A taste of tradition

What’s the secret to making the perfect pasta sauce? Simplicity. If you’re following Carmela Perri’s recipe, all you need are tomatoes, basil, and a dash of salt and pepper. “The more you put in, the worse it gets,” she says.

Carmela is speaking from decades of experience. The Full Care resident at Elim Village Fleetwood was born in Italy and grew up learning the art of traditional Italian cooking alongside her mother.

“My mom was a good cook and she made everything from scratch, even the pasta she’d make herself,” Carmela recalls. “My mom used to make pasta for all of us at home. She used to do it all, roll it and cook it while we were at school.”

Those early lessons shaped Carmela’s life. When her brother opened the Water Street Cafe in Vancouver’s Gastown neighbourhood, she joined him in the kitchen. Together, they prepared fresh pasta and homemade sauces, using many of the same recipes and techniques they had learned from their mother.

“I had people staring at me in the restaurant all the time, wanting to watch me make noodles,” Carmela says.

This spring, Carmela and her brother brought those same skills to Elim, leading a fresh pasta-making class for fellow residents.

They demonstrated how to prepare homemade noodles and a simple tomato sauce before everyone enjoyed the meal together.

Today, Carmela’s family tradition continues through her children and grandchildren. Her daughters have inherited treasured family recipes, and even her grandchildren enjoy helping in the kitchen, peeling tomatoes and learning the techniques passed down through generations.

For Carmela, cooking has always been about more than food. It’s a way to bring people together—one plate of pasta at a time.

This story was published in the summer edition of CONNECTION, Elim Village’s community newsletter. You can read the full issue here. To access future editions, subscribe to our e-mailing list.