Book a Week 2015 - BW49: cookish, bookish news and birthdays

[Nan in Mass]

Library records - violation. I think. Otherwise, people wouldn,t use the library as much. I took this for granted until a friend moved to an island and told me that the librarian had apologized to her - the government had recently insisted on the use of library cards at this library. Previously, the librarian had let many people take books home without a card, but the government (I assume federal?) wanted to track who took out which books. The librarian was countering this move by warning everyone not to check out any books which might trip an alarm. Who knew being a librarian required courage? This was 25 years or so ago. It was the first time such a thing had occurred to me.

 

Rosie - holding you in the light. Sending hugs. I hate hate hate encounters with such large immovable objects.

 

Jane - yeah! Good for you!

 

Loesje - Congratulations!!!! And yes, splitting the infinitive emphasizes the not. You wouldn,t do it in a formal paper, but it is done for emphasis all the time when speaking or writing informally like this. Especially writing informally. Speaking, you can emphasize the not in "We want not to take any more exams" but in writing, you either have to use capitals or italics for the not, or you have to split the infinitive. "Not" is a special case, though. You still should try to avoid things like "I want to slowly eat my sandwich". Instead, put the slowly last in the sentence to emphasize it. "I want to eat my sandwich slowly." Ok informally speaking in many places but not ok writing. And that is probably more than you wanted to know. : )

 

Cook books - Fanny Farmer. Of course lol. Passed down from a grandparent and full of notes. I bought older editions for all my boys to take to college several Christmasses ago.

 

Nan

[Nan in Mass]

Oh, and I just finished Jane,s alligator book. Lots of fun. An interesting look at dating in past times and some thoughts on art. I, too, had to stay up late to find out what happens to the poor little alligator.

 

Nan

[Chrysalis Academy]

Favorite cookbooks:

 

Well, my favorite book about cooking - which is different, in this case, from a cookbook - is Tamar Adler's An Everlasting Meal.  My favorite cookbook of all time is Alice Water's The Art of Simple Food.  I'm a girl that likes to know why to do certain things a certain way, and Alice gives you the foundation knowledge that lets you branch out on your own.  Third place is Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone.  I'm no longer a vegetarian, but I always join a CSA or shop at the farmer's market and try to use a variety of beans, grains, etc. and her book always gives me good ideas about what to do with a particular bounty of something that I might not be super familiar with. Joy of Cooking is an indispensable reference at our house.   

 

Have you guys changed the way you use cookbooks in recent years? I find I rarely go to a cookbook just for quick recipe ideas, internet searches give so many options at my fingertips. So a cookbook has to do something else for me - it has to tell me something I didn't know, or get my creative juices flowing. I've definitely reduced the number of cookbooks I keep on my shelf, but I still love a good one.

[Nan in Mass]

I use the internet if I am making something exotic. For normal stuff, I use Fanny Farmer. Mostly, though, I use my recipe cards. I love seeing my grammy,s handwriting on the family recipes she gave me. And my mum,s. I have ones from aunts, cousins, mil, sisters, friends... If a recipe is something I like, I write it out flowchart fashion on a card so I can see it more easily. I always alter recipes, anyway, and hate reinventing the wheel lol. Most of the time I don,t use recipes, anyway. I just dump some sort of veggies fried up with onion and ginger on to of some sort of starch, or bake the veg and starch together in a white sauce. I,m super lazy about food. : )

 

I like that science/chemistry cook book to just read. The Cooks magazine one.

 

I am bringing trays to my Mum this month (she tripped over her gardening tool bucket) and finding it a challenge to deal with the turkey. My kind husband finally realized how depessing dead headless birds whose feathers have all been pulled off are and cut all the meat into a cassarole dish for me. Ug. Think we are eating (well, they, not me) the last tonight except for a bit I will freeze for later. Phew. From now on, I can make the stuff I usually do.

 

Nan

[Nan in Mass]

PS Thank you everyone for the recipes awhile back.

[Chrysalis Academy]

Oh, I should do recipe cards. I am always riffing off of recipes and making things that sound good with what I have in the fridge.  Sometimes dh will say - you have to write down what you did! and I'll say - but I just made it up.  He'll say - yeah, but I want you to do it again! But of course I never can, because it was the result of a serendipitous moment - the ingredients on hand, the mood, the inspiration.  I rarely make the same dish twice, unless I'm following an actual recipe for the first time.

Edited December 7, 2015 by Chrysalis Academy

[Jane in NC]

I really don't like modern cookbooks with slick "presented" photos.  To be clear, I don't need to own these books although they may be fun to borrow from the library.

 

My husband loves an old Rick Bayless Mexican cookbook that lacks glitz but is chock full of recipes and information on what may be an obscure ingredient. 

 

The unfortunate reality for me though is that I make only one or two recipes from some of the books.  Yet they continue to live on the shelves.

 

By the way, last year's cook book gift was Thug Kitchen.  (Bad language alert!)  It proved to be an entertainment as well as a vegan recipe collection.

