Vacation, Books.

The cottage, Sugar Shack, we are renting in NC has a King Sized bed and we don't so we have to borrow sheets from our friends. Yesterday they popped in quickly to bring us a set. Early days yet, still a few more weeks to go. However, we are gathering stuff together in our spare room that we don't want to forget. We haven't yet bought ourselves any US dollars which we need on the way down there sometimes. We pay for a lot of things on our credit card, but one often needs cash for and it somehow disappears. One thing we are taking is a radio. There is a TV but we tend to play the radio all day long if the TV is not on. A lot of people tend to leave their TV on all day long, but that would drive me nuts. I have just got hold of the last book in the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer - Breaking Dawn. Just looking for the cover picture I see Stephenie Meyer is being accused of taking ideas from Jordan Scott's The Nocturne for this last novel. If you would like to read more about it click here. Never having read The Nocturne and not yet having read Breaking Dawn, I have no idea of the truth behind these allegations of plagiarism. Of course its a good way to get people to read Scott's book isn't it? I also got hold of a couple more Mercedes Lackey Books which I haven't come across before, The Phoenix Unchained and The Phoenix Endangered which are part of her Enduring Flame Trilogy. I am not sure why I haven't come across these before, I usually end up devouring her books. I have been rereading a lot of her writings lately, particularly the Heralds of Valdemar Series which I really love and am thoroughly enjoying reading again. Just finished a couple of the Gryphon series, Black and White Gryphon, haven't got hold of Silver Gryphon yet. You will gather I don't read a lot of books which are not fantasy or sci fi any more. Having said that, I have got my name down for the latest Michael McGarrity book at the library, Dead or Alive. This is the most recent in his stories about a cop, Kevin Kerney, all of which I have thoroughly enjoyed. They are set in New Mexico and the area sounds fantastic, especially if you ride. Amongst the many ezines I get on a daily basis is Recipe du Jour which is published by Richard Rowand , Simply Tim and Walt Mills. They not only have recipes but little stories or daily thoughts about everything and anything which are always great to read. Today they published the following salmon recipe which I borrowed for my blog because I know at least one of my readers is very fond of salmon. Spiced Roast Salmon 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon ground coriander 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves 4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets (about 1 1/4-inches thick) 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon olive oil 1/4 cup plain fat-free yogurt 4 lemon wedges Heat oven to 400°F. Combine first 8 ingredients in a shallow dish. Sprinkle fillets with salt; dredge fillets in spice mixture. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add fillets, skin sides up; cook 5 minutes or until bottoms are golden. Turn fillets over. Wrap handle of skillet with foil; bake at 400°F for 10 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Remove skin from fillets; discard skin. Serve with yogurt and lemon wedges. Yield: 4 servings. Have a great day.

Books, Civic Holiday, Vitamin D.

I finished Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer last week, her third book in the Twilight series. I enjoyed it but I did get a little tired of all the agonising being done by Bella, the heroine. However, it was still a good story and I can recommend the series to anyone. I gave up reading vampire stories many years ago because I was getting bad dreams at night, however, the vampires in these stories are mostly quite nice vampires, if you know what I mean. Bella is in love with one, Edward Cullen, and he returns her love and will do anything to protect her even to the point of being very reluctant to turn her into a vampire despite her entreaties. I know the first book has been made into a movie, but I haven't heard anything about it. Be a bit difficult to portray the vampires as they are described as being the most gorgeous looking people. One of the worst examples of books made into movies was The Clan of the Cave Bear. A fantastic book, but the movie bore very little relationship to the book which was a great shame. I know the author was horrified and, I believe, sued the film company. If you've never read the book, you should, its a brilliant story. The following books weren't nearly as good and appeared to degenerate as she, Jean M. Auel, wrote them. The supposedly last book in the series has never been written. Right now, I am continuing my re-reads of Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar novels and still enjoying them very much. Trouble is, they are quite old and therefore fairly difficult to get hold of. Today is a holiday, in Ontario it is called Civic Holiday, but having been asked about it, I looked it up on Wikipedia and discovered that in fact many of Canada's provinces call it by a different name. Even in Ontario various areas have different names for it. Click here for more about all the different names by which this holiday is known. There were certainly lots of fireworks outside our windows last night even though the holiday is today. Probably get more fireworks tonight. Sadly holidays don't mean much to us any more - you could say we are on holiday all the time. We are even somewhat blasé about the fireworks. Well, it wasn't warm enough to sit out last night and watch them. There was a segment about Vitamin D on GMA this morning, emphasising its importance to one's health. They gave a list of 5 ways it can help you and how most people, even those who think they do, are not getting enough. The sources were listed, one of which is the sun, but these days we are usually advised not to spend a lot of time in the sun due to the risks of skin cancer: salmon and cod liver oil are good sources, other sources, milk and eggs, you would have to have 4 large glasses of milk or 8 egg yolks (its not in the whites) to get enough each day. Or there are supplements of course. If you would like to read the article its here. One thing that made me sit up was its recommendation for assistance in weight loss and diabetes management. We have friends coming for dinner soon and I was thinking about making the following dessert. I made it several times in the States, but I haven't done so since we came back to Canada. If you really want to cheat, you can buy ready made crêpes. Last time I served these I decorated them with pansies, being an edible flower. We did them for dessert at one of our Adventures in Dining Dinners in North Carolina. Gundel's Crêpes For the crêpes: 2 large eggs 1/2 cup cold milk 1/2 cup cold sparkling water; more as needed 1/2 tsp salt 6 3/4 oz (1-1/2 cups) all-purpose flour Melted butter for frying the crêpes For the filling: 1/2 cup dark rum 1/2 cup golden raisins 1/2 cup heavy cream 1/2 cup sugar 1- 1/4 cups walnut halves, coarsely chopped 2 Tbs chopped candied orange peel or 1/2 tsp. grated orange zest 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon 1 Tbs cocoa powder pinch salt For the sauce: 1/4 cup cocoa powder 1/3 cup sugar 2 tsp all-purpose flour pinch salt 1 cup milk 3 oz semisweet chocolate, finely chopped 1/2 cup heavy cream 1 To make the crêpes: Whisk the eggs with the cold milk, sparkling water, and salt. Whisking steadily, sift the flour over the egg mixture in a gradual but steady "rain" to make a smooth batter. Let sit for 20 min. and then add more sparkling water if necessary to get the consistency of heavy cream. 2 Heat a 6- to 8-inch crêpe or omelet pan (nonstick is fine but not necessary). Brush the pan with melted butter. Tilting and turning the pan with one hand, pour in just enough batter to cover the pan's surface, about 1 Tbs. Let the crêpe cook until golden on the underside, 1 to 2 min. (don't undercook them) and then flip or turn the crêpe with a small spatula or your fingers to cook the other side until just set, about 30 seconds more. The side cooked first will be prettier and should be the outer side when filling the crêpes. 3 Adjust the heat so you get a definite sizzle when adding the batter, and thin the batter if the crêpes are too thick and flabby. Stack the finished crêpes on a plate as you go. Cover with plastic and refrigerate until using, up to three days ahead. You can also wrap the crêpes tightly and freeze them (put a piece of waxed paper between each one for easier separation). 4 To make the filling: Heat the rum and soak the raisins in it while assembling the other ingredients. In a small saucepan, bring the cream and sugar to a boil, stirring, and add the walnuts, candied orange peel (or zest), cinnamon, cocoa powder, and salt. Bring back to a boil, stirring, and cook until the liquid has reduced almost completely but the nuts are still well coated and glossy, about 3 min. Stir in the raisins and rum and cool. You can make this filling a day or two ahead and refrigerate it until time to use. 5 For the chocolate sauce: In a medium saucepan, combine the cocoa powder, sugar, flour, and salt. Whisking steadily, slowly pour in the milk to make a smooth paste. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook about 30 seconds to cook off the raw floury taste, and then remove from the heat and add the chopped chocolate. Stir until smooth, cover loosely with plastic, and cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally to help it cool and prevent a skin from forming. Just before serving the crêpes, whip the cream until it just forms soft peaks. Stir about one-quarter of the whipped cream into the chocolate to lighten it, and then carefully fold the rest of the whipped cream into the sauce until well blended. 6 To finish: Spread about 2 Tbs. of the filling on the underside of a crêpe (reheat the filling slightly if it's cold from the refrigerator). Fold the crêpe in half, and then in half again to make a quarter circle. (You can also roll the crêpe as shown in the picture). Repeat with the remaining crêpes, dividing the filling evenly. You can do this early on the day of serving and just keep the filled crêpes covered at room temperature. 7 In a large frying pan, heat 2 Tbs. of butter over medium heat until sizzling. Add the filled crêpes to the pan without crowding them (do this in batches if you need to). Cook the crêpes until warmed through and browned on each side, about 1 min. per side. Add more butter if necessary to the pan during cooking. 8 Arrange 3 crêpes on each plate and drizzle a generous ribbon of chocolate sauce on top, passing more sauce at the table. Serve immediately. 9 Yield: about 20 crêpes, with filling for 18, and 2 cups sauce Servings: 6

