My Beach Kitchen
Hello from my beach kitchen! I can’t believe I haven’t written anything since last June. That’s when our move from the mountain town of North Bend, Washington to an even smaller town on the Oregon Coast got intense. My days were spent packing and purging rather than baking and cooking. Our new home build kept getting delayed and the real estate market turned right when we put our house on the market. I’ll spare you the nitty gritty and summarize by telling you that after two weeks in the Silver Sands Hotel in Rockaway, we finally moved into our new home in beautiful Manzanita. And we haven’t looked back.
Join me for a look at my new kitchen!
Tillamook cheese bread and White Zinfandel
I had never watched tennis until I met my husband. He was the cutest player on the University of Oregon men’s tennis team. Well, okay he was the only player I watched (or knew). Five years later we started our married life in Arizona, where of course, tennis was very popular. My husband’s parents also played tennis and his mom loved to celebrate Wimbledon. She’s been gone for 28 years this August, but I think about her every year when Wimbledon occurs. In the days before streaming, she’d plan her day — and sleep — around the time of a key match (her favorite was Chrissy Evert). For the finals, she would make chocolate-dipped strawberries and a toasty, gooey Tillamook Cheese bread meant to be enjoyed with a glass of White Zinfandel. After all, this was the late 80s. A few times a year I dig out the recipe card that’s in my mother-in-law’s handwriting and reminisce about watching tennis with my husband’s family. With the grand slam tournament being cancelled last year, this year’s Wimbledon (semifinals July 8/9 and finals July 10/11) calls for lots of cheesy bread and juicy chocolatey strawberries, and wine. But make mine rosé.
How the pandemic deepened my connection with food
It’s been quite a year. All of us have experienced some degree of loss when it comes to normalcy and sense of time. Others less fortunate have lost jobs, security, and sadly, loved ones. It feels like the longest-shortest year ever. In my home state of Washington, the governor issued a statewide stay-at-home order on March 23, 2020. To me that’s the marker of when this all began. While we had no idea what we were really in for, fear of the unknown was real and many of us went into a hunter-gatherer mode. In reality, my immediate circle of friends and family were lucky. We had warm roofs over our heads, running hot water, Wi-Fi, Netflix and access to enough food to fill us up. It may not have always been what we wanted to eat, but we certainly weren’t going hungry. In fact, throughout the stress and monotony, food has brought us together, allowed us to virtually travel, and provided a sense of comfort and connection. For me, this has been especially true.
Cinnamon Rolls with Maple Frosting
My mom was a “lunch lady” for 20 years. She was the resident baker (as opposed to what I envision as the much-less-glamorous salad maker) at River Road Elementary for half this time. Her responsibilities included regularly making huge batches of rolls and cinnamon rolls. Rumor has it that more than one custodian or teacher would sneak into the cafeteria in the early morning hours to procure a freshly baked cinnamon roll. I can’t imagine anyone being able to resist that yeasty, buttery, cinnamon aroma wafting down the school corridors. It’s not surprising that my mom’s cinnamon rolls were in high demand, as her proficiency with cinnamon rolls began long before the school cafeteria. Cinnamon rolls covered in maple frosting are forever imprinted in my four siblings’ and my childhood memories. On the days when my mom would make bread, she would spend what seemed like all day in the kitchen rolling dough, punching it down, and forming pans of dinner rolls and cinnamon rolls. I remember this being one of my favorite dinners—buttery (in those days it was Nucoa) rolls with a pot of homemade chili. We would wait patiently all day for the decadent cinnamon rolls to come out of the oven for dessert. With seven of us, they went quickly, but I remember enjoying them even more for breakfast the next day.
Share the love: Valentine’s Day gifting
February is the month of love. Do as the lyrics to Love is All Around tell us: “Let it show!” We may think about sharing expressions of love with our sweetheart, children or bestie, ahh, but it’s also a nice time to just be nice. We could all use a little pick-me-up about right now whether you’re tired of the weather, bored from staying home, missing your family or bummed about no warm beach vacation. Share a little love with someone who may not expect it. Let your co-worker or a neighbor know they matter. Drop off homemade or classroom-style valentines on porches in your neighborhood. Package up some red, white and pink goodies in a jar. Read on for suggestions, recipes and kitchenistic gift ideas.
Smart technology innovations for your kitchen
A chocolate maker, combi-oven, voice-controlled faucet and more
The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) held every January in Las Vegas is traditionally when the biggest innovations across all categories of consumer electronics are announced. This year the show was completely virtual, which allowed me to participate in Monday’s Food Tech Live Expo and Summit sponsored by The Spoon. I was overwhelmed hearing and seeing all the talk yesterday. There were advancements in 3D food printing, plant-based food, cultured meat, personalized nutrition, food delivery, connected appliances, a kitchen OS that uses a voice interface, artificial intelligence, and the list goes on. While I’m not running out any time soon to buy the LG fridge with a Bluetooth speaker and a built-in Alexa, I did see a number of new products that appeal to the home cook in me.
Long live Shirley’s Lasagna
Lasagna is one of those dishes that fall into the category of “My mom makes the best (fill in the blank)” and we tend not to veer too far from what we’re used to. A few months back I came across an article on The Kitchn that tested “4 famous lasagna recipes” from Giada de Laurentiis, Ina Garten, All Recipes and Martha Stewart. All four are classified as “Italian-American,” which according to the author means dry noodles, a simple meat sauce or marinara, and multiple types of cheese instead of béchamel. (Traditional “Italian” lasagna typically is made up of fresh pasta, Bolognese sauce and béchamel.) I thought, huh, I wonder how these lasagnas stack up to my mom’s. After all, our family’s lasagna is the most famous. Well, famous in our family at least. I have three sisters and one brother. While my mom, Shirley, has “retired” from making lasagna, all of us girls use her recipe. And my brother? He’s the number one benefactor of all this lasagna. He never met a (sister’s) lasagna he didn’t like. Or at least he’s smart enough not to say. This all got me thinking and led me to ask my mom about the origin of her recipe.
