The Book Tour Stops Here: A Review of "Sisters, One, Two, Three" by Nancy Star, Paired with a Recipe for Tangy Lemonade Sorbet

It's my first TLC Book Tour of 2017 as I review Sisters, One Two, Three by Nancy Star and if cold, winter weather has you down, you can conjure up some sun at the beach with this recipe for Tangy Lemonade Sorbet inspired by my reading. 

Publisher's Blurb:

After a tragic accident on Martha’s Vineyard, keeping secrets becomes a way of life for the Tangle family. With memories locked away, the sisters take divergent paths. Callie disappears, Mimi keeps so busy she has no time to think, and Ginger develops a lifelong aversion to risk that threatens the relationships she holds most dear.
 
When a whispered comment overheard by her rebellious teenage daughter forces Ginger to reveal a long-held family secret, the Tangles’ carefully constructed web of lies begins to unravel. Upon the death of Glory, the family’s colorful matriarch, and the return of long-estranged Callie, Ginger resolves to return to Martha’s Vineyard and piece together what really happened on that calamitous day when a shadow fell over four sun-kissed siblings playing at the shore. Along with Ginger’s newfound understanding come the keys to reconciliation: with her mother, with her sisters, and with her daughter.
 
At turns heartbreaking, humorous, and hopeful, Sisters One, Two, Three explores not only the consequences of secrets—even secrets kept out of love—but also the courage it takes to speak the truth, to forgive, and to let go.

Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing (January 1, 2017)

My Review:

The Tangle family is aptly named in Sisters One, Two, Three as they have quite a tangle of family secrets, before and especially after an accident during a family vacation to Martha's Vineyard in the 1970s. The book takes up decades later. told mainly by Ginger Tangle, the oldest sister, a school nurse, wife and mother of a seventeen-year-old daughter. Ginger is cautious and fearful of something happening--especially to her daughter Julia, who she incessantly smothers with her attentions. Ginger also cares for her mother Glory, stopping by her house nearly everyday, running errands and buying her puzzles. Glory, a former actress in community theater who was a bigger star in her head than real life, is fading with age and having episodes of dementia. Middle sister Mimi is wealthy, married to a doctor, busily runs her family of three boy and a large number of in-laws, and has taken up quilting in her art studio. As for Callie, the youngest Tangle, she has been apart from the family for years, having been at a boarding school and then purportedly joining a cult of some sort, according to Glory. Moving back and forth between present day and the summer of the accident, the Tangles' secrets are slowly but surely uncovered including what really happened on the beach the day they lost their brother. 

I found myself quite caught up in the story and the family drama of the Tangles--there is so much drama and so much angst. It was difficult at first to get a handle on and relate to the characters. After seeing the way she grew up and how she tried to keep things running smoothly as the eldest child with a mother of such mercurial temperament, I could understand where Ginger's worries and caution came from--but she got very annoying at times. Glory was quite a piece of work and a challenge to like at all, based on her actions--especially when the children were growing up. Mimi and especially Callie, we don't get quite as deep a picture of, so they are hard to get to know. As more of the family secrets come to light, I got a better understanding of all of the characters and the reasons behind their actions. There are quite a few twists in the story--some I saw coming, others took me by surprise and by the end, I wanted to spend more time with the Tangle sisters. While not every question I had was answered, I was ultimately satisfied and enjoyed this well-told look at how our families and the experiences we share with them can shape us in different ways and for all of our life. If you like novels that deal with family relationships and drama--especially sisters, you will likely enjoy this one. Although it is her fifth book, Sisters One, Two, Three is the first book I have read by this author, but I doubt it will be my last.

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Author Notes: Nancy Star is the author of four previous novels: Carpool Diem, Up Next, Now This, and Buried Lives. Her nonfiction writing has appeared in the New York Times, Family Circle, Diversion magazine, and on the web. Before embarking on her writing career, Nancy worked for more than a decade as a movie executive in the film business, dividing her time between New York and London. She has two grown daughters and a son-in-law and now lives in New Jersey with her husband.

