Ok here are some of my "I Recommends" for today:

Music: Beach House. I enjoyed the NPR recommendation about their newest release but a friend recommended past albums. I've been listening on Spotify and just love. A great something to play at the office.

TV: Scandal: Loving all the intrigue of politics. Also Harry's Law...the acting is just terrific and also pokes fun at itself. But what I love the most? GRIMM. Terrific. Acting, sets, and of course the connection to the stories. Just amazing.

Places to visit: It's starting to get hot down here. I'm thinking North...like Vermont. A great time to visit the East Coast...Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Gorgeous and so quaint. Great people.

Wine? I just tried a red pinot noir called Snap Dragon. Light and enjoyable. A good red for the impending summer.

Food: Cheese. Farmers Cheese and Marscapone. Try them in some recipes. Yum.

Old Movie: Tortilla Soup. A charmer. Hispanic-Americans and a dysfunctional family. Great. Enjoy the music. Oh and the food!

Ok for the girls: the best waterproof black eye liner is made by Benefit. You can cover over it with colored shadow but it's great.

Online discount store. Onekingslane.com Check it out. Great stuff.

Back to Basics

I just read through all my blogs of the past. There was something I wrote at the very beginning--"my recommendations." They were bits and pieces of different things from books to music to food. I just came back from a forum/meeting where people from all over the south who do my job (and similar) come together to share to make our profession and our agencies stronger. We did a group of introductions followed by "I recommend." So this reminded me to get back to that here as well.

I recommend NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts. So awesome. Sometimes it is someone I've never heard of and last week is one of my old favorites, the Cowboy Junkies. Good stuff on the music side.

I also recommend The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond. She has a blog and now a cookbook but sometimes I just like her photographs of family or livestock out there on that large ranch in Oklahoma. She also makes the best cinnamon rolls. I have not tried them although my friend Julie has and God love her for trying. Not easy but they look SO good!

Substitute for french fries? Eggplant fries. Gervais & Vine does them here in Columbia with almost no breading just a coating which is good for my gluten intolerant stomach. Plus they let me feel like I'm eating one of my favorite foods but I'm eating something better for me. Side note--I used to hate eggplant. It was fleshy and icky until my friend Jo grilled it. Leave it to an Italian to show me the light. Now I love it.

I was looking back through background movies--those I can put on in the background while I'm cleaning. Something I've seen so many times and really enjoy. My sister Allison and I share this and many of our favorites...Under the Tuscan Sun, 27 Dresses, The Wedding Date, How to Make an American Quilt, Because I Said So, Gosford Park, Mr. Mom, Amelie, Love Actually, The Ref, and The Devil Wears Prada. I'm cleaning today so I'm sure one of those will grace my TV.

Finally, I've been traveling quite a bit and I feel like I never finish anything. So pick one thing and do it start to finish. I have a zillion projects that will probably never get done but I also have many other things that I can do--finish a book, put away all my clothes, cook a whole meal, write those thank you notes. That is what I'm working towards. If I can't finish one thing per day then definitely finish one thing per week--particularly for myself. I'm great at doing things for others but my stuff goes on the back burner. So that is my new goal. Seems simple but I'll let you know how I do.

I'm signing off listening to Ceremony by New Order. Love that song. Was in the Marie Antoinette soundtrack recently. Love that whole soundtrack and the film is a mix of color, vision, truth and irreverent. Watch it again. Good stuff.