[Jane in NC]

I use the internet if I am making something exotic. For normal stuff, I use Fanny Farmer. Mostly, though, I use my recipe cards. I love seeing my grammy,s handwriting on the family recipes she gave me. And my mum,s. I have ones from aunts, cousins, mil, sisters, friends... If a recipe is something I like, I write it out flowchart fashion on a card so I can see it more easily. I always alter recipes, anyway, and hate reinventing the wheel lol. Most of the time I don,t use recipes, anyway. I just dump some sort of veggies fried up with onion and ginger on to of some sort of starch, or bake the veg and starch together in a white sauce. I,m super lazy about food. : )

 

 

Some of you saw how I turned one of my Mom's old holiday recipe cards into a Christmas card last year.  Everyone who knew my Mom (who died nine years ago) loved seeing her handwriting again!

[Stacia]

Nan, I know what you mean about it being hard to deal w/ the turkey. I'm not a meat-eater, but the rest of my family is. Anyway, your sentences resonated w/ me.

 

I guess I'll agree w/ Nan too re: the cookbook. My most used/most referenced one is the Fannie Farmer one my mom gave me when I got married. Sadly the most referenced pages are the ones about how to boil eggs. (I guess I'm a slow learner? :huh:) The neat thing is that my dh has a similar cookbook (covers everything including the very basics) that his mom gave him in Dutch (Ons Kookboek). Ons Kookboek has the best recipe for crepes -- a brunch staple for us on the weekends.

 

I also really love the Eat to Live cookbook because everything I've made from there tastes good which is not something I can say for some other cookbooks & recipes I've tried. (An aside about online recipes -- Buzzfeed always seems to have ones that look & sound like they would be good. But about anything I've tried making from there doesn't really taste good, imo.)

 

My third book is another one that has been already mentioned: Thug Cookbook. (Not for you if you don't want to read the f-word.) The recipes are really tasty (& do-able), but unfortunately I can't use them as much as I'd like because dh & dd don't really like chickpeas, nor do they like anything remotely spicy. That nixes quite a few of the recipes right there. Ds & I have loved stuff we've made from it. What I really like about it though is that it assumes a certain level of uncomfortableness on the part of the reader so they tell you to not panic if something happens, just do a, b, or c to deal with it. Since I'm not an intuitive cook, I appreciate their frank, rough style to get me through a cooking crisis. :laugh:

 

I've been putting my favorite recipes over in Plan to Eat (thanks, Amy!) & what I love most about that program is the drag-&-drop planning. Mostly when I've added favorite recipes, I've entered it as a whole meal (main thing plus a couple of sides). When I put it on the calendar, it drops all the ingredients into a shopping list for me. That one feature (creating the shopping list from the recipe) is worth paying for access to the website, lol. Dh loves it too because we both have the app on our phones & he can pull up the grocery list any time he happens to be out & see what to pick up. Great website that has helped me be better w/ the planning & shopping end of cooking.

 

That's my cookbook & cooking input. A caveat: I would be perfectly happy eating pb&j sandwiches, pizza, raw fruits & veggies (plus hummus) pretty much all the time. I can't say I've ever felt a real need to 'cook' (other than having a family so I feel responsible to do so). So my advice is coming from a rating of "how stressful & hard & complex is this to make in contrast to a pb&j sandwich?" :lol: 

[Kareni]

A couple of informative posts from Tor.com ~

 

Getting to “The End.†Standalone Fantasy Books That Came Out in 2015

 

and

 

Tor.com Reviewers’ Choice: The Best Books of 2015

 

As is often the case, there are additional titles to consider in the comments.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Lady Florida.]

 

December 7

 

Willa Cather (1873 - 1947)  Novelists about frontier life on the great plains including Death Comes for the Archbishop and O Pioneers!   (author flavor in 2016)

 

 

 

I've read O Pioneers, Death Comes for the Archbishop, and My Antonia. If I participate I think I'll either reread My Antonia or try Song of the Lark. I'm not a short story fan, so those are out, and I don't know much about any of her other novels. My Antonia is still my favorite of the three I read, and was my first Willa Cather.

 

 

 

In my car I'm listening to Alexander McCall Smith's modern retelling of Emma. So far it is light and amusing -- I especially love Mr. Woodhouse being a vegan, alternative medicine nut on top of being a neurotic germ-o-phobe. The reviews of it on audible cracked me up as people who don't know the original Austen just couldn't stand the character of Emma!  Ummm, hello?? (Said in my best sarcastic teen voice). Like that was totally what Austen was going for??  Lovers of Austen are decidedly mixed in their opinions about it, some detesting it, some loving it.  As I said -- it is a light and fluffy listen while dealing with holiday traffic.

 

 

 

I'm a lover of Austen and haven't liked any of the books I read that are based on her characters, but I've never read a retelling of an actual Austen novel*. Also, the only McCall Smith books I've read are from his No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series. This sounds like a good fluff book for those times I want an easy read. I can so picture Mr. Woodhouse as described above.

 

*Unless you count movies: I loved Bridget Jones' Diary (didn't read the book), Lost in Austen, and Clueless. 

 

A Japanese newspaper has released some library records belonging to Murakami when he was a boy, librarians are upset. What do you guys think? In the public interest or violation of privacy? I'll keep my opinion to myself and see what others have to say first.

