A Bellingham Foodie Blog Restaurant Reviews Bellingham Washington 98225

May 8, 2009

The 3 C’s of Beans

Filed under: Bellingham local,Bellingham Restaurants,local,Pacific Northwest,restaurants — Bellinghamster @ 10:49 pm

Since I’m on an acronym roll, I figured I’d share my 3 C’s of beans: cayenne, coriander and cumin. It’s simple, here’s how:

Saute over medium heat in 1 teaspoon grapeseed oil until soft:

1 small onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1/4 red pepper, chopped

Add and mix thoroughly:

1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon cumin

Add 1 can of your favorite beans (black) liquid and all and continue to simmer until the mixture is the consistency you like. Salt to taste – remember to salt at the end or your beans will be tough (whatever that means cause I always salt everything just before I eat it). Viola! I like them with a toasted sprouted wheat bagel and a salad.

May not seem like such a big deal to YOU, but now I can make Old Town Cafe‘s beans at home. So there.

PS This is the small print…I sometimes add a 4th c – cocoa.

Mi Casa Taqueria Bellingham

Filed under: Bellingham local,Bellingham Restaurants,local,Pacific Northwest,restaurants — Bellinghamster @ 10:48 pm

Mi Casa Taqueria is OPEN for business and it is FANTASTIC.

honolulumagazine.com says:  “It added up to a splendid dinner, full of clean, direct, delicious flavors…”

Voted best Mexican ’05, ’06, ’07. This means Ken and Angelica Selvidge have brought their cooking expertise to Bellingham for us to savor. And savor is what I did today. I had a 2 Fish Taco Combo: 2 hand made corn tortillas filled with grilled mahi mahi topped with cabbage salsa (black beans and corn) with rice and beans. The rice is cooked in chicken broth and lightly spiced; the beans are pinto sauteed in canola oil with onions and gently mashed, some left whole. It was very fresh and flavorful. Fresh roasted garlic salsa is the best!

The menu is extensive with many mix and match choices. They are open for breakfast on the weekends, too! Huevos Rancheros here I come! And for those of you looking for vegetarian and vegan options, there is tofu and cactus on the menu and Angelica Selvidge is very open to diners preferences.

The Taqueria is small and minimalist, but then a taqueria originally was a street vendor specializing in tacos. They have a couple of tables to sit, but the draw should be for take out. Where’s my Dos Equis?

505 32nd St     656-5554

May 1, 2009

Mi Casa Taqueria in Bellingham

Filed under: Bellingham Restaurants — Tags: , — Bellinghamster @ 9:16 pm

How lucky can a kid get? Go away to college and your parents follow. And then they decide to open a restaurant to cater to the college crowd. There are pros and cons to this scenario. The pro is we get  (opening in May) fresh, affordable Mexican food.

April 16, 2009

Shawarma

Filed under: Bellingham local,Bellingham Restaurants,local,Pacific Northwest,restaurants — Tags: , , — Bellinghamster @ 11:01 am

Shawarma is marinated meat cooked vertically on a rotisserie and sliced into strips. Add sauteed slivers of onions, a freshly rolled and baked pita and you have a delicious taste of Wrap & Roll. Wrap & Roll is a Mediterranean cafe in Sunset Square. When you walk in be prepared for the door chime: DING DONG. It took me by surprise and made me wonder if I was the brunt of a joke. Oh, well, so what, it wouldn’t be the first time. The space is small and long, but with a wall of windows is very light. Walls of periwinkle, light gray IKEA chairs and round tables edged with a blue mosaic all with a view.

Max was kind and asked if he could help me (I was staring at the long menu for a long time trying to make up my mind). I wanted to know how I could have 1 of everything, but just a small portion. What would I like? The turkey shawarma, the falafels, the hummus, the vegetable pancake, the pita bread…he smiled and said, ‘No problem’. While I waited, he served me a plate of 3 side dishes: spicy carrot salad, red cabbage and tabbouli. It’s so easy to tell if something came out of a jar or was made fresh, and the foods I ate here today were FRESH and flavorful. And there was more than enough to feed 2 hungry parents. Thumbs up to Wrap & Roll; the north side of Bellingham has Mediterranean just as the south side does with Mediterranean Specialties Cafe.

Next to the movie theatre in Sunset Square. 734 1917

April 7, 2009

Bellingham Farmers Market is now OPEN for the season

Filed under: Bellingham local,Bellingham Restaurants,local,Pacific Northwest,restaurants — Tags: , , , , — Bellinghamster @ 3:47 pm

The Bellingham Farmer’s Market opening day was Saturday and it was packed! It’s no wonder with the weather a cooperating factor – here comes our Pacific Northwest summer! Hooray! There were some of the old and some new vendors. I was glad Danielle from Sharazad was there as was Curt’s Kettle Corn (can you smell it?). There were children eating cupcakes from Icing On the Cake and ogling home-made, hand-made wool dolls. There were some new vendors tending booth. Waldorf mom’s with talent extraordinaire: one creating beautiful designs on furniture, another on glass, plus one making Kathy Kruse type German dolls of wool.

There are dozens of vendors and as the season progresses there will be the abundance of produce I’ve come to relish. My mother and MIL* love visiting Bellingham, and one of the highlights, besides their grandchildren, is the Farmer’s Market. My mother buys her gifts for her Florida friends there. She has traveled with Dr. Dandelion’s Lavender and, at other times, has flown home with dozens of spring radishes and plant starts (horseradish, if you need to know, THRIVES in Clearwater). While MIL has spoiled the grandchildren with Bavarian Pretzels and popcorn and ice cream…not that I’m complaining.

So plan accordingly: go to the Farmer’s Market late, so it’s not too crowded when I’m there. And, oooh, I can’t wait to hear a cappella from U4eeuh!

*MIL = mother-in-law

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