if you have been following along on IG, you will know that i very recently got back from this magical place.
this is a small island in the PNW, just a short ferry ride away from seattle. my dad was in town from the uk, visiting my sister—who lives in seattle. and so, andy and i went up to see them for the week too, and it was so lovely. summer in the PNW is unbeatable.
we spent the first few days in seattle proper, where they live and had a fun few days trips out with my niece and nephew.
despite my sister and family living in the PNW for the past 3 years or so, and me visiting often—i had still never made it out to whidbey island (where ‘practical magic’ was filmed. so on my second day, we got the ferry over to whidbey.
whidbey was very cute, and just like the movie! quaint shops, cafes & restaurants all set amongst the most breathtaking backdrop of pine trees and small cobbled streets.
we took a stroll around langley first and it was super cute. we sat on the beach for a little, and browsed some stores before heading for lunch on a different part of the island. i came across the women’s clothing store, alma which carried a lot of my favorite brands as well as a fantastic curation of vintage. i also popped into greyhorse mercantile, a sweet little pantry goods store, that again—carried a lot of my favorite brands.
we made our way up to coupeville. which, again was an insanely cute little town, set right on the water. this was actually the town that ‘practical magic’ was filmed in, we even got to go into sally’s shop, which was now was just a little mercantile shop—but still, it was fun to see.
if you hadn’t guessed it yet, ‘practical magic’ is mine and my sister's favorite movie. that and ‘now & then’. if you are a millennial and haven’t seen either, i don’t quite know what you have been doing with your life.
we stumbled across our lunch place, purely by accident—but what a happy accident it was!
from wikipedia ‘the captain whidbey inn was built in the fall and winter of 1907 from madrona logs and stone found on-site by chris fisher and his son edward. the post and beam construction, with the log infill, sits intact as initially built. larry fisher, chris fisher's great-grandson, still works occasionally on the inn. it was opened in May 1907 as part of a large recreation retreat then-called still park. the inn and park were developed by judge lester still. the park also had camping, cabins, horse trails, tennis courts and a warm salt water swimming pool. a collection of pictures from that period remain in a history collection at the inn.
the grounds alone were the most beautiful, let alone the inside. this place was glorious in the PNW summer sunshine, but i can only imagine how cosy and relaxing it would be in the winter. we all talked about wanting to come back sometime to actually stay, and enjoy the hotel.
i had clams, of course—and you will see that clams (as ever) will become the running theme of this trip for hattie and i. we had such a lovely little lunch. again, it truly felt like we were in a movie.
it was safe to say that the rest of our trip continued this way, with lots of glorious eating and memorable moments with my family.
one of the days, i had a few work meetings in seattle proper, and so, of course, i squeezed in a solo lunch on the recommendation of my sweet friend lana from shop hoste (one of the best curated vintage shops in seattle).
i popped into cafe suliman, a very sweet little cafe/restaurant/natural wine bar serving up some of the best new arabic cuisine i have had.
first up i had some perfectly pickled anchovies with lemon and chili, which were so incredibly good. the anchovies were overtly vinegary but scooped up with some sourdough and the lemony oil—it was the perfect bite.
then i had the tahini braised greens with a soft egg and herb salad on toast. this was sublime. the pictures really do not do it justice. it's reminiscent of a braised collard toast that i make with red pepper flakes and a soft egg. but wow, the flavors that they packed into this were beyond belief, and the tahini braised greens were a stroke genius.
i have been meaning to re-create ever since. all washed down with a little tot of skin contact wine. what a perfect little solo stop. i picked up some sweet treats for my family, and headed home.
the next day we took dad to the famous pike place for lunch, and went to the athenian seafood restaurant and bar—made famous from the movie sleepless in seattle.
believe it or not—despite having lived in san francisco for 3 years, i had never had cioppino before. well, as soon as i saw it on the menu my eyes widened. for some reason, today was the day and boy had i been missing out!
and of course, hattie loved it too and polished off her own bowl.
the following day we left for the real vacation part of our trip! we were heading to one of the seattle islands and had rented a lake house for the weekend.