 

Add my vote in the violation column. It's interesting that he hasn't commented on it yet though. 

[Kareni]

My husband and I both enjoyed watching The Martian.  (For a time we wondered if we'd be the only ones in the theater; however, there were ultimately about thirty viewers.)   Later we chatted about differences between the movie and the book.  My husband was amused when I said that I missed all of the science that had been in the book!  After my daughter saw the movie, she was inspired to read the book and then said that she wanted to see the movie again.  I'm not at all unhappy that my book group will be reading the book in January, so I'll get to revisit it then.

 

 

***

 

Last night I finished Barbara Metzger's historical romance Truly Yours.   It was a pleasant read.  I also have on my shelf a follow up book featuring the hero's cousin.  All of the men in the family have a unique talent to detect the truth.  The hero in Truly Yours sees colors (truth equals blue while lies equal red); his father hears truth as a pure note while lies are discordant.  The hero's cousin breaks out in a rash when he hears a lie.  He's actually a bit of a funny character in this book, so it will be interesting to see him in his own book.

 

"Alone in the world, Amanda Carville has no dowry, no reputation left, and no one who believes her to be innocent of murder, since she was found holding the gun that killed her stepfather. Viscount Rexford also has his troubles. He's scarred by war, and cursed--or blessed--with the family trait of knowing the truth when he hears it, and his success at extracting the truth from military prisoners has left many doubting his honor and his methods. When Amanda tells him she didn't do it, he believes her. Tired of the truth business, Rex refuses to get involved...until his heart leaves him no choice."

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Ali in OR]

On cookbooks: can you have just one favorite?

 

My tried-and true is the Better Homes and Gardens red plaid cookbook I got when I got married. It's just a paperback copy, not the binder copy, so when the pages started coming unglued from the binding, I used a homeschool curriculum trick. I took it to Kinko's (now FedEx), had the binding cut off, and had them punch it and put in a coil binding. Bonus--it lies flat now for any given recipe I need.

 

I have many cookbooks I consider favorites and wouldn't give away, but often it's just because there's a recipe or two from it that are family favorites.

[Lady Florida.]

My husband and I both enjoyed watching The Martian.  (For a time we wondered if we'd be the only ones in the theater; however, there were ultimately about thirty viewers.)   Later we chatted about differences between the movie and the book.  My husband was amused when I said that I missed all of the science that had been in the book!  After my daughter saw the movie, she was inspired to read the book and then said that she wanted to see the movie again.  I'm not at all unhappy that my book group will be reading the book in January, so I'll get to revisit it then.

 

 

 

It's funny how my husband and I saw things differently in that book. I thought Mark Watney's behavior was over the top unprofessional, and couldn't imagine NASA not disciplining him in some way when he returned to earth. After they gave him a hero's welcome of course.

 

My husband, though not an astronaut ;), has worked in the space industry since the early 1980's - nearly all of his adult life. He currently works for a civilian contractor at Cape Canaveral AF Station, where unmanned rockets are launched. He was part of launch support for yesterday's Atlas V that will be taking supplies to the ISS. 

 

He says Watney has the personality needed to be an astronaut. He thinks on his feet, is able to rebound from multiple setbacks, and doesn't break down under fear and pressure.

[idnib]

I think it might be fun if we all share our favourite cookbook(s). 

 

In addition to the Zuni Cafe cookbook I already mentioned as my favorite, I'll add the original Moosewood, given to me as a university gradation gift, and and More-With-Less, a Mennonite cookbook my MIL gave me. (They're not Mennonite, but they live in an Amish/Mennonite area.) The recipes are not that great, and some of them were obviously carried back by missionaries who kinda sorta tried to re-create local foods. A couple of my family culture's foods are there, but missing about 15 ingredients and techniques! The most important part is that it contains a lot of quotes about poverty and our obligations to feed the hungry and conserve resources. It was published about 40 years ago so it was ahead of its time in that regard. One of the quotes in the book that has always stayed with me, paraphrased, is: "The rich man says, 'This guava has a worm in it.' The poor man says, 'Let me see.'"

 

 

Favorite cookbooks:

 

Well, my favorite book about cooking - which is different, in this case, from a cookbook - is Tamar Adler's An Everlasting Meal.  My favorite cookbook of all time is Alice Water's The Art of Simple Food.  I'm a girl that likes to know why to do certain things a certain way, and Alice gives you the foundation knowledge that lets you branch out on your own.  Third place is Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone.  I'm no longer a vegetarian, but I always join a CSA or shop at the farmer's market and try to use a variety of beans, grains, etc. and her book always gives me good ideas about what to do with a particular bounty of something that I might not be super familiar with. Joy of Cooking is an indispensable reference at our house.   

 

Have you guys changed the way you use cookbooks in recent years? I find I rarely go to a cookbook just for quick recipe ideas, internet searches give so many options at my fingertips. So a cookbook has to do something else for me - it has to tell me something I didn't know, or get my creative juices flowing. I've definitely reduced the number of cookbooks I keep on my shelf, but I still love a good one.

