After the last month or so of gluttonous behavior, the rooted team is excited to start the year off right, with a round of juices and smoothies. We’ve been testing, sampling, and creating 12 ounces of nutritiously rich, vitamin-packed liquids to head into 2016 on balanced footing. So put down that glass of bubbly, forgive yourself for overdoing it the … Continued
Stepping into the Toppenish Food Bank (Community Chest) warehouse, my eyes are immediately drawn to the considerably large stacks of food in the center of the room. Vibrantly colored cans of fruits and vegetables, next to rustling plastic bags filled with uncooked rice, beans, and oats stand beside a shopping cart containing bright green and … Continued
Savory Tradition of French Canadian Tourtière Over 125 years ago, clusters of families immigrated to the Yakima Valley from Quebec, Canada, through the Midwest, lured by the chance to establish new lives in the fledgling agricultural community that was just beginning to emerge. Driving around Moxee, Washington today, we see a visible legacy of these … Continued
Just before bedtime on December 24, millions of children everywhere are setting a glass full of milk and a plate of cookies out near the Christmas tree, with the hopes of sating the snack time desires of Santa Claus himself. No surprise that a man whose midsection is compared to a bowl full of jelly … Continued
Out with friends one Yakima Friday night, with our kids in tow after a school event, and of course the dreaded, age-old question is uttered—“where should we go?” It’s interesting that no matter where in the world you find yourself, this is always a difficult query to address. So when someone in our group quickly … Continued
“But for some, the drink embodies a proud cultural heritage of toughness and rebelliousness.” — *National Geographic C’mon! What are you afraid of? Historically, moonshine was a clear spirit with a high alcohol content that was distilled illegally, often at night by the light of the moon–hence the name and its rebel connotation. But these … Continued
Here in the Yakima Valley, we live in the birthplace of food. The earth is torn open every year, filled with seed, and voile! A gorgeous assortment of sustenance. Cattle graze, sheep munch, pigs root, and chickens scratch. We have it all, and that’s a wonderful thing, but something special is finding a person who … Continued
Cue the theme music from The Good, The Bad & The Ugly—wah wah wahhh—tumbleweeds silently blow past. It’s a sultry Friday evening as the desert sky fades from orange to blood red. Two thirsty hop slingers sidle up to a rough-hewn bar inside an old warehouse within the concrete canyons of Yakima’s notorious fruit row. … Continued
Barefoot in the kitchen. It’s unfortunate that this image is associated with the ball and chain of housewivery and keeping the ladies down, because really, it’s a fantastic thing. To me, it implies intimacy with the space, that get close and nuzzle up familiarity that only comes after the shoes are kicked off—for the ladies … Continued
It was noisy. The staccato of Ilocano, the singsong of Tagalog, two native tongues of the Philippines cut through the din and paired with the comfortable rhythm of Filipino English. This, all punctuated with laughter, was the chorus that greeted us as we arrived at the 63rd Annual Filipino Community Harvest Dinner, a fiesta to … Continued