we stopped for lunch at perhaps the most picturesque of spots yet, called the boat shed, and, of course, had more seafood. it was raining but we didn’t mind—the views were still glorious.
the lake house was so stunning, and felt like something out of a nancy meyers movie (this trip has so many movies references, i’m sorry)!
but when i say it was beautiful, it really was beautiful.
and indeed, it was still raining but we embraced it! we kind of had no other choice but to snuggle in for the night, pour a glass of wine and cook dinner together—one of my favorite things to do with my family (and anyone to be quite honest).
we made marcella’s amatriciana, which, of course, was divine. and the next morning my sister and brother-in-law snuck out to get us all pastries from this incredible bakery (saboteur), ran by matt tinder, a pastry chef who worked at michelin-starred restaurants coi and the restaurant at meadowood in california, and it showed. these were the best pastries i have ever had, from anywhere, in my life.
perfect lamination, incredible flavors and not greasy at all. blown away is the only way to describe my feelings here.
the last day i stayed back at the house, while my family went to a baseball game. the act of spending a day cooking for my family, alone in the kitchen—pottering, stirring, tasting. slowly preparing the food. stopping for a cup of tea, and to perhaps flick through a cookbook or two. that is my love language.
i prepared a greek-inspired dinner for them.
traditional greek salad with feta and oregano
braised chickpeas with a lemony, very garlicky tzatziki
oregano lemon-butter roast chicken
fasolakia (green bean stew)
everything was devoured within an inch of it’s life—we were full and happy. and i was happy because my food had made them happy.
we had a swish of sunshine for our last morning, as we sat on the deck to enjoy an early coffee before we all said our goodbyes.
the best goodbye to summer that anyone could ask for!
fasolakia (green bean stew)
there are of course many, many recipes for this—but this is my version.
many cultures have a version of this stew—for example, lebanon have loubieh, palestine have fasolia, south africa have bredie. and there are so many more!
this is my take on the greek version—adapted by claudia roden’s recipe, but i add a little more spice to mine.
there is something about the cooked-down green beans, that is so comforting to me. i will say, i do love a cooked-down vegetable. there is a time and a place for everything, including well-cooked vegetables.
another common dish you’ll see all over the mediterranean is boiled greens or zucchini. the zuccini is cooked until soft but not falling apart. once the zucchini is drained, you can smother it with some really good olive oil and lots of flaky sea salt, and serve. utter perfection.
i have a lot to say on boiled vegetables. more on that in another post, perhaps.
i love fasolakia on it’s own with some bread, and a little feta. to accompany meats and fish. i also love it over rice, as you can see here. it really is such a versatile, comforting dish.
here is my recipe for fasolakia -
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serves 4-6 as a side dish
2 lbs of green haricot vert or romano beans, trimmed
1 small white onion, peeled and diced
5 garlic cloves, sliced
1 large 28oz can of whole plum tomatoes,
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
2-3 cups of water, depending
1 tbsp red pepper flakes
2 tbsp oregano
2 tbsp cumin seed
2 tbsp fennel seed
1 tsp cardamon
salt
black pepper
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begin by cooking down the onions and garlic over low-medium heat, in a large heavy bottom pan like a dutch oven or deep saute pan. once just softened add in all of the spices to bloom in the oil.
after about 2 minutes (and not much longer, as we don’t want the spices to burn) begin adding the tomatoes one by one, squishing them in-between you fingers until each tomato is broken down into much smaller bite-sized chunks. repeat until all of the tomatoes are added and then add in the rest of the juice from the can too.
next add in the beans, and season everything to taste.
add in 2 cups of water and turn the heat down to low. pop a lid on top and let the beans braise in the tomato sauce for at least 1 hour, preferably 2.
the stew is done once the beans are impossibly soft, but not fully broken down. serve with more flaky salt, a drizzle of olive olive, lots of black pepper and more red pepper flakes. enjoy!
*as with most things, this is even better the next day!
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talk soon
xo
so dreamy. I've been lightly obsessed with going to this place since Jenni Kayne's creative director got married there. loved this peek into your trip!
This sounds like a magical trip ✨