Fajitas, alligators and books

We have been spending time at Lake Seminole this past week so I don't have any exciting events to share. Just hanging out, did a little reading, did Wordle everyday, stared at the lake and wildlife.   It was in the plan to make  a dessert from a Bon Appétit magazine but I was tired unmotivated once we got home and unpacked.  Next week for sure!

Here's the round up......

Watching / From the Earth to the Moon.  This is a HBO special we recently acquired and are enjoying it very much.  They use quite a bit of original footage but the re-enactments are well performed with many actors we recognized from other television series. Deke Slayton is played by Nick Searcy, an actor we loved in Justified.  You'll see Mark Harmon as Wally Schirra and Bryan Cranston as Buzz Aldrin just to name a few.

I don't know the name of this flowering plant so if someone does, please leave me a comment and let me know - I'd love to get some growing at home. 

In the outside kitchen at Seminole State Park / Fajitas!  Doug used the griddle to cook the marinated ribeye strips with loads of onion, red and yellow bell peppers.  We used a premade fajita powder to season it up.

Served with fat tortillas, sour cream, rice and avocado.

Scenes from the camp / Loki hanging out far enough away from the lake that I didn't worry about the alligators.

It's probably hard to tell from this photo but this was a very large alligator.

Books / I had just received an advanced readers copy of The Lost English Girl and thought I'd see if I could get into it.  Couldn't put it down....I am familar with the author Julia Kelly and liked a previous book The Last Garden in England.  The Lost Girl book will be out in 2023. Review coming up.

My recent Kindle purchases are Through the Glass Ceiling to the Stars by Col. Eileen Collins and Bread and Buttermilk by Helen Payton.

Linking up with

Marg at The Intrepid Redaer for Weekend Cooking

Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon

A bookish Sunday Salon

Usually I do a Sunday round up of movies, books, food and wine but this week it's  book-centric.  We had been to St George Island and are about to head out to Georgia in a few days so...books only this week :-)

It's almost the end of October (can you believe it?!!) so I am already thinking about the book challenges/reading goals which will come up soon.  For now I have a list of books I plan to get to this year and goals for next year.

My library finally ordered Not Dark Yet, the last published book by Peter Robinson.   I have been after them to preorder the final book - Standing in the Shadows - which will be published in the U.S. April of 2023. The end of Inspector Banks 📚😭

Currently reading

Cooking with Fernet Branca by James Hamilton-Paterson for Cook the Books Club

This book - Another Year of Wonder - is a sporadic "read" and I love the book. You don't need to read it in order, just pick it up and read a short paragraph about an artist, then listen to the highlighted musical piece. There are entries for every single day and while I do not read it and listen every day, the education and introduction to new musical pieces/artists is enjoyable. 

The introduction by British author Clemency Burton-Hill is definitely worth reading.  After suffering a brain hemorrhage at the age of 40, it was through remarkable surgery which she survived, having to learn to walk and talk again.  Surprisingly she was able to complete this book.

This was yesteday's selection, Autum Leaves played by Craig Urquhart.

Upcoming plans to read

The Ferryman Justin Cronin, coming out next year

The Murder Rule by Dervla McTiernan

Twenty Years Later by Charlie Donlea

Just finished - Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry is a combination of historical fiction and creative fairy tale. The time frames jump between 1939 and 1960 and tell of Operation Pied Piper in England.  An effort to evacuate children from London to the countryside was meant to keep them from harm during the bombings in WW II. 

When you think about the Pied Piper tale it's not a merry or happy  story.  You'd think the government would have come up with a better name for the evacuees than a story where children are led to death.

Anyway, Hazel and Flora are sisters (16 and 6 years of age) and are sent off to the English countryside, leaving their distraught mother behind in London. Hazel comes up with wonderful stories to keep Flora occupied and relieve the stress of living away from home.  Hazel makes up the imaginary land called River of Stars and she and Flora lose themselves in better world. One day Flora disappears and it's thought she was caught in the fast moving Thames river, looking at her river of stars.  

