The Book Tour Stops Here: A Review of "Denied" by Mary Keliikoa, Served with a Recipe for Peanut-Sesame Noodles

Happy Aloha Friday! I love a good mystery and so I am excited to be today's stop on the TLC Book Tour for Denied: A Kelly Pruett Mystery by Mary Keliikoa. It's the second in a new-ish series so I'll be talking about both books. Accompanying my review is a recipe for Penut-Sesame Noodles, inspired by my reading.

Publisher's Blurb:

A high-risk pregnancy. A dangerous secret. When her case turns deadly, can this investigator avoid racking up a fatal debt?

PI Kelly Pruett’s search to locate a former classmate’s missing father ends in what appears to be a tragic accident. But putting the pieces together that led to that fateful night will require Kelly to play a high risk game of chance with a killer willing to gamble everything to win.

Publisher: Camel Press (May 11, 2021)

Paperback: 226 pages

My Review: I always love a good mystery series and there is a lot to love about this one. As the book tour is for the second book in the series and I *can't* happily read series books out of order, I requested an arc of the first book, Derailed. I like that the books are set in my old stomping ground of Portland, Oregon, in fact Derailed had a Portland spin on a murder when a young woman was killed by a Max Light Rail Train. It sets up Kelly's situation, she is a Private Investigator who took over her father's business when he suffered a stroke and died. She has an 8-year-old daughter. Mitz, who is deaf and a basset hound named Floyd. She also has an ex-husband who cheated on her with her (former) best friend and an ex-mother-in-law who helps with Mitz and gets in Kelly's business a lot. There is a bit of a cozy mystery vibe here in that Kelly's father kept her on the light side of the business--process serving, skip tracing, stakeouts for photos of cheating spouses, and not on any of the grittier cases so she is often out of her element and takes some not-so-wise chances in both books. 

In Denied, an old school friend has been estranged from her father and asks Kelly to find him as she is pregnant and high risk. Kelly thinks he may have gotten involved over his head with a gambling racket and when it turns out he had an unfortunate car "accident," she is convinced there's more to the case. The books are quick reads, tension builds nicely, and there were some twists--some I saw coming, others were more of a surprise. I did have to yell at Kelly a few times in my head for her life choices and decisions, but overall, she is a character that I enjoyed. There's a new love interest for her plus some complications from her ex-husband to explore too. If you like mystery and PI series, a strong female main character, and Portland/Oregon settings, you should enjoy the Kelly Pruett Mysteries. I know I am looking forward to the next book. 

Book 1

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Author Notes: Mary Keliikoa is the author of the Lefty and Agatha award nominated PI Kelly Pruett mystery series and the upcoming Misty Pines mystery series featuring Sheriff Jax Turner slated for release in September 2022. Her short stories have appeared in Woman’s World and in the anthology Peace, Love and Crime: Crime Fiction Inspired by Music of the ‘60s. A Pacific NW native, she spent a part of her life working around lawyers. Combining her love of legal and books, she creates a twisting mystery where justice prevails. When not in Washington, you can find Mary on the beach in Hawaii where she and her husband recharge. But even under the palm trees and blazing sun, she’s plotting her next murder—novel that is.

Find out more about Mary on her website, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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Food Inspiration:

Other than peanut butter, which is mentioned often, there is not a lot of food in Denied, but there were ribs and salad from the deli, black coffee, toast, cookies, wine, potato chips on a peanut butter sandwich, and spaghetti.

In both books, Kelly is constantly turning to peanut butter--often by the spoonful from the jar--as her comfort food and hunger satisfier. So for my bookish dish, I thought that with just a few more minutes, she could be enjoying her peanut butter with noodles for a more satisfying meal. 

I used Nigella's Sesame Peanut Noodle Sauce recipe for these. Adaptable and nothing fancy--add veggies if you like, but I thought Kelly would be mostly into a big bowl of noodles.

Sesame Peanut Noodle Sauce

Slightly Adapted from Nigella Lawson via FoodNetwork.com

1 Tbsp sesame oil

1 Tbsp garlic infused oil

1 Tbsp soy sauce

2 Tbsp sweet chili sauce

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter 

2 Tbsp lime juice

9 oz cooked noodles of choice (I used local fresh ramen)

cilantro, green onion or chives and sesame seeds to garnish

Whisk together all ingredients until smooth. Place cooked noodles in a large bowl and toss with dressing until completely covered. Let chill if desired and enjoy!

Notes/Results: Rich and almost creamy/buttery, when I make peanut butter noodles, I always wonder why I don't make them more often?! They are so easy and so good--especially with the fresh ramen noodles. I kept my noodles very basic but you can easily pump these up with all manner of veggies and add protein too. I just figure Kelly will do the least amount possible to get the peanut butter into her mouth. ;-) You can also up the spice level, although I like the balance of the milder heat in the sweet chili sauce. I will happily make these again. 

I'm sharing this post with the Weekend Cooking event  being hosted by Marg at The Adventures of An Intrepid Reader. It's a weekly event that is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share. Here's a link to last week's post. 

Linking up this Nigella Recipe Adaptation to I Heart Cooking Clubs where the theme is Dress You Up!--sauces and dressings to jazz up your dishes. 

Note: A review copy of Denied was provided to me by the author and the publisher via TLC Book Tours. I was not compensated for this review and as always, my thoughts and opinions are my own.   
 
You can see the stops for the rest of this TLC Book Tour and what other reviewers thought about the book here. 

 

The Book Tour Stops Here: A Review of "The Amish Baker's Rival" by Marie E. Bast, Served with Cookies Made With Love

My last post of 2020 is a book review as I am today's stop on the TLC Book Tour for The Amish Baker's Rival by Marie E. Bast.

Publisher's Blurb:

This exciting new Amish romance is from Publishers Weekly bestselling author of The Amish Baker and The Amish Marriage Bargain.

She’ll do anything to protect her bakery… no matter the cost to her heart.

Small-town, Amish baker Mary Brenneman is devastated when handsome Englischer Noah Miller opens up a bakery right across from hers. Now she must win a local baking contest just to stay in business. But somewhere along the way, Noah and Mary’s kitchen wars are quickly warming into something more…

Still mourning the death of his parents, Mary helps Noah search for the Amish grandparents he has never met. And when a crisis hits Mary’s bakery, Noah volunteers his assistance.

After Mary’s now ex-fiancé broke their engagement so he could go live in the Englisch world, she vows to stay away from men…especially Englisch men. Even though she likes Noah more each day, she keeps her distance.

With her heart packed with distrust, Noah hopes to soften her resolve and convince Mary of their undeniable love. But trouble brews at the baking contest when Mary thinks Noah has stolen her recipe. After the surprising result of the contest, Noah and Mary must face their feelings and decide what road God has set them upon.

Mass Market Paperback : 224 pages

Publisher : Love Inspired; Original Edition (December 29, 2020)

My Review: To be perfectly honest, although I have read a couple of Amish-centered books and clean romances and reviewed one on the blog, it's not a regular genre for me. I took this one for the food and baked goods and because they were looking for reviewers. Also, I didn't realize this book was the third in a series, or at least the third of three related books, which as I mention often, drives me a little crazy as I have a thing about reading books in order. For me, the book was okay. I liked the characters and I find Amish life interesting, but it was a bit too wholesome and predictable for me. It's a quick read though and the descriptions of the baked goods, and particularly the apple desserts that the rivals bakers, Mary and Noah made for the baking contest all sounded delicious. There's one recipe in the back of the book for Emily's Peanut Butter Bars that looks easy and tasty and I just may try it sometime when I am not full of holiday candy, cookies and treats.

All things considered, The Amish Baker's Rival is a sweet and clean faith-based romance and if someone is a fan of that genre and Amish fiction, they will likely enjoy it.

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Author Notes: MARIE E. BAST is the Publishers Weekly Bestselling Author of The Amish Baker and The Amish Marriage Bargain, and the first place 2015 contemporary winner of the Ignite the Flame Contest for The Perfect Client. She is also a finalist in the 2020 Book Buyers Best Contest for The Amish Baker. Her stories whisper words of hope, healing, and forgiveness through complex characters and twisting plots. Her books are sold all over the U.S., Canada, U.K., Ireland and Australia. She has published short stories and poetry in book compilations to include Chicken Soup for the Soul. She lives in Illinois with her husband of twenty-nine years. When she’s not writing, she’s walking, golfing, gardening, or spending time with her family. She loves to bake and enjoys her homemade rolls and bread way too much.

Learn more about Marie and her books HERE.

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The food in the book is mostly bakery items such as cookies, pies, breads, croissants, cakes and cupcakes. There are mentions of sandwiches, Amish bread, produce, eggs, milk and ice cream. Mary starts selling breakfast--sandwiches on biscuits and croissants and buys an espresso machine to keep up the competition with Noah's grocery and bakery business.

Normally this is where I make something inspired by the book, but it's way to close to the holidays and I have a house, fridge and freezer full of treats--including a big box of cookies and goodies my sisters sent from Oregon. So I just shot a few photos with some of my freezer cookie stash and saved myself the effort and the additional calories. ;-) It's nice to have sisters who bake and love you enough to ship them to you!

Note: A review copy of "The Amish Baker's Rival" was provided to me by the author and the publisher via TLC Book Tours. I was not compensated for my review and as always, my thoughts and opinions are my own. 
 
You can see the other stops for this TLC Book Tour and what other bloggers thought of the book here.

 

The Book Tour Stops Here: A Review of National Geographic's "America the Beautiful" Served with a Recipe for Fluffy Apple Caramel Dip

Happy Friday!  I am excited to be today's stop on the TLC Book Tour for America the Beautiful, a gorgeous new book from National Geographic. Accompanying my review is a recipe for a tasty Fluffy Caramel Apple Dip inspired by the book and perfect for noshing on while you read it.  

Publisher's Blurb:

This glorious book of photography, featuring more than 200 magnificent National Geographic images of all 50 states, is a gift-worthy celebration of America’s unique natural and cultural treasures.

America the Beautiful showcases the stunning spaces closest to our nation’s heart–from the woods in the Great Appalachian Valley that Davy Crockett once called home to the breathtaking sweep of California’s Big Sur coast to the wilds of Alaska. It also celebrates the people who have made this country what it is, featuring a wide range of images including the Arikara Nation in the early 1900s and scientists preparing for travel to Mars on a Hawaiian island. Culled from more than 130 years of National Geographic’s vaunted archives, this provocative collection depicts the splendor of this great nation as only National Geographic can, with a dramatic combination of modern and historical imagery–from the creation of architectural icons like the Golden Gate Bridge and Lady Liberty to the last of the country’s wild places currently preserved in our national parks.

Organized by chapters focused on region (west coast and the Pacific, east coast, the south, and the Midwest) that are themselves inspired by verses of the original poem America the Beautiful, this book also features a moving introduction offering perspective on the country’s unique journey. You’ll also find behind-the-scenes commentary from the world-renowned photographers who captured this unforgettable imagery, and observations from the conservationists, activists, and historians who help keep America beautiful today. Profound and inspiring, this is a book for everyone who has ever marveled at the beauty of the United States.

Hardcover : 400 pages
Publisher : National Geographic (October 20, 2020)

My Review

National Geographic knows how to make a gorgeous coffee table book and America the Beautiful is no exception. It is visually stunning, with gorgeous photos and insights about each of the states by a famous person (Barack Obama, John Irving, Jimmy Buffet, Maya Rudolph and Robin Roberts to name a few) who loves it. I found myself paging through it and then looking through it again and again, each time caught up in the beauty of the country we live in. At a time when America doesn't always feel beautiful, it's a way to remember places visited and loved and perfect for the armchair traveler during a time when travel isn't possible or desirable for many of us. I have included a few photos below so you can see how impressive this book is. America the Beautiful would make a great gift but I am going to hang on to my copy--it's too pretty not to keep it around. 

"The Mayflower II, a reproduction of the 17th-century Mayflower ship, enters the New York Harbor after a solitary voyage across the Atlantic. Upon arrival, the captain and crew received a ticker tape parade in New York City." 

Photograph by B. Anthony Stewart, 1957

"Under the light of a full moon, water cascades from rocky tidal pools at Northern Mariana Islands’s Puntan Laggua (Parrotfish Point), in the Pacific Ocean."

Photograph by Mark D. Robertson, National Geographic Image Collection

 

 

"No place else could have provided me with the environment in which I could not only grow, but also get a sense of being loved. There is no doubt that the residue of Hawaii will always stay with me; it’s a part of my core. What’s best in me, and what’s best in my message, is consistent with the tradition of Hawaii."

---By Barack Obama, 44th U.S. president  

"A pod of spinner dolphins swims through the tropical waters off the coast of Oahu in Hawaii."

Photograph by Brian Skerry, National Geographic Image Collection  

Food Inspiration:

There's not a ton of food inspiration in the book but there was some in pictures and in the writing and picture captions such as grapes from Oregon's wine country, pineapple from Hawaii, the delicious local food in Guam, diving for clams and sea urchins in Samoa, lobsters and/or lobster rolls mentioned in Maine, Massachusetts (along with Bloody Marys), and Rhode island (also from Rhode Island there were celery-salt dogs, pickles, frozen lemonade, clam strips, jelly stick donuts, coffee, milk, clams, corn and potatoes noted), pears from Connecticut, cabbages growing in Arkansas, and sunflower fields in North Dakota.

For my bookish dish, it was a photo of a young girl eating a caramel apple in New Hampshire that I took inspiration from. Halloween is tomorrow, people are vibing on Fall, and my favorite fall flavor is apple and caramel apple. Since I didn't want to fuss, caramel apples seems like way too much hassle and then I was going to dip apple slices which also seemed like a pain. So then I thought "what about a caramel apple dip?" and found one on Taste of Home that sounded good.

Fluffy Caramel Apple Dip

Slightly adapted from TasteoHome.com

(Makes about 2 cups) 

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup packed brown sugar (I reduced to 1/4 cup)

1/4 cup caramel ice cream topping

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup marshmallow creme

3 medium tart apples

2 Tbsp lemon juice

2 Tbsp water

 

Beat the cream cheese, brown sugar, caramel topping and vanilla together in a small bowl until smooth. Fold in marshmallow creme. Cut apple into slices.

 

In a small bowl combine the lemon juice and water and toss apples in the mixture and drain. 

 

Serve apple (and/or pear) slices with the dip and add any other toppings you like for extra fun. 

Notes/Results: I thought that this dip might be too sweet to be enjoyable so I cut the brown sugar down by half and crossed my fingers. It turned out really delicious and fairly addicting, especially with the crisp, slightly tart apple slices. I tried two new-to-me apples, a Sugar Bee (a HoneyCrisp variation) and a Green Dragon (a small sweet-tart green apple) and liked both of them. For serving the apple slices, I thought it would be fun to enjoy it with a few topping dippers--I used what I had on hand, mini vegan chocolate chips, sliced almonds, and Heath toffee bits. Sure it's a lot of sugar but it's a fun and tasty occasional indulgence. I actually liked it even before the marshmallow fluff was stirred in, so you could leave that out and still have a creamy dip. 

Since dips don't feel quite COVID-friendly for a small group and especially for kids, I thought a fun way to serve it would be in a watercolor paint palette which you can buy for a $1-$2 each at a craft store. I put the dip into the water cup in the center and put the topping dippers in each paint compartment-which holds about a teaspoon of each. Each person could use their own dip and dippers and you can vary your dippers by what you like. (I think other nuts, sunflower seeds, sprinkles, and even flavored oatmeal or puffed cereal would be fun.) I will be enjoying this dip with a Halloween movie tomorrow and I would happily make it again. 

I'm also sharing this post with the Weekend Cooking event  being hosted by Marg at The Adventures of An Intrepid Reader. It's a weekly event that is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share. Here's a link to the current post.

Note: A review copy of "America the Beautiful" was provided to me by the author and the publisher via TLC Book Tours. I was not compensated for my review and as always, my thoughts and opinions are my own. 
 
You can see the other stops for this TLC Book Tour and what other bloggers thought of the book here.

 

Dukkah Earl Grilled Eggplant Toasts with Topped with Whipped Feta & Dukkah for #BlendsBash

2020 has not been a year full of bright spots for most of us. In fact, I know very few people that aren't just ready for it to be over with. So when The Book Club Cookbook contacted me and asked if I'd like to close the year taking part in their 2020 virtual #BlendsBash I was all in! From September into mid-December I'll be sharing some original recipes made with their wonderful spice blends, al cleverly and punnily named for books, television shows and songs. 

First up for me, some fun and fabulous Dukkah Earl Grilled Eggplant Toasts Topped with Whipped Feta & Dukkah.

A little background: 

Duke of Earl" is a 1962 US number-one song, originally by Gene Chandler. It is the best known of Chandler's songs, and he subsequently dubbed himself "The Duke of Earl". The song was penned by Chandler, Bernice Williams, and Earl Edwards. This song was a 2002 inductee into the Grammy Hall of Fame and is not too hard to learn the words too! 😉

Dukkah is a Egyptian and Middle Eastern condiment made up of a mixture of herbs, nuts (usually hazelnuts) and spices. It is typically used as a dip with bread or vegetables as an appetizer or pupu as we call them here. I had a small kine addiction to Trader Joe's Dukkah Blend a few years ago and then they stopped making it for a while. I tried making my own but I confess, the urge to have someone blend and pound the mixture for me usually wins out. 

When I saw that my friends at The Book Club Cookbook added Dukkah to their Song Blends line-up, cleverly calling it Dukkah Earl, I knew I had to add it to my list of spice blends for the Blends Bash party they are hosting.   

Dukkah Earl contains hazelnuts, sesame, coriander, cumin, black pepper, sumac, sea salt, nigella seeds, Aleppo, spearmint. I wanted to do something fun with it and I had seen a few articles online about eggplant toasts--a lower carb, bread-free toast option and had been wanting to try them. I decided to do a version with whipped dukkah feta and a sprinkling of Dukkah Earl on top for the crunch factor. You could of coarse smear the whipped feta on actual bread or pita bread, but I think the eggplant toasts are fun!

Dukkah Earl Grilled Eggplant Toasts with Whipped Feta & Dukkah

By Deb, Kahakai Kitchen

(Makes 4-6 Toasts)

1 medium-large eggplant, sliced into 3/4-inch slices
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp spice of choice (might I suggest One Flew Over the Couscous Nest by The Book Club Cookbook--it's a blend of Cumin, coriander smoked sweet paprika, cinnamon and parsley)
a sprinkling of salt and pepper to taste

Whipped Dukkah Feta (see recipe below)

sea salt and black pepper to taste

Dukkah Earl spice blend to garnish (or another dukkah blend, or crushed hazelnuts)

Place the eggplant slices in a strainer and toss with 1/2 tbsp salt. Let drain for 1 hour. (This is a good time to make the whipped feta!) After 1 hour, rinse off the eggplant slices and pat dry with paper towels. 

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking pan with parchment paper. Brush the slices in olive oil and sprinkle on the spice blend and sea salt and pepper. 

Pace the eggplant slices on the paper lined baking sheet. Roast for around 20-25 minutes or until the eggplant appears soft and slightly browned. Allow to cool slightly before spreading the whipped feta topping on. Top with a sprinkle of the Dukkah Earl and enjoy!

Whipped Dukkah Feta

by Deb, Kahakai Kitchen 

 

6 oz feta cheese

3 oz cream cheese

1 Tbsp lemon juice, or to taste

1 tsp Dukkah Earl Seasoning Blend (or seasoning blend of choice)

 

Add crumbled feta to a food processor and pulse until small crumbs remain. Add in cream cheese and puree for 4-5 minutes, scraping down the sides when necessary, until feta is super creamy. Serve as desired.

 

Notes/Results: These were really tasty and really fun to eat! I liked the mix of all of the Middle Eastern spices with the eggplant, feta and lemon juice. The flavor of the dukkah comes through and the crunch of the herb mixture on top is a nice contrast. This is an excellent dukkah--fresh and just the right coarseness. The one thing I would change is trying to pan fry my eggplant toasts next time. They were soft and delicious but when I think of toast, I want more crisp crunch. Still, I ate them all happily--they were like nice soft bread. My eggplant was not particularly large and so I thought three toasts with the whipped feta was a good amount of breakfast or lunch. They would be really fun for one-bite appetizers if you used a small eggplant too. While there are a few steps to making these, they are very easy to make and I will definitely be making them again. 

Many thanks to The Book Club Cookbook for providing me with this tasty seasoning blend. I received no compensation for taking part in the virtual 2020 #BlendsBash party and my thoughts and experience using the blends are my own.

I'll be sharing more recipes between now and December as will more than 30 other bloggers as part of the 2020 Blends Bash!  You can check out all the bloggers participating in the #BlendsBash here

Here's a sneak peek at the other blends I'll be featuring over the next couple of months in their adorable packaging. These blends are so delicious and fun that they will make wonderful gifts for your foodie friends and fans of the many book, TV and song blends they feature. Check out a list of blends here. 

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I'm sharing this post with the Weekend Cooking event  being hosted by Marg at The Adventures of An Intrepid Reader. It's a weekly event that is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share. You can see this week's round up post here.

 

The Book Tour Stops Here: A Review of "Masquerade at Middlecrest Abbey" by Abigail Wilson, Served with Oatmeal with Cinnamon-Apple Compote

Happy Thursday! It's been such a crazy week work-wise that I am just counting down the minutes until Friday afternoon and the weekend. To distract me, I am happy to be on the TLC Book Tour for  Masquerade at Middlecrest Abbey, a delightful new Regency romance by Abigail Wilson. Accompanying my review is a recipe for Oatmeal with Cinnamon-Apple Compote, inspired by my reading.

Publisher's Blurb
In this new Regency romance, Elizabeth knows she must protect her heart from the charm of her new husband, Lord Torrington. She is not, however, prepared to protect her life.

When the widowed Lord Torrington agreed to spy for the crown, he never planned to impersonate a highwayman, let alone rob the wrong carriage. Stranded on the road with an unconscious young woman, he is forced to propose marriage to protect his identity and her reputation, as well as his dangerous mission.

Trapped not only by her duty to her country but also by her limited options as an unwed mother, Miss Elizabeth Cantrell and her infant son are whisked away to Middlecrest Abbey by none other than the elder brother of her son’s absent father. There she is met by Torrington’s beautiful grown daughters, a vicious murderer, and an urgent hunt for the missing intelligence that could turn the war with France. Meanwhile she must convince everyone that her marriage is a genuine love match if her new husband has any hope of uncovering the enemy.

Determined to keep her son’s true identity a secret, Elizabeth will need to remain one step ahead of her fragile heart, her uncertain future, and the relentless fiend bent on her new family’s ruin.

 Paperback: 336 Pages

Publisher: Thomas Nelson  (May 26, 2020)

My Review:

Masquerade at Middlecrest Abbey was tagged as a historical romance with some suspense and mystery which sounded light and perfect for my mood. Although Regency romance is not necessarily my go-to genre outside of Jane Austen and retellings of her work, I found myself quickly caught up in the story and intrigue. Elizabeth is on her way to a governess position with her toddler son when her coach is waylaid by a highway man and tips over. When she awakens in an inn with him by her side, and finds out he is instead, working for British Intelligence and was sent to intercept her carriage, she accepts his proposal of marriage to cover up the incident. He's a widower with two nearly grown daughters and she is a young, unwed mother protecting her son with secrets of her own, but soon they are working together to find a murder, stop the French and find out what was on the carriage that both the French and English want. 

I was a bit bummed to find out that this book was part of a series with two books preceding it as I have an obsession for reading books in order and it seriously bugs me when I don't have all of the history and backstory. I became willing to overlook it in this case because I really enjoyed Elizabeth and Lord Torrington and there was a little recapping done of some of the characters that were mentioned from the other books, so it is possible to read and enjoy this one on its own. That being said, I will likely try to find the previous books when the library opens up again and read them. At 336 pages, it is a fairly quick read and it's paced well, so I found myself speeding through it. I did have the mystery figured out fairly quickly, causing me to yell in my head at Elizabeth and Adrian. (Oh why do book characters never listen to me?!) ;-) Overall it was an engaging book with clean romance, and likable and interesting characters--a nice escape.

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Author Notes: Abigail Wilson combines her passion for Regency England with intrigue and adventure to pen historical mysteries with a heart. A registered nurse, chai tea addict, and mother of two crazy kids, Abigail fills her spare time hiking the national parks, attending her daughter’s gymnastic meets, and curling up with a great book. In 2017, Abigail won WisRWA’s Fab Five contest and in 2016, ACFW’s First Impressions contest as well as placing as a 2017 finalist in the Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense. She is a cum laude graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and currently lives in Dripping Springs, Texas, with her husband and children.

Connect with Abigail on her website, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. 

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Food Inspiration:
There was not a tremendous amount of food in Masquerade at Middlecrest Abbey but there were mentions of rosemary, hot chocolate, bread and spices, sandwiches, kneading dough, tea and cakes, plum tarts, meat and a few vegetables, soup, gruel, a aroma of "a delightful splash of cinnamon and apples," white cake, and a person who "can't abide strong cheese, nor too many spices."

I ended up taking inspiration for my bookish dish from the gruel and the apple-cinnamon aroma, making Oatmeal with Apple Cinnamon Compote. It's not an exact fit for a dish but I didn't have the time or inclination to make plum tarts and it accomplishes my desire to use up ingredients I have on hand and not run to the store. For the compote, I added cinnamon to the recipe for Apples a la Mode from Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express. And the oatmeal, I cooked in coconut milk for extra flavor and creaminess.

Apples a la Mode Topping
Slightly Adapted from Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express

Peel and core 4 apples and cut them into quarter-inch slices (I used 1 Honeycrisp apple and cut it into chunks). In a few tablespoons of butter, cook the apples about 4 minutes (longer if in chunks); add about a quarter cup of calvados (apple brandy--I added a small splash), sprinkle with (cinnamon) and brow sugar. When the apples have softened and browned, turn up the heat and reduce the liquid to a syrup. Serve over vanilla ice cream or a bowl of oatmeal). ;-)  
For the oatmeal, I used old-fashioned oats and replaced the water/milk with coconut milk and cooked them to package instructions. I topped it with the apples and a few glazed pecans.

Notes/Results: This turned out to be a great way to use up a getting-not-so-crisp apple from the pantry & it was enough for two bowls of oatmeal, or ice cream or whatever you want to put the tasty apples over. I used a splash of apple brandy which may not seem very breakfasty, it fits the week I have been having. ;-) The oatmeal was creamy and good, the apples a good mix of sweet and tart and the pecans added crunch. I will happily make it again.

I'm linking up to I Heart Cooking Clubs where we are still doing Needs Must cooking along with Julia Child and 19 other featured chefs including Mark Bittman.

I'm also sharing this post with the Weekend Cooking event that was held at Beth Fish Reads, but is now being hosted with Marg at The Adventures of An Intrepid Reader. It's a weekly event that is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share. You can see this past week's post here.

Note: A review copy of "Masquerade at Middlecrest Abbey" was provided to me by the author and the publisher via TLC Book Tours. I was not compensated for my review and as always, my thoughts and opinions are my own. 
 
You can see the other stops for this TLC Book Tour and what other bloggers thought of the book here.