Wimbledon, Latest Reads

Matt was so pleased when Roger Federer won the men's (sorry gentlemen's) singles yesterday - he is Matt's hero in the tennis world and he had everything crossed that he would win. I didn't watch, I don't really know why, I used to enjoy watching Wimbledon when I lived in the UK, but haven't really watched it since. Apparently no British male has won since the early 30's, so this last couple of weeks the British were cheering for the Scottish player Andy Murray. The Williams sisters did it again too, they swap the title between them. Matt was also happy Tiger Woods performed up to standard in a golf tournament he hosted this weekend. Meanwhile, I was reading, how unusual you might say. I read Turn Coat by Jim Butcher which is the latest in his Dresden File series, I absolutely love these books, all about vampires and wizards and things that go bump in the night with a terrific overtone of humour. If you have never read any of these novels, this is the 11th, they are really good, I don't find them a bit scary. Harry Dresden is a wizard living in Chicago and very much looked down upon by the White Council (more wizards) as a rebel. He has a great big carpet of a dog (Mouse) who sits on people to keep them from doing stupid things and is totally intelligent. Then there is a cat (Misty) as well as a skull called Bob who reads trashy romance novels. Harry has to drive an old Beetle as anything modern with lots of technology is affected by magic. He only has candles in his apartment, no electricity. (He lights them all at once by saying flicus bicus!! Flying is out of the question, I would hate to be on a plane with Harry!! I highly recommend them for good reads. The other book I read was New Moon by Stephenie Meyer. This is the second of her Twilight series which seems to consist of four books. The first one having been turned into a movie. More vampires and werewolves in this one. I have enjoyed both the books I have read and am eagerly anticipating the next one, Eclipse. Again, it isn't really scary - the books are basically a love story between a human girl and a vampire male. Quite a poignant story. You should read the excerpt at this site where you can also read the first chapter. I now have a short story to finish - its a love story by Marilyn of French Marilyn's blog. I also have been re-reading some short stories about Valdemar - don't know when I last read these stories, but they were quite fresh to read again and I mostly didn't remember their plots. The original Valdemar series was written by Mercedes Lackey, but this book of short stories only includes one novella by her. I love the Valdemar stories the idea of the "Companions" who choose their riders in the most magical ways and become their closest friends for life, are a wonderful concept. Her characters are marvellous too and make you want to get to know them. Going back to Food and Drink for a recipe today, I came across this one with Orzo which is a pasta I very much enjoy. I don't have any shrimp at the moment although I plan to rectify that when we go to North Carolina in September. Food and Drink recommend serving this with a Sauvignon Blanc or a Pilsner beer. Orzo Salad with Grilled Vegetables and Shrimp There's a lot of colour and flavour in this yummy salad which can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. Use jumbo shrimp for added appeal for guests. Serve as is or, for a twist, on a leaf of Boston lettuce. Bringing this dish to the next family reunion will make a big impression. 1 red onion 2 zucchini, sliced lengthwise 1 red pepper, quartered 1 yellow pepper, quartered 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil 1 cup orzo pasta 1 lb jumbo (21-25 count) shrimp, peeled and deveined 3 Tbs chopped fresh Italian parsley 1 clove garlic minced Pinch hot pepper flakes 3 Tbs white wine vinegar 1 Tbs each, chopped fresh mint and basil Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Cut onion into 6 wedges, place in a large bowl. Add zucchini, red and yellow peppers and 2 Tbs of the oil. Toss. Place vegetables on greased grill over medium high heat and grill, turning once, for about 10 mins. or until golden and tender-crisp. Remove to cutting board and when cool enough, chop into bite sized pieces and place in large serving bowl. Meanwhile, in a pot of boiling salted water, cook orzo for about 8 minutes or until al dente. Drain and rinse under cold water until cool. Drain well and add to grilled vegetables. Toss shrimp in 1 Tbs oil, 1 Tbs parsley, garlic and hot pepper flakes. Place on greased grill over medium high heat and grill, turning once, for about 5 minutes or until firm and pink. Add to bowl. Whisk together remaining oil and parsley, white wine vinegar, mint, basil, salt and pepper to taste. Pour over salad, toss to combine. Serves 4. Have a great day.