In the 1960 time frame we meet Hazel, now an adult and working in a bookstore which sells rare manuscripts.  Unpacking a new manuscript she sees a fairy tale penned by an American author.  It features the river of stars, the descriptions of the house where she and Flora stayed...too much to be a coincidence and Hazel begins to hope Flora may still be alive.

Not a fast paced book, nothing objectionable.  3 1/2 Stars.

This book was a complimentary copy given to me by Netgalley.  Publication date is May 2, 2023 by Atria Books. Genre: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction.

Last Weeks Posts:

Weekend Cooking 🍳

St George Island 🏖

Loki's DNA Results 🐕

Sharing with

Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday 

Marg at The Intrepid Reader for the 2022 Historical Fiction Challenge

Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon

Boursin Potato Soup, Homemade Pasta Sauce, Baguettes and Kitchen happenings

I did not think I could get it together for the Weekend Cooking linkup and...well, I was correct.  Instead of showing you new recipes I will share some (in my opinion) wonderful dishes which are tried and true.

We are just back from St George Island and the chilly weather made this Boursin Potato Soup a welcome lunch once we were home.  It's vegetarian, creamy and loaded with herbs, carrots and potatoes.  (Click on highlighted link to get recipe)

Fresh baguette brushed with egg yolk.  How can you go wrong with fresh bread?!

A photo from inside the RV.  I had Beaujolais as it was chilly enough that I didn't want the white wines we'd packed.

There was some wine left so once we were home, I used in a homemade pasta sauce. This is chock full of mushrooms and leftover ground beef we had in the freezer.  Trying to use anything in the fridge/freezer so there is no waste.  

If you are ever in a hurry for dinner and you have a few chicken thighs and some grape tomatoes - you'll have dinner on the table in under an hour with very little hands on time.  Slice the tomatoes in half and add some chopped onion if you have one about.  

Toss the tomatoes and onions with olive oil and herbs, scatter over the thighs, bake at 375 for about 50 minutes.  Just check for doneness and there ya go.  This is great with rice and some veggies on the side such as green beans.  Minimal effort!

Next week I'll have some new recipes to share :-)  

Linking up with Marg at The Intrepid Reader for Weekend Cooking.

A short trip to St George Island

Last week we took the RV to St George Island to spend a few days.  The temperatures did not cooperate for having a fire at night as the winds were roughly 18 MPH each day.

 Here is the lighthouse which greets you when you first come across the bridge.

The bridge as seen from a distance as we were on the way.  The new bridge is much higher and gives spectacular views.  Sometimes pelicans drift by near the rails.  You can see the old bridge on the left side.  This one was very low, part of it remains on both sides of the island and many people gather there to fish.

Sea oats along the gulf side.  Before hurricane Michael the dunes were so high you couldn't see the water.  It will be decades before the dunes reform.

That's it for me today.  Planning another short trip for next week so the RV needs to be cleaned out, restocked with food and books :-)

Happy Friday to all.

Loki is a genuine Heinz 57

Loki is quite the mix.  I had read many reviews before using Embark and was impressed with the product.  Weeks back we swabbed his mouth and sent off his DNA sample.

I did not upload a photo to Embark because even though I believed in the product, I didn't want to send photos to give hints based on appearance.  Of all the guesses folks have made in comments it was Katherine at I Wish I Lived in a Library who nailed the breed. She guessed Rat Terrier.  That's about 25% of his breed.

This also explains his great devotion to chasing squirrels in the field.  Later in the week he is going to St George Island to claim new territory.  We are fortunate he's such a good camper.

 

If you are interested in testing your dog's DNA and getting info on the health issues as well, let me know if you'd like me to send you a referral link. Someone asked me about it so I sent a referral and discovered they received  $50 off the kit!  Apparently I get a $10 credit at Chewy if they purchase the kit, something else I didn't know - but $50 off is a good coupon!

Send me your email if interested. :-)

Last photo of his massive ears - my reading buddy. 💕

A Tribute to Peter Robinson

This past week has gone by relatively fast.  Doug had his stitches out and the healing process is going very well. We are planning a few outings with the RV and maybe I can get some photos this time. Weather wise I wish we'd get some cooler temperatures as it's still hitting the upper 80's here in the afternoons. 