 

Speaking of Alice Waters, I also like Chez Panisse Vegetables. Many are very simple preps and taste much better than the sum of their parts. Before I had children I would often make the amazing fava bean recipe. This is a great way to go if you have 2 hours(!) to double-shell the beans.

Edited December 7, 2015 by idnib

[Kareni]

It's funny how my husband and I saw things differently in that book. I thought Mark Watney's behavior was over the top unprofessional, and couldn't imagine NASA not disciplining him in some way when he returned to earth. After they gave him a hero's welcome of course.

 

My husband, though not an astronaut ;), has worked in the space industry since the early 1980's - nearly all of his adult life. He currently works for a civilian contractor at Cape Canaveral AF Station, where unmanned rockets are launched. He was part of launch support for yesterday's Atlas V that will be taking supplies to the ISS. 

 

He says Watney has the personality needed to be an astronaut. He thinks on his feet, is able to rebound from multiple setbacks, and doesn't break down under fear and pressure.

 

Thanks for sharing your and your husband's thoughts. 

 

Watney faced many more challenges in the book than in the movie.  I think (poor memory) that communications dropped after he'd had them for a time.  I also remember how en route to the crater he could tell a big storm was coming and needed to determine its direction.  His vehicle also toppled at one point.  And so on ....  Given that his survival was in question for much of the story, I'd have to imagine he'd be given at least some latitude as regards his behavior.   But, yes, I'd agree that it was unprofessional albeit understandable.

 

Regards,

Karen

[JennW in SoCal]

Can I just come to all your houses to eat?  Last year y'all left me salivating when you described all these brilliant grilled cheese sandwiches you make.  I love to eat, love good food, but am not too brilliant in the kitchen. I can make a mean frosted Christmas cookie, though! 

 

That said, I rely on Fannie Farmer, too, though it is a copy I bought, but mostly I use the internet these days for recipes, techniques, details.  Then there are weeks like this when I'm out of the house every night -- 8 days in a row I think -- and it seems I live off a bottomless supply of fruit, nuts and protein bars. 

 

 

[Nan in Mass]

Stacia -I have the eat to live book on my library list, thanks to you. I, too, would be happy eating pbj,s and fruit indefinitely, alternating with cheese and bread. Your planning method sounds way too complicated to me. I plan the way my mother taught me -as you walk through the door of the grocerystore, figure out how many dinners you need to cook this week, then buy what you need for those dinners and replacements for things like bread or oatmeal that you have run out of. Dinners are chosen by starch or legume, usually, like one main thing to make and eat for 3 or 4 days, then count on pizza one day (breadmaker), then something simple like baked potatoes and peas, or grilled cheese or Mum's the other two. My husband usually does the reheating dinners and I do the others. As you can tell, we aren,t a low carb family lol.

 

Nan

[Nan in Mass]

Idnib - Zuni the culture? Or is Zuni a location? I like the quote.

 

I am enjoying all the thoughts on The Martian!

 

Nan

[Loesje22000]

Bookgifts in december:

Sherlock Holmes complete in Dutch translation. Not longer available so 2ndhand

A set of Roald Dahl books in translation, bought in the 'Roald Dahl week'

Both for dd.

 

Cookbooks:

Dd loves her British Country Cookbook from National Trust.

[Jane in NC]

Amy--Happy birthday girlfriend! Have a fabulous day!!

[Butter]

For the first time - ever - my 9 year old asked me to get a book for him that wasn't Diary of a Wimpy Kid or Minecraft.  He had an excerpt from The Lemonade Trick in his Writing With Ease lesson today and it interested him enough to want to read the whole book.  I was more than happy to put it on hold at the library for him!

[idnib]

Idnib - Zuni the culture? Or is Zuni a location? I like the quote.

 

I am enjoying all the thoughts on The Martian!

 

Nan

 

Sorry, I was talking about Zuni Cafe. It's in SF and is one of the places I would send someone if they wanted Cal/SF cuisine. The chef, Judy Rodgers, who unfortunately passed away of appendix cancer in 2013 at age 57, was a heck of a chef. She was at Chez Panisse before Zuni. 

 

Their roasted chicken with bread salad is legendary. It's one of the fussiest recipes in the book so it's not a good representation of the contents, and unlike many fussy recipes, it's worth it. Even if I don't make the entire dish I always roast chicken using her method.

Edited December 7, 2015 by idnib

[idnib]

For the first time - ever - my 9 year old asked me to get a book for him that wasn't Diary of a Wimpy Kid or Minecraft.  He had an excerpt from The Lemonade Trick in his Writing With Ease lesson today and it interested him enough to want to read the whole book.  I was more than happy to put it on hold at the library for him!

 

Yes! That is one of the unspoken benefits of WWE. SWB picks passages for copywork/narration that makes kids want to read the rest of the book. We've gotten a lot of mileage out of that here.

[Lady Florida.]

No books on any gift lists this year but the ones that stand out from the past were given to ds by his older (by 20 yrs) brother and and older cousin.

 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - This first book turned all of us into HP fans.

 

The Ultimate Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy - All the books in one edition. I just went and looked it up and was shocked at the price! I know it didn't cost that much when he received it. His has the leather cover. The regular hardcover is reasonably priced.

