Hamnet and Honey Brussel Sprouts

 Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell.   I saw this book all over Bookstagram last year and added to my list.  Finally got to it in March and oh my!   I loved it.  This is the story of the death of Shakespeare's 11 year old son Hamnet.  At least that is the description on the book but it is really more about his mother and how grief can shatter a family.  This book is beautifully written and I read it in just a few days because it was tough to put down.  The story is told from different viewpoints but Agnes is the main character.  We jump to her first introduction to the bard and then to her family.   Shakespeare, while an important character, is not the focus.  Agnes feels almost mystical.  Her relationship with animals, her
premonitions and her use of plants to heal, all lend a feeling of magic to the story.  This is in  the time of the plague and she cannot heal the plague.   I was so taken by this novel that i needed to know how much was true.  Turns out Shakespeare did have a son that died but very little is known about his wife.  O'Farrell obviously used her wonderful imagination to give us this story. At the end, I realized I had never read or seen Hamlet.  I had no idea how this story might be related to play.  I was visiting my sister and we decided to watch it.    We googled it to find the best version and the critics seemed to pick David Tennant's version from 2009.  So, that's the one we watched.  Ummmmm  it was not very good.  I think we wanted  costumes and a more historically accurate Hamlet.  This one is a modern version and there are limited sets and terrible costumes.  I wish we had gone with the Kenneth Branagh version.  Oh well.  I got the story and not sure I needed to see it after all.   

In the book, Agnes is a beekeeper.  Because of her connection with nature, i thought making something with Honey seemed appropriate so I had 2 ideas.  One turned out great, one not so great.   

1st  was sauteed shredded Brussel Spouts with honey and balsamic glaze.  I bought the shredded sprouts they sell at Trader Joes in the bag.  Almost every recipe I see for shredded brussel sprouts has bacon in it.  I really trying to stop eating all pork products so i had to make my own recipe.  I cut up an onion and an apple and added them to the brussels and sauteed them in a generous helping of butter.  Near the end i drizzled honey over them , sprinkled some salt and pepper and let them sit till nice and soft.  I ended with a nice topping of balsamic glaze.   They were delicious.   Perfect amount of sweetness.   

The dish that didn't turn out so good was the figs.  Figs just feel very shakespearean to me (don't even ask why).  Unfortunately this isn't fig season.  They don't come in until June or July.  So i bought dried ones and stuffed them with cream cheese and covered them with honey.  I put them in the oven for about 10 minutes at 350.  They weren't terrible but not great.  Fresh figs would have been perfect but the dried ones don't do much in the oven.   I think i'll have to wait for fig season!  

Pick up the book, make some brussel spouts and skip the figs.  Hamnet ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