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Flavors of Fall

What can you make with 130 lbs of tomatoes, 78 lbs of potatoes, 60 lbs of onions, 45 lbs of green peppers, 38 lbs of carrots and a vast number of pumpkins?

Answer: The “Flavours of Fall” banquet put on by Nellie McClung Collegiate’s Learning Garden committee. Over one hundred guests were welcomed to Nellie McClung Collegiate by the hosts who had worked spring and fall in the learning garden. Once seated they found homemade salsa on their table with nacho chips to nibble on while they awaited the first course. Fresh roasted and salted pumpkin seeds were an added touch. Dressed in black and white, the servers entered with bowl after bowl of French Onion Soup and the meal had begun. The main course this evening – pasta with marinara sauce, scalloped potatoes and carrots au gratin! But leave room for dessert. A delicious pumpkin slice served with fresh whip cream completed the menu.

So why all the hype about a banquet? Well, this was the first “Flavours of Fall” banquet and was a celebration of the harvest from the NMC Community Learning Garden. The menu was prepared by the students and staff at NMC and many community volunteers who helped and taught classes how to prepare each and every item on the menu. And while the Grade 7 and 8 classes prepared and cooked the meal, the Grade 9 Business class had prepared an advertising campaign (they ran a contest to pick the name of this year’s event), printed and sold tickets and handled the finances for the event. The 11’s and 12’s turned the gym into our banquet hall (a fall theme and colors with center pieces created in Art Class) and the environmental group had a crash course on serving etiquette. This really was a total school effort and by all accounts a very successful celebration of the inaugural year of the NMC Community Learning Garden.