 

The Complete Sherlock Holmes

 

 

As for cookbooks, there isn't any one cookbook I can say is my go-to book. I learned to cook from my mother, cooking at her side from a young age. She didn't use recipes. Over the years I found recipes in magazines, bought a few cookbooks here and there, and some recipe magazines. I got recipes from people I know. These days I find most recipes online. I rarely cook from recipes unless I'm baking. When I do use a recipe for non baked goods, I often personalize it anyway. People like my cooking. Since I have some Italian blood in me, it makes me very happy to see someone enjoy what I cooked. :)

Edited December 7, 2015 by Lady Florida

[mumto2]

Happy Birthday Amy!!!!!

 

I have been so busy looking at cookbooks online that I almost forgot to feed my family dinner. That pretty much describes my cooking style....occasionally I go all out from a special recipe but frequently we eat a simple stir fry with rice and frozen veg (tonight's menu). :lol: Hard to believe I spent the other part of the afternoon grocery shopping with that for dinner.

 

I have several cookbooks on hold. I was really successful in terms of your recommendations. I couldn't find Zuni anywhere so loved the link. I have had many of the classic ones in the past (so didn't hunt for) and had to give them up when we had our big move. My favourite pages were copied and packed. I have stacks of copies which desperately need organization. The positive thing about my copies is when I am cooking I can put all the recipes on the fridge with magnets. Generally I don't spill on them!!!

 

I used to love Taste of Home cooking magazine and have brought some of their year end books over with me. Mom presents.

[Robin M]

Happy Birthday AggieAmy!

 

 

 

:grouphug:  :grouphug:  :grouphug:

 

:cheers2:

 

 

 

 

 

[Kareni]

Happy  birthday, Amy!

***

I was just wrapping up some holiday books ~

 

for my sister and brother-in-law: 

 

Lists of Note: An Eclectic Collection Deserving of a Wider Audience edited by Shaun Usher (which I mentioned here previously)

 

My sister will also get Ron Chernow's biography Alexander Hamilton which she asked for and Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast Recording) which she didn't. 

 

 

for my great nephew (age 8):

 

the out of print Great Painters by Piero Ventura (I'm very fond of this illustrator)

 

and Joy Masoff's  Oh, Yikes!: History's Grossest Wackiest Moments; we gave him Oh, Yuck! The Encyclopedia of Everything Nasty for his last birthday.

 

My daughter doesn't know yet that she's giving my great nephew this out of print book, The Trojan War and the Adventures of Odysseus (Books of Wonder) by Padraic Colum with wonderful illustrations by Barry Moser.  It seems the ideal gift for someone who majored in Latin to give her young (second?) cousin.

 

I'll post more gift books on another occasion when I've done more wrapping and shopping.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Loesje22000]

 

Loesje - Congratulations!!!! And yes, splitting the infinitive emphasizes the not. You wouldn,t do it in a formal paper, but it is done for emphasis all the time when speaking or writing informally like this. Especially writing informally. Speaking, you can emphasize the not in "We want not to take any more exams" but in writing, you either have to use capitals or italics for the not, or you have to split the infinitive. "Not" is a special case, though. You still should try to avoid things like "I want to slowly eat my sandwich". Instead, put the slowly last in the sentence to emphasize it. "I want to eat my sandwich slowly." Ok informally speaking in many places but not ok writing. And that is probably more than you wanted to know. : )

 

 

Nan

Thanks for writing that explanation!

 

I only learned formal writing at school.

Dutch hasn't a fixed word order like English, but Dutch is not as free as Latin in word order.

So normally I write short sentences :) and try to rember all the word order rules as I don't have any feeling for languages.

[aggieamy]

I think it might be fun if we all share our favourite cookbook(s). Mine is one that my aunt, who is almost 100, gave to everyone except me as a wedding present( a vase ;( ????? ). I was soooooo disappointed, my sil scrambled to get me my own copy! It is called Little Rock Cooks by the Junior League of Little Rock. It isn't a cookbook book to read but lots of great recipes that always seem to work....published in 1972 so definitely not low fat! They stopped publishing it for years and my book is held together with rubberbands. It is back apparentlyhttp://www.amazon.com/Little-Rock-Cooks-Junior-League/dp/0960672400.

 

Since Little Rock cooks isn't going to provide much in the way of browsing another favourite is Estefan Cooks. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3026713-estefan-kitchenIt is one I enjoy paging through. Dd and I have made a few of the recipes. Yum!

 

British Bakeoff also publishes enjoyable cookbooks. Here is an article with great pictures and I think it linkshttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/recipes/11768515/The-Great-British-Bake-Off-our-favourite-recipes.html. Mary Berry has lots of great recipes that can be googled.

 

Just requested these from my library.  :)

 

Oh the irony!  The French cookbook Goosefat & Garlic resides next to the Lowfat Moosewood. How did that happen?

 

That is funny!

 

Have you guys changed the way you use cookbooks in recent years? I find I rarely go to a cookbook just for quick recipe ideas, internet searches give so many options at my fingertips. So a cookbook has to do something else for me - it has to tell me something I didn't know, or get my creative juices flowing. I've definitely reduced the number of cookbooks I keep on my shelf, but I still love a good one.