New to me / Puzzles have been enjoyable and I recently finished this one with book covers featuring dogs.

Splurged on a New Yorker puzzle and was disappointed to see it's only 500 pieces.  That will teach me to read the description fully. The pieces are so large.  

All the others in my cart are 750 to 1,000 pieces so...next time :-)

Also purchased a puzzle featuring seed packets.

In bookish news I was saddened to hear author Peter Robinson died in early October. With the exception of his last published book I have read each and every one of the Inspector Banks novels. (Our library didn't acquire the last one and I am trying for an interlibrary loan).  His last book,  Standing in the Shadows ,will be released in April 2023 in the U.S.  There will be 28 books total once the last is published.

What made these police procedurals/mysteries so appealing was it was written in real time.  In the first novel published in 1987 Alan Banks is much younger and in excellent health, his children are small and he is happily married.  As each year passes Alan Banks ages and so do the musical delivery systems he uses.  He has a Walkman, an 8 Track player, Cds and eventually an iPod.  Music is a huge part of Alan Banks' life and I have occasionally looked up the musical pieces and enjoyed them. 

The TV series was a disapointment as it doesn't follow the books well and for some reason they have the 5'9" detective played by 6'2" Stephen Tompkinson.  If you read the novels you'll see why this was so bad.

THIS is an excellent summary of some of the books along with the music played and alcohol enjoyed.  Alan Banks led a full life.  R.I.P. Peter Robinson 📚😢

Just finished reading / All That is Mine I Carry With Me by William Landay.  This is an ARC from NetGalley.  I give this 4.5 as this is a story that sticks with you.  The characters were so well written and came to life.  After reading this book I had to read the first chapter again as it all dovetails back to the end.  Exceptional character development.

The beginning seemed like the author's preamble and I was going to skim it but then, realized the story began.  In 1975 Jane Larkin simply disappears, leaving her criminal defense attorney husband and three children with zero trace of her whereabouts.  Her car is found at a train station but no trace of Jane.  Was she murdered, did she run away or was there an accident? In the beginning you'll hear the different perspectives from her ten year old daughter, an older brother, her husband Dan and the police ...you will ponder so many possibilities about what could have happened to Jane Larkin.

The story develops over an 18 year period and is both ordinary, from the missing person/criminal investigation viewpoints, yet fascinating to watch the family as they hope and suspect.  Highly recommended.

This was a  complimentary copy from NetGalley.  All opinions are mine and I was not compensated fro the review.  This will be published March 7, 2023 by Random House Books (Ballantine). Genre: General Fiction (adult) and Literary Fiction.

That's it for me this week.  I hope all is well in your world :-)

Linking with 

Marg at The Intrepid Reader for 2022 Historical 

Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon

Joy's Book Blog for British Isles Friday

Pasta Pompeii, Salisbury Steak and Veggie Stir-Fry for Weekend Cooking

What a week. I was going to include what was going on the kitchen in the previous post,  link up with everyone at once, but I decided the foodie stuff should be separate.

Thanks to all who sent well wishes for Doug. 😘

Here's what's in the kitchen this past week /  Pasta Pompeii is a"recipe" I improvised from a menu at Tour of Italy. This is an easy vegetarian meal made with fresh spinach, Roma tomatoes, lots of garlic and artichokes.  It's a one pot dish.  Well, you need a vat of pasta and the veggies are cooked in a separate pan, then mixed into the pasta.... so I guess it's really messing up two pans.  (Click on the hyperlink to see the steps for this dish)

 This particular All Recipes magazine is very nice.  Apparently it's a reprint of their best or favorite fan recipes and I've found many to prepare. The Garlic Chicken with Honey and Rosemary was very tasty.

I also prepared the Salisbury Steak with Mushrooms and it was so good we are having it again this evening. Recipe may be found HERE.  Weirdly I substituted chicken broth for beef and it was a hit.

Now this photo is of the almost-done-cooking scramble.  I use leftovers from the fridge for a very quick meal.  I saute onions and sliced grape tomatoes. Once they are soft I added leftover rice, then a can of black beans (juice and all). Finally I crack in two eggs to cook slowly.  Add the cheese of your choice, if desired.  It's vegetarian but you can add meat instead of beans if you like.  Any orphan veggies work in this scramble.  It's a great lunch.

We also had an old faithful mac n' cheese as that was easier for Doug to eat the day after surgery.  That's it for the kitchen ramblings this week.  I hope you and yours are well, safe and happy :-)

Linking with Marg at The Intrepid Reader for Weekend Cooking

Mohs Surgery, books and updates

It's been a long week already and it's only Wednesday. Doug had Mohs surgery for the basal cell cancer and it was much worse than mine from 14 years ago. He is very tired and bruised. Once the cancer was identified the dermatologist cuts it out, leaves the area open until the lab work reveals it's gone.  Well.....it was a larger area than the doctor thought so more cutting was needed.  This means more needles with lidocaine for numbing. They still didn't get it.  Ugh!  Third time was a charm but after three rounds of injections you are assured bruising and soreness.

After several hours and the cancerous parts were cut out we were off to the plastic surgeon to patch it up.  And yeah, more lidocaine injections.  I felt so bad for him! We arrived at 9:30 and headed home by 3:30. Thankfully he's done with that. Except getting stitches out next week.

 Here is my midweek roundup of books, movies and food below. 

Watching / The Dish is a good movie about the Parkes Observatory in New South Wales Australia and the part they played during the first Apollo moon landing. They partnered with NASA to get a signal so we could all watch Armstrong set foot on the moon.  Love this movie.

Puzzles - After my friend Stacy sent me the Star Trek puzzle it jump started me on puzzle fun again.  I recently finished this one depicting Jane Austen book covers. Very colorful.  Doug helped me with a few challenging pieces after I stared for ages.

Reading / Daisy Darker was a good read, put me in mind of Agatha Christie's And Then there Were None but a bit of a different twist. The ending was great, a never-saw-it-coming revelation.  The grandmother of the Darker family asks the family to come to her coastal Cornwall home for her 80th birthday on Halloween.  Nana has been convinced she will die at 80 and her son, his ex-wife and their three adult children arrive as summoned.  They are mostly a despicable lot except for our narrator Daisy Darker.  Once the tide rolls in they will be trapped until morning as you don't come and go without a boat after high tide.  There is a big storm, the electricty goes out and at midnight they hear a scream.  Nana is dead in the kitchen and since no one can come and go, it's anyone's guess on suspects. (None of this is a spoiler) 

Alice Feeney never lets me down. Loved the Cornwall setting. 

Here is Loki, my reading buddy.  Still waiting on his DNA analysis.  I'm not sure a deer has ears this big and tall!

Linking with

Joy's Book Blog for #BriFri

Deb at Readerbuzz for Sunday Salon

October In My KitchenPouilly-Fuisse and Garlic Chicken with Honey & Rosemary

Happy Saturday. October arrived with cooler weather and we are looking forward to finally eating outdoors again. Today I am linking up with Marg's Weekend Cooking and Sherry's In My Kitchen events.  Let's get to it.

New cutting board - this one has channels around the edge to catch juice.  So when I am cutting a tomato I don't have all that juice running off to the counter.  Winner.

Two of our favorites - Pouilly-Fuissé labels Lupé Cholet and Louis Latour 

This cheese was extremely runny. Note to self: don't get it out of the fridge too early,

Publix started carrying these cookies and we had to try them.  Was a bit disappointed the cookies didn't have a beret. Definitely not an everyday indulgence.

I know I posted about this Chicken Ranch Bowl a few weeks back but it's become a favorite go-to and I wanted to share the recipe with the In My Kitchen folks.

Finally, I want to share this good recipe for Garlic Honey Rosemary Chicken from the magazine All Recipes One Pan. Click HERE for the recipe. 

That's it for me this time.  I hope all is well in your world and your weather is nice. 

Linking up with:

Sherry's Kitchen for In My Kitchen 

Marg at The Intrepid Reader for Weekend Cooking