Oysters & Chocolate

Polenta Surprise -- Carb-loading Through Romania

Linda Engelsiepen

Nov 22, 2021
6 min

Polenta Surprise -- Carb-loading Through Romania

When we headed to Romania, I expected goulash. I expected sausages. I anticipated nights of knocking back Palinca and Visinata. I knew...

Feb 5, 2020
5 min

Eating Iceland

So you’re thinking about visiting Iceland — for the starkly beautiful landscapes, a glimpse at the Northern Lights, or to learn more...

Dec 16, 2016
4 min

A Bag of Chestnuts, a Bucket of Apples

Fall is the time of changes, of transition and letting go, and this year, well, perhaps the transitions are rougher and the letting go...

Aug 31, 2016
6 min

Eating Los Angeles — 6 Meals I’ll Miss, But You Don’t Have To

This post should really be titled “Leaving Los Angeles,” but I did that two years ago, when I uprooted from the smoggy basin and planted...

Aug 5, 2016
6 min

Summer Oysters

We’ve all heard some version of when not to eat an oyster. Don’t eat them in months without an R! Or is it ending in an R? Or is it said...

Apr 19, 2016
7 min

Soaring Spirits at the South Sound Spirit Gathering

Washington is well-known for its craft beers, farm-to-table cuisine, and world-class wineries. Everything that makes these industries so...

Feb 11, 2016
8 min

Heart of Sweetness — A Valentine’s Day Chocolate Roundup

So, you’ve been taking a break from sweets after the indulgence of the holiday season. But aren’t you about done with your Whole 30, your...

Dec 14, 2015
3 min

Absinthe Afternoon — A Trip To Astoria’s Pilot House Spirits

Maybe it’s a little bit decadent to be sipping absinthe in the afternoon, but absinthe has always had a bit of naughtiness to it, hasn’t...

Dec 4, 2015
5 min

An Oysterville Thanksgiving

This year would be the first Thanksgiving I’d be spending with my honey, and the first in my new home “village” of Oysterville, WA (pop....

Nov 11, 2015
4 min

Cranberry Fields Forever — Spirit of the Harvest

If you could name one iconic fruit of the fall, it would probably be that tart, crimson wonder, the cranberry. No Thanksgiving dinner...

Oct 30, 2015
4 min

Portland’s Nostrana Restaurant Celebrates 10 Delicious Years

A little over a month ago, I made a dessert of homemade buttermilk ice cream and cardamom orange shortbread for a multiple James Beard...

Sep 29, 2015
4 min

Summer Solstice Rituals & Recipes — Feeding the Internal Flame

My summer solstice ritual for a couple of years now has been to burn away the old and set intentions for the new, accompanied by a fine...

Sep 1, 2015
2 min

Without An Umbrella, V. 3.0

So yeah, I’ve been away a while, and a lot has happened since I talked to you last. I made this my new front yard: I did a little...

Aug 28, 2014
6 min

Fish on! First-time Salmon Fishing on the Columbia River

While I am now officially a Pacific Northwesterner, last year at this time I was just getting my sea legs – a term which, now that I live...

Apr 10, 2014
5 min

A 1960’s Cocktail Party — Mad Men and Women Invited

Vintage – a pretentious word for antique? A fussy way to say “old but well-preserved?” A euphemism for middle age co-opted from oenology?...

Jan 30, 2014
6 min

New Years’ 2014 — Razor Clams and Romance

I love the breath of possibility that comes with starting a new year. 2013 began with a dreadful head cold, lots of Dungeness crab and a...

Sep 6, 2013
3 min

Figs — Summer’s Luscious Fruit

I’ve already lamented the quick passage of summer, which here in SoCal is flaming out in a blaze of 102° glory. I’m ready for even the...

Aug 7, 2013
5 min

Summer Solstice 2013 — Rituals and Recipes

Yes, this is a blog about the summer solstice and I’m posting it in August. Admit it, the summer’s gotten away from you too. The earth...

May 16, 2013
7 min

Tiramisu — Love it or Hate it?

Let me start by saying two things. The alternate title for this post, had the results been different, was Tiramisoup. Secondly, I don’t...

Mar 27, 2013
7 min

More Oysters, More Romance, Another Seafood Party

I’ve never tried a long-distance relationship, unless emotional distance counts the same as air miles (I’m not naming names — please do...