 

Yep.  Most of my recipes come from friends or the internet.  I love to read though Cook's Country cookbooks and magazines for meal inspiration and because they are just plain interesting.  I do have a few standby's that I know I can count on if I'm looking for something different.

 

 More-With-Less, a Mennonite cookbook my MIL gave me. (They're not Mennonite, but they live in an Amish/Mennonite area.) The recipes are not that great, and some of them were obviously carried back by missionaries who kinda sorta tried to re-create local foods. A couple of my family culture's foods are there, but missing about 15 ingredients and techniques! The most important part is that it contains a lot of quotes about poverty and our obligations to feed the hungry and conserve resources. It was published about 40 years ago so it was ahead of its time in that regard. One of the quotes in the book that has always stayed with me, paraphrased, is: "The rich man says, 'This guava has a worm in it.' The poor man says, 'Let me see.'"

 

This is the book I was coming to post.  And I agree with your review. 

 

Now I'm left to post my second most used cookbook.

 

Mad About Muffins

 

It's just muffins.  Only muffins.  If you have a family that loves muffins though this cookbook is great.  Lots of options.  I don't think I've had any misses from the recipe's I've made from it. 

[Lady Florida.]

Happy Birthday Amy! 

 

 
 

 I love to read though Cook's Country cookbooks and magazines for meal inspiration and because they are just plain interesting.  

 
We don't have cable or satellite tv but have a digital antenna. Dh and I both enjoy watching the Cook's Country show on the PBS Create channel. I considered buying one of their electronic cook books during the recent Black Friday Kindle sale but two things held me back.

 

1. They make some really yummy looking dishes but they also seem to add many steps to what often should be simple recipes.

 

2. At my age, I don't need all of the cooking advice that's in their books. I mean, I like hearing the interesting cooking tips when watching the show, but I know I'd never actually refer to it if I had the books.

 

Most of the recipes on their website are only open to subscribers. I'll stick to watching the show and letting my mouth water when I see the finished dishes.
 
Like you, I'm not a fan of Pioneer Woman's style of cooking.

Edited December 7, 2015 by Lady Florida

[Stacia]

Happy Birthday, Amy!

 

   (<----- That's a muffin, doncha know? ;) :lol: )

[Stacia]

Looks like Wookie Cookies (A Star Wars Cook Book) is in hot demand as they are temporarily out of stock (on amazon, anyway).

 

We've had this one for years & it's fun (esp. when the dc were younger). Would be a perfect gift for the Star Wars fan on your list. I don't really use it for recipes anymore but it remains on my shelf for the sheer joy & fun & silliness of it.

 

[Kareni]

... I considered buying one of their electronic coo books ..

 

 

I do like the sound of this ....  It sounds quite lovey dovey in a very modern way.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Lady Florida.]

I do like the sound of this ....  It sounds quite lovey dovey in a very modern way.

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

LOL! I'll fix it.

[mumto2]

Before I forget I did finish a book that others here might enjoy, The Christie Curse by Victoria Abbotthttps://www.goodreads.com/series/104973-a-book-collector-mystery. It is the first in a cozy mystery series called Book Collector Mysteries. The other books in the can probably stand independently. This was fun and pretty accurate in terms of Christie trivia...a couple things like the original short story for the Mousetrap not being published while the play is on the London stage I couldn't quickly verify and had never heard before. Next up is one based on Dorothy Sayers.....

 

I will be honest and say other than baked goods I rarely make a recipe as published but I love the ideas. For instance the Cuban Stuffed Potatoes in the Estefan Cooks book we make without the breadcrumbs and bake in the oven in muffin pans, extra butter in the mash. Easier than deep frying (I don't deep fry ever) and still really good. Dd loves them and does know what authentic ones taste like.

 

I finished the Moosewood cookbook browse and the soups and casseroles look particularly yummy. I am planning to make sure I have it checked out of the library on my kindle when I visit my mom this year as I plan to fill her freezer with homemade soups. I always get overwhelmed when I am there, this might provide the needed direction...

[Stacia]

I'm in that reading state of bliss when you finish a book you absolutely love. (It will be hard to move on to reading something else in the next few days because it won't live up to this.)

 

I'm speaking of Ernest Hemingway's A Moveable Feast of course.

 

I'm not a huge fan of short stories or of essays, but this collection makes me wish I had never said things like that. I loved every last piece in here.

 

Hemingway has a dry & sometimes brutal wit that pops out in the unexpected sentence or two, making his observations refreshing. And wonderful. He creates such vivid pictures of places & people that I felt like I was sitting in the cafes, skiing in the Alps & Dolomites, betting on the horses, watching the local fishermen, or tossing back a drink (or ten) with an artsy & writerly crowd.

 

Jane, the part of his tale about traveling with Scott Fitzgerald from Lyon in the car without a top was so wonderful that I read large chunks of it out loud to dh & dd this evening. The three of us were howling with laughter in parts.

 

Some favorite quotes from the book...

 

You got very hungry when you did not eat enough in Paris because all the bakery shops had such good things in the windows and people ate outside at tables on the sidewalk so that you saw and smelled the food.

