One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot served with cucumber sandwiches

 One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margo by Marianne Cronin and served with cucumber sandwiches. 

This was a good one!  

Lenni is 17 and is on the terminal ward of the hospital.  There she meets Margo who is 83 and also in the same ward.  Lenni and Margot end up in an art class for seniors and decide to do 100 pieces of art to represent their combined 100 years.   The story goes back and forth from Lenni telling what is happening in the hospital and Margo's stories of her life.  We learn of a short sad marriage, a forbidden love and another marriage Throughout all of Margot's stories, we go back to Lenni.  Lenni and her friendship with Father Arthur and the nurses.  We see her struggles to stay alive and we feel the deep friendships she has made. 

While this book might be about some people dying, it is really about friendship and life and I really loved it.    I often find that we you have 2 separate storylines it is hard to get the reader engaged in both but the author did it .  I wanted to know about Margo's life but I also wanted to hear from Lenni.  I Loved both storylines.   

A strong ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I made cucumber sandwiches.  When Lenni visits Father Arthur in the church chapel, he tells her about his lunch everyday with is a sandwich.  I'm pretty sure he said watercress sandwich but not sure what else is on it.  To be honest, i wasn't exactly sure what watercress was.  I looked it up and it is a lettuce.   I decided to make a cucumber sandwich with a yummy cream cheese/dill spread.  It just felt like something Father Arthur would eat.  

I made a cream cheese, dill spread and sliced up an English Cucumber and there you go!  Enjoy 

These Precious Days served with Buffalo Cauliflower

 These Precious Days by Ann Patchett and served with Buffalo Cauliflower.   

I don't really read many essays.  In fact probably the only essays I've read are David Sedaris.   But, I love Ann Patchett and this book kept getting rave reviews on Bookstagram and it was recommended to listen to it.  I needed a new audio book so I downloaded it.  It was great!  It is read by the author and she does an excellent job.  Not every essay hit the mark for me but several did.    I loved the essay on her fathers and what they each mean to her.  I could so relate to her essay on remaining childless.  So many of the parts of that essay hit home for me.  Her essay on children's author Kate DeCamillo made me rush out to buy one of her books.  (That review will come next!)  and finally the title essay about her unexpected friendship with Sooki was the best.  Sooki was a friend that stayed with her those first few month of the pandemic because she was battling cancer at the local hospital.  She hadn't meant to move it but with COVID, everything changed.     That essay is 2 parts and the majority of the book.  It was lovely and heart breaking.  I wanted that friendship and it also made me do the ugly cry at the end.   These precious days indeed.  The essay will make you stop and just think about what you should be enjoying around you.  The people and the moment.  Ugh.   
 

Listening to this book was perfect as I walked and did house chores.  It was like talking to a friend.  I give it ⭐⭐⭐⭐.  This is a book full of 5 star essays with a few 4 stores tossed in.  

I decided to make buffalo cauliflower because Ann and Sooki are both vegetarians and they reference the challenge of food.  I eat mainly vegetarian but not completely.  I still will have the occasional hamburger when i go out to dinner but I don't prepare meat in my house.  Actually....  when i do prepare meat in my house it is 99% of the time seafood.   

Buffalo cauliflower is super easy in the Ninja insta pot!  

1 head of cauliflower - Chopped up into bite size pieces 

Mix 1/4 cup of cornstarch and 1/4 cup of flour together.  

shake up cauliflower in a large baggie with the flour mixture till all of the cauliflower is coated. 

Melt 6 Tbsp. of butter and add 1/2 cup of buffalo sauce.  (I use a milder version because i don't care for the super spicy.)  

Run the coated cauliflower through the sauce and place in the air fryer.  Cook for 12-15 minutes.   

Dip in Ranch and enjoy!  

A Thousand Ships served with Greek Lemon Rice, chicken and a greek salad

 A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes and served with Greek Lemon Rice, Chicken and a greek salad. Oh this was sooooo good!  I listened to this on audio and the author reads it.  She is perfect! 

 

I read Song of Achilles earlier this year and Circe last year.  Having read those two, I knew many of the stories of the Trojan war and the heroes  within that war.  This telling is from the women.  Each chapter is a bit of her story and scene through her eyes.    We get Hecabe, Priam's widow, and Cassandra and Helen and even the Goddesses who started the war.  I think my favorite is Penelope's parts.  She is reading the letters she wrote to Odysseus as she waits for his return.  We hear of all of his adventures through her eyes and she calls him out for his arrogance and pride and puts him in his place.  And yet, she yearns for the return of her husband.  So many stories!   The stories are not told chronological so be prepared that it does jump around as a collection of stories and not a novel.    I really loved this one.  In fact I went out and bought her other book on Women in Greek Myths- Pandora's Jar.   

I highly recommend this one and I highly recommend it on audio.  I would be really interested in this has the same impact if you have read Song of Achilles and Circe first.  These just feel like the perfect trio.   I kind of want to listen to it again!  

I was going to do Chicken kabobs and Greek rice but i don't own a grill and it feels like kabobs should be grilled.  Ended up just doing a nice lemon paprika chicken in the oven put it on top of the Greek rice.

 

I had some tomatoes and cucumbers, added some feta cheese and topped it with a little tzatziki sauce.   delicious.    For the Greek rice, 

olive oil in a pan.  add 1/2 an onion minced and some garlic.  I did 3 cloves because i like it garlicky!  

add in 2 cups of rice and stir until the onions are clear. Add  4 cups of chicken broth.  The recipe called for greek seasoning and i wasn't really sure what that was.  I did some dried oregano, dried thyme, some garlic powder, onion powder, dried parsley and salt.  

Also bought a bottle of Greek wine to enjoy! 

The Ten Thousand Doors of January served with Jelly Donuts

 The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow served with Jelly Donuts.  

Well that was fun!  I kind of picked this book because I loved the cover so much AND I read A Spindle Splintered by this author last year and really liked it.   This one is about a young girl in the early 1900's named January.  She lives with her guardian, Mr Locke , while her father is off hunting artifacts for him.  She is sad and lonely and finds a door that takes her to a new world.  But, once she is back, she is locked away in the Locke mansion.   Without giving too much away, she gets a book that tells her the story of her parents and more doors! Turns out there are doors everywhere and they are being closed up for good!    There are several villain's here and a couple of heroes.  There is a chase and a little bit of love and some big action! 

What I liked, I really liked January ,Jane, Samuel and Bad.  They made a great team and I was rooting for them.  I enjoyed the story within the story.  The whole thing is super inventive and captured my attention.  I read this pretty quickly because once i got into it, I had to know what would happen! 

I did get confused more than once.  I don't read a lot of fantasy so a few times i was like... Ummmm what is happening here?  While the story within the story was great, it also added to some of the confusion. 

Really fun read and a solid ⭐⭐⭐⭐.  

I made Jelly filled Donuts for this one.  2 reasons, when you bite into a filled donut there is that surprise for what's inside similarly to when January goes through the doors. The other reason I made there is for the prompt on Bookstagram for a contest called "Donut judge a Book".  I can win some fun kitchen stuff.  
I used a recipe I found on Pinterest that i'm attaching here.  It was a bit of work because these are yeast donuts so we must wait for the rise!  I added some edible glitter and they were delicious!  

https://natashaskitchen.com/baked-donuts/

The Giver of Stars served with Pinto Beans and Cornbread

 The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes served with Pinto Beans and Cornbread.   

This was for my book group discussion planned for April.  It is set in Kentucky and focuses on the Packhorse librarians.  This was a program started by Eleanor Roosevelt during the depression to help get books into the hands of the less fortunate.    The main character is Alice who is English and marries a Kentucky man who is vacationing in Europe.  She is hoping to escape her confined English life but gets more than she bargained for.  Once in Kentucky, she isn't finding married life with Bennet to be what she expected.  She signs up to be a packhorse librarian and there we meet Margery who is a tough broad who runs the librarians.   Together with a group of other women, they ride the back trails of Kentucky delivering books.  There is a love story, a murder mystery and plenty of family drama.  

Here is what I liked, the whole Kentucky packhorse Librarian thing is super interesting.  Love any story about books and the power of reading.  I felt like the author did a nice job of setting the surroundings.  I liked the story of the women's friendship and overall really liked the women. 

It was a bit slow for me in the first half.   I just felt like it dragged a tiny bit.  And it all felt a bit predictable with the lame husband and mean father in law.    

Glad I read it and would recommend it.  ⭐⭐⭐ 1/2  

Last year I read the Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek and enjoyed it.  There was such a controversy on line around the fact that the books came out in a close time period and were focused on the same topic.   I think they were both different enough that it is all good.  I mean we have 100's of WW2 books and no one loses their mind that they came out around the same time.   No controversy for me.  Both were good and glad i read both though I am kind of glad I separated them by a year! 