The Whale Rider--recommended reading

The Whale Rider  by Witi Ihimaera Witi Ihimaera’s The Whale Rider is one of those rare books that is so pure and so moving that it makes you believe anything is possible. Most specifically, it makes you believe that a book that’s basically about cultural rituals among the Maori people of New Zealand isn’t only fascinating and entertaining, but accessible. Though the book features a tattooed whale and characters who seem to possess strange and unusual abilities, it’s basically just about a family. That family is lead by fearsome Maori chief Koro Apirana and his salty but loving wife, Nanny Flowers, and includes their grandsons Porourangi and Rawiri, the story’s narrator. As the story opens, Porourangi, the older of the two, has just had a daughter, inflaming his grandfather. You see, power in the tribe handed down through the oldest son of each generation’s oldest son. The birth of a daughter breaks the lineage. But unlike Koro, Nanny Flowers and the others don’t find the little girl useless. In fact, as she gets older, she possesses talents that echo those of the ancient Whale Rider for whom she was named. But her abilities are of little comfort to Kahu, a girl who adores her great-grandfather and is shattered by his constant rejection and assertions that “she is of no use to me.” It’s this craving for her great-grandfather’s love that provides Kahu’s real motivation. Ihimaera’s writing is just about perfect. His characters, (with, oddly, the exception of Kahu’s father) are fleshed-out, interesting people. Rawiri and Nanny Flowers are especially lively and colorful. Rawiri is, of course, a devoted grandson and loving uncle, but he’s also a bit of a wild child who hangs with a motorcycle gang and is sometimes mistaken for a thug. Nanny is also loving, even to her stubborn husband. But she isn’t above regular threats of divorce, or smacking her wandering grandson Rawiri in the head. But the heart of the story lies with Koro and Kahu, two characters both so single-minded and determined that they must be related. The relationship is especially interesting because Kahu seems to understand why her great-grandfather excludes her from tribal rituals and from his love, even as she disagrees with him. The result is a profoundly enchanting story that will hold in its grip right up to its tender conclusion. © 2003 by Amanda Cuda for Curled Up With a Good Book The Film: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0298228/ A contemporary story of love, rejection and triumph as a young Maori girl fights to fulfill a destiny her grandfather refuses to recognize.

A few musings on the Young Adult part of the Hunger Games

I read the Hunger Games and I enjoyed it. It doesn't have to be a great piece of literature to be enjoyable of course. It was fast paced and very descriptive. Did I know what it would be about before I read it? Somewhat. Was I surprised after I read it? Yes.

One of the most common debates I have with friends--librarians and parents--I know a lot of advanced readers particularly in the young grades. (I was one of them. My mother let me read whatever I thought I wanted to read...but she told me we could always talk about it.)  It is always a challenge to find things to read that don't have content above their maturity level.

I have created lists featuring strong female characters. I think that young girls can and should find role models in books. There are some great books out there. Again the challenge for a very advanced young reader is the type of content. I have a friend who has a child that is an advanced reader. She doesn't want her to read books about families breaking up, the father leaving or divorce because she has a husband that works a lot. She doesn't want her daughter to project the fears from the book to their life. She wants to be able to guide that discussion, so she reads all the books first. I wish everyone could but that is why librarians can be ever so handy. I have recommended many books for her daughter but it does give me pause. What about "Moon Over Manifest." Terrific book--award winning, thoughtful and well written. But how do you explain to an 8 year old about the world wars and why people with Italian or Polish last names were treated differently? (Even more confusing if she has one.) I don't think children need to be sheltered but of course I think there is a time and place, and unfortunately, the media is pushing that time and place up so it's no longer the tweens that we're worrying about but our seven and eight year olds.

When they make these books into movies--and there have been so many from Twilight and The Hunger Games to Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging; or into TV shows of the likes of Gossip Girl and Pretty Little Liars, it is extra hard to avoid the hype because everyone is talking about them. They hit the covers of every magazine from 17 to Entertainment Weekly and Time. In the case of the Hunger Games, just because of the visual nature, it had so many adult overtones that I don't even think a child could understand (so many historical references--i'm sure you could catch them: Nazi/war, repression, Big Brother/1984, Civil Rights marches and the Great Depression). So that just leaves the action and the romance. While they downplayed the romance part and explained the purpose of the romance (not as much as the book but still), there was really no way to avoid the fact that children are killed by other children/young adults and they filmed them as graphically as they needed to be. That could be scary for kids to think that this is real--especially in the current climate of school violence and bullying.

I am sure that there are many more better written essays on the Hunger Games (book and/or movie) but these were just a few things that I have been thinking about. As for books with strong female characters, I'll post that in another blog post. Here's a hint...start with The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi.

Support the Free Medical Clinic Supply Drives

You have probably heard that song “Another Day in Paradise.” I am fairly certain it rose up the musical pop charts when it was released. The author, musician Phil Collins wanted to draw attention to the problem of homelessness. I think the lyrics say it all…people are on the street, they ask for help. Other people ignore them. Some are embarrassed, some are angry and others think this is the way that life goes. Having worked with nonprofit organizations for more than twenty years, I have always been on the side of watching out for the underserved. Whatever mission my organization supported, I was right in line with it giving my time and energy, and sometimes my money too. When I moved to Columbia, the recession just about kicked into full gear. I was trying to figure out how to make all the adjustments I needed and start a new job in support of libraries and literacy. The entire time I have been here, it has not been easy. I have watched people lose their jobs and try to feed their families. The idea of getting sick can be catastrophic. I know my medications are expensive and I have insurance. Imagine what it’s like with nothing.

As a part of the Leadership Columbia Class of 2012, the class has chosen as its service project to support the Free Medical Clinic on Harden Street and its mission of providing quality healthcare, at no cost, to residents of the community who cannot pay for such services and who have no health insurance. We are working on the existing building by providing a covered walkway and inside refurbishment, as well as coordinating a community supply drive campaign throughout February and March to collect items needed by the Clinic on a recurrent basis.  For every item we can have donated, such as toilet paper, paper towel or copy paper, that is less money that is taken from providing patient care. If you live in and around the Columbia/Midlands area, be on the look out for supply drive locations.

Supply Donation Locations & Dates: All locations 9am to 3pm

Saturday, February 11^th

Walgreens: 9001 Two Notch Road, Columbia, SC 29223

Walgreens: 4467 Devine Street, Columbia, SC 29205

Office Depot: 252 Harbison Blvd, Columbia, SC 29212

Saturday, February 18^th

Walgreens: Village at Sandhills, 175 Forum Drive, Columbia, SC 29229

Walgreens: 3501 Forest Drive, Columbia, SC 29204

Sunday, February 19^th

Walmart: 1180 Dutch Fork Road, Irmo, SC 29063

Saturday, February 25^th

Walgreens: 1941 Blossom Street, Columbia, SC 29205

Walgreens: 4520 Hardscrabble Road, Columbia, SC 29229

Chick-fil-A: 2299 Augusta Road, West Columbia, SC 29169

Items Needed

Lexmark T650, HP05A, HP27x Printer Toner Cartridges

Brother TN 420, Brother TN350 Fax Machine Toner Cartidges and Drum

Extra Large Paper Lunch Bags

Paper Towels

Toilet Tissue

Letter Sized Copy Paper

Legal Sized Copy Paper

Binder Clips (All Sizes)

Disposable Rubber Gloves (Medium & Large)

Hand Soap

Hand Sanitizer

Facial Tissue

Highlighters (yellow, green, pink)

Pens (black, blue)

File Folders

Letter Sized Note Tablets

Printer Ink Cartridges: HP 57, HP 56

Paper Clips (large, regular)

Staples

Office tape

Packing tape

Gift cards: Walgreens, Office Depot, Walmart

Please also help us spread the word. There are Saturday supply drop offs going on all month as well as other special events. You can keep up to date with all the events through the blog:  http://freemedicalcliniclifesaver.wordpress.com and Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/BeaLifeSaver.

James Kennedy & the art of Teen Video making in SC

We were lucky enough to bring James Kennedy from Chicago (which in itself is cool enough) to South Carolina as the presenter for our teen exchange. The Teen Exchange brings together librarians or staff who work with or have an interest in working with teens and young adults. We've done some great programs in recent years--Teen Spaces with Kim Bolan Cullin and Collection and other cool stuff with Erin Downey Howerton. That was where I learned about James and the 90-second Newbery. (www.jameskennedy.com)

We have spend some time developing a rotating group of technology so that libraries across the state can borrow movie making and editing equipment. It is a great way to build skills and develop creative approaches for marketing and highlighting programs in the libraries. We have encouraged the teen librarians and their teen advisory board members or teen/preteen patrons to develop short films for contests that have been recently sponsored by the Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP or what we often call Summer Reading program) and ALA, the American Library Association. If you think that kids aren't super talented, it is amazing what they can do in a day. Take a peek here. The first is the runner up video for the ALA contest and the second is the SC winner.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXeoYdb31vk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szcdTRZLIIw

