Seattle

In early June, we got to take a family trip to Seattle with the Engineer’s mother. We had a short trip (three days), but squeezed in the main things I wanted to see and do (and eat!), so here’s a quick summary.

Day 1
We got there midday, driving in from Seattle. Our first stop was Red Mill Burgers for lunch, which was quite good. I ordered the red onion jam burger, but was mistakenly given the verde burger, which was not at all what I had wanted, but I could tell that the base of the burger was great. One thing that I noticed there, and it was going to be a theme in the state of Washington, is that all of the items that registered in my brain as “disposable plastic” were in fact made from plant fibers and compostable! I wish they were standard everywhere – I know that in Texas, plastic is still the norm. And in Quebec, people complain about paper straws that don’t hold up. But these straws and cups seem like the perfect compromise!

We then went to our first attraction, the Chihuly Garden and Glass at the foot of the Space Needle. We bought tickets to visit both, and spent time in the former while waiting for our entry time at the latter. We had seen some of Chihuly’s work at the San Antonio Museum of Art, but this was so much more impressive! There are sculptures that are 20 feet tall, and in every color you can imagine! One of the docents told us that they are dusted every day before the museum opens (we were really wondering ). I really don’t know if I preferred the Sealife Tower, Mille Fiori, or the chandeliers. Most of the glass sculptures are indoors, but there are many outdoors as well, looking like alien flowers in the greenery. This was really worth the visit! The gift shop is also superb, and it took a lot of self-restraint on my part not to buy anything.

Then we moved on to the Space Needle. I liked that there are exhibits explaining its history as well as building factoids as the line of people winds its way to the glass elevators. The top has a revolving restaurant (honestly, it looked more like a bar with only small 2-seater tables); the viewing deck was nice, as we got beautiful views of both Seattle as well as Mount Rainier. This was worth the visit!

Then, we went to Pike Place Market. Honestly, this would be much better in the morning, as shops were closing up already when we got there, but our schedule was tight and this was the best we could do. I almost bought peonies, but I didn’t know if our lodging had a vase, so I ended up just taking pictures. We spent some time looking around, bought pastries at Le Panier, saw the flagship Starbucks with the original logo, and made our way down to the Gum Wall.

We had booked an Airbnb on Dayton Avenue, a nice townhouse near the Woodland Zoo. We stopped at Trader Joe’s on the way and bought our dinner there before settling in for the night.

Day 2
We started off our day with a visit to the Fremont Troll, which was just as I imagined it to be, except the surrounding area was nicer than I imagined it. You can actually climb on the troll as long as you are being respectful of the surroundings, and I think everyone in our group had fun.

We then swung by the Lake View Cemetery to pay our respects to Bruce and Brandon Lee. The site itself if wonderful, too! And it was on to our next stop.

As this was a Saturday morning, the first one of the month, we’d had to foresight to book free tickets to the Spheres. They are a greenhouse with tropical plants in downtown Seattle, and it’s a project by Amazon (the company, not the forest). As the Engineer says, it’s a bit like trying to book concert tickets, on that there’s a lot of demand and you need to keep refreshing the page until you can get through! And you can only book 4 tickets at a time. I really enjoyed the visit. Plus, we were delighted to see that there was a General Porpoise right on the premises, so of course we took a break for doughnuts – and yes, they were every bit as good as advertised! (The kids and I had a cinnamon sugar crueller, a Boston cream doughnut, and a marshmallow chocolate doughnut.)

We then went to lunch at The Whale Wins, which again was just as I had imagined it. It was much quieter than I had expected for a Saturday lunch, which was actually really nice! We ate quite well.

After a pit stop at our townhouse, the Engineer and I took the kids out for a few hours. Our first stop was to visit Frankie Feetsplinters. I’ve become obsessed with Thomas Dambo’s troll sculptures, and since there are six in the Pacific Northwest, I wanted to see some! (The map on his website is unfortunately impossible to navigate, but you can use this one for the USA.)

Our second stop was Discovery Park, where we took the trail recommended by Molly Wizenberg: “Park in the south lot, walk up and over the hill, down through the meadow that slopes toward Puget Sound, and then wind your way down through the woods to the beach. It’s beautiful, year-round.” Well, we didn’t have time to go down to the beach, but we saw the sound, and it was beautiful.

