Spring

Thumbnail image for fennel syrup

fennel syrup

I have a fennel problem. Well, Danny refers to it as a problem. I think it’s perfectly fine that from December through June I would like to eat something with fennel in it every single day. Can you blame me? Chopped fennel has the crisp crash against the teeth of celery, without the bland watery [...]

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Thumbnail image for baked halibut with asparagus, leeks, and dill

baked halibut with asparagus, leeks, and dill

We’ve been longing for spring around here. Rain. That’s what we’ve had. Rain. I don’t complain about the rain. We live in the Seattle area. It rains here, especially in the winter. We don’t have banks of snow or days so cold we have to bundle up the child in so many layers that her [...]

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Thumbnail image for gluten-free rhubarb muffins

gluten-free rhubarb muffins

Warm muffins just out of the oven. The sour-sweet kick-in-the-mouth taste of rhubarb this time of year, sliding through each tender bite. Soft as sighs. I’ve been thinking about making these muffins since I saw the rhubarb plants in our backyard nudge themselves above the dirt. A few weeks ago, those plants exploded with growth. [...]

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Thumbnail image for roasted asparagus frittata

roasted asparagus frittata

It is finally spring around here. This may have been the mildest winter in Seattle history, weather-wise, but it was a long one in this house. I’ve written about that here before. No need to repeat. The sun is out now. It might have been cold these past few weeks (37° at night, Seattle? Really?), [...]

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Thumbnail image for asparagus salad with walnuts and Mizithra

asparagus salad with walnuts and Mizithra

Thank you. For days I have been speechless. The stories that arrived on the comment section of the post I put up last week left me in awe. All day Thursday, when I wasn’t with Lu and Danny, I was reading comments, emails, and messages you sent me. I wish that I could hug you [...]

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Thumbnail image for quinoa with spring vegetables and walnut-kale pesto

quinoa with spring vegetables and walnut-kale pesto

Five days a week, just about 2 o’clock, Lu and I stand by the door for kisses. She waves her hand vigorously, then asks me to stand her up on the windowsill to wave and blow more kisses. Danny’s leaving for work. Within the hour, he’ll be creating dishes like this. Many of you write [...]

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Thumbnail image for chanterelles with thyme

chanterelles with thyme

Have you tried chanterelles before? They look like they come from the earth, don’t they? I love seeing them splayed out in this rough-hewn box at the farmers’ market, since I know the folks at Foraged and Found spotted them in a forest and plucked them up for us. (Well, for everyone who wants to [...]

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Thumbnail image for Irish soda bread buns

Irish soda bread buns

So we’re back from Arizona for less than 24 hours. The suitcases are spilling clothes, the living room is cluttered with opened books and toddler shoes, and the refrigerator needs cleaning. Besides that fact, I didn’t touch the computer for longer than 10 minutes while we were away, spending most of the day sitting on [...]

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Thumbnail image for ripe strawberries

ripe strawberries

On Saturday afternoon, my friend Tea and I walked around the farmers’ market slowly. Even though it was towards the end of market day, the farmers all looked happy, their stands nearly empty. The sun shone on our skin. People thronged, eager to buy cherries from Yakima and the first real bunches of spinach available [...]

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Thumbnail image for cherries

cherries

The first time I read Homer’s The Odyssey, I was plagued by a confusing phrase. He referred to the waters around Ithaka as “…the wine-dark sea.” Being only 16, and never having drunk any wine, I couldn’t figure out what Homer was trying to make me see. Was it just supposed to sound funny and [...]

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Thumbnail image for rhubarb

rhubarb

The Chef grows dreamy and nostalgic when anyone mentions rhubarb. “Ohhhh, rhubarb,” he almost growls, his face softening into a smile. He grew up in a large home that everyone in the family refers to as Big Brown. (It’s painted blue now, but that hasn’t changed the name at all.) In the side yard of [...]

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Thumbnail image for asparagus

asparagus

Finally. Finally. The other morning, when the Chef and I were driving to work, we stared out at the window at the prickles of snowflakes hitting the ground. We looked at each other in confusion. And then we laughed. There’s no explaining this fickle, freezing spring. These past few weeks have been like a small [...]

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Thumbnail image for my first lunch in our new home

my first lunch in our new home

The first night the Chef and I spent in our new home, we held hands all night long. Nicked on nearly every finger from paper cuts or unexpected bumps against doorknobs and stove handles, our hands were exhausted. Our muscles were sore. Our feet wanted to leave the ground. We slept well that night, after [...]

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Thumbnail image for the offerings of spring

the offerings of spring

When I woke up this morning, I saw the sunlight shine on the Chef’s closed eyes for a moment. When the warmth on his eyelids woke him up, he turned toward me and kissed me. “I love you,” he said, which are the first words he utters every day. And then he turned toward the [...]

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Thumbnail image for the first plum of spring

the first plum of spring

The Chef and I bought our wedding rings the other day. We were meandering through the Market, making our way through the sparse crowds, pausing to gawk at the daffodils bunched in white buckets. Spring is nearly here. It’s inching toward us, ready to pounce upon our heads in sunlight-through-trees-full-of-green ease. As we passed the [...]

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Thumbnail image for the markets are open and all is well with the world

the markets are open and all is well with the world

farmers’ market III, originally uploaded by shaunaforce. Spring is definitely in the air. All around the city, ebullient-looking couples are holding hands and staring into each other’s eyes. People talk about summer vacation as though it is just around the weekend. Even the air feels sprightly. The world is alive again. And for me, one [...]

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Thumbnail image for the simple joys of spring

the simple joys of spring

asparagus, originally uploaded by shaunaforce. Sometimes, the best pleasures are the simplest. This morning, when I woke up, the sun had already risen. The sky was high and clear with light, washing everything clean with its clarity. After months of waking to darkness and struggling to school in lavender light at best, this morning opened [...]

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