Mennonite Heritage Village Museum in Steinbach, Manitoba: A Look at Early Mennonite Settlers

The Mennonite Heritage Village Museum in Steinbach, Manitoba offers an intriguing look at the life of early Mennonite settlers.

The 40-acre site includes a windmill… a semlin, or sod house… an 1881 church that my father's family attended… and an 1892 house-barn. As you stroll the grounds, you might see volunteers hand-carding wool or making delicious portzelky, a traditional New Year's cookie.

If you're really lucky, you might arrive as the ladies are taking fresh bread from the outdoor oven, ready to serve with jam from the summer kitchen!

If not, the Livery Barn Restaurant offers up Mennonite specialties like vareniki (cottage cheese-filled pierogies) and pluma moos (fruit soup). My favorites are the cabbage borscht and the wonderful rhubarb platz.

Steinbach is in southeast Manitoba on Highway 12, about 40 miles southeast of Winnipeg and 12 miles south of Trans-Canada Highway 1.

The historic village is open daily from May through September; Monday through Friday in April and October. Admission is $8 for adults, $4 for students ages 13-22 and $2 for children ages 6-12 (prices are in Canadian dollars).

For details, call 1-204-326-9661.