Mabel Johnson: Preserving Canadian Prairie Culinary Heritage Through Pickled Beets and Farm-to-Table Recipes

Embark on a culinary journey into the heart of the Canadian prairies, exploring the timeless traditions and remarkable legacy of Mabel Johnson, a true Canadian food hero. This article celebrates her inspiring life, unwavering dedication to her community, and her invaluable contributions to traditional Canadian cooking. Join us as we delve into her story, learn about her life as a Northern Alberta pioneer woman, and discover two of her most cherished recipes: classic old-fashioned pickled beets and comforting creamed garden vegetables. These dishes are more than just food; they are a testament to a generation’s resilience and a delicious connection to our culinary past. Or skip directly to the recipes.

The Canadian Food Experience Project: August Edition

The Canadian Food Experience Project, launched on June 7, 2013, invites participants to share their diverse food stories from across Canada’s vast landscape. Through these collective regional culinary experiences, we aim to articulate and define Canada’s unique food identity on a global stage, expressed through a unified Canadian voice. We invite you to be a part of this ongoing exploration. This month, our focus shines brightly on a remarkable individual who embodies the spirit of Canadian culinary heritage:

A Northern Alberta Canadian Food Hero: Mabel Johnson

Not all heroes don capes and possess superpowers, nor do they all perform dramatic acts of rescue in burning buildings or war zones. Many heroes walk among us, quietly and selflessly dedicating their lives to serving others, nourishing both bodies and spirits. Mabel Ann Johnson, a pioneer woman from Northern Alberta, is one such hero. She stands as a proud representative of all farm wives and countless other pioneer women whose tireless efforts and unwavering spirit were instrumental in shaping Canada into the nation it is today. Coincidentally, Mabel is also my cherished mother-in-law.

At 88 years young, Mabel has accumulated an extraordinary lifetime of contributions to the food culture of the small farming communities of Valhalla Centre and Hythe in Northern Alberta. Born in 1925, Mabel grew up in an era when travel was by horse and buggy, water was drawn by hand and heated on a woodstove, and feeding a farm family was an intensive, year-round commitment for every hardworking farm wife. These domestic duties were often in addition to significant labor performed outdoors in the fields and barns. Her life reflects a period of profound change and resilience, where self-sufficiency was not just a skill, but a way of life.

When asked about her earliest cooking memories, Mabel humbly stated, “I never really cooked when I was a child. Mama was such a good cook, she did it all herself, with the help of my oldest sister. I had to help outside, doing chores and tending the garden.” It wasn’t until her marriage at age 20, when she began raising her own family, that Mabel truly started cooking. Yet, she seemingly inherited her mother’s incredible culinary talents, quickly becoming a natural and highly creative cook, driven by necessity and a burgeoning passion.

Mabel’s sprawling garden is nothing short of legendary in her Northern Alberta community. For an impressive 65 years, she and her husband, Marvin (now 92), have meticulously planted between 700 to 1000 hills of potatoes annually, a number that soared even higher when their seven children were still living at home. Alongside potatoes, countless rows of carrots, peas, beans, and various other vegetables flourished under their care. For over three decades, Mabel and Marvin have generously shared their garden’s abundance, donating sacks upon sacks of fresh produce to needy families in the area every fall. Mabel continues to preserve hundreds of jars of canned fruits, vegetables, and jams each year, ensuring a steady supply of homegrown goodness. Their home, especially their table, has always been a beacon of hospitality, welcoming any visitor, traveler, or worker fortunate enough to be in the area during mealtime. During the years of raising their growing family, summers often saw numerous nieces and nephews arrive at the farm to spend their school holidays, affectionately described by Marvin as coming “to Auntie Mabel’s to fatten up.“

Mabel, alongside Marvin, has been the primary provider and preparer of almost all the food consumed by her family over the decades. This formidable task included raising and butchering chickens, turkeys, pigs, and cattle, processing and canning moose and deer hunted by Marvin, and foraging for wild berries, all in addition to meticulously tending her expansive gardens. They were true homesteaders, clearing the land that became their farm and yard. Their garden has thrived in the same spot for 65 years, consistently producing enough bounty to feed their large family and generously supply half the surrounding countryside, truly embodying the spirit of self-sufficiency and community sharing.

In 1950, Mabel became a member of the Valhalla Centre group of the Alberta branch of the Women’s Institute (WI), a commitment she has maintained to this day, still hosting yearly meetings in her home. This represents over six decades of dedicated service, upholding the WI motto: ‘For Home and Country.’ Over these many decades, Mabel and the incredible women of this group have catered countless weddings, meticulously organized, prepared, and served a multitude of local functions and dinners. These fundraising efforts were vital for supporting their community and the WI organization, providing funds for children’s groups and programs, and offering aid to numerous families facing hardships and disasters. For many years, Mabel and Marvin have personally supplied all the vegetables for the annual WI harvest supper at the Ashdown Hall every October, and Mabel has baked countless pies, generously donating them to this event and every other community function, solidifying her reputation as a pillar of community support.