James Kennedy has developed the 90-second Newbery film festival. If you are a book person, teacher/librarian, or have kids you probably are pretty familiar with the Newbery awards. They are the best in juvenile fiction as determined by a committee of professionals each year. I have to say that although I absolutely loved this past year's winner, Moon over Manifest (and wasn't really sure until I read it), there have been some less than interesting winners in the many many years of the awards. I was given one in the late 70s when I was devouring books. It was a journal. I didn't really understand the style and it was super boring to me. I am sure it was a great book. If I was to go back and read it as an adult, I might even like it now; I certainly always appreciate them. But every winner will not always be for everyone, and that's ok. However, making it into a 90 second film, as James says, can make anything seem silly. Those that came had a very creative day where they looked at the books, made choices about how to write the script. For example, Hatchet written in the style of Twitter with hashtags. The Underneath was done as a puppet show. Lots of mashups, cross overs and adaptations to styles like reality or talk shows. Some of them were able to complete their films, others are still in progress. The afternoon focused on James' book "The Order of the Odd-Fish." He showed all the fan art and tributes to this unique fantasy book. It reminded me of Comic Con. He's done it as a program for ALA for the past few years and our own librarians also got a chance to recreate a sort of fighting scene. Super creative. I'll have some pictures. Mostly I think everyone got to envision themselves using the technology to highlight books and create programs that appeal to teens. Eli Neuberger from Ann Arbor just talked during the Ebook summit this week about how we as libraries MUST start to highlight and focus on things that are not just books. This is the perfect time for these kinds of creative, skill building programs. Keep your eyes open. I feel a 90-second Newbery Film Festival in Columbia SC will happen.

Banned Books Week Sept 24-Oct

Banned Books Week 2011 has begun – a week that celebrates the freedom to read while drawing attention to the harms that censorship does to our society and our individual freedoms. We hope that during this week you will read one of your favorite banned/challenged book and think of the ideas the books contain—ideas that bother some people so much they want to prevent you and others from reading it.

During the week, the OIF Blog, Twitter feed, and Facebook page will highlight some of the many events taking place during Banned Books Week, and will spotlight some of the videos featured on the Banned Books Week YouTube channel as part of the Banned Books Virtual Read-Out! Check back regularly for more information. You also should check the new Banned Books Week website—geared toward the general public—for events in your local area.
Happy reading!

About Banned & Challenged Books

What's the difference between a challenge and a banning?

A challenge is an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials. Challenges do not simply involve a person expressing a point of view; rather, they are an attempt to remove material from the curriculum or library, thereby restricting the access of others. Due to the commitment of librarians, teachers, parents, students and other concerned citizens, most challenges are unsuccessful and most materials are retained in the school curriculum or library collection.

http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/aboutbannedbooks/index.cfm

Banned Books Week Sept 24-Oct 1, 2011

http://www.oif.ala.org/oif/?p=2724
Banned Books Week 2011 has begun – a week that celebrates the freedom to read while drawing attention to the harms that censorship does to our society and our individual freedoms. We hope that during this week you will read one of your favorite banned/challenged book and think of the ideas the books contain—ideas that bother some people so much they want to prevent you and others from reading it.
During the week, the OIF Blog, Twitter feed, and Facebook page will highlight some of the many events taking place during Banned Books Week, and will spotlight some of the videos featured on the Banned Books Week YouTube channel as part of the Banned Books Virtual Read-Out! Check back regularly for more information. You also should check the new Banned Books Week website—geared toward the general public—for events in your local area.
Happy reading!

Support Denise for ALA/ALSC's Newbery Medal Selection Committee

I would appreciate your vote to serve on ALA/ALSC's Newbery Medal Selection Committee.

Here is the bio on the ballot.

Denise R. Lyons
revised and removed information after the vote
Links for further information:

Project website: https://daybydaysc.org

About the Newbery Medal for Children's Literature

THe John Newbery Medal
from www.ala.org

In 1921 Frederic G.Melcher had the Newbery Medal designed by René Paul Chambellan. The bronze medal has the winner's name and the date engraved on the back. The American Library Association Executive Board in 1922 delegated to the Children's Librarians' Section the responsibility for selecting the book to receive the Newbery Medal.

The inscription on the Newbery Medal still reads "Children's Librarians' Section," although the section has changed its name four times and its membership now includes both school and public library children's librarians in contrast to the years 1922-58, when the section, under three different names, included only public library children's librarians. Today the Medal is administered by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of ALA.

