The strains of music waft on the gentle breeze in mid-July as thousands of visitors stroll down Judson Street in Gig Harbor to peruse the high-quality offerings of professional artists and artisans who participate in the Gig Harbor Summer Art Festival. Now in its 32nd year, the festival has become one of the largest and […]
Barb Bourscheidt
A Gig Harbor artist potter and community activist, Barb Bourscheidt is a freelance writer who writes on subjects of personal interest, usually the arts, gardening, cooking and the environment. A working artist, she creates pottery that reflects her love of nature, incorporating leaf motifs on surfaces of functional kitchen, garden and decorative ware. Although posts are infrequent, Barb has a personal blog at clayladybarb.blogspot.com.
Posted inGarden
For the Love of Lavender
In the middle of summer, the essence of lavender wafts through the air with such heady fragrance, an address would not be necessary to find the Blue Willow Lavender Farm. Lush, gray-green plants trimmed into neat rounds form the foundation for the thousands of long stems tipped with lavender-blue heads. The farm sits so serenely […]
Posted inAt Home
Fava Beans
Just before summer warms soil temperatures to an intolerable level for cool weather legumes, fava beans are at their largest, sweetest stage. The long, bright-green pods hide a delicious ancient delicacy nestled inside their silken, white lining. Favas are known throughout the Middle East and most of Europe. In England, they are called broad beans. […]
Posted inAt Home
Make the Most of the Strawberry Season
One of the benefits of eating local is being able to access produce at its very freshest, finest peak. Glistening like giant rubies and tasting like sweet bursts of fruity goodness, strawberries herald the season of summer fruits. The earliest local fruit crop to find its way to our co-op this week, it is difficult […]
Posted inPeople & Places
Herron Hill Dairy — Goats, Cheese and Family Fun
The wooden sign on the side of Herron Hill Road — “Chevre” — points toward a meandering drive that disappears over the top of a low hill. Horses graze placidly in a pasture on one side of the drive, paying no mind to the intruder unfastening the latch on the gate and motoring up the […]
Posted inPeople & Places
Living and Loving Art Fully
Entering the home of Darrol and Judy Gover, one is struck immediately with the sense that this is where creativity lives, energy thrives, and not a moment of time is to be lost. Darrol, at 82, has a dozen projects going at once. And when he isn’t working in his garden, carving and painting a […]
Posted inAt Home
Rhubarb!
Unfurling its lush, ruffled leaves while strong stalks blush to a deep pink, rhubarb calls us to savor the strong, tart, acidic taste of a healthy spring tonic. Technically rhubarb is a vegetable, but because it is typically combined with sugar and eaten as a dessert in the United States, the USDA considers rhubarb a […]
Posted inAt Home
Spring Tonics (Delicious Asparagus, that is)
Fleshy, green and succulent, asparagus is the ultimate spring vegetable. Known for its cleansing diuretic properties for centuries and once only available in spring, it has become a year-round favorite on American tables. Early culinary records indicate asparagus, which is a native of Europe, may have been eaten and used as an offering in Egypt […]
Posted inFood & Entertainment
Classic Comfort in Scalloped Potatoes
One of the most warming, comforting and filling foods on a cold, blustery day is a bubbling, aromatic dish of scalloped potatoes fresh from the oven. An old-fashioned comfort food that everyone enjoys, a casserole of scalloped potatoes is inexpensive and uncomplicated to make. The recipe here uses a basic white sauce poured over sliced […]