Evergreen Station (Ferndale) at the Bellingham Farmers Market often has really beautiful organic vegetables–not just high quality but also visually lovely. Last weekend I was particularly delighted by their large rutabagas. The skins were perfectly smooth, the color varied from pale gold to purple, and the size was enormous. I bought a single 2-pound root, not sure how I would use it. Continue ReadingCategory : Breakfast, December, Main Dishes, Menu Ideas, Recipes, Side Dishes, Vegetarian
Evergreen Station (Ferndale) at the Bellingham Farmers Market often has really beautiful organic vegetables–not just high quality but also visually lovely. Last weekend I was particularly delighted by their large rutabagas. The skins were perfectly smooth, the color varied from pale gold to purple, and the size was enormous. I bought a single 2-pound root, not sure how I would use it. Continue Reading
This omelet recipe is a perfect example of incredible local flavors. Cascadia Farms shiitake mushrooms are the highlight–they make nonlocal shiitakes seem like tasteless paste. I’m certain you’ll savor this dish.
We’re fortunate to have a diverse variety of locally made cheese from which to choose. I use local goudas a lot because they often come flavored with herbs or spices. For this recipe, though, I used a plain gouda made from goat milk. The goat milk flavor was all that was needed to balance the eggs. Continue Reading
Recently Lynn and Marvin Fast of Red Barn Lavender gave me some ground cherries from their garden to try cooking. Marvin explained that ground cherries will never be a commercial money-maker because harvesting them is very labor intensive, but they are delicious to eat nevertheless. Why not grow some yourself? As you do more locavore eating (eating only locally grown food), sooner or later you’ll be motivated to do a little home gardening. I’d like to encourage you to give it a try. Fall is a good time to start planning for next year. Continue ReadingCategory : Breakfast, Grilling, Main Dishes, Recipes, Salads, Side Dishes, Snacks, Soups, Vegetarian
Recently a friend called me and asked if I’d like a big batch of broccoli stems. She was freezing broccoli from her garden, and usually purees the stems to use for soups, but didn’t have room this year in her freezer. “Sure!” I said, and the next morning a big bag of stalks was on my doorstep.
For some people it’s weird, I know. Broccoli stems are often seen as trimmings, and discarded. I really like the flavor, though. I think stems taste sweeter and less bitter than the florets. They also don’t have the grainy floret texture that children and others sometimes find objectionable. Continue Reading
Category : Breakfast, Desserts, Recipes, Vegetarian
A “clafouti” is an odd sort of thing to describe. It’s kind of a fruit custard, only not really. It sort of has the texture of pastry, but not quite.
Truthfully, you’ll just have to try it for yourself. What I know for sure is that this one is delicious!
I still had some of the blend of cooking apples left that I’d purchased at Cloud Mountain Farm’s Fall Fruit Festival, and I hadn’t tried baking a clafouti before, so it seemed like a perfect time to try. Despite it’s fancy French name, it’s quick and easy to prepare. Continue Reading
My mother and my grandmother come to mind when I think of baking powder biscuits. Both knew how to make them light and flaky, a perfect complement to almost any meat and vegetable meal. Continue Reading
Category : Breakfast, Main Dishes, Recipes, Vegetarian
We associate cherry blossoms with early spring, but what says early summer better than the cherries themselves? Cherries and berries are the earliest fruits of the year in this area, and their fresh sweet flavor is such a treat after a long locavore winter of root vegetables and food from the freezer. Continue Reading
Category : Breakfast, Main Dishes, Recipes, Vegetarian
Kale is easy to grow in our climate, and can grow year round except in the most extreme cold winters. The taste of the leaves becomes sweeter as the winter progresses, making it a wonderful cold weather vegetable when little else is being harvested locally. There’s even a variety of kale called “Hungry Gap,” a British term for the time between summer growing seasons. Continue Reading
Garlic scapes are the curly, peculiar-looking thickened parts in the middle of the garlic stem where the flower and seed head eventually forms. Farmers raising garlic usually trim off the scapes before they fully form. Instead of putting energy into flowering, it encourages the plants to use the energy to form larger bulbs at the base of the stem. Continue Reading
Category : Breakfast, Main Dishes, Recipes, Vegetarian
The savory flavor of herbed yogurt cheese (a good alternative to non-local cream cheese) makes a nice change from the usual sweet and sugary form of French toast. The eggs in the toast blend well with tangy cheese and herb flavors. The result is a hearty dish suitable for any meal of the day.
While I started with a homemade Quick Brioche for the bread, you could use any locally made bread you like. You could also adapt any of your favorite bread recipes to use local ingredients. Continue Reading