How the Newbery Medal Came to Be

The Newbery Medal is awarded annually by the American Library Association for the most distinguished American children's book published the previous year. On June 22, 1921, Frederic G. Melcher proposed the award to the American Library Association meeting of the Children's Librarians' Section and suggested that it be named for the eighteenth-century English bookseller John Newbery. The idea was enthusiastically accepted by the children's librarians, and Melcher's official proposal was approved by the ALA Executive Board in 1922. In Melcher's formal agreement with the board, the purpose of the Newbery Medal was stated as follows: "To encourage original creative work in the field of books for children. To emphasize to the public that contributions to the literature for children deserve similar recognition to poetry, plays, or novels. To give those librarians, who make it their life work to serve children's reading interests, an opportunity to encourage good writing in this field."

The Newbery Award thus became the first children's book award in the world. Its terms, as well as its long history, continue to make it the best known and most discussed children's book award in this country.

From the beginning of the awarding of the Newbery and Caldecott Medals, committees could, and usually did, cite other books as worthy of attention. Such books were referred to as Newbery or Caldecott "runners-up." In 1971 the term "runners-up" was changed to "honor books." The new terminology was made retroactive so that all former runners-up are now referred to as Newbery or Caldecott Honor Books

Roman Punch (from W.W. Norton)

I'm going to credit W.W. Norton and their link: http://wwnorton.tumblr.com/post/1313872086/roman-punch
I loved it so I had to share.

Roman Punch
There was a time — when turtle soup was a luxury dish and whiskey was an acceptable pick-me-up — when garnishing an icy-cold drink with a dollop of meringue seemed perfectly normal. And why not? The meringue floats on the surface like a regal, mysterious iceberg. As you mix it in, the sugar and whites add a touch of cream to what’s otherwise a sweet, boozy punch.

Although this one does not, many Roman punch recipes instruct you to freeze the mixture before serving, presumably so it gets nice and slushy before receiving its meringue cap.

Roman punch was served as an intermezzo at society parties and at the White House during Rutherford B. Hayes’s presidency. Hayes and his wife, who was known as “Lemonade Lucy,” were temperance advocates, and to get around their strictures — the rumor was — someone in the kitchen devised the spiked sorbet, which was served to guests. By 1922, the drink was declared passé by Emily Post.

2 cups lemonade
Juice of 2 oranges
8 ounces Champagne
8 ounces rum
2 large egg whites
2 cups confectioners’ sugar

1.Stir together the lemonade, orange juice, Champagne, and rum in a punch bowl. Chill
2.When ready to serve, make the meringue: whip the egg whites in a medium bowl until they hold soft peaks, then gradually beat in the confectioners’ sugar. Pile into a serving bowl.
3.Fill punch cups with ice, ladle over the punch, and top each with a dollop of meringue. Serve with cocktail stirrers.
New York Times, August 17, 1879

From The Essential New York Times Cookbook by Amanda Hesser

New Design

I have a new design. Doesn't this feel sort of earthy and free? I really liked the one called "travel" which looks like an old pied a terre in paris or something, complete with torn vintage wallpaper and cracks in the cement.

Of course all this means is that I want my own pied a terre with torn wallpaper and cracks in the cement. I am so tired of sharing walls with people not of my choosing. I went to college at 17 and have lived in dorms or apartments since. I'm not going to fess to my age but let's just say I have over two decades of irritating neighbors, inconveniently placed trash bins, fighting over parking spaces, appliances that break etc. etc.

I have 3 houses picked out here. If I could find the time to get my act together and go see the mortgage broker and fix my credit report, I might be able to do something about it. Will I get my birthday/Christmas wish??

In the meantime, read this:

Kate Whouley is the author of Cottage for Sale, Must Be Moved, a true, sometimes hilarious, sometimes poignant account of one woman's quest to move a vacation cottage across Cape Cod.

A Small Showing of Commercialism: Wonderful home for sale

WONDERFUL HOME in a good neighborhood in Grand Rapids, Michigan
Well taken care of with lots of extras and beautiful interior
http://tinyurl.com/908beechwood


908 BEECHWOOD ST NE
Grand Rapids 49505
Kent County Michigan

Residential Listing MLS: 10038914
$ 89,900 Current/Active
Single family Bungalow
Bedrooms: 3 Baths: 1


School District: Grand Rapids
Directions: Plainfield, south of Three Mile to Beechwood, East to home.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year Built: 1955
Lot Size: 50x100
Gas/Forced air
Central air
Public Water
Public Sewer
1,670 sq feet
Garage: 1 stall/Un-attached
Vinyl Siding
Full Basement
Features: Encl Porch
Appliances: Fan-Ceiling , Refrg , Range , Dishwasher , Disposal