Summer and Twilight.

The weather has certainly changed round here, we have gone from pretty cool to pretty hot in just a day or two, we kind of missed the gentle spring weather somehow. Glenda Larke is posting pictures (see her blog Tropic Temper) of gorgeous beaches which are making me somewhat envious being stuck in our apartment at the moment. We do sit on our balcony but once the sun shines on to it directly, it can get very hot - Matt can stand it, but it can get too much for me. Talking of Matt, the antibiotics seem to be working I'm pleased to report. I have no doubt all the good wishes helped too. I have just finished a book called Twilight by Stephenie Meyer - I wasn't too certain whether I would like it or not. Its about a 17 yr old named Bella Swan (the biggest klutz around) and her vampire boyfriend Edward Cullen and their star crossed love affair. Edward and his coven basically hunt for the blood of animals as they don't want to be considered monsters. His description of this is that it would be like eating tofu and soymilk instead of steak. In other words the temptation is still there. I thoroughly enjoyed the story which becomes really exciting when another coven discover Bella. I have ordered the next book from the library which I didn't think I was going to do. The cover art of my book appears to be from the film and is not the same as the most publicised cover art. It being strawberry season right now in Ontario, I thought this recipe from Food and Drink published by the LCBO would be a good one. Gorgonzola and Strawberry Canapés Crisp, golden toasts are ideal for the bold, herb flavour of the Gorgonzola. A fruity and colourful topping of strawberries or grapes makes this an enjoyable, fresh canapé, perfect for summer entertaining. 6 slices bakery white sandwich bread 2 Rbs unsalted butter, melted Freshly ground black pepper 6 oz. Grogonzola cheese, softened 3 Tbs whipping cream 2 Tbs chopped fresh basil 1 tsp chopped fresh thyme 1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts or pecans 12 small strawberries, sliced, or 6 seedless red and green grapes quartered. Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). Trim crusts off bread and cut each slice into 4 squares. Brush with butter and place on baking sheet. Sprinkle with pepper. Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden. Let cool completely. Using exlectric hand mixer, beat cheese, cream, basil and thyme together until very smooth. Spread evenly on toasts. Sprinkle each with walnuts. Top each toast with strawberry slices or grapes. Makes 24 canapés. Have a great day.