This salad can be a fun addition to any smoky barbeque or a reason alone to fire up the grill. The flavors are light, bright, clean and simple. Chicory (also known as a Belgian endive) can be notoriously bitter, but a delicate toss in an herby vinaigrette and quick sear on the grill transforms this green into sweet, tender goodness.

Grilling lends a nice caramelization and new flavor to tomatoes as well. It's still a little early in the season for most locally grown heirloom varieties, but since this preparation requires firm, barely ripened tomatoes, the timing is perfect. There are over 600 kinds of 'heirloom' tomatoes and they all have these fantastic secret double agent names like Black Krim, Bloody Butcher, Mr. Stripy, or Jersey Devil. For this recipe I used the less menacing Green Zebra's and White Queens, both of which get on quite well with fresh dill and basil. More...

Potato soup was a given for Spring, when potatoes are not only in season but also icons of Irish culture. Sure, Irish cuisine isn’t nearly as popular or exotic as others, but it informs the staples of homestyle American comfort food. Not to mention that it's easy and equally tasty. Just about every traditional Irish preparation calls for potatoes, as well as cabbage. Rustic breads, crumpets, or in this case biscuits really round out a genuine Irish plate. Of course a cold bottle of Pike Brewery's XXXXX Stout (with a velvety texture so thick you may need a spoon) won't hurt either. More...

Valentine’s Day is coming up and if you’re poor like me, homemade chocolate truffles are totally the way to go. Truffles make for a fantastic gift, a sweet finish to a romantic meal, or perhaps just a friendly distraction from an otherwise lonely holiday. Whatever your circumstance, truffles are a decadent treat and great way to enjoy all the deep flavors and dark nuances a quality chocolate has to offer.

Nowadays you can get a chocolate bar that’s been joined with all sorts of funky ingredients. Lavender, ginger, salt, or my personal favorite, bacon. Local chocolate company Theo, in my humble opinion, performs these marriages better than anyone. More...

If you’ve ever had hot toasted hazelnuts straight from the oven then you’ll understand how wonderful the unique taste and aroma can be.

While I love hazelnuts, I’m not really one for all the cakes, cookies, and other sweets they pop up in. I’m just not a sweet tooth, I guess. When it comes to dessert menus, I typically go for the cheese platter. So in an effort to recruit hazelnuts over to Team Savory, I began messing around and pairing them with cheese. I was reminded of this wonderful Spanish seafood dish I once had in a romesco sauce. Romesco is a garlicky puree of tomatoes, peppers and almonds. A traditional sauce of Barcelonan cuisine, it can be made with hazelnuts instead -- which is terribly convenient, seeing the Northwest (Oregon, particularly) produces nearly 99% of hazelnuts (or filberts) grown in the United States. Because local growers wait into the twilight of autumn, when hazelnuts fall on their own, what’s at the market today should be very fresh (and in the month of January, when few things are!). More...

Anytime I see Chanterelle mushrooms piled high into delicate heaps at the market, I immediately change the menu plan. Chanterelles posses a woody essence with apricot tones not unlike a fine glass of Chardonnay. These mushrooms play well with all sorts of preparations from slow braising in jus to sautéing in butter or simply steaming on their own. For this installment of Honest Eats, we’ll bring some Chinese flavor to Chanterelles and let their autumnal aromas come through uncompromised and make for an amazing dish. More...

Honest Eats is our newest seasonal recipe blog by Eric Robertson of Souped Up Cafe.

Heirloom winter squash are to autumn what Rainier cherries are to summer. They are an emblem of October and we’re lucky here in Seattle to have access to so many varieties. Getting a hold of some locally grown pumpkins and cooking them up to highlight their natural, earthy sweetness will really bring a seasonal flair to your kitchen everyone can appreciate, not to mention a chance to show off your culinary prowess. More...