Please contact Mrs. K. Burns at quina24@gmail.com

Just a hint of magic--good summer reading

The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe
**Highly recommend listening on audio
Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen
Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
The Garden Angel: A Novel by Mindy Friddle
Illumination Night by Alice Hoffman
Thief Eyes by Janni Lee Simner
East by Edith Pattou
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
Hannah's Winter by Kierin Meehan
The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood

Coconut Chiffon Cake with Coconut-Cranberry Sorbet

Coconut Chiffon Cake with Coconut-Cranberry Sorbet

Active Time: 20 Minutes
Total Time: 1 Hour 25 Minutes
Yield: Makes 10 servings
A delicate light-textured cake. To measure the flour accurately, sift some flour into a bowl. Spoon the sifted flour into a 1 cup measure so cup is overflowing. Stand the edge of a ruler on top of

RECIPE INGREDIENTS
1 cup flaked sweetened coconut (about 3 ounces)
2 cups sugar
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
7 large egg yolks
7 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Fresh cranberries (optional)
Fresh mint (optional)

Other necessary recipes:
Coconut-Cranberry Sorbet


DIRECTIONS
Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Blend coconut and 1/4 cup sugar in processor until coconut is finely chopped.


Whisk flour, 3/4 cup sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl to blend. Make well in center of dry ingredients. Add coconut milk, oil, lemon juice and vanilla to well; then yolks. Whisk all ingredients until very smooth. Fold coconut mixture from processor into yolk mixture. Using electric mixer, beat whites and cream of tartar in another large bowl until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in remaining 1 cup sugar; beat until whites are stiff but not dry. Fold large spoonful of whites into yolk mixture to lighten. Fold in remaining whites in 3 additions.


Transfer batter to 10x4-inch angel food cake pan. Bake cake until golden on top and tester (slender wooden skewer) comes out clean, about 1 hour 5 minutes. Place narrow-neck bottle into center tube of cake pan. Stand bottle upright so cake hangs upside down. Cool cake completely. Cut around cake pan and center tube to loosen cake. Remove cake from pan; place on platter. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and store at room temperature.)


Cut cake into wedges; place on plates. Spoon sorbet alongside. Garnish with fresh cranberries and mint, if desired.


Recipe created exclusively for Cooking.com by Selma Elaine Brown.

Sunny Citrus Chiffon Cake

Sunny Citrus Chiffon Cake

Active Time: 45 Minutes
Total Time: 2 Hours
Yield: 12 servings
Flavored with orange, lemon and lime, this big, beautiful cake is a fitting ending to a celebration. Just three egg yolks give the cake a golden hue and a texture richer than angel food.

RECIPE INGREDIENTS
For the Cake:
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar divided
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
10 large egg whites at room temperature (see Tip)
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
3 large large egg yolks
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur
2 tablespoons freshly grated orange zest
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons freshly grated lime zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Citrus Glaze:
1 large orange scrubbed
1 lemon scrubbed
1 lime scrubbed
2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Tip: To bring an egg to room temperature: Either set it out on the counter for 15 minutes or submerge it (in the shell) in a bowl of lukewarm (not hot) water for 5 minutes.


DIRECTIONS
FOR THE CAKE:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift flour, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, baking powder and salt into a small bowl; set aside.


Beat egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of an electric mixer just until soft peaks form. Beat in the remaining 3/4 cup granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, until the whites are shiny and form soft peaks.


Whisk together egg yolks, orange liqueur, orange, lemon and lime zests, lemon and lime juices, and vanilla in a small bowl. Pour over the egg whites and fold together with a rubber spatula.


Resift the reserved dry ingredients over the beaten egg whites in four parts, folding in gently after each addition. Spoon the batter into an ungreased 10-inch angel food cake pan with a removable bottom. Smooth the top and run a knife or spatula through the batter to remove any air bubbles. Bake until the top is golden and a long skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Invert the pan over the neck of a bottle and let cool completely.


FOR THE CITRUS GLAZE:
Use a citrus zester to remove long threads of zest from the orange, lemon and lime; set aside. Squeeze 4 teaspoons of juice from each of the fruits. Whisk the juices into the confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl to make a smooth glaze.


Loosen the edges of the cake with a knife and invert onto a cake plate. Spoon the glaze over the top, allowing it to drip down the sides. Sprinkle the top of the cake with the julienned zest. Let the cake stand at least 30 minutes for the glaze to set.