For dinner, since we wanted a broader gluten-free selection for my mother-in-law, we went to a/stir – it had a great menu, and the entire place is gluten-free! We didn’t try the dessert, because I had my heart set on a nearby shop…

We had dessert at Frankie and Jo’s. I had been waiting literally for years to go there! It’s a vegan ice cream shop with awesome flavors; even non-vegans from Bon Appétit love it! I tasted the Blueberry Lavender Pie ice cream (seasonal), and it was really great; I wish I had been hungry enough to eat that one too! I should have asked for a taste of California Cabin, too. But I went with the ones I’d had my eye on all this time, the Salty Caramel Ash ice cream and the Beet Strawberry Rose sorbet. They were out of this world! I’d really like to figure out the recipe for that sorbet in particular. And I just found out that Frankie & Jo’s ships their ice cream domestically, so that’s where my next paycheck is going…

Day 3
We drove out to Mount Rainier, which we’d been seeing from afar since we got there. You definitely have to get there early (before 9:00am) to get a parking spot, but keep in mind that the visitors’ pavilion doesn’t open until 10:00am. We had read that in early June, “it’s possible there will still be snow on the ground.” We’re Canadian, we figured that was totally fine. As it turned out, though, there was so much snow that one of the two trails we were considering (Nisqually Vista Trail) was closed, and the other (Skyline Trail to Myrtle Falls) was open, but… under a lot of snow. People starting their trek had spikes on their shoes (or snow shoes or skis), and walking sticks of ski sticks, and proper snow suits in most cases. I walked up the slope for a bit (maybe a total of 50 feet up, according to Strava), then decided that my shoes were not adequate and I went back down. (The Fox and his grandmother were waiting in the visitors’ center by then, and the Engineer and the Little Prince went up a bit further than I did.)

We did get to enjoy the scenery on the way up and down, though (at least, those of us who weren’t driving), and made a little stop at Narada Falls on the way down.

We then had lunch at Mount Rainier Railroad Dining Company, partly because it was a good location that offered some gluten-free options, and maybe partly also because in Vancouver, we hadn’t been to the “right” location of the Old Spaghetti Factory and I felt like I had been cheated out of the railroad car. This place was all railroad cars, though, and the food was really good! I ended up splitting a hamburger with the Fox because he finished his corndog and was still hungry; the Little Prince and my mother-in-law both had the salmon with blackberries, and the Engineer had the Montecristo sandwich.

On the way back, we stopped by Lincoln Park to see a second Dambo troll, Bruun Idun. I think I liked her more than Frankie! The surroundings are gorgeous, too, as she’s on the edge of the forest near the water. This was a great outing! And the kids spent a little time at the playground too.

We dropped off my mother-in-law at the townhouse so she could rest and made our way to Delancey. If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you might know that I’ve been wanting to go to Delancey since… before it opened over 15 years ago? I can’t help it, I’m such a big fan of Molly Wizenberg, so I was following the whole thing on her blog (Orangette) and then read her memoir about that phase in her life. And on the way there, as we were driving downhill in Ballard, I think we passed her on her bike, then met up again with her at the intersection of 75th Street and 8th Avenue. Molly Wizenberg, if you were wearing a lime green bike helmet and biking with your toddler in her trailer, just know that I was super happy to catch a glimpse of you!

Anyway, we made it to Delancey. Somehow, this was also just as I imagined it, though I couldn’t sum up all the background info I got from Molly Wizenberg (and honestly, it’s not necessary to enjoy a good pizza!). The white pizza looked great, but I decided to go the classic route and got the margherita (and I took Lactojoy, which was totally worth it). We got some of their famous salted chocolate chip cookies to go, too.

So, I hadn’t realized that there was a Frankie & Jo’s literally next door, but what we had on our schedule that evening was Salt & Straw – I’d been wanting to go there ever since I saw this on Instagram! I tasted the Strawberry and Coconut Water Sherbet, and it was good, but I got the Peanut Butter Brittle Caramel Fudge, and that was fantastic! And Salt & Straw does sell online too, including a pack of dairy-free flavors.

Of course, with such a short stay, we didn’t get to do *everything*. If I ever go back, I’d like to go to Bateau, meet up with two friends who live there, maybe explore some neighborhoods more in depth or see more of Molly Wizenberg’s recommendations. And, like, eat at Frankie & Jo’s everyday!

Coconut Quinoa with Lime Zest

 

I made this coconut quinoa with lime zest as a side, after adapting the instructions from a rice cooker to a small or medium saucepan (it’s actually faster, in this case). This quinoa was delicious! I served it with Korean chicken meatballs.

1 cup quinoa, rinsed if necessary
1 (13.5-oz.) can coconut milk
¼ cup water
¼ tsp. salt
1 small lime, zested and juiced

Place quinoa, canned coconut milk, water, and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 15 minutes or until the liquid has just been absorbed.

Let the quinoa set for about 4-5 minutes after it's done cooking, and then fluff it with a fork.

Stir in the zest and juice of one small lime, and season with additional salt to taste. Serve warm.

Korean Chicken Meatballs

 

I saw this recipe for Instant Pot Korean chicken meatballs, which I immediately modified to use the oven instead of the Instant Pot. I used less of the red pepper flakes and I doubled the quantities to make about 8 servings (27 meatballs); the amounts below are mine. They were a hit! I served them with coconut quinoa with lime zest.


