanartgallery.bc.ca/collection_and_research/emily_carr.html

I like that Clara takes inspiration and strength from Emily Carr's conviction to pursue her art alone and in the face of hostility. It is quite apt at a time when Clara is feeling cast out in the wilderness. And it's a neat connection when Clara gets another opportunity to exhibit following a chance meeting with Therese Brunel at Emily Carr's statue in Montreal. 

Further research of Emily Carr has opened up, for me, a fascinating journey into Canadian modernist painting in the first three decades of the 20th century. I’ve particularly engaged with those works inspired by the Canadian landscape and rural life, innovative in their style and 'language', and alive with the richness and boldness of their colour, and unique and compelling sense of Canadian identity. 

I'm impressed, and even more so since having recently viewed quite a selection of these works, including those of the leading Quebecois artists at that time, in the Musée Des Beaux-Arts Montreal! Wonderful!!

And I'm reminded of the power of stories, to inspire, provide us with new connections and understandings, and broaden our outlook...and just how transformative they can be. 

Thank you Louise Penny.