< Back Apple Crisp May 25, 2019 Prep Time: 20 Minutes Cook Time: 60 Minutes Serves: 9 Servings Tags: Baking, Cakes & Pies & Icing About the Recipe p.214 Battered: A Whipped and Sipped Mystery “You were the one who told me about Hector-Schaf Electronics in the first place,” said Frank, chewing the crisp slowly and smiling the same way she did when she was eating something extraordinary, “but you neglected to say anything about Joan being blackmailed.” “I’m sorry,” said Alene. “It was a long time ago.” “Do you know if anyone else received a demand for money?” Frank asked. “Like your ex-mother-in-law?” “Mitzi never mentioned it,” said Alene. “She is an honest person and she wouldn’t have tolerated illegally obtained money. I told Gary that she’d probably have tossed Patrick out of her bed and her life if she knew he’d done something illegal such as helping Joan embezzle money.” Alene’s jaw had nearly dropped to the floor when Gary had asked if she thought Mitzi had tossed Patrick overboard on their cruise. Gary had also been on board when it happened. “She’d have called the police no matter what the blackmailer threatened her with,” Alene told Frank. “I once heard her rail against Neal when he couldn’t tell her what charities he supports.” “What about Neal’s father?” Alene said, “Well, you know that he died after falling off a cruise ship, right?” “That was very unusual and suspicious,” said Frank. “Yeah, it was weird, but the entire cruise industry changed their rules because of it,” said Alene Ingredients 7-8 tart apples (like Gala, Granny Smith or Fuji) - peeled and sliced thin) Juice of about half a lemon 1 tsp lemon zest 1 TBSP pure maple syrup ¼ cup fruity or berry liqueur or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract 1 cup chopped toasted almonds or pecans (or mix them together) 2 cups quick oats ¼ cup whole wheat flour, almond flour, or gluten-free flour ½ cup brown sugar 2 tsp cinnamon Pinch of salt ¼ cup canola or coconut oil Preparation Preheat oven to 350 degrees F Mix dry ingredients with oil in a bowl or a zip locked bag In a large bowl, whisk syrup, lemon, zest, cinnamon, vanilla or liquor. Add apple slices and stir gently with a large spoon to evenly coat apples Spray square or pie glass pan and pour in apple mixture Press nut mixture gently over the apples to cover the entire top Bake covered with foil for about 40 minutes Uncover and bake an additional 20 minutes until browned on top Previous Next

< Back Ginger-Molasses Cookies G.F. V. May 8, 2020 Prep Time: 20 Minutes Cook Time: 10 Minutes Serves: 24 Cookies Tags: Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Baking, Cookies and Brownies, Vegan About the Recipe Keep these chewy cookies in the freezer and eat at least one each day. Sometimes I make a sandwich with a piece of banana in the middle, but mostly I just grab one from the freezer for a little burst of gingery deliciousness. Ingredients 2 ½ cup steel-cut oats (gives extra crunch) or other GF oats 1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp baking powder ¼ tsp fine-grained sea salt 1 tsp ground ginger ½ tsp ground cinnamon ¼ tsp ground nutmeg ½ cup coconut or brown sugar ¼ cup canola or coconut oil ¼ cup unsulphured molasses 1 TBSP unfiltered apple cider vinegar 1 tsp pure vanilla extract Preparation Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C and spray or line 2 cookie sheets In a processor or high-speed blender, blend oats into a fine flour, 60-90 seconds Pulse in baking soda, baking powder, salt, spices, and sugar In a large bowl, combine oil, molasses, vinegar, and vanilla Add dry ingredients to the bowl of wet ingredients and stir together If the dough feels too dry, add a few TBSPs of water Use a small scooper or wet hands to form about 26 1 inch balls, 13 on each sheet Bake for 10 minutes until golden brown (if you overbake, they’ll be crispier) Remove from the oven and let them cool before eating Can be frozen and eaten directly from the freezer (or zapped in the microwave) Optional: To add protein, use a cup of unsalted almonds in place of one cup of the oats. Previous Next

< Back Almond Berry Breakfast Cake (gluten-free/vegan) March 24, 2020 Prep Time: 15 Minutes Cook Time: 50 Minutes Serves: 12 Slices of Cake Tags: Breakfast, Vegan, Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Cakes & Pies & Icing About the Recipe p. 28 Smothered: A Whipped and Sipped Mystery #2 Now Alene began measuring ingredients for Ruthie’s strawberry breakfast cake. Neal had probably let the children eat fatty, salty burgers and fries at dinner the night before. She hoped he’d bring them to his mother’s place for lunch today. Mitzi always showered them with love, brought them to the playground, let them people-watch from her balcony, and sent them home well-fed and happy. If Mitzi had to work and couldn’t take the kids, Neal would do some activity that required little effort and get them fast food, the kind Alene rarely allowed. He’d probably introduce them to another one of his girlfriends, so that they’d be confused and upset. They’d all be crying by the time they got home. At least her father was being cared for. Blanca, Alene’s cleaning lady who had morphed into caregiver for her dad, would come at eight and stay until Cal fell asleep after lunch. Alene would probably get home before he woke up. Even though he liked being alone in the apartment and accused Alene of fussing, she tried to make sure someone was always close by. She worried that he’d fall, since his disease, finally diagnosed the previous year, caused weakening in his muscles. Or maybe he’d drop a glass that would shatter, and she’d come home to find him bleeding on the kitchen floor. Cal assured Alene that he was doing his exercises, building up his strength, and would soon be back to walking the bike path two miles to the North Avenue bridge and back. Ingredients 1 cup non-dairy milk ¼ cup oil 1 small seeded apple 1 small seeded tangerine or orange ½ cup maple syrup or agave 2 TBSP apple cider vinegar 1 tsp pure vanilla extract ½ tsp almond extract 2 cups almond flour 1 cup oats 2 tsp baking soda 1 tsp cinnamon ¼ tsp salt 1 cup of washed berries (strawberries should be halved or chopped) 2 TBSP almond or other gluten-free flour Preparation In blender or processor, blend all liquid ingredients In a large bowl, stir dry ingredients Pour wet into dry ingredients and stir a few times until blended Pour into a prepared 8” round or loaf pan Toss berries with flour and press lightly into the batter Bake at preheated 350 oven for about 50 minutes until nicely browned Cool in pan before plating or serving I like refrigerating this cake but it can be left out on the counter for a couple of days Previous Next

