Aykroyd talks tourtiere and other holiday treats

TORONTO — Canadian legend and Oscar nominee Dan Aykroyd is one of Canada’s most famous sons, an icon whose career is timeless.

In person, he is one of the kindest people you can ever meet, welcoming and warm. Just recently, Aykroyd sat and shared fond holiday memories including favourite foods he enjoyed while growing up in the family farmhouse in Kingston, Ont., a home that was the basis for the film “Ghostbusters,” in which he was the co-creator.

Sitting in the corporate offices of the Crystal Head vodka company recently, Aykroyd talked about growing up in a unique Canadian home: Aykroyd’s family legacy is based on the paranormal, as his great-grandfather, Samuel Aykroyd, was a dentist-turned spiritualist and his dad, Peter, wrote “A History of Ghosts” — the book that inspired Aykroyd’s mega-hit movie.

Aykroyd, who refers to himself as a “working actor,” is matter-of-fact when he states “of course I believe in ghosts. We believe in life after death, life in the outer realms and beyond.”

But what many may not be aware of is Aykroyd’s connection to Canada’s culinary identity: his mother’s sister, Aunt Helen, was the famous Helen Gougeon, a cookbook author (Good Food) and leading authority on Canadian cuisine.

“She was kinda the Julia Child of Canada,” said Aykroyd, adding “she was a very famous media star back in the late ’50s and ’60s, a lovely, beautiful woman and a great chef who knew Julia Child.”

Research shows Ottawaborn Helen Gougeon, who passed away in her late 70s, was not only a cookbook author but a food journalist and radio and TV personality who was a true pioneer in promoting Canada’s culinary identity.

But it was his mother Lorraine’s cooking that Aykroyd remembers vividly — especially her tourtiere.

“I remember my mother’s tourtiere for New Year’s Eve, this pork and beef pie with delicate pastry, with chili relish on the side,” he said, beaming at the memories. “She was famous for making it, as was her sister, Helen.”

Aykroyd recalls wintry days, when the house was immersed in the aroma of holiday baking and cooking, and fireplaces burned brightly.

“My favourite memories are of the big sleigh ride over from Wolfe Island, the big Dray horses doing the pulling. I remember this big, oldfashioned hayride through a blizzard, and coming home to a beautiful pot of soup on the fire and just that feeling of getting together with friends and family.”

Wherever he travels in the world, memories of growing up in Kingston, being proudly Canadian, are his bedrock: “I love my country, I love being Canadian, I love when I go around the world I get to say I’m a proud Canadian,” said the Order of Ontario and Order of Canada recipient.