Organize your kitchen life
Conquer the pantry and corral your recipes
Every year when I put away the holiday decorations my house feels empty and bare. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I like to think of it as a clean slate. Even though it may take me a week of melancholic wallowing in post-holiday blues before I get motivated for a fresh start, I eventually get to the point where the organization bug kicks in. Unsurprisingly, the kitchen is where I always choose to start. Two areas that have made my kitchen life easier are an orderly (and pretty) pantry and a good management system for my recipes.
The merriest kitchen and food gift guide
Since we are all home cooks this year, edible gifts and gifts for the kitchen top the most-wanted gift list and are the most fun to give! Treat a friend, your sister, your son, or whoever is the cook in the family with something practical, beautiful, delicious or just plain fun. Buying for yourself is totally permitted as well. Keep reading for some wonderful and unique ideas. I hope you discover the perfect something!
Cheers to the underappreciated pear
Appearently December 5 is World Pear Day and kicks off National Pear Month. Yet, who knew? The pear just doesn’t get a fair shake. My formative experience with pears was watching my mom canning them. I don’t remember ever eating a fresh pear as a kid. Rather, they came from a jar, canned in syrup, or chopped up in fruit cocktail. Only when I visited my brother-in-law’s family farm in southern Oregon about 10 years ago did I come to appreciate the beauty of the often-overlooked pear.
Score a healthy-ish homegating
Finally! Pac-12 football has returned albeit without raucous tailgating in parking lots. Instead we’ve turned to “homegating” in front of the TV. Either way, football is best enjoyed with a delicious spread of food. Beer and Jell-o shots aside, what comes to mind are wings, nachos, pulled pork, ribs, chili, meatballs, pigs-in-a-blanket, sliders, bacon-wrapped jalapeno poppers, pizza, chips and dips. Lots of meat. Lots of dips. Lots of cheese. The idea of prepping food to enjoy at home isn’t new for those of us who have always been homegaters. But because our team’s first game coincided with my son’s birthday weekend (and he doesn’t eat dairy, sugar or gluten), I needed to plan a healthier menu … but (obviously) not forego all indulgences.
The allure of cookbooks
In this digital age, cracking open a glossy new cookbook still makes my heart beat a little faster. There’s something about holding a heavy cookbook in your hands, opening the spine for the first time, touching the pages and anticipating what’s inside. The recipes and all the glorious food porn. Cookbooks are the best books. You can devour them like a novel from front to back or go straight to a recipe you can’t wait to try. Cookbooks offer a new adventure every time you open one and speak volumes sitting on a kitchen windowsill or coffee table. Yet, basically every recipe is available online. So … what is the allure of hard-copy cookbooks?
Make (birthday) cake!
Birthdays—complete with cake and a round of obnoxious singing—are one of the most joyful celebrations to take place in a kitchen. I’m a firm believer that everyone, regardless of age should be celebrated on their special day. Candles in a donut, ice cream pie or stack of pancakes are all perfectly acceptable. It’s the love that goes into the celebration that makes all the difference. Sure, birthdays lose some luster as we age. But what’s wonderful is that once we have kids, we can start counting all over again.
Stress baking: food for the soul
What a year 2020 has been. Three months into the year and the pandemic became real in the U.S. and stay-at-home orders were the new norm. Six months into the year and my dear dad unexpectedly passed away. And now, three months later, my beautiful home state of Oregon, along with the rest of the West Coast, is on fire. This past week I’ve felt stuck in my house more than ever. In an effort to stop obsessively checking the evacuation level and air quality maps, I ended up in my kitchen. Stress baking. Anxiety cooking. Call it what you will.
The perils of turmeric
Sounds like a suspense novel, yes? Dun dun dun dahh. Curcumin is the active component that gives turmeric its potential anti-inflammatory and antioxidant health benefits, including prevention against heart disease, Alzheimer’s, cancer, and even depression and arthritis. So, the real mystery is why did it take me until 2020 to actually purchase and cook with turmeric?
And the people sat around the table
As empty nesters, one of our greatest joys is the comfort of knowing that our two grown children enjoy each other’s company and that they actually like to come home. My husband and I have been known to think shamelessly, “Hmm, we must have done something right.” At that root of something right, we decided is routine, tradition, stability; the biggest symbol perhaps being the kitchen table.
For the love of food
Food plays an interesting role in our lives. The food we share is central to celebrations and holidays. Family vacations are planned around food. Food triggers vivid memories and is often the star of family get-togethers and social events.
Chocolate chip cookie journey
There’s something nostalgic about baking. It’s often associated with childhood memories, traditions and comfort. One of my earliest memories in the kitchen is my sister and I using the little baking pans and cake mixes from the Easy-Bake Oven company to proudly bake “mini” cakes for our three younger siblings’ first birthdays. This turned out to be the first step in my baking journey.
Five earth-friendly (and joy-sparking) kitchen actions
Today marks the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day. What better place to start making a difference than in our kitchens. Yes, there are some big (perhaps overwhelming) changes you can make to reduce your carbon footprint or save the world’s coral reef. Eat less red meat and dairy products. Buy local and in season. Stop using plastic bags and plastic straws that end up in our oceans. Use energy-efficient appliances. Reduce food waste.
While we should strive to do all these things, there are also a number of actions that offer an easier place to start and have the added benefit of sparking joy Marie Kondo style.