© EatingWell Magazine.

Thai Iced Tea

My favorite Thai restaurant serves an iced Thai tea that is literally addictive.
I wanted to see what I could create at home.

I've purchased Celestial Seasonings Decaf Sweet Coconut Thai Chai. They have 3 other kinds too. I boil a few bags in hot water and get it as strong as possible. Add sugar until it melts. Taste and make sure it is sweet. Then purchase Turtle Mountain So Delicious Coconut Milk creamer. Our local whole foods/natural food store has it. Let the tea cool and poor over ice until most of the way full, then add creamer. Stir and enjoy!

There are many debates if you try and look on the internet for a recipe. Sweetened condensed milk or coconut milk? Sugar or sweetener?

I like this explanation.
http://www.thaitable.com/Thai/recipes/Thai_Tea.htm

There are two styles of Thai iced tea: with or without milk. Tea with milk is called cha yen. Tea without milk is called cha dum yen.

You will see small coffee/tea shops sprinkled all over Thailand. However, unlike in the US or Europe, Thai people like their iced tea on the go and take it with them in a small plastic bag with a straw sticking out. Very few people sit at the shop and drink it leisurely. In fact, many shops have no place to sit.


Cold Thai Tea - Cha Yen Thai Tea is a real favorite in Thailand. When you buy Thai Tea on the street, you normally get it in a small plastic bag with a straw. Since it's very easy to make it just like you find in Thailand, you can avoid paying $3.50 to Starbucks.

Cha Yen Thai Tea
1-2 tablespoons Thai tea
1 tablespoon sweet condensed milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon milk
1 cup hot water

Add sugar and sweet condensed milk to a glass or cup. Put one tablespoon of Thai tea to a tea sock. Place the tea sock directly above the glass. Pour hot water into the tea sock. Set the tea sock aside. Stir until the sugar and sweet condensed milk are dissolved. Add ice and top the tea with milk.

If you like it hot, reduce the sugar and sweet condensed milk by half. Drink hot.

Cha Dum Yen - Cha Dum Yen
1-2 tablespoons Thai tea
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup hot water

Add sugar to a glass or cup. Put one tablespoon of Thai tea to a tea sock. Place the tea sock directly above the glass. Pour hot water into the tea sock. Set the tea sock aside. Stir until all the sugar is dissolved. Add ice.

If you like it hot, reduce the sugar by half. Drink hot.

Time's 100 Best Novels...but I respectfully disagree

Here's the list of what they say. I'm working on mine.