You can connect with Nancy on her website, Facebook, or Twitter

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Food Inspiration:

There was food in Sisters One, Two, Three, although most of it was not too inspiring when it comes to things I wanted to recreate. Glory was not much of a cook with dishes like Miracle Meatloaf, Scooter Pies with a birthday candle, and Tuna Tempter (a casserole of tuna flakes, condensed mushroom soup, and wagon-wheel pasta--which the only way to get down was "douse it with salt, close your eyes and swallow.) There were Salisbury steak TV dinners, Lillian Hellman-style Corn Flakes (which according to Glory meant two teaspoons of sugar in each bowl), hot dogs and buttered corn, and a present-day scary Thanksgiving dinner including deviled eggs with yolks crusted over, limp asparagus, canned gravy and uncooked cranberries and under-cooked turkey-Glory's lack of care and cooking combined with her progressive dementia. Ginger cooked basics like potatoes, chicken, pasta and tomato sauce while Mimi preferred Whole Foods and things like black-eyed peas pate, organic beet-leaf pasta served with grass-fed bison bolognese and goat cheese-oat truffle crepes. At the beach there were clam and fry shacks, lobster rolls, fried shrimp and shrimp on skewers, huckleberries, pizza and ice cream. 

For my book-inspired dish, I decided to go with a combination of the ice cream that was mentioned several times and mix it up with lemonade, because of a comment from Mimi to Ginger about her worrying, "Why do you always make lemons out of lemonade?" I decided to make my lemons into in lemonade-inspired sorbet (I wanted something dairy-free and tangier than a creamy ice cream after all of the holiday indulgence.) 

If the weather is mild where you are, this sorbet will compliment it, or if it's cold and you are dreaming of a warm summer, this sorbet will make you feel like sunny days are ahead. I left it a bit tangy and paired it with store-bought lemon wafers.

Tangy Lemonade Sorbet
By Deb, Kahakai Kitchen
(Makes about 4 1/2 cups) 

1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups fine sugar (or more to taste)
2 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 Tbsp limoncello, optional 
2 Tbsp lemon zest + more for garnish

Prepare your ice cream maker by chilling the bowl/drum for at least 24 hours before making sorbet. 

In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the water and sugar and bring to a boil, cooking and stirring until the sugar completely dissolves (about 1-2 minutes). Remove pan from the heat and allow to it  cool for 10 minutes. Stir in the fresh lemon juice, limoncello and lemon zest and place sorbet mixture into the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours. 

Pour chilled sorbet mixture into the bowl of an ice cream maker. Churn according to manufacturer instructions, usually about 25-30 minutes. When the sorbet has frozen into ice crystals and is pulling away from the sides of the ice cream maker, transfer sorbet to a sturdy storage container, cover tightly, and freeze it until firm and ready to scoop. Serve with a bit of extra lemon zest on top and with lemon cookies. 

Notes/Results: Refreshingly tart and lemony, I like my sorbet on the tangy side to pair with the sweet cookies and this one is a good balance for me but if you like a sweeter sorbet, you can increase the sugar by another 1/4 to 1/2 cup, depending on your tastes.  You can also leave out the limoncello, but it does make it a softer, creamier texture so I like to leave it in. Simple and delicious, I will happily make it again.  

I'm linking this post up to the Weekend Cooking event at Beth Fish Reads, a weekly event that is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share. For more information, see the welcome post. 

 
Note: A review copy of "Sisters, One, Two Three" was provided to me by the publisher and 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.

 

Spinach and Cheese Tortelloni in Light Broth: Simple Comfort for Souper (Soup, Salad, & Sammie) Sundays

Happy 2017! Although almost every New Year's I tell myself I will make black-eyed peas and greens, or soba noodles, or lentils, or some other "lucky" food, I seldom follow my own advice and "chance um" as we say in Hawaii, taking a chance the year will be lucky. Based on last year and what I fear ahead for 2017, I probably should have taken my advice this year. ;-) Instead, I wanted something fast and easy, brothy and with noodles (maybe because last week's soup was so good). 

I have been meaning to make Giada's Cheese Tortellini in Light Broth from The Food Network for a while now and since fresh, filled pasta was on sale at my grocery store this week, it seemed like the perfect time to try it. It is almost too simple to be a recipe but I think it makes a great starting point. I made a few changes, using spinach & ricotta-filled tortelloni (tortellini's slightly bigger cousin), using my favorite homemade Parmigianio-Reggiano garlic brodo as the base (with a touch of dried parsley added to Giada's black pepper), and adding baby spinach and a touch of lemon juice and zest. Giada serves her soup with Parmesan Crisps but since I had the cheese already in the broth, I just grated a little extra on top. My changes are in red below.   