Beyond the Women’s Institute, Mabel and Marvin have also regularly volunteered their time, typically every few months for many years, cooking for the Hythe Legion’s fundraising dinners. These dinners support numerous worthwhile community projects. Mabel’s unparalleled skill and extensive experience in cooking for large crowds, combined with Marvin’s talents as the chief potato peeler and cook’s invaluable helper, have been absolutely essential to the success of these cherished community meals. Their joint efforts have ensured that these vital fundraising events are always a resounding success.

In her early 50s, Mabel embraced a new chapter, becoming what some might call an ’emancipated woman’ by venturing into professional work outside the home. For twelve years, she worked as a cook at the Hythe Pioneer Senior’s Home. Her days began bright and early, often rising at 5:00 AM to be at work by 6:00 AM, where she spent full days preparing nourishing meals for over 60 residents. After a demanding workday, she would return home and seamlessly continue her domestic duties, preparing meals for her family in addition to her weekly quota of bread, cinnamon buns, and pies. Once all her responsibilities were met, her preferred forms of ‘relaxation’ included gardening, caring for her chickens, and picking roots in the fields – a testament to her boundless energy and connection to the land.

Mabel’s homemade buns, cinnamon buns, and pies are not merely baked goods; they are legendary creations, revered throughout her community. Conservatively estimating over the past 65 years, she has baked over 65,000 cinnamon buns (with the most recent batch made just last week!) and an astounding 23,000 pies. Of these pies, approximately 7,200 were lovingly prepared for the Pioneer Home residents, with the remainder delighting her family and community members. These impressive figures don’t even account for the countless loaves of bread baked twice-weekly or the regular dinner buns, of which she has made even more than cinnamon buns. The sheer volume of her baking is mind-boggling, a true testament to her lifelong dedication as a one-woman baking virago. Few indeed are the residents of the Valhalla neighborhood who have not savored her delectable baked treats over the years.

What makes Mabel’s baking prowess even more astonishing is that for the last 35 years, she has not been able to taste a single crumb of her own creations. Diagnosed with celiac disease in her fifties, this condition has never deterred her from consistently producing perfectly baked goods, batch after batch, relying solely on her incredible feel and instinct. Now, with several of her children also diagnosed with celiac disease, Mabel has thoughtfully adapted many beloved family recipes to accommodate these new dietary requirements, demonstrating her enduring commitment to nourishing her family.

Beyond her extraordinary culinary skills, Mabel is a woman of many talents and passions. She is a dedicated quilter, having presented a handmade quilt to every member of her own family and to every baby born in the Valhalla community for the past 40 to 50 years. She is also a prolific oil paint artist, with her works having graced local galleries and earned accolades in competitions. To maintain her remarkable fitness, Mabel is an avid walker. For the last three decades, she walked an impressive 3 miles every single day, cross-country skiing the same distance in the winter months. Only in the past three years has she slightly reduced her regimen to approximately 1.5 miles daily, broken into three half-mile sessions. Wearing a pedometer, she consistently strives for a minimum of 5,000 steps per day, and astonishingly, since she began tracking, she has walked a total distance equivalent to more than once around the world!

Mabel is also a profound lover of the written word. For all seven of her children, she instilled a deep appreciation for reading, always making time for books amidst the demanding farm chores. She is the family poet, meticulously chronicling the life of each family member in verse. Two years ago, at the age of 86, Mabel self-published a treasured cookbook and kitchen memoir, with invaluable assistance from her daughter-in-law, Linda. This book features all the family’s favorite recipes, intertwined with anecdotes and thoughtful musings from her 65 years in the kitchen. This invaluable legacy is cherished by all family members and many in the community, destined to be passed down through generations to come.

Observing Mabel in her kitchen is an absolute delight. She is a master of efficiency, moving with a quick, methodical grace, always cleaning her dishes as she works. This ensures that her workspace remains uncluttered, with only the essential supplies for the task at hand. This disciplined approach was honed during her years as a professional cook and continues to define her method in her own home kitchen. Any morning there are guests, one can expect at least one pie cooling, and typically a fresh batch of cinnamon buns and dinner buns in the oven, with the kitchen impeccably tidy, all before the guests have even stirred (I speak from many years of firsthand experience!). She effortlessly orchestrates grand dinners for 40 family members with the same ease and precision she applies to making a simple lunch for herself and Marvin.

