My favorite recipe - Meet Chris Mathis, Colfax

Jana Mathia | Dec 23, 20100

Chris Mathis is the new owner of Colfax’s Cottage Gate. Mathis moved here in August to buy the store in Colfax.

Her daughter Mary Jean Inman had previously moved to Colfax. When Mathis came to town to visit her daughter, she fell in love with the small-town vibe. She also fell in love with the quaint store, which is located in a historic Colfax building.

The store, located at the south end of Colfax’s Main Street, features a full-service flower shop and seasonal home decorating knick-knacks.

Chris has a life-time of experience in flower arranging, though working on the flowers at Cottage Gate is her first time working on them professionally. Chris grew up on the family cattle farm in Moses Lake.

“It’s not an area I thought I would branch out into,” she said. In high school, Chris learned some techniques from the mother of a friend. She was recruited to supply flowers for events like proms and weddings for friends and their kids.

Now she is doing the arrangements for the store and taking workshops to improve her skill.

The general theme of home decor really drew Chris to Cottage Gate.

“I love decorating,” Chris said. “I’m having a really good time.”

Although the store changed ownership back in August, Chris didn’t change the merchandise, keeping with the same genre of items, but slowly taking it in her own direction. She is still trying to learn the ropes, getting a feel for what people in the community want and need.

“I love getting to meet people and getting to interact with the people that come in,” Chris said. Although in the area for less than six months, she is getting to know people from Colfax and the surrounding area at an accelerated rate.

Chris recently added baked goods to the inventory. She likes to bake everything, especially breads and pies.

Before purchasing Cottage Gate, Chris quilted a lot. But since moving she hasn’t even had a change to unpack her sewing machine. She also likes to do a lot of outdoor stuff and anything that involves her family.

“If I have any time, I try to dedicate it to family,” she said.

Aside from Mary Jean, husband Jeremy and their children Layla and Mathis, Chris also has a son Josh and his wife Lauren in Pullman attending WSU.

One son, Calvin and his family, still reside in Moses Lake.

Another son, Paul, a marine, is stationed in California with his wife Jackie. Paul has served two tours in Afghanistan.

Even though Chris’s store doesn’t leave her much extra time, she is thoroughly enjoying the store.

“It’s a lot warmer in the winter than feeding (cattle),” she joked.

Recipes:

Sausage Breakfast Strata

8 slices bread, cubed

2 cups shredded cheese

1 1/2 lb. link sausage

4 eggs

2 1/4 cup milk

3/4 tsp. dry mustard

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup milk

Place cubed bread in bottom of 9 x 13 buttered dish, add cheese. Brown and cut up sausage. Place on cheese and bread. Beat eggs with 2 1/4 cup milk and mustard and pour over all. Refrigerate over night. In morning mix soup with 1/2 cup milk. Pour over and bake at 300 degrees for 1 1/2 hours.

Fruit Salad

2 eggs, well beaten

2 Tbsp. flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup liquid (reserved from canned fruit)

Cook over low to make a pudding. When cool fold in:

1/2 pint whipped cream

Stir into:

1 lg. can fruit cocktail, well drained, use liquid for pudding

2 can mandarin oranges

bananas

apples