Spinach & Cheese Tortelloni in Light Broth
Slightly adapted from Giada De Laurentiis via TheFoodNetwork.com (Makes 6-8 Servings)

8 cups good low-salt chicken broth, or good light broth of choice
freshly ground black pepper to taste

(1 tsp dried basil)
2 (9-oz) packages refrigerated cheese tortellini (I used a 20-oz package of Spinach & Ricotta Tortelloni)
2 Tbsp chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves

(2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice + lemon zest)

(Freshly-grated Parmigiano-Reggiano)

Pour the broth into a heavy large saucepan. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Season the broth with dried basil and black pepper, to taste. Add the tortellini. Simmer over medium heat until al dente, about 7-8 minutes. Add in baby spinach for the last 3 to 4 minutes of cooking time. Taste for seasoning and add lemon juice if desired and salt if needed.

Ladle the broth and tortellini into soup bowls. Top with parsley, lemon zest and Parmesan as desired. Enjoy!

Notes/Results: This soup completely hit the spot. It's light but satisfying and had great flavor. It's the broth that makes it in my opinion so use a good one if not homemade. I liked the addition of the lemon juice and zest--especially with the addition of the spinach. This recipe is super-fast to make and fun to eat with the plump, filled fresh tortellini (or in this case tortelloni). I would definitely make it again.
 

I'm linking this soup up at I Heart Cooking Clubs where it is Potluck week--our week to make any recipe from our current featured chef, Heidi Swanson, or any of our previous IHCC featured chefs.

We have two good friends in the Souper Sundays kitchen who shared some delicious dishes last week--let's have a look!

Shaheen of Allotment2Kitchen shared this Black Beluga Lentil Salad with Avocado and said, "I like the colours in this Black Beluga Lentil Salad.  Its a winter salad but with festive colours - bold green and red. The avocado was an afterthought really, I had picked it up to make a guacamole dip, but was getting concerned that it may have become too soft and therefore ready for the compost bin, but when I sliced it, I was pleased that it was perfectly ripe. The avocado slices provided a nice natural buttery contrast to the nutty be beluga lentils and sweet crunch from the peppers and red onion. The is a zing from the jalapeno juice." 

Kim of Stirring the Pot made Curtis Stone's White Bean and Chorizo Soup with Crostini and said, "A simple glance might have you thinking this is a tomato-based soup, but it is not! The soup gets its reddish color based solely on the chorizo itself - now how's that for flavor! The combination of the chorizo and the white beans is quite hearty and satisfying. We found this soup to be great right after it was made, but even better the next day! Perfect with a side of crusty bread for dunking."

Mahalo to Shaheen and Kim for joining in this week! 

Souper Sundays is back with a new format of a picture link each week where anyone interested can post their soups, salads, or sandwiches any time during the week and I post a recap of the entries the following week.)

(If you aren't familiar with Souper Sundays, you can read about of the origins of it here. 

If you would like to join in Souper (Soup, Salad, and Sammie) Sundays, I would love to have you! Here's how...

To join in this week's linkup with your soup, salad or sandwich:

• Link up your soup (stew, chili, soupy curries, etc. are fine), salad, or sandwich dish, (preferably one from the current week or month--but we'll take older posts too) on the picture link below and leave a comment on this post so I am sure not to miss you.

On your entry post (on your blog):

• please mention Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays at Kahakai Kitchen and link back to this post.
• you are welcome to add the wonderful Souper Sundays logo (created by Ivy at Kopiaste) to your post and/or blog (optional).

An InLinkz Link-up

Have a happy, healthy New Year!
 

Edamame Mint Spread with Smoked Almonds (As a Spread, Or on Soba Noodles)

I have been wanting to make this Edamame Mint Spread from Heidi Swanson's Near & Far cookbook for ages now, liking the simplicity, the unusual combination of ingredients (edamame, smoked almonds, mint and lemon juice) and the option to eat it like a dip or use it as a kind of pesto with noodles or rice. I did both!

