Some sauce recipes have become “classics” known to everyone. For example, experienced cooks learn how to make an Alfredo sauce, a buttery bechamel, and an herbed tomato sauce.
One reason these sauces are classics is their versatility. They can be used in many ways with many different ingredients. For example, bechamel sauce can be used as is over potatoes, or as the basis of a mustard sauce for chicken or a creamy herb sauce for steamed vegetables. Herbed tomato sauce can be served over pasta, grilled meats, or spread on toasted bread as a crostini appetizer. Continue Reading
For 21 years, the Northwest Mushroomers Association has organized a annual public show of an enormous variety of local wild mushrooms. Since I’d never attended a mushroom show before, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I arrived at Bloedel Donovan Park recently.
Making soup stock is a fairly simple process, but getting the flavors balanced can be a little tricky sometimes. Not so with this mushroom stock. It’s made with the tough stems and trimmings from fresh mushrooms (though dried mushrooms could be used instead, if necessary). Just about any combination of flavorful mushrooms will work easily and taste wonderful. 
Thanks to the Northwest Mushroomers Association (NMA) Show in Bellingham (
Cooking a perfect stir-fry dish requires careful planning as the ingredients are being chopped and prepared. Especially important is to group the ingredients by cooking time. 
One of the special delights of eating local food is trying new ingredients or using familiar foods in new combinations. I haven’t cooked much with sunchokes, also called Jerusalem artichokes. I tried using them in a cottage pie recently, and was delighted with the flavor. This time I tried using them in a hearty beef stew.
Onions are vegetables that can be stored throughout the winter in our area. Onions are pulled from the garden when the tops bend over, and are dried before storing in a cool place. Onion bulbs planted in the late fall will sprout early in the spring after a mild winter.
Every weekday, when returning from Bellingham after dropping my daughter off at work, I see a small sign along Slater Road advertising bison meat. I’ve been curious to learn more, and even detoured a couple of times to find the farm–Twisted S Bison Ranch (near Ferndale)–which looks beautiful. They are only open to the public on weekends, though, so I haven’t yet stopped by to visit.
For many people, stinging nettles conjure up images of nasty burning sensations caused by brushing against the nearly invisible spines or flowers of an otherwise lovely green plant. Nettles grow wild in damp, shady woods, and can reach several feet high.
I began this week by wandering through the Community Food Co-op at Cordata and Westerly in Bellingham, looking for locally grown produce. The Co-op labels local produce with the farm name on the price sign, so it’s easy to spot. Produce from out of the area is labelled with a state code (WA, OR, CA, etc.), or with the country of origin. 