Mabel has always taken immense pride in working with the freshest local foods, often homegrown, transforming them into delicious, wholesome meals for her family and neighbors. She often employed remarkable ingenuity to stretch meager ingredients into bountiful feasts. With an open heart, she has generously shared her talents and the fruits of her labor with her family, her community, and any stranger in need. Her creativity and skill with food and cooking have not only served her professionally but have also been her profound way of giving back to her community, making it a better place for everyone she has encountered, and for future generations.

Mabel Johnson truly embodies the strong pioneer spirit of a bygone generation – women who worked tirelessly and selflessly to build lives and communities in often harsh conditions, relying on little more than the skills passed down from previous generations. In their lifetime, they have witnessed more monumental technological changes than almost any other generation, serving as a vital bridge from our past to our future, with invaluable lessons to impart. Mabel has been the epitome of the strong prairie woman throughout her entire life, living as an inspirational example to others, always facing challenges with a radiant smile. When I once remarked on the incredible amount she has accomplished with food and cooking in her life, her simple, heartfelt reply was, “Yup, and I love everything about it.“

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Mabel’s Legendary Pickled Beets: A Prairie Classic

Kitchen Frau Notes: Many pickled beet recipes typically incorporate a mix of vinegar and water, but Mabel’s unique method calls for straight vinegar. One might expect them to be overly sour, but trust me—they achieve a perfect balance: incredibly flavorful and delightfully sweet-sour. Everyone who tastes them falls in love and always asks for more. This recipe produces a vibrant, tangy, and deeply satisfying pickled beet that stands out from the rest.

Mabel meticulously prepares her pickling spice within a muslin cloth bag, a technique that allows for consistent flavor infusion. Remarkably, she reuses this spice bag for multiple batches of pickled beets. When pickling smaller quantities, perhaps just three or four jars at a time, she seals the used spice bag in a small plastic bag and stores it in the freezer until her next batch. This clever approach allows her to reuse the spice bag for up to 12 cups of vinegar, maximizing its flavor output efficiently.

While I often prepare larger batches of pickled beets, I confess to a touch of laziness at times, occasionally adding the pickling spice loose into the brine. When doing so, I use about 1 tablespoon per 6 cups of vinegar, making an effort to distribute some of the spices into each jar with the brine. However, this method can result in less consistent flavor across jars. It also depends on whether those enjoying the beets mind small bits of spices in their jars. Mabel’s elegant method of using a spice bag certainly yields a cleaner, more uniformly flavored product, which is often preferable.

Mabel’s Pickled Beets Recipe

• Fresh beets (various sizes are fine, but sort similar sizes for cooking)
• Good quality pickling spice blend
• Muslin cloth or several layers of cheesecloth
• Cotton kitchen twine
• White vinegar (approximately 1 cup per quart of beets)
• Granulated sugar (approximately 1 cup per quart of beets)
• Salt (1 teaspoon per quart jar)
• Ground black pepper (a few shakes per quart jar)

Instructions for Mabel’s Pickled Beets:

1. Prepare the Beets: Begin by thoroughly scrubbing the beets to clean them. Cut off the leafy tops, ensuring you leave about ¼ inch (.5 cm) of the stem attached. This helps prevent the beets from “bleeding” their color during cooking. In a large pot with a lid, cover the cleaned beets generously with water. Cook the beets until they are tender when pierced with a fork. Cooking time will vary significantly based on the size of the beets; large beets can take up to an hour. For best results, try to cook similarly sized beets together in each batch.
2. Sterilize Jars: While the beets are cooking, sterilize the appropriate number of quart-sized canning jars (or pint jars for smaller servings) that you anticipate needing, plus a few extra for good measure. Keep the sterilized jars hot until ready to use.
3. Prepare the Spice Bag: Cut an approximately 8-inch (20 cm) square from clean, rinsed muslin or several layers of cheesecloth. Place 2 tablespoons of the pickling spice blend in the center of the cloth. Gather the edges to form a secure bundle and tie it tightly with cotton kitchen twine. Trim any excess raw edges of the cloth to about ½ inch (1 cm) to prevent fraying.
4. Make the Brine: In a large saucepan, combine white vinegar and granulated sugar in a 1:1 ratio (e.g., 1 cup vinegar to 1 cup sugar). Each cup of vinegar will yield enough brine for about 1 quart of packed beets, so prepare as much as you think you will need, plus a little extra. Place the prepared muslin bag of pickling spice into the vinegar-sugar mixture. Bring the brine to a rolling boil and let it simmer for two to three minutes to allow the spices to fully infuse their flavor. Carefully squeeze the spice bag against the side of the pot with a spoon to extract maximum flavor, then remove it. You can save the spice bag for future batches by wrapping it and storing it in the fridge for a few days, or in the freezer for longer storage. Keep the hot brine covered and simmering on the stove while you finish preparing the beets. Also, place metal canning lids in a separate pot, cover them with water, bring to a low simmer, and keep them hot.
5. Peel and Pack Beets: Once cooked, drain the beets thoroughly. While they are still as hot as you can comfortably handle them (this makes peeling easier and prevents cooling), slip the skins off with your hands. Cut the peeled beets into large 1 to 1½-inch chunks and tightly pack them into the hot, sterilized canning jars, leaving about 1 inch (2.2 cm) of headspace. Work quickly with one or two jars at a time to maintain their heat.
6. Season and Seal: Working swiftly to prevent the jar from cooling, add 1 teaspoon of salt to each quart jar (or ½ teaspoon if using pint jars). Add a few shakes of ground black pepper to each jar for an extra layer of flavor. Carefully pour the boiling hot vinegar brine over the packed beets, ensuring the beets are completely covered and leaving approximately ½ inch of headspace. Take care not to spill brine onto the rim of the jar. Wipe the rims of the jars thoroughly with a clean cloth rinsed in very hot water to ensure a proper seal. Place the hot metal lids on top and screw on the bands until they are finger-tight.
7. Cool and Store: Set the sealed jars onto a clean tea towel laid out on the counter. Do not move or disturb the jars until they have cooled completely. As the jars cool, you will hear a distinct “pop” as the lids seal, and you’ll observe that the center of the lids will be sucked downward, with no raised area. Any jars that do not seal properly can be stored in the refrigerator and should be consumed within the next few months.
8. Alternative Processing: For an extra layer of safety and extended shelf life, you can also process the jars in a boiling water bath according to standard canning instructions for your specific altitude.