 

So true, not only in Paris but in Brussels too (with its proliferation of waffle stands)!

 

-----------------------------------

 

Hemingway's description of an irritating acquaintance talking to him when he's trying to write in a cafe...

 

He was in full cry now and the unbelievable sentences were soothing as the noise of a plank being violated in the sawmill.

 

(I guess Hemingway would know that noise since he apparently lived in an apartment above a sawmill for awhile in Paris. Lol.)

 

-----------------------------------

 

A chambermaid who finds books left behind, some in English, & sells them. Her opinion of books in English is that they are worthless.

 

"How do you tell a valuable French book?"

"First there are the pictures. Then it is a question of the quality of the pictures. Then it is the binding. If a book is good, the owner will have it bound properly. All books in English are bound, but bound badly. There is no way of judging them."

 

-----------------------------------

 

A lovely picture of a Paris morning...

 

In the spring mornings I would work early while my wife still slept. The windows were open wide and the cobbles of the street were drying after the rain. The sun was drying the wet faces of the houses that faced the window. The shops were still shuttered. The goatherd came up the street blowing his pipes and a woman who lived on the floor above us came out onto the sidewalk with a big pot. The goatherd chose one of the heavy-bagged, black milk-goats and milked her into the pot while his dog pushed the others onto the sidewalk. The goats looked around, turning their necks like sight-seers. The goatherd took the money from the woman and thanked her and went on up the street piping and the dog herded the goats on ahead, their horns bobbing. I went back to writing and the woman came up the stairs with the goat milk. She wore her felt-soled cleaning shoes and I only heard her breathing as she stopped on the stairs outside our door and then the shutting of her door. She was the only customer for goat milk in our building.

 

-----------------------------------

 

Re: the trip with Scott Fitzgerald that I mentioned earlier...

 

It was not a trip designed for a man easy to anger.

 

:lol:

 

-----------------------------------

 

And...

 

For a poet he threw a very accurate milk bottle.

 

(Said when an angered acquaintance threw things at him, including a milk bottle. Lol.)

 

-----------------------------------

 

I read this along with Jane to honor Paris & celebrate their cafe culture after the terror attacks. I can see why Parisians love this book; it paints a wonderful view of a Paris of hope, & art, & love, & good food & drink, & interesting friends. A completely wonderful book.

[Stacia]

Fyi, B&N has 25% off one item today only. Code is 25HOLIDAY.

 

I decided on two books for my dad:

 

Professor Porsche's Wars: The Secret Life of Legendary Engineer Ferdinand Porsche Who Armed Two Belligerents Through Four Decades

 

Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage

[Stacia]

Re: the Murakami library records question. I, too, vote for it being a violation of his privacy.

 

Leo/Leontes is a puzzle to me with his manic behavior. I too would have a hard time forgiving the jerk.  But if we see the character as a representation of a tyrant in general perhaps his behavior does not require explanation. 

 

This theme is echoed in Susan Howatch's novel The Rich are Different (oh Ladydusk, where are you? I miss you on these threads!) although the female characters in A Winter's Tale and The Gap of Time are more virtuous.  Power and money have allowed tyrants to behave as they see fit so as disturbing as it is to our modern sensibilities, I doubt if the behavior will disappear from the real or literary landscape.

 

Something about your sentence (that I put in bold) now makes me wonder -- are the other, more forgiving characters enabling his behavior, then?

 

 

[LaughingCat]

My favorite cookbook is one called "How to Cook Without a Book" -- it was paradigm changing for me when I read it years ago.  I've weeded down my cookbook collection mightily (because really I'm a recipe reader not a recipe maker) -- but wasn't able to let that one go even though I haven't retried the recipes in years.

 

And I must admit I like Pioneer Woman's recipes' quite a lot -- at least the few I've made were quick, easy and good as well.   But I only google her site looking for something that fits my parameters-- I'm sure her cookbooks would be like most for me -- fun to read but only 1 or 2 recipes at most that I'd actually consider making.

 

This week for me was 'Nice Dragons Finish Last' (recommended by a BaW'er) and Secrets from the Eating Lab.

 

[Nan in Mass]

Stacia, those books sound great for your dad. I,m still mulling over what to get for some of my clan.

 

Loesje, your English is good. Every once in awhile, your word order sounds slightly foreign to my New England ears, but so does the word order of other, non-USA speakers, occasionally. I have never seen a post by you that was confusing or difficult to understand. I always am amazed when I remember that you are living in a non-English speaking country and posting in a foreign language. You are doing great. : ) I wish I could find a board like this one in French, for my own practice. An artist support group, maybe, since I am no longer homeschooling.

 

Jane, are the muffins like storebought ones? We aren,t a big muffin family, partly because we prefer bread, but partly because store muffins are different than our home muffins. I always wondered why. Flour, maybe?

 

Nan

[Chrysalis Academy]

Ok, despite my efforts to hold off, I am in planning mode for next year, 9th grade Ancient Lit.  Eliana, I've seen lovely posts by you where you talk about some of the best modern retellings of ancients stories, myths, and plays.  What I need is Kareni's mad search skills to find old posts, but in the interim, it would be so lovely if you could point me toward a few of the things you think a 9th grader shouldn't miss.  I would love suggestions from all of you, of course! 