For the Korean BBQ sauce (I made it while the meatballs are cooking)
½ cup liquid aminos or soy sauce
1/3 cup + ¼ cup brown sugar (this is confusing but add both; it adds up to .58 of a cup which doesn't exist)
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
1 tsp. sambal oelek
1 tsp. toasted sesame oil
½ tsp. grated fresh ginger
¼ tsp. pepper
1 Tbsp. water
2 tsp. cornstarch

Bring all the ingredients (except for the water and cornstarch) to a boil over medium heat in a small saucepan.

In a small bowl, make a cornstarch slurry by mixing the cornstarch and water together until the cornstarch dissolves.

Add the cornstarch to pot and whisk over medium-low for 5-10 minutes and it’s rich and thick.

Store in a jar for up to a week.


For the meatballs
2 lb. ground chicken
2 eggs
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp. grated ginger
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp. toasted sesame oil
½ tsp. salt
1 cup panko crumbs
sliced green onions, for garnish (optional)

Preheat the oven to 425 °F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray it with oil. Set aside.

Combine the ground chicken, eggs, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, sesame oil, and salt to a bowl and mix together.

Sprinkle the panko crumbs over the chicken, mix and let the panko soak into the chicken mixture for 5 minutes.

Form into 30 balls or so. Place them on the prepared baking sheet, then bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until they are cooked all the way through. (This cooking time is perfect for making the Korean BBQ sauce and a side dish.)

Serve the Korean chicken meatballs over quinoa or cauliflower rice. Drizzle the Korean BBQ sauce over the meatballs. Garnish with green onions, if using.

Product reviews

I’ve got a metric f*ckton of overdue product reviews here, so let me do a big post to cover most of them.

First, I was sent samples of Festive Celebrate Snacktime Chickpea Halves, which are roasted chickpea halves that come in a wide array of flavors. And they are vegan! So there’s not lactose in the white cheddar, sour cream & onion, or ranch flavors. And honestly, they taste really good! My only quibble with them is that I find them too hard – they borderline hurt my teeth, so I find them unpleasant to eat. I ended up donating the large bags to my local food pantry.

 

Ritual Chocolate is delicious (especially the fleur de sel bar and the juniper lavender bar), but what I really want to point out if the simple-yet-ingenious design of the box, such that you can close it securely between tastings. Brilliant! (Pay no attention to the expiration date here, it's an old photo.)

Japanese Kit-Kat flavors are fabulous. I have not been able to find them locally in Japanese stores, though I do have one more place to try. I’ve been reluctant to order them online because they are shipped from Japan without proper insulation, and I live in South Texas, so I assume they would melt on the way (not to mention the shipping expense…).

 

I first had an Undercover dark chocolate and sea salt quinoa crisp as a complimentary snack on a flight, and I liked it so much that I had to seek out the company. Turns out Target has some of their items, so I now regularly get a pouch of chocolate quinoa crisps as a treat, and have to beat the kids to it because they will eat the whole thing in one sitting!

 

I wanted to love Blue Stripes whole cacao chocolate bars, but… I just didn’t. This chocolate is made using not only the cacao beans, but also the pulp and the shell of the fruit. Unlike “regular” chocolate, this method doesn’t waste 70% of the pod. I love the idea, it’s just that I’ve had much better chocolate.

 

I tried Kize peanut butter chocolate chip bar in a never-ending quest to find snacks that are high in protein and low in carbs, and… this fits the bill almost too well? It is satiating, but it feels halfway between a snack and a meal replacement, which is rarely what I am after.

 

I bought a variety pack of Aloha protein bars. The Little Prince and I both think they are okay, but we both prefer IQ Bars.

Similarly, we tried a variety pack of Rule Breaker Snacks, which are made from chickpeas and contain a lot of protein. Plus, they’re allergy-friendly and school-safe, though you might need to package them in individual servings. We like them, but don’t love them.

 

I love these protein puffs! They are made by IWON Organics (which is under the Awakened Foods umbrella); I buy them at Whole Foods, but they are available at other retailers too, as well as on Amazon. I’ve only tried the caramelized onion so far, and it’s delicious! It really hits the spot when I am craving something crisp and savory.

 

I really like these salted dark chocolate walnuts! Some protein, healthy fats, and not too many carbs. And they taste great!

I tried Stryve Protein Snacks, which looks more like thinly sliced steak than jerky. It was good, but it turns out that the kids prefer jerky sticks.

 

Finally, Grüns. I was lured in by all the nutrients (including some that may protect against cognitive decline), and they taste really good! The downside to me is that each batch seems a little bit different, not just in design (the teddy bear is the new version) but also in texture and taste, so I do wish there were more consistency. And obviously, there’s no scientific proof that they “do” anything. But I like them!