Hall of Fame Award (Posthumous) | 2023

Alberta’s own Jean Paré was a caterer and author/founder of the Company's Coming cookbook series. Popular among Canadian cooks, titles in the series tended to focus on one subject, such as casseroles, muffins, or appliance cooking. Paré’s decision to publish the cookbooks in spiral bindings, reminiscent of earlier fundraising compilations, made them easier to use as they could lie flat and every recipe included a photograph of the finished dish. Her cookbooks could be found everywhere, from grocery stores to lumber yards, making them readily available to a large audience. Paré holds the distinction of being one of the most prolific and successful cookbook writers in the world, selling over thirty million copies. Her first, 150 Delicious Squares (shown here) was self published in 1981 with a print run of 15,000 copies, which sold out quickly. In keeping with her philosophy to “never share a recipe you wouldn’t use yourself,” the book incorporates techniques and ingredients accessible to any cook. During her lifetime Paré received many awards for her contributions to Canadian cuisine, including the Order of Canada and the Queen Elizabeth Golden Jubilee Medal. In 2013 and 2014, Archival & Special Collections received the Jean Paré Collection, consisting of approximately 6,700 published and unpublished texts from Paré’s personal library.

Paré, Jean. 150 Delicious Squares. Edmonton: Company's Coming Pub., 1985. Archival & Special Collections, University of Guelph Library (TX715.6.O5194).