Mary DeBorde
and
Marci J
Winners of …
The Night Circus
by Erin Morgenstern
Thanks to everyone who stopped by and took the time to read my review and enter the contest.
Winners have been notified by email.
Mailbox Monday was created by The Printed Page. It is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their home last week.
Mailbox Monday is currently on tour, hosted by a different blog each month. The October host is Savvy Verse & Wit.
From Simon & Schuster for review:
Make the Bread, Buy the Butter
by Jennifer Reese
Known to her online foodie following as The Tipsy Baker, Jennifer Reese brings a realistic—and very funny—perspective to the homemade trend, testing whether to make from scratch or simply buy over 100 foods, in what is destined to become the new go-to reference for home cooks.
When Jennifer Reese lost her job as the book critic for Entertainment Weekly, she was overcome by an impulse common among the recently unemployed: to economize by doing for herself what she had previously paid for. And so began a series of kitchen-related experiments with the practical purpose of breaking down whether it makes sense to make household staples—or just pick them up at the corner store.
From Atria for review:
Triangles
by Ellen Hopkins
In this emotionally powerful novel, three women face the age-old midlife question: If I’m halfway to death, is this all I’ve got to show for it? Holly, filled with regret for being a stay-at-home mom, sheds sixty pounds and loses herself in the world of extramarital sex. Andrea, a single mom and avowed celibate, watches her friend Holly’s meltdown with a mixture of concern and contempt. Then there’s Marissa. She has more than her fair share of challenges—a gay teenage son, a terminally ill daughter, and a husband who buries himself in his work rather than face the facts. more
How was your week?
The House Finch is a cheerful little bird that is common across most of the United States. They are social birds and can often be found in groups in urban areas, parks and backyards.
In addition to trees they will nest on or in buildings, vents, ledges, planters and bird houses. They’re easy to attract to backyards and are one of the first birds to check out a new feeder. I enjoy their cheerful song and keep a feeder filled with safflower seeds, which seems to be their favorite. They also like black oil sunflower seeds.
The females are a plain grayish-brown with thick, blurry streaks. The males are rosy red around the face and upper breast, with streaky brown back, belly and tail. Both of these photos were taken in my backyard where the finches are frequent guests at the feeders and bird baths. Here they are stopping for a drink.
Interesting Facts
- The red coloring of the male comes from pigments in the berries and fruits eaten during molting.
- Females prefer to mate with the reddest male they can attract.
- House finches are vegetarians. Unlike most other seed eating birds, finches do not switch to an insect diet during the summer nesting season.
- They can drink up to 40% of their body weight on a hot summer day.
- The House Finch is native to the south western United States and Mexico. In the 1940s they were illegally captured and transported to New York and sold as cage birds. To avoid prosecution, owners and vendors released the birds into the wild. They successfully began breeding and soon spread out across most of the eastern US and southern Canada.
I link up my bird photos on Saturday Snapshot hosted by Alyce at At Home With Books. Visit her blog to see more great photos or add your own.
The third Literary Blog Hop, hosted by Judith at Leeswame’s Blog, has come to an end. I’d like to thank everyone who stopped by for making it such a great success and to Judith, our gracious host.
Over 50 blogs participated and 73 people entered my drawing for a copy of Gail Caldwell’s Memoir, Let’s Take the Long Way Home.
I had a great time visiting the participating blogs, some old familiar friends and others new places I will be returning to visit again..
The winner is:
Diane of Bibliophile by the Sea
Almost Wordless: Seen in Illinois prairie. Variety unknown as there were no flowers to identify it.
(Click for sharper image.)
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More Wordless Wednesday.
Mailbox Monday was created by The Printed Page. It is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their home last week.
Mailbox Monday is currently on tour, hosted by a different blog each month. The October host is Savvy Verse & Wit.
I received two books for review last week and I’m excited about both of them. The cookbook is a gorgeous finished copy with beautiful photos of classic Italian dishes. Italian cooking is my favorite so I’m going to enjoy trying these recipes. Watch for a review soon. MWF Seeking BFF is a memoir on how difficult and hilariously awkward it is to make new friends as an adult — how true — who had just moved to Chicago. This should be a fun read for me as Chicago is my hometown.
From St. Martin’s Press for review:
Ciao Italia Family Classics
by Mary Ann Esposito
Mary Ann returns to her family’s humble beginnings to bring us a treasure trove of more than 200 time-honored recipes. They represent traditional, everyday foods that she regards as culinary royalty—always admired, respected, and passed down through generations. Even better, they are easy to make and guaranteed to please.
From Ballantine for review:
MWF Seeking BFF
My Yearlong Search for a New Best Friend
by Rachel Bertsche
When Rachel Bertsche first moves to Chicago, she’s thrilled to finally share a zip code, let alone an apartment, with her boyfriend. But shortly after getting married, Bertsche realizes that her new life is missing one thing: friends. Sure, she has plenty of BFFs—in New York and San Francisco and Boston and Washington, D.C. Still, in her adopted hometown, there’s no one to call at the last minute for girl talk over brunch or a reality-TV marathon over a bottle of wine. Taking matters into her own hands, Bertsche develops a plan: She’ll go on fifty-two friend-dates, one per week for a year, in hopes of meeting her new Best Friend Forever.
How was your week?
Essential Pepin
More Than 700 All-Time Favorites from My Life in Food
by Jacques Pépin
Genre: Cooking
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publish Date: October 18, 2011
Format: Hardcover | 704 pages
Rating: 5 of 5
In his 60-year career as a chef, Jacques Pépin has created thousands of recipes, trying different foods, methods, styles, procedures, and techniques. He is the author of 26 cookbooks, a cooking teacher and has been the host of several TV shows. Now he has sorted through his vast collection of recipes and assembled the best of the best in this new cookbook. While these recipes are “essentially” the way he has always cooked, they have been updated for the modern kitchen and today’s cook.
The books is arranged in sections beginning with Soups, followed by Salads, Breads, Pasta, Fish, Meats, Vegetables, and Desserts to name a few, plus an introduction written by the author. A searchable DVD demonstrating cooking techniques is included with the book. (My copy is a galley and does not have the DVD so I am unable to comment on it.) There are also interesting sidebars scattered about the book with information on food safety, mini-tutorials on things like how to open an oyster, how to trim an asparagus or even the right way to melt chocolate.
One thing I will note is there are no photos of the preparation or the completed dish. Today, so many cookbooks come with photos that I felt I should mention it so no one is disappointed. If the book did have photos, I’m sure there is no way it could include 700 recipes. Instead, a DVD is provided to demonstrate the various cooking techniques.
I dove right in and tried a few of the recipes last week. I needed something quick and easy for dinner and Grilled Chicken with Tarragon Butter caught my eye. It was quick, simple and easy to make. Fresh tarragon is growing a few steps away in my herb garden but it should also be available at many supermarkets for a last minute dish.
Yesterday I made the Pumpkin Soup. Since it’s October, fresh pumpkins are plentiful. This was a little more work but worth the effort. Some of the recipes are more complex or contain exotic ingredients which for me, living near a large city, are readily available. But many are quick and easy with ingredients usually found in your pantry. Detailed instructions are provided so even if a recipe is something new one should feel comfortable attempting it. I’ve never made pumpkin soup before and it turned out delicious.
With over 700 recipes to choose from and a wide range of levels of difficulty and preparation time, there is something here for everyone. I recommend this book as a valuable resource to add to any kitchen or cookbook collection.
Pumpkin Soup
Ingredients:
1 large leek (about 8 oz), trimmed (leaving some green), quartered lengthwise, washed, sliced (2 cups)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon corn oil
1 piece (about 2½ pounds) pumpkin
2 cups homemade chicken stock or low-salt canned chicken broth
4 cups water
½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
½ cup pastina (or any tiny pasta shape)
Preparation:
- Place the leeks in a large pot with the butter and oil and sauté over high heat for 2 to 3 minutes until they begin to sizzle lightly.
- With a sharp knife, carefully peel the tough outer skin from the pumpkin. (you should have about 1½ pounds pumpkin flesh.) Remove the seeds (which can be roasted as a snack) and cut the flesh into ½-inch pieces. (You should have about 5½ cups.)
- Add the cubed pumpkin, chicken stock, water, and salt to the leeks and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat, and cook at a gentle boil for 30 minutes.
- Add the pastina and cook for 10 minutes longer. Stir and serve immediately.
The recipe made 6 to 8 bowls of soup.
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A few comments:
The next time I make this soup I will use less leek because I prefer a less oniony taste. In error, I cut my cubes of pumpkin one inch rather than ½ inch. The difference required cooking the soup an additional 10 minutes.
Also, the tip to ‘use a sharp knife’ to skin the pumpkin should be heeded. I had to sharpen my knife to get it to peel the pumpkin’s thick skin. Also, be careful and put the pumpkin on a non-slip surface, such as a towel, to keep it from rolling and to avoid a knife injury.
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Source: A galley copy of this book was provided by the publisher for my review.
Weekend Cooking is hosted by Beth Fish Reads. Participation is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs.
Under My Apple Tree 