< Back Spinach-Lentil Soup October 27, 2020 Prep Time: 10 Minutes Cook Time: 30 Minutes Serves: 6 Servings Tags: Soup, Vegetarian, Vegan, Entrees About the Recipe ​ Ingredients 2 TBSP olive oil 1 large onion, chopped 2 cups frozen spinach 1 cup lentils 1 large potato, peeled and cut into ½” pieces 5 cups water 1 cup coconut milk 2 TBSP lemon juice (squeeze the juice from 1 small or ½ large lemon) 1 tsp sea salt (more to taste) 1 tsp paprika Preparation In a medium saucepan, sauté chopped onion in the oil for about 10 minutes until soft. Add spinach, lentils and potato – stir for a minute. Add water, coconut milk, lemon juice, salt and paprika. Simmer on low for 20-30 minutes until lentils are soft. Add salt to taste. Previous Next

< Back The Art of Regret Mary Fleming December 3, 2019 Trevor McFarquhar was traumatized by the silence following the deaths of his sister and father. He was again traumatized when his mother moved him and his brother to Paris, remarried, and expected him to treat her new husband as his new father. In his late thirties, he’s haphazardly running a struggling bicycle shop, with few friends, little ambition, and an inability to form a lasting relationship. Then, during the chaos of the 1995 Transit Strike in Paris, Trevor does something horrible. Five years later, he gets a chance to redeem himself. Originally from Chicago, Mary Fleming moved to Paris in 1981, as a freelance journalist and consultant. Before turning full time to writing fiction, she was the French representative for the American foundation: The German Marshall Fund. A long-time board member of the French Fulbright Commission, Fleming continues to serve on the board of Bibliothèques sans Frontières. She and her husband have five grown children and split their time between Paris and Berlin. The Art of Regret (She Writes Press, 2019) is Fleming’s second novel. She writes a blog called A Paris-Berlin Diary . She is also an amateur photographer and fights a puzzle addiction; crosswords and Sudoko, specifically. Listen to Episode Buy Book Previous Next

Vegetarian Recipes to Die For Soup, Vegan, Vegetarian Black Bean Mushroom Carrot Soup I love making "pantry" soups with what I've got on hand plus whichever vegetables I have in the fridge. I thought I was making my old Black Bean Edamame soup until I saw that I was out of the frozen edamame. Cooking, like jazz, is all about improvisation! Read Recipe Dips and Sauces, Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten Free Spinach & Green Pea Dip/Sauce Gorgeous color, bright flavor, and filled with nutrients! Read Recipe Entrees, Vegetarian, Vegan Leek and Red Onion Rice Platter Sometimes I drizzle the tahini on top of this dish so that it looks like frosting. Read Recipe Entrees, Vegetarian, Gluten Free, Soup Chilled Minty Cucumber-Melon Soup The perfect and refreshing snack for a hot day! Read Recipe Dips and Sauces, Entrees, Vegetarian, Vegan Mashed Cauliflower and Acorn Squash I like to mash veggies from my Friday roasted veggie tray and try different combos. Read Recipe Entrees, Vegetarian Cold Sesame Noodles The perfect recipes for a picnic lunch! Read Recipe Dips and Sauces, Vegan, Gluten Free, Vegetarian Easy Hummus I make this version of hummus when I’m out of tahini. Read Recipe Soup, Vegetarian, Vegan, Entrees Spinach-Lentil Soup Need iron? This delicious soup will do the trick! Read Recipe Dips and Sauces, Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Vegan Green Bean and Walnut Spread Alene was proud of the recipe that she invented. Read Recipe Vegan, Vegetarian, Entrees Mango-Avocado Salad Serve as shown in sections in the bowl because it looks awesome. Then mix at the table. Read Recipe Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Baking, Cookies and Brownies, Vegan Ginger-Molasses Cookies G.F. V. "Would you like a pot of chamomile tea?" Read Recipe Dips and Sauces, Vegetarian, Gluten Free, Vegan Guacamole Salad In last week's grocery order I forgot tortilla chips and ate this with a spoon! Read Recipe Breakfast, Vegan, Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Cakes & Pies & Icing Almond Berry Breakfast Cake (gluten-free/vegan) Now Alene began measuring ingredients for Ruthie’s strawberry breakfast cake. Read Recipe Vegan, Dips and Sauces, Vegetarian Roasