Genuine Skagit Cooking: Over 45 Recipes from the Heart of Skagit Valley by Blake Van Roekel and Stefanie LeJeunesse
Forage. Gather. Feast. 100+ Recipes from West Coast Forests, Shores & Urban Spaces by Maria Finn
The MeatEater Outdoor Cookbook: Wild Game Recipes for the Grill, Smoker, Campstove, and Campfire by Steve Rinella
The Pacific Northwest is blessed with a long growing season, extraordinarily fertile soil in our floodplain regions and a rich history of harvesting wild foods that originated with the original stewards of this land. Those interested in eating locally will want to check out these recent cookbooks that focus on harvesting and preparing the unique bounty found in this corner of the world.
Closest to home is a new cookbook featuring recipes from food producers, small-business owners, and residents around Skagit Valley. Genuine Skagit Cooking: Over 45 Recipes from the Heart of Skagit Valley by Blake Van Roekel and Stefanie LeJeunesse opens with an account of the rich agricultural history of this fertile region, beginning with the Coastal Samish, Swinomish and Upper and Lower Skagit tribes who have gathered and harvested food here since time immemorial.
The introduction goes on to recognize the cultural changes and agricultural innovations made possible by the unique blend of silt, clay and sandy loam that make up the soil of this floodplain. Japanese American incarceration during WWII brought short-term contract workers from Mexico to the region, a tradition that has continued. To shorten the distance from farm to table, small-scale farms offering local CSA subscription boxes sprang up, many of them instituting farming practices that focus on soil quality. Locals embrace seasonal traditions of wild foraging and harvest.
This is one of those cookbooks that is just as fun to read as it is to cook from; the comments with each recipe introduce you to new farmstands, CSAs, cooking practices and local food lore, such as the belief that the closer your garden is to the Skagit River, the sweeter your carrots will be. As we move toward spring and fresh produce, I look forward to making the Smoky Creamy Carrot Soup and the Potato and Purslane Salad, finishing the meal off with delightfully green Spring Greens Cupcakes for dessert!
Wild foods foragers will be inspired by the range of recipes Maria Finn has collected in Forage. Gather. Feast. 100+ Recipes from West Coast Forests, Shores & Urban Spaces. I am dying to try the recipe for Piney Ice Cream with Candied Pine Cones that is served with a pine cone syrup. This summer when the fireweed is blooming, how about a Fireweed Martini made with gin and a fireweed blossom syrup, topped off with a dash of Rum and Seaweed bitters?
Organized in sections for coastal, forest, and urban foraging, Finn will push the limits of your imagination for what foods around us are edible and provide fun inspiration for adventurous eaters.
Steven Rinella is an outdoor enthusiast and writer from Montana whose MeatEater brand includes a television show, podcast, and wilderness survival guide, as well as multiple cookbooks. For hunters and anglers, The MeatEater Outdoor Cookbook: Wild Game Recipes for the Grill, Smoker, Campstove, and Campfire celebrates the possibilities of open-air wild game cooking. For those not experienced with field cooking techniques, Rinella provides detailed instruction in techniques ranging from smoking and roasting in coals to spits, skewers and making a stove out of a stump.
Lisa Gresham is the collection services manager at Whatcom County Library System.
(Originally published in Cascadia Daily News, Sunday, February 16, 2025.)