Betsy Wharton

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Fridge muffins provide a healthful snack

SCHOOL IS BACK in session and it’s a good time to check in on your snack pantry. I recently became a teacher at Port Angeles… Continue reading

 

PENINSULA KITCHEN: For quick camp cooking, bring along broth

CONTINUING THE CONVERSATION from May about camp cooking, recently we camped on a cobble beach on the Hoh River. Enjoying the day, we didn’t notice… Continue reading

 

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Minimalist cooking is key on road trips

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Minimalist cooking is key on road trips

THIS IS GOING to be a very different summer. Every year for the past 25 years or more, well, ever since my first child was… Continue reading

 

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Pickled halibut can be used for future meals

THE PHONE RANG around 6 p.m. last Saturday. The guy on the phone was a fisherman and he had a halibut for us. He would… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Desperately seeking dandelions

EVERY RECIPE HAS a story and this one begins at a popular Port Angeles pub. I wasn’t in the mood for soup. It was almost… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Enjoy what you have

BY THE TIME you read this, snowmaggedon might be a soggy memory, or perhaps a lingering pile of dirty driveway snow. That said, it has… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Compare different recipes for taste, quickness

IT MAY COME as no surprise that I receive cookbooks for holiday gifts. This year was no exception. From my mother-in-law I received “Jerusalem: A… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Collard greens and black-eyed peas bring luck, prosperity

WITH CHRISTMAS JUST a couple of days away, I find myself thinking ahead. New Year’s Day is coming and I can’t help thinking about culinary… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: An old dessert adds a sparkle to Thanksgiving

I MET A reader in the bulk section of our local food store last week. These conversations generally start out in a certain way with… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Broths warm you up in cool weather

LEAVES TURNING, NEW snow on the mountains and the short days of winter on their way. My advice to you: Go outside every chance you… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Many mushrooms make mouths moisten

IT’S MUSHROOM SEASON and fervent foragers are finding fungi fruiting in the forests. We are uniquely blessed here on the Olympic Peninsula to have a… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Seize the moment for heat-loving summer vegetables

FROM A NORTHWEST locavore’s perspective late August is the long-awaited time of year when we can finally access locally grown, vine-ripened tomatoes and peppers. Marinara… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Cooking grass-fed beef requires lower heat, longer times

THE FIRST TIME I splurged on a locally grazed, 100 percent grass-fed sirloin steak, well … quite honestly, I blew it. I carefully prepared all… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: For a change of pace, make your own soap

PENINSULA KITCHEN: For a change of pace, make your own soap

TAKING A BREAK from the kitchen this week, I thought I’d share a recipe meant for the laundry room. This recipe came to me from… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: For a change of pace, make your own soap
PENINSULA KITCHEN: Choose My Plate plan provides healthful meal

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Choose My Plate plan provides healthful meal

FORGIVE ME WHILE I geek out a little about nutrition. Remember the old USDA Food Pyramid? With grains comprising the largest bottom layer, then fruits… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Choose My Plate plan provides healthful meal
PENINSULA KITCHEN: Use spices, herbs to enhance and enrich recipes

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Use spices, herbs to enhance and enrich recipes

ANCIENT TRADERS CROSSED continents and fought wars for access to culinary and medicinal spices. These same aromatic seeds, fruits, roots and bark can transform our… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Use spices, herbs to enhance and enrich recipes

PENINSULA KITCHEN: A kale soup for all seasons

A COUPLE OF weeks ago, I received a handwritten letter (a wonderful and rare occurrence these days) from a reader who was requesting a recipe… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Leeks, a mild onion relative, are great to have around

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Leeks, a mild onion relative, are great to have around

ON FEB. 17, I walked into TAFY (The Answer for Youth) to begin my weekly shift as garden grunt at their Sprouting Hope Greenhouse and… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Leeks, a mild onion relative, are great to have around
PENINSULA KITCHEN: It’s thyme to start harvesting fresh plants

PENINSULA KITCHEN: It’s thyme to start harvesting fresh plants

THE SKIES HAVE been mostly gloomy and news reports (real or imagined) leave me feeling either scared or angry. But if you look close there… Continue reading

PENINSULA KITCHEN: It’s thyme to start harvesting fresh plants

PENINSULA KITCHEN: Pot pie helps use up leftover meat

I HAD THE pleasure of visiting with Kate McDermott last week, our very own local food celebrity. (It’s not too late to get a signed… Continue reading