I knew pretty quickly that I had to make Pinto Beans and Cornbread for this story.  They mention cornbread multiple times in the book.  My folks grew up in the deep mountains of West Virginia and pinto beans and cornbread were a staple on their tables.   My mom fixed it every couple of weeks when i was a kid.  Probably wasn't my favorite meal back then but now I think back on that with such comfort!

For years i didn't eat it but about 10 years back I made my own version minus the giant slab of fat in the beans.  I added onions and garlic and a little tiny bit of red peppers just to give it a kick. Mom's cornbread was NOT sweet cornbread.   When I moved to the west coast, I found that most of the cornbread was on the sweeter side.   

I made a giant pot for this book and ate it all!    Delicious!   

Violin Conspiracy served with Peach Pie

 The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb served with Peach Pie 

Ray McMillian inherits his great grandfather's violin and  with that violin become a musical sensation!  It turns out the old violin is actually a Stradivarius, one of the rarest and move valuable instruments there is.  It is valued at 10 million.   That opens up all kind of problems for Ray.  In the very beginning of the book, the violin is stolen and held for ransom.  From there we go backwards and learn about how Ray came to get the violin, his rough family history, his exposure to racist actions and the claims being made against his instrument.   His family is pretty awful.  His mom has never understood or appreciated his musical talent.  Once the violin is valuable, the family wants him to sell it and split the money.  When he refuses it causes a fracture in the family.  There is also the family that was the slave owners of his great grandfather who claim it is their violin and was stolen.  The story starts at the present day, flips back to Ray's childhood and then works its way back to present day and the mystery of who stole the violin. 

Here is what I liked about the book, I have never given any thought to the racism that exist in the classical music arena.  I mean it makes sense.  Classical music is typically thought of as rich white people music.  Here is the young black musician who is showing up at event with this amazing violin and he isn't always treated well.  Some of the things that happen to him are so shocking that i can't even believe it could be true.  At first I thought the author was just exaggerating the issue but then i listened to an interview with him and he shared that the events were based on real life issues he has had.  I can't even believe this type of crap happens!  I'm obviously living in my own little bubble so it's good for me to have my mind expanded!   I also loved Ray's mentor Janice and the support she gives him.  I loved Grandma Nora and the love she gives him.  And Ray himself, he manages to not let the racism and in fighting with his family make him bitter.  He continues to strive to be the best in his field and even tries to mend the family bonds.  

Probably my only disappointment was that it's not much of a mystery.  I would call it more of a family drama/ coming of age story and not a mystery.  I mean half of the book is about the background.  I also thought I knew who did it and i'm typically not good at that kind of thing.  

I listened to it on audio.  I had heard that there was music between chapters.  THere was but it was so small that I wish I had read it instead.  I just didn't love the narrator and I think I would have enjoyed the print version more.  Still, it's a ⭐⭐⭐⭐ read and one I would recommend. 

I wanted to make Peach Pie because it felt like something Grandma Nora would have made for Ray.  I don't typically make pie crust but buy the premade.  I decided to do kind of a hybrid pie/cobbler and just do the crust on the top.  (I think that probably is a cobbler but who knows)   I cut a violin shape on the top of the crust and added some music notes.  It look better before cooking.  After, you can't hardly see it!  

For the Pie,  I used frozen peaches.  Because I only had one bag, I used a smaller casserole dish and made a mini pie.   

Bag of frozen peaches (approx 3 cups of peach slices) 

1/4 cup flour 

1/2 Tablespoon of CornStarch 

1/2 cup of white sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 

1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg and salt 

2 Tablespoons of butter. 

Mix all together except the butter.  Put into the casserole dish.  Slice up the butter into thin slices and put across the top of the mixture.   I used a store bought crust.  I rolled it out and trimmed it to fit over the top.  I brushed it wit 1 egg white and sprinkled it with turbinado sugar.  Baked in 350 oven for about 40 minutes.  Watch the crust so it doesn't burn.  I had to use my pie cover to prevent it getting too dark.  You want it toasty brown and bubbly.    Enjoy! 

Personal Librarian served with baked cod and a lemon/pea risotto

 Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray and served with baked cod and a lemon pea risotto 

This one was interesting and also a little flawed.  First, what I really liked was finding out about this remarkable woman in history that I knew nothing about!   Bella da Costa Greene was J.P. Morgan's personal librarian and ultimately one of the most powerful women in NYC during the early 1900's.  She handles his rare manuscripts, books, bibles and artwork and is given the power to buy at will under his name.  She builds out the Pierpont Morgan library  and is J.P. Morgan's constant companion.   I looked her up and all of this is true!   And, she was passing as white her whole life!    This is really the story of  how she got to this place of power, how she dealt with the difficulty emotionally of hiding her true self and  how she got comfortable with who she was.  Plus, she was able to go places and do things that few women could do.  She was fearless and powerful.   The history was fascinating.  Also, I  always like a book about books though at time this felt like it was more about art.  I also like that i've been to the Morgan library in NYC and it is pretty amazing. 

Where i struggled a little bit was with the writing style.  I really had a hard time connecting with Bella.  So much is said in a matter of fact way and the dialogue felt a little stilted.  I just didn't have an emotional reaction to any of it and that had me a bit bored.   I would still give this a solid 3.5 stars and recommend it especially if you are interested in this part of history.  

I could not figure out a food item!  I swear there is no food in this book.  If there is, i totally missed it.  I struggled with what to make.  Nothing really stood out as representing the library.  I knew it needed to by something New York related even though the book does take us to Italy for a brief moment. 

I finally landed on baked cod served on a lemon pea risotto.   Here is why...  i had the opportunity to live in the NY market for 2 years when i was in my 20's.  before that time , my experience with restaurants was minimum- diners or chains but no fine dining.  When  I lived outside of NY and worked in the city, I was exposed to fine dining for the first time.   Super fancy restaurants with foods i had never had before.   Back then it felt like all of the food was served vertical....  piled up on top of each other.   I decided to do a delicious baked cod https://www.kleinworthco.com/air-fryer-cod/.  Super easy in the air fryer .  I make risotto pretty often so this time i added some fresh english peas and some lemon zest.  It felt very spring like!  I would imagine that Bella was served this in a fancy restaurant!  Enjoy! 

Epistolary Novels #4 Love and Saffron served with Mussels in a Saffron sauce

Love and Saffron by Kim Fay and served with Mussels in a Saffron sauce. 

You know my love of the Epistolary Novel!  I've shared it many times.  This book checked every box for me.  It is letters between 2 women who become friends through the mail in the 60's.   Imogen lives on Camano Island in the PNW and writes a monthly column in a magazine.  Joan lives in LA and writes her a fan letter which starts the friendship.  Joan is young and still finding her voice as a writer and exploring food.  They discuss the foods of the PNW and of LA.  Joan introduces Imogen to Mexican food and new flavors and spices.  Within their letters, secrets are shared and dreams and heartbreak.  Imogen's husband is inspired by the food and the smells and that changes their relationship. Joan meets someone but is worried that society will not embrace her choice.   

I love all of the food talk.  Today I am so spoiled and have exposure to so many different foods and cultures but in the 60's and 70's that wasn't the case.  These women are learning and growing and exploring new experiences.  Oh how wonderful to explore for the first time!   Their curiosity and pleasure in the new experience is fun to read.   

This is a short novel and I read it in a day.  I went back and read parts again because i just wanted to soak in the food.   I will not share too much but i do recommend a box of tissues nearby when you read it.  

this is ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ for me.  I just loved it and recommend it for anyone looking for a quick, lovely read on friendship and food.  

I knew i wanted to make mussels in saffron since that is what starts the friendship.  Mussels are super popular in the PNW and i have learned to love them during my 10 years.  I had never used saffron and realized the cost was probably one of the reasons!  $25 for a small container. 

I went with Martha Stewarts recipe because...  it's Martha Stewart! 

https://www.marthastewart.com/951456/steamed-mussels-wine-and-saffron?xsc=eml_msc_2012_11_26&om_rid=NlBBaI&om_mid=_BQs9hWB8vS8%24pV

OMG ,  so good!  I have plenty of saffron left so I plan to make this multiple times.  I only used just under a full lb of  mussels (I'm just one person) and her recipe calls for 3 lbs.  I went ahead and made the full amount of broth because i wanted extra broth.  Glad I did.  I had some sourdough bread I toasted and it was so perfect!  I almost ate all of it in one sitting!   

The Trees served with fried catfish, collard greens and hushpuppies

 The Trees by Percival Everett served with Fried Catfish, hushpuppies and Collard Greens.  

This book!  Not sure how to describe it- a mystery, a horror novel, a dark comedy.  I'm just not sure.  It leaves me a little speechless.  I'm going to say it is brilliant.  Here is how NPR described it- "It's a racial allegory grounded in history, shrouded in mystery, and dripping with blood. An incendiary device you don't want to put down."  I think that covers it.   

Back in December I was visiting with my sister in Sacramento and our friend Bill told me I had to read this book.  He said it was the best book he read in 2021.  In exchange, I told him to read my favorite book of 2021, Hamnet.  It took me a while to get this from the library and I knew nothing about it.  I started it and had to stop and look up the author.  I wasn't familiar with him.   Turns out he has published 30+ books and won so many awards that it would take a page to list them.   

The book starts with a brutal murder in Money Mississippi.   Next thing you know a 2nd murder, just like the first one , occurs and even has one of the same victims! (that victim disappeared from the first murder scene)   2 detectives are sent in from the MBI to support and it just gets weirder at that point.    The murders are connected to the lynching of Emmett Till.  I'm not sure I should say much else about the plot because it is better for you to go in unprepared.  I will say this, Everett is having a lot of fun with the total racist white characters.  Everything from the language (which was shocking at first and took a while to not flinch when I read it) to the names of the characters-  Red Jetty, Junior Junior, Hot Mama Yellow, Pinch Wheyface.   The only sane people in the book are the 2 black MBI detectives and the 1 female black FBI agent.    The book is disturbing and gets a bit weird BUT it also had me laughing out loud a few times.      It definitely has Quentin Tarantino vibes.  

As soon as I finished the novel, I went and read every review I could find  and then listened to 2 podcast where the author was interviewed.   I felt like I needed to know more!   I almost want to read it again because I read it so fast, I feel like I missed some stuff.   I'll leave you with this- Read it!  Be prepared to be disturbed and uncomfortable.  But be prepared to be impressed! I'm betting this will be in my top 10 for the year.  It is different from my normal reads and that makes me happy.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐\

I knew I wanted to make catfish for this book.  It is mentioned several times in the story and seems to be the fish of choice in MIssissippi.  Took me a while to find catfish in Seattle but I did.  

I found a recipe to make it in the air fryer and you know how much i love my air fryer!  I gotta say that it was delicious!  Here is the link https://thisoldgal.com/air-fryer-southern-fried-catfish/

I have never made hushpuppies or collard greens.  The Collard greens were tough because most recipes have bacon in them.  I'm trying not to eat bacon these days so I had some changes and it turned out great!   

I had 2 bunches of collard greens.  I tore them up so they were smaller pieces.    Put a little bit of olive oil in a pan and sauteed 2 minced cloves of garlic and about a quarter of an onion diced up.  I added the collard greens for a few minutes and then covered all of this with vegetable broth.  Approximately 3 cups.  I reached a boil and then cut it down to a simmer.  I added in a few shakes of red pepper flakes and 2 tablespoons of brown sugar.  Covered the pot and let it simmer for ~1 hour.   it was so good!! 

Here is the link to the hushpuppies were delicious but I wish I had cut the recipe in half.  I had hushpuppies for days!! https://whiskitrealgud.com/homemade-hush-puppies-recipe/ 

Tokyo Ever After served with Salmon and cucumbers

Tokyo Ever After by Emiko Jean served with Salmon with Scallions, Cucumber salad , edamame and a red bean dessert!

This book is fun.  This is like movie candy.  You know those superhero movies that it doesn't matter if you know what is happening, it's just fun to sit in the theater and enjoy the show?  That is this book.  It is a delightful quick read. Doesn't matter that is isn't realistic, it is just fun and a great read!    Princess Diary in Japan. 

In a nutshell, Izumi Tanaka, finds out that her father is the Crown Prince of Japan.   Izumi never knew her father and felt out of place in her small Northern CA town.  Once she discovers who her father is, he wants to meet her and she goes to Japan to explore this part of her family.  There is a very handsome body guard and 2 evil step cousins and 1 really fun cousin.   We get to experience all of the new stuff with Izumi and can't help but wonder if this is her new life or if it is too good to be true.  It's just a fun little fairytale but has a totally cool heroine at the center.  This book had a lot of humor in it and a sweet love story along with a sense of belonging.  

 I was interested originally because my niece has been living in Japan for 2 years and i so wanted to go visit her.  That didn't happen, Thanks a lot COVID, but someday we'll go together.    I gobbled this fun little book up in 2 days.  It also has a strong sense of place which is nice!   Book candy!  I gave it ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐.  Totally fun read and highly recommended

I really wanted to make Dorayki which is like a red bean pancake.  She mentions it in the book.  But I couldn't find red bean paste anywhere!  I ended up using a couple of recipes from a Japanese cookbook I have and I found some red bean paste dumplings at Whole Foods.   The salmon was great!  The cucumber salad was pretty good but I made so much  that I had salad for days.   Ended up throwing out a bit!   Enjoy!