Olivia Bodnar, Staff Writer
On Wednesday, April 10th, Immaculata University celebrated Culture Fest, which gives students and teachers the opportunity to learn about various cultures and their famous foods. Several participants made their own food along with the food trucks provided. Everyone gathered at the Loyola Quad to see the live band singing Mexican songs, and enjoy the opportunity. It was an extremely educational event.
The weather held up nicely, which allowed things to run smoothly. One table, created by a friend, celebrated Italian Easter Bread and San Pellegrino drinks. Italian Easter Bread is an extremely sweet yeast-leavened bread with a colorful Easter egg in the middle. The bread symbolizes the crown of thorns worn by Jesus Christ during His crucifixion and the three-ropes in the braid represent the Holy Trinity. The bread was a huge success. Students and professors kept coming back for more – to the point that the student returned after a walk around to find that her second loaf was almost gone. Easter Bread is definitely worth trying because it is fantastic.
The table next over was another Italian food, Pizzelle. This specific Italian treat is a traditional waffle cookie. They taste exactly like waffle cones and are crispy, buttery cookies with some almond extract. Students and teachers came flocking to her table to grab some.
We visited the Canadian table and checked out their popular dessert, the Canadian Nanaimo Bar which consists of three layers: a wafer, nut, and a coconut crumb base. It has custard icing in the middle and a layer of chocolate ganache on top. This Canadian treat requires no baking and it is named after the Canadian city of Nanaimo in British Columbia.
The Immaculata Culture fest was a great success and a fantastic way for the community to understand the unique cultural foods of our world around us. Everyone was able to have a break from their work and enjoy the live band and festivities that that culture fest had to offer. It is truly amazing that Immaculata holds this celebration to honor our unique students and their delicious food.
