(OTTAWA) Prime Minister Justin Trudeau likes to occasionally relax in a ring while donning boxing gloves. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mélanie Joly, takes her mind off things by putting on her running shoes to jog in the streets of the federal capital.
The Minister of National Revenue, Diane Lebouthillier, has a completely different passion for relaxing after a long week of parliamentary work. She simply puts on her apron, sharpens her knives, rummages through her fridge and cooks.
Over the years, this passion has enabled her to quickly win the hearts of many people in her hometown and elsewhere. Even his close collaborators in his office in Ottawa succumbed to the charm of his culinary talents. Moreover, she frequently brings them irresistible snacks at the beginning of the week or even prepares dishes concocted for them with all the flavor of the Gaspé, when the time comes to mark the end of the parliamentary session.
Pot-en-pot des Îles-de-la-Madeleine – one of the most popular recipes in the region, which highlights the best seafood – which she prepared in the spring during a dinner of the ministerial team still thrills the taste buds of its press secretary Chris McMillan.
“I like to cook,” says Minister Diane Lebouthillier straight away, wearing her beautiful apron. The Press met her at her apartment in Gatineau, where she lives when the House of Commons sits in Ottawa.
In anticipation of this interview, which aimed to explain the passion that drives her, the Minister spared no effort: a pumpkin soup as a starter, cod cakes accompanied by a garden salad as a main course and a apple crisp for dessert.
PHOTO MARTIN ROY, THE LAW
Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of National Revenue
I raised my children alone. I was a single mother. I had my job. I was a social worker. I had three boys. And they ate a lot!
Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of National Revenue
Cooking was therefore an obligation to succeed in making ends meet at that time. But the passion for homemade recipes was also passed on to her by her parents, who owned a grocery store in Newport. The family lived above the grocery store.
“My mother prepared everything that customers didn’t buy. The tomato which was half damaged, my mother picked it up and recovered the good part. He was therefore a thrifty and careful person. I learned this very early in my life. My parents worked very hard. When my father was younger, he didn’t always have enough to eat. It was at the time when we were going to open land. […] Food waste, I am very sensitive to that, ”she said.
Mme Lebouthillier still remembers that the vegetable counter at the grocery store consisted mainly of carrots, turnips, onions and cabbage.
PHOTO MARTIN ROY, THE LAW
Diane Lebouthillier and her apple crisp
“There was one pineapple a year. It was the wife of Doctor Joncas, the local doctor, who bought that pineapple. It was for his Easter supper. My parents also liked to cook. My father was the type to try everything. We had a lot of fishermen who came to do their grocery shopping. And when they went cod fishing, they also caught crab. They brought them to the grocery store in green garbage bags. My dad cooked this. We had clothes wringers in the past. And to undo the crab legs, he passed them in there! That was life! »
These life lessons served her well later on. “When I was a single parent, the meals I prepared for my three boys were the fruit of my work. I had to pay for the house, the car, and make sure to feed the children. So I have always given an important value to cooking. If I throw something in the trash, it’s like throwing all the effort of my work in the trash. »
Since becoming Minister of Revenue in the fall of 2015, Ms.me Lebouthillier takes the time to offer treats to the employees of his office. “I am, in the depths of myself, a mother and a grandmother,” she says, sitting down at the table.
PHOTO MARTIN ROY, THE LAW
Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of National Revenue
I find that you take care of your world when you consider the people around you. Devoting time to food becomes for me a mark of recognition towards others. I took the time to do things and I do it with all my heart. It’s a nice way to thank them.
Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of National Revenue
She points out that many of the employees who work in ministers’ offices are young people away from their families. “I feel far from my people when I’m in Ottawa. I know what they are going through. And I believe that these little treats make them happy and I also make myself happy by doing that. The little treats that are all the rage are its banana breads, its chocolate and banana peel muffins and its pancakes.
At the same time, it promotes local products. “When I go through security at the airport, I tell people that if they open my suitcase, they’re going to get a surprise. It’s not drugs, it’s dried salt fish that I bought and wrapped it in Saran Wrap to prevent the smell! »
Asked if she offers the same goodies to her fellow cabinet ministers or to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Ms.me Lebouthillier responds tit for tat. ” Nope ! They already have people cooking for them! They don’t need me! »