http://www.time.com/time/2005/100books/the_complete_list.html

The Complete List
In Alphabetical Order
PRINT

A - B
The Adventures of Augie March
Saul Bellow

All the King's Men
Robert Penn Warren

American Pastoral
Philip Roth


An American Tragedy
Theodore Dreiser

Animal Farm
George Orwell


Appointment in Samarra
John O'Hara


Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret
Judy Blume

The Assistant
Bernard Malamud


At Swim-Two-Birds
Flann O'Brien

Atonement
Ian McEwan


Beloved
Toni Morrison


The Berlin Stories
Christopher Isherwood


The Big Sleep
Raymond Chandler


The Blind Assassin
Margaret Atwood


Blood Meridian
Cormac McCarthy

Brideshead Revisited
Evelyn Waugh


The Bridge of San Luis Rey
Thornton Wilder


C - D
Call It Sleep
Henry Roth


Catch-22
Joseph Heller


The Catcher in the Rye
J.D. Salinger


A Clockwork Orange
Anthony Burgess


The Confessions of Nat Turner
William Styron


The Corrections
Jonathan Franzen


The Crying of Lot 49
Thomas Pynchon


A Dance to the Music of Time
Anthony Powell


The Day of the Locust
Nathanael West


Death Comes for the Archbishop
Willa Cather

A Death in the Family
James Agee

The Death of the Heart
Elizabeth Bowen


Deliverance
James Dickey


Dog Soldiers
Robert Stone


F - G
Falconer
John Cheever


The French Lieutenant's Woman
John Fowles


The Golden Notebook
Doris Lessing


Go Tell it on the Mountain
James Baldwin


Gone With the Wind
Margaret Mitchell


The Grapes of Wrath
John Steinbeck


Gravity's Rainbow
Thomas Pynchon


The Great Gatsby
F. Scott Fitzgerald


H - I
A Handful of Dust
Evelyn Waugh


The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter
Carson McCullers


The Heart of the Matter
Graham Greene

Herzog
Saul Bellow


Housekeeping
Marilynne Robinson


A House for Mr. Biswas
V.S. Naipaul


I, Claudius
Robert Graves


Infinite Jest
David Foster Wallace


Invisible Man
Ralph Ellison


L - N
Light in August
William Faulkner


The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe
C.S. Lewis

Lolita
Vladimir Nabokov


Lord of the Flies
William Golding

The Lord of the Rings
J.R.R. Tolkien


Loving
Henry Green


Lucky Jim
Kingsley Amis


The Man Who Loved Children
Christina Stead


Midnight's Children
Salman Rushdie

Money
Martin Amis


The Moviegoer
Walker Percy


Mrs. Dalloway
Virginia Woolf

Naked Lunch
William Burroughs


Native Son
Richard Wright


Neuromancer
William Gibson

Never Let Me Go
Kazuo Ishiguro


1984
George Orwell


O - R
On the Road
Jack Kerouac


One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Ken Kesey


The Painted Bird
Jerzy Kosinski

Pale Fire
Vladimir Nabokov


A Passage to India
E.M. Forster

Play It As It Lays
Joan Didion

Portnoy's Complaint
Philip Roth


Possession
A.S. Byatt


The Power and the Glory
Graham Greene

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
Muriel Spark


Rabbit, Run
John Updike


Ragtime
E.L. Doctorow


The Recognitions
William Gaddis


Red Harvest
Dashiell Hammett

Revolutionary Road
Richard Yates

S - T
The Sheltering Sky
Paul Bowles


Slaughterhouse-Five
Kurt Vonnegut


Snow Crash
Neal Stephenson

The Sot-Weed Factor
John Barth

The Sound and the Fury
William Faulkner

The Sportswriter
Richard Ford


The Spy Who Came in From the Cold
John le Carre


The Sun Also Rises
Ernest Hemingway


Their Eyes Were Watching God
Zora Neale Hurston


Things Fall Apart
Chinua Achebe

To Kill a Mockingbird
Harper Lee


To the Lighthouse
Virginia Woolf


Tropic of Cancer
Henry Miller


U - W
Ubik
Philip K. Dick

Under the Net
Iris Murdoch

Under the Volcano
Malcolm Lowry


Watchmen
Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons

White Noise
Don DeLillo


White Teeth
Zadie Smith


Wide Sargasso Sea
Jean Rhys

Losing Spenser

This link is really good...provides an appreciation for Robert B. Parker. Parker was like an old friend. I felt like he'd been around for so long--his books, the TV show, the movies. I even got to meet him once. Plus he reminds me so much of Boston, a place I love. So take a minute and read on...

http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/tag/robert-b-parker

Robert B. Parker, the crime writer best known for his Spenser detective series, died today at the age of 77. Fittingly for a writer who published several books a year — many of which routinely made best-sellers lists — Parker is said to have died at his desk...

Recipe Fun

I'm a huge Mark Bittman fan. His books are great and easy to use. His articles are always interesting. I've been making a lot of potato leek soup lately. My recipe fav is from the NY Times cookbook using the Vichyssoise recipe but not chilling it. While I was searching to see if it was online, I found this Bittman recipe and sounded so good, I decided to post instead.

Grilled White-and-Sweet-Potato Salad
Mark Bittman
Yield 4 to 6 servings

Time About 40 minutes

Ingredients
2 large waxy (new) potatoes, about 1 pound
1 or 2 sweet potatoes, about 1 pound
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
1 tablespoon sherry or other vinegar, or to taste
1 bunch scallions, both white and green parts, chopped

Method
1. Start a gas or charcoal grill, or heat the oven to 450 degrees. Peel potatoes and cut them into slices 1/2-inch thick. Toss them with half the olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Grill potatoes over direct but not-too-hot heat, turning them as they brown. Or roast them on nonstick baking sheet, turning once or twice.
2. Potatoes will cook in about 10 to 15 minutes; remove them as they become tender. When they are done and fairly cool, toss them with remaining ingredients. Taste and adjust seasoning and serve. Or the salad can be covered and refrigerated; bring to room temperature before serving.