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Mabel’s Creamed Garden Vegetables: A Taste of Summer

Kitchen Frau Notes: When Mabel prepares these delightful creamed vegetables in early summer each year, it serves as a cherished signal to the family that the garden bounty has arrived. Everyone eagerly anticipates this signature dish, which often becomes the main course itself. Mabel frequently makes a huge pot of these tender, young vegetables, served simply alongside freshly baked white dinner buns, a meal that captures the essence of summer’s first harvest.

In earlier days, when Mabel and Marvin had their own dairy cows and delivered fresh cream to the Valhalla store, Mabel naturally made this dish with rich, fresh cream. Today, she uses canned evaporated milk, and the results are equally delicious and comforting, proving that adaptability is key in traditional cooking while still maintaining incredible flavor.

Mabel’s Creamed Garden Vegetables Recipe

• New garden potatoes (small to medium size preferred)
• 1 new garden onion, with its green part attached
• New garden carrots
• New garden peas
• 1 to 1½ cups (360ml) heavy cream or 1 can evaporated canned milk
• Cornstarch (for thickening)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Fresh dill (optional, for garnish and flavor)

Instructions for Mabel’s Creamed Garden Vegetables:

1. Prepare the Vegetables: Begin by thoroughly scrubbing the skins of the new garden potatoes clean. Cut them into large, bite-sized chunks. Dice the white part of the new garden onion, reserving the green tops for later. Gently scrape the carrots clean and cut them into large, uniform chunks. Shell the fresh peas.
2. Boil Vegetables: In a large pot, combine the potato chunks and the diced white part of the onion. Cover them with water and bring to a boil. Cook until the potatoes are about halfway done. At this point, add the carrot chunks to the pot and continue cooking until both the potatoes and carrots are tender. Finally, add the shelled peas and the sliced green part of the onion to the pot. Cook just until the peas are tender-crisp and vibrant green.
3. Prepare Slurry: While the vegetables are cooking, prepare a cornstarch slurry. In a small bowl, whisk together several tablespoons of cornstarch with a small amount of cold water until completely smooth and lump-free.
4. Create the Cream Sauce: Once the vegetables are tender, drain off some of the cooking water if there is an excessive amount, leaving just enough to create a creamy sauce. Stir in the heavy cream or the can of evaporated milk. Bring the mixture back to a gentle boil. Gradually add the cornstarch slurry, pouring it in slowly while continuously stirring, until the sauce reaches your desired thickness. Mabel’s style usually involves a generous amount of sauce to coat all the vegetables beautifully.
5. Season and Serve: Season the creamed vegetables generously with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. If desired, stir in a little chopped fresh dill just before serving for an added burst of herbaceous freshness.

Mabel’s wisdom regarding this dish: “When the potatoes are really little it is the best time to make this. Sometimes the peas & carrots from the garden aren’t ready as early as the potatoes – then you will have to slice the spuds.” This insight highlights the importance of using truly new, small potatoes for the best texture and flavor, and the adaptability required when using the first harvests from a home garden.

Guten Appetit!

Explore Past Canadian Food Experience Project Entries:

• June, 2013: My First Authentic Canadian Food Memory: Buttery Sauteed Mushrooms with Spruce Tips and Chives
• July, 2013: A Regional Canadian Food: Saskatoon Roll or Saskatoon Cobbler and How to Freeze Saskatoon Berries

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