Heidi says, “This is one of those hand-me-down recipes—a friend gives it to a friend and somehow it makes it to you because it is that good—everyone making his or her tweaks along the way. I encountered a version of this salad when my friend Sarah Lonsdale brought it to a beautiful al fresco vineyard lunch on a sunny afternoon in Napa. It was her take on an Eric Gower recipe. This is my version.”

Edamame Mint Spread

From Near & Far by Heidi Swanson

(Serves 4 to 6)

1 1/2 cups (9 oz) shelled edamame

1/2 cup (2 oz) whole smoked almonds* (I used smokehouse almonds)

1 cup lightly packed mint leaves

1 large garlic clove

2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

fine-grain sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

freshly squeezed lemon juice

Cook the edamame in a pot of boiling, salted water for 30 seconds and drain well.

Pulse the edamame, almonds, mint, garlic, olive oil, and ½ teaspoon of salt in a food processor six or seven times, aiming for chunks the size of pencil shavings. Transfer half of the mixture to a serving bowl and pulse the remaining mixture a few more times before adding it to the serving bowl.

Season with generous amounts of black pepper and lemon juice to taste. (Heidi recommends that “you really go for it”—stirring to combine along the way.  

*Heidi's Tips: Heidi says that smoked nuts can be tricky to find so she often uses un-smoked almonds and smoked salt in place of the sea salt to develop the desired flavor. She also says to be sure not to skimp on the black pepper as the key is getting the balance of flavors right. She suggests serving it over sesame-oiled noodles or brown rice to make a meal.

Notes/Results: I really like the flavor of this spread--a little smoky, crisp cool mint, the acidity of the lemon juice. It has a texture like a tapenade, or a very chunky pesto. It went well on the soba noodles and tasted great on cracked pepper water crackers too. It is very quick and easy to put together and the color is pretty in the bowl. I will definitely make it again. 

 
I'm linking this recipe up at I Heart Cooking Clubs where it is Potluck week--our week to make any recipe from our current featured chef, Heidi Swanson, or any of our previous IHCC featured chefs.

 
Happy Aloha Friday!

Ultimate Chickpea Noodle Soup for a Holiday Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all. I hope whether you are celebrating today or not, that you have a happy and peaceful day. Of course one thing that makes me feel at peace is making and eating a big bowl of warm and tasty soup--like this Ultimate Chickpea Noodle Soup by Heidi Swanson. It only has a handful of simple ingredients but they work together well and the combination of soft and crunchy noodles make it fun and unique. 

This recipe comes from the 101 Cookbooks blog and Heidi Swanson who encountered variations of it on a trip to Italy. Heidi says, "There was one that really stuck out. Imagine garbanzo beans bobbing about in a rich chicken broth with thick ribbons of pasta noodles weaving in between them, droplets of olive oil suspended on the surface of the broth, and the whole thing punctuated with crisped fresh pasta that had been fried in olive oil. Someone said to me, "this is like an Italian version of tortilla soup." 

Ultimate Chickpea Soup
Very slightly adapted from Heidi Swanson via 101 Cookbooks
(Serves 4)

4 cups water or a good, mild vegetable stock 

2 cups pre-soaked chickpeas

6 ounces fresh or dried pappardelle (I used Tagliatelle)

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bring the stock and chickpeas to a simmer and cook until the beans are cooked through. (Mine took about an hour and fifteen minutes.)Taste and season with salt - you will need more or less depending on how salty your stock (or bouillon) is. To give broth a bit of body puree a small handful of cooked beans (20 or so) with a hand blender, and add them back into the pot. (Heidi says this is an optional step and not necessary if you opt for a homemade chicken stock which tends to have more body (from the gelatin in the bones)...this is her vegetarian work-around.)

While the beans cook, boil the pappardelle in well-salted water then drain and set aside 1/3 of the cooked noodles, you are going to fry these. Also, hang on to a cup (or two) of the pasta water in case you need a bit more liquid for your soup.

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet. Add the reserved noodles and fry them up until they are nice and crispy. Don't let the oil get overly hot, it should be nicely fragrant and able to do its crisping job. Just remember, you are going to use it later in the recipe, so you don't want it to get to its smoking point.

 
Add the boiled-not-fried noodles into the bean pot and taste for seasoning, salt if needed (add in the reserved pasta water here if you want a bit more broth, but Heidi likes this soup light on the liquid). Spoon about 3 tablespoons of the olive oil from the skillet into the soup and serve with a generous sprinkling of the fried noodles mixed in at the last minute. Heidi says that a drizzle of your favorite table olive oil is a great way to finish the soup.

Notes/Results: This is such a great soup! I love the flavor and the texture both. Having over 400 soups posted on the blog, it gets more and more challenging to find unique ones to make and this one is both different and delicious. There are a few steps and pans involved but it goes together easily and the results are with it. In Heidi's recipe she used petite dried chickpeas (ceci) and pappardelle pasta. I used regular-sized chickpeas and because a small package of dried imported pappardelle was $10.99 at my local grocery store and a bag of imported, dried tagliatelle was $4.00 a bag, I went with the narrower and much less expensive pasta. I don't think it made a huge difference, my noodles were still thick enough to hold up to the chickpeas. I loved the crunch of the toasted noodles on top of the soup. This soup definitely made me happy and I would make it again.

I am linking up this delicious soup to I Heart Cooking Clubs where the theme this week is Simply Entertaining-Heidi Swanson recipes that are easy and perfect to serve to guests. You can see what everyone made by checking out the picture links on the post. 
 

 
We have some good friends in the Souper Sundays kitchen who shared some delicious dishes last week--let's have a look!

Melynda of Our Sunday Cafe shared a soup and a salad this week. Her soup is a classic Broccoli and Cheddar Soup and she said, "This is easy and delicious! I have made it twice in about 10 days. The first time per the recipe, the second time with what I had on hand and each pot of soup were simply wonderful....."

Melynda's salad is this pretty Winter Pea Salad Plate with Tomatoes and Cashews. She said, "Today we are offering another delicious recipe from our kitchen. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did…"

Tina of Squirrel Head Manor made a Very Simple Salad of Spinach, Warm Tomatoes & Mushrooms with Egg. She said, "This is a salad that feels like a cheat as far as recipes goes.  The superstar ingredient is a warm egg. These eggs come from  free ranging yard birds who are pampered, having their treats of sweet potato, tomatoes, grapes and such cut in small pieces so they can feast.  These chicken don't know what stress is and thus, they provide wonderful large eggs with deep orangey yolks."

Shaheen of Allotment2Kitchen shared a sandwich, this Vegan Cream Cheese and Kimchi  Sausage Bagel she calls a Kimcheese Bagel and said, "If you don't want to use cream cheese, you can substitute it with a more melty cheese like Cheddar, then I would definitely recommending grilling it. This Kimcheese Bagel made for a satisfying snack in between housework and other things."

Mahalo to everyone who joined in this week! 

Souper Sundays is back with a new format of a picture link each week where anyone interested can post their soups, salads, or sandwiches any time during the week and I post a recap of the entries the following week.)

(If you aren't familiar with Souper Sundays, you can read about of the origins of it here. 

If you would like to join in Souper (Soup, Salad, and Sammie) Sundays, I would love to have you! Here's how...

To join in this week's linkup with your soup, salad or sandwich:

• Link up your soup (stew, chili, soupy curries, etc. are fine), salad, or sandwich dish, (preferably one from the current week or month--but we'll take older posts too) on the picture link below and leave a comment on this post so I am sure not to miss you.

On your entry post (on your blog):

• please mention Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays at Kahakai Kitchen and link back to this post.
• you are welcome to add the wonderful Souper Sundays logo (created by Ivy at Kopiaste) to your post and/or blog (optional).

An InLinkz Link-up

 
 Happy Holidays and have a happy, healthy week!
 

Reisbrei (Rice Pudding) with Cinnamon-Apple Compote for Food 'n Flix December Pick: Krampus {#FoodnFlix}

Christmas is certainly the time for heartwarming holiday classic movies--heck, the Hallmark Channel devotes weeks and weeks to them. But, if you were hoping for a sweet, classic holiday movie for this month's Food 'n Flix pick, you will be disappointed as December's pick Krampus is more campy horror than cozy Christmas. Our Food 'n Flix founder, Heather of All Roads Lead to the Kitchen is the host for this month's holiday fright fest and you can see her announcement post here.

I first became familiar with the Krampus legend after hearing Austrian actor Christoph Waltz (I find him a bit intense and scary anyway, even before he starts talking about Krampus) explain it to Jimmy Fallon a couple of years ago. Krampus is a traveling companion for Father Christmas in Central European folklore, a horned, half-goat/half demon who takes care of the bad children by punishing them. Watch the video clip below for Waltz's description of Krampus.

Krampus, the 2015 movie is what happens when the legend comes to life. In short, the Engel family (mom, dad, two kids & grandma) are already having Christmas spirit issues when their relatives (sister, brother-in-law, four kids + tag-along grumpy aunt) arrive to celebrate the holidays. Because of their bad behavior and lack of the holiday spirit, Krampus arrives to terrorize them. (You can read a full summary here.)

Although there are a few parts that I would call mildly scary (or more than mildly scary if you have a fear of clowns, dolls and/or giant toys come to life), Krampus is more dark, campy humor than truly frightening. I am a fan of both Adam Scott and Toni Collette who play the Engel parents, so although I doubt I will make it an annual Christmas tradition, Krampus made for an entertaining evening with some popcorn and hot cocoa.

There is not a ton of food to be found in Krampus but there is some--like the Christmas Eve (or is it Christmas Eve, Eve?) dinner which includes salmon gravlax, crême brulée, and some sort of mac-n-cheese and hot dog casserole. There are candy canes, a variety of cookies--including gingerbread men made by Omi (grandma), and hot chocolate (which Omi says "makes everything better" (although I don't think she was talking about a visit from Krampus), eggnog, bread, and more hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps (that might make everything at least a little better!).  

For my movie-inspired dish I decided to veer from the food shown in the film and make a German comfort food dish in honor of Omi and the Krampus legend, because if Krampus decides to visit on Christmas Eve you are going to want comfort food. To me, rice pudding, called Reisbrei (Rice Porridge) in some parts of Germany, is the epitome of comfort food. 

Creamy, sweet and homey, it is often eaten with fresh or canned fruit, fruit compote or apple sauce. I decided to make a Cinnamon-Apple Compote for my reisbrei and to include dried cherries in the pudding and compote for color and toasted sliced almonds for texture. 

Reisbrei (Rice Pudding) with Cinnamon-Apple Compote
By Deb, Kahakai Kitchen
(6 Generous Servings)

1 cup medium grain rice
1 quart coconut milk + about 1 cup extra coconut milk or creamer
1/4 cup honey 
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
dried cherries (optional)
1 tsp almond extract
1 tsp vanilla extract
Cinnamon-Apple Compote (recipe below)

In a medium-large saucepan, place rice, 1 quart coconut milk, honey, and salt. Cook slowly over medium-low heat until rice grains are tender but have not lost their shape (about 45 minutes), stirring occasionally and adding more coconut milk or creamer as needed if mixture gets too dry/solid. Mixture should be thick and very creamy. If using raisins, stir them in for the last 10-15 minutes of cooking time. Add almond and vanilla extract and taste for sweetness--adding more honey if needed.

To serve, place in individual dessert glasses or a bowl. Place the Cinnamon-Apple Compote in the center of the bowl to top the pudding. 

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Cinnamon-Apple Compote
By Deb, Kahakai Kitchen
(Makes 2 Cups)

1/4 cup butter or margarine
2 Honeycrisp apples, cored and chopped 
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch sea salt

Heat a medium pan over medium-high heat, add the butter, apples, lemon juice, brown sugar and cinnamon. Reduce heat and simmer medium until the apples are tender and the juices thicken to a thin syrup, about 10 to 15 minutes. Season with a pinch of salt

Notes/Results: I will admit to having a lot of rice pudding recipes on the blog (this one makes 10) which is kind of strange because I always thought rice pudding was pretty icky until just a few years ago when I discovered how much I actually like it. This one, with the flavorful cinnamon-apple topping in the sweet and cinnamony pudding, is particularly good. Lots of flavor with the tart dried cherries and the tart/sweet Honeycrisp apples, along with the almonds that add a nice toasty crunch. Enjoyed warm, it's definitely a comforting and satisfying dessert or breakfast.

 
The deadline for this round of Food 'n Flix is today, December 23rd and Heather will be rounding up all the dishes on her blog for Christmas. If you missed this round and like food, films and foodie films, join us for January when the film pick is the rom-com French Kiss starring Meg Ryan and Kevin Kline.