Pulled Pork Pasties for The Kitchen Front

 

We at Cook the Books Club have been reading our current selection, The Kitchen Front, by Jennifer Ryan, hosted by myself this round.  I chose the book, based not only on positive reviews, but on reading it as well as others of her excellent works: The Wedding Dress Circle, The Spies of Shilling Lane and The Chilbury Ladies' Choir.  

Even though I've told myself I've already read too many novels  set in those War Years, (I or II), but then get sucked back in.  Both periods of history encompass so many absorbing stories, and amazingly, more coming out all the time.  This book is a good example of the never-ending variety, between points of view and characters, unusual plotting, etc. turning into a very interesting and enjoyable read.

From the Publishers:  It's the tale "of a BBC-sponsored wartime cooking competition and the four women who enter for a chance to better their lives.

Two years into World War II, Britain is feeling her losses: The Nazis have won battles, the Blitz has destroyed cities, and U-boats have cut off the supply of food. In an effort to help housewives with food rationing, a BBC radio program called The Kitchen Front is holding a cooking contest—and the grand prize is a job as the program’s first-ever female co-host. For four very different women, winning the competition would present a crucial chance to change their lives." And, yes that contest actually happened.

There was a variety of meals and food to get inspired by, and I took notes.  Among them, Berry Scones, Lord Woolton Pie, Cocquilles St. Jacques, Audrey's Mushroom Soup, Paolo's Chicken Cacciatore (yes, we even had a contribution from a Prisoner of War), and Audrey's' Cornish Pasties, (from page 305) which I chose to make for this round. 

Meal for a Recovering Invalid and Her Sous Chef

We, at Cook the Books Club have been reading, and posting recipes and reviews of our latest selection, Miss Cecily's Recipes for Exceptional Ladies, by Vicky Zimmerman.  I for one was in complete sympathy with the grumpy old lady, Miss Cecily.  After a bad fall in early November, spending the last few months in recovery and not able to get around as before, sob, sob.  Garden going to H... ; house as well and any projects on hold for the duration.  Well, I'm back at my computer at least, which is also acting wonky.  And, at the absolute deadline for the book post.  On the plus side, Bob has been stalwart throughout, my chauffeur and really big help and companion, as well as a great sous chef for the relatively simple meals we put together. Our daughter as well, taking off work and traveling with me to Honolulu for the surgeries, then back at home, making us delicious dinners and helping out with everything!  Thanks so much!

From the Library Journal:

"As 39-year-old foodie Kate approaches the dreaded 4--0, her stable life starts to unravel. Her job may be on the chopping block, but even more upsetting is when her soon-to-be live-in boyfriend says he needs to "retreat." To get her mind off her troubles, she volunteers to give food demos at a retirement home for elderly women, where she meets cantankerous 97-year-old Cecily, who disdains Kate's choices and how she wastes precious time on her boring job and unsuitable boyfriend. As relations begin to thaw a little and Cecily tells Kate about her adventurous life, Kate starts to wonder if Cecily is right. This is a fast and fabulous third-person read about life, loneliness, love, and the power of good food and friends. Zimmerman keeps things realistic, including Kate's modern relationship troubles (e.g., ghosting and a noncommittal boyfriend who constantly lets her down), frustrated friends, and an irritating mother. But Cecily, a mentor Kate meets by chance, is the real star, with her jaw-dropping insults, fascinating life story, and brusque but well-meaning advice. "

Cooking, Under Advisement, with Fernet Branca

We at Cook the Books are currently reading Cooking With Fernet Branca, hosted by our own Simona of Briciole.  The title, by the way, is not referring to a person, but a little known (where I live anyway) Italian aperitivo. Written strictly tongue in cheek, and pretty silly at times.  

"If you have ever wondered what the 'extra' in 'extra virgin olive oil' really means then this is the book for you. Set in Tuscany it features a series of comic misunderstandings between two warring neighbours. They take turns to tell the story and you will soon learn not to trust either of them completely!"  Whichbook

 From the Publishers:

Gerald Samper, an effete English snob, has his own private hilltop in Tuscany where he whiles away his time working as a ghostwriter for celebrities and inventing wholly original culinary concoctions―including ice cream made with garlic and the bitter, herb-based liqueur known as Fernet Branca. But Gerald’s idyll is about to be shattered by the arrival of Marta, on the run from a crime-riddled former Soviet republic, as a series of misunderstandings brings this odd couple into ever closer and more disastrous proximity . . .

And, “A very funny sendup of Italian-cooking-holiday-romance novels” (Publishers Weekly).

Both the neighbors are continually underestimating and making erroneous assumptions about one another, which is a source of some of the humor, in just how far off they both are. I had many actual laugh out loud moments going through this humorous and satirical novel, usually due to the unexpected, totally deadpan delivery.

Fairy Cakes for the Mad Hatter's Tea Party

The current read for our Cook the Books Club is Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll, selected for us and hosted by Debra of Eliot's Eats.   My special vintage edition, beautifully illustrated with paintings by Angel Dominguez, was found online through Etsy.  If you'd like to read (or re-read) this old classic, and join the party, you have until the end of September.  What we do is read the selected book, get inspired by something in it to cook, then post our food and thoughts.

Sweet Potatoes and Salad

Right now I'm in a sort of sweet potato, yam planting frenzy. Maybe frenzy is too frenzied a word though. And we do need to harvest what we've got, from two varieties of sweet potatoes, before the pigs get in and eat them first. It was only recently I even heard of ube yams.  Oh joy, they had some plants for sale at our natural foods store! That wild and crazy purple one they use in the Philippines for desserts, and it has now been planted.  The infamous Ghana yam plantings are doing very well.  And, BTW, the lovely fish bowl is by a local artist, Esther Szegedy.

The End of the Tour with Tony Bourdain

Our June/July Cook the Books selection has been A Cook's Tour, Global Adventures in Extreme Cooking, aka In Search of the Perfect Meal, by Anthony Bourdain, and what an extreme tour it's been!  

From the Publishers and other Reviews:

'It works extremely well. In large part because Bourdain is a very funny writer; sharp, honest and with a beguiling mix of belligerence and sensitivity' Sunday Telegraph

'Brilliantly written up in a raw, stylish gonzo prose, with pitch-black humour and a devilish turn of phrase' Evening Standard
____________________
Anthony Bourdain, life-long line cook and bestselling author of Kitchen Confidential, sets off to eat his way around the world.

But being Anthony Bourdain, this was never going to be a conventional culinary tour. Bourdain heads out to Saigon where he eats the still-beating heart of a live cobra, and travels deep into landmined Khmer Rouge territory to find the rumoured Wild West of Cambodia (Pailin).

Other stops include dining with gangsters in Russia, a medieval pig slaughter and feast in northern Portugal, the Basque All Male Gastronomique Society in Saint Sebastian, rural Mexico with his Mexican sous-chef, a pilgrimage to the French Laundry in the Napa Valley and a return to his roots in the tiny fishing village of La Teste, where he first ate an oyster as a child.

Gravlax - A New Salmon Experience

Well, new for me at any rate.  I was doing that thing Foodies do, whilst reading a book.  Some intriguing food is mentioned, a light bulb then goes off, research is done on the handy smart phone, and a recipe appears. The book in question was The Body in the Kelp, one in a series by Katherine Hall Page. The protagonist, Faith Fairchild, is a caterer and of course, part time sleuth. The books are fun, light reading. With the added inducement of delicious food mentions.

Faith was busy planning a meal for some incoming guests, her sister (whom she characterizes as someone whose culinary skills are knowing the right numbers to dial) and brother-in-law.  Well, she is busy making Salmon Gravlax.  And so on and so forth. Of course, after finding out what the heck it was, I realized that 2 big fillets of salmon had just taken up residence in my fridge.  Nicely defrosted now and ready for whatever.  Bob had been given them by a customer visiting from Alaska.  Talk about perfect timing!  

Lots to Taste with Stanley Tucci

Our Cook the Books Club current selection, Stanley Tucci - Taste My Life Through Food, presents us with a memoir full of opinion, memories, travel and the connections between his growing up in a close knit Italian American family, in film, writing, travel, and through it all the backdrop and importance of food in his life.  This round is hosted by fellow Hawaiian blogger, Deb of Kahakai Kitchen.

Tucci's mother was a wonderful cook, and he writes: "It should be obvious by now that when I was young my mother spent most of her waking time in the kitchen, and she still does to this day.  Cooking for her is at once a creative outlet and a way of feeding her family well.  Her cooking, like that of any great cook or chef, is proof that culinary creativity may be the most perfect art form."

What an enjoyable read!  And especially for us book foodies, with so many suggestions, memorable meals, recipes encountered in his full and sometimes even tragic life.  I felt as though I had met and come to know the man, with his sense of humor, conversations on whatever was happening, and sometimes rather dogmatic views, as per the one on NOT EVER cutting your spaghetti. And, not combining the wrong pasta and sauce.  I'm sure I do that on a regular basis.  Occasionally even cut my spaghetti.  OMG!

Red Sparrow and a Ukrainian Dish in Protest

Our current Cook the Books Club selection, hosted by Simona of Bricole, has been Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews.  According to the Publishers:

"In contemporary Russia, state intelligence officer Dominika Egorova has been drafted to become a “Sparrow”—a spy trained in the art of seduction to elicit information from their marks. She’s been assigned to Nathaniel Nash, a CIA officer who handles the organization’s most sensitive penetration of Russian intelligence. The two young intelligence officers, trained in their respective spy schools, collide in a charged atmosphere of tradecraft, deception and, inevitably, a forbidden spiral of carnal attraction that threatens their careers and the security of America’s valuable mole in Moscow" .... The Publishers' rant also called the novel an "electrifying modern spy thriller", however stupefying might be a better adjective.

"The art of seduction" i.e trained and systematicaly degraded, prostitute spies.  Sadly, I was unable to finish this book, couldn't identify with the lead characters at all, aside from pity, and would agree with one reviewer, admittedly in the minority, of mostly sycophant mainstream voices, who said in part:

"If this was a novel about old spies in suits, I’D BE SO HAPPY.