 

I know we will do The Odyssey, but I'm not sure if we'll do the other Greek epics in their entirety. It's a huge time commitment. I'm also on the fence about Gilgamesh.

 

I know we will do Antigone, Oedipus the King, and Agamemnon.  What other plays should we do?

 

Oh, and Shakespeare- I think we'll do Julius Caesar.  I'm undecided about Anthony & Cleopatra and Troilus & Cressida

 

I know this looks like a curriculum planning thread, but it isn't!!! It's about books - which books do I get the bliss of sharing with my 13/14 year old for the first time next year?

[Kareni]

Ok, despite my efforts to hold off, I am in planning mode for next year, 9th grade Ancient Lit.  Eliana, I've seen lovely posts by you where you talk about some of the best modern retellings of ancients stories, myths, and plays.  What I need is Kareni's mad search skills to find old posts, but in the interim, it would be so lovely if you could point me toward a few of the things you think a 9th grader shouldn't miss.  I

 

Here's a thread which has some nice information from Eliana ~

Your ideal ancient history/literature/fine arts course of study?

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Chrysalis Academy]

Here's a thread which has some nice information from Eliana ~

Your ideal ancient history/literature/fine arts course of study?

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

You are a rock star!!  As is Eliana, of course!  Thanks

[Kareni]

Last night I read what I thought was the sequel to the previous book I'd read; however, it turned out to be the third in the series.  All was well as it stood alone well.  It was a pleasant read.

 

The Wicked Ways of a True Hero by Barbara Metzger

 

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Daniel Stamfield is a human lie detector—he breaks out in a rash whenever someone lies. Once the British Army discovers Daniel’s gift, they use it on captured officers from Napoleon’s army. After years of sorting out fact from fiction for the military, Daniel is now in dire need of a vacation, one where he can gamble, drink, wench, and stay in bed as long as he wants. However, his mother has other plans: she wants him to accompany his sister Susanna through her first season. Daniel’s not sure he can survive rubbing elbows with the ton and hearing all the lies and deceptions that fuel the marriage market. Corisande Abbott is in London for the season, too—a woman Daniel prevented from eloping three years earlier, whom he has been unable to forget. The talented Metzger never fails to delight. Her trademark humor, clever premise, skillful writing, and memorable characters make this a book destined for high popularity. Libraries will want all three witty books in the True Love trilogy (Truly Yours, 2007; The Scandalous Life of a True Lady, 2008). --Shelley Mosley

 

 

Regards,

Kareni

 

[idnib]

Here's a thread which has some nice information from Eliana ~

Your ideal ancient history/literature/fine arts course of study?

 

My children are a bit too young, but...time to put on a fresh pot of coffee.

[Pam in CT]

I'm out of likes, again.

 

I've been distracted and uneasy the last couple of weeks and have gotten very little reading done... my dad was in the hospital for rather a while with what thankfully turned out to be a "only" a bad case of pneumonia, but it was very scary for a while there, and  they did every last possible poke and prod, and he turns out to be not such a spectacular patient.  (He's been unbelievably, blessedly healthy for nearly all his 81 years, and is not accustomed to hospital regimens, and had rather a hard time settling.)  He's home now.

 

re: Rosie - holding you in the light.  Hope it went all right yesterday.

 

re: cookbooks - I don't really use them -- more a haphazard little of this, a little of that style that more-or-less works most (! not all !) of the time; but to figure out the how-to chemistry of things I sometimes check Bittman's How to Cook Everything or the Silver Palate Basics.

 

re: library records - another vote for invasive.  How is anybody supposed to learn about difficult / controversial topics without reading about them?  And how does tracking or outing reading records advance the public interest in any way?

 

re: Amy - happy birthday!

 

 

 

and... can I just say, coming into this thread after sallying forth into some of the other ones, Out There, feels like coming inside from a typhoon.  Just sayin'.  Thanks, ladies.   :grouphug:

[Jane in NC]

Jane, are the muffins like storebought ones? We aren,t a big muffin family, partly because we prefer bread, but partly because store muffins are different than our home muffins. I always wondered why. Flour, maybe?

 

Nan

 

It was Amy who wrote about the muffin cookbook although I should mention that I am rather partial to a Muffin cookbook by Elizabeth Alston that we received as a wedding gift.  I use it regularly although in recent years we have moved from muffins to scones.  Go figure.

 

About those old recipe cards:  I recently stumbled upon one being used as a bookmark in a cookbook.  The recipe is for a rather decadent chocolate sauce and came to me from my mother in law's cousin.  Both ladies have since passed away but the memory of my mother in law's cousin's treats remain alive and well.  (Shhh..one of my nieces is going to find a jar of chocolate sauce and a copy of the recipe in her mailbox this week.)

 

[Stacia]

Pam, :grouphug: :grouphug:  for you & your dad. Glad to hear he's improving & home. Hospitals are never fun. But, I've heard that the cranky patients are the ones who tend to heal well!

[Stacia]

Rosie, how did things go for you???

 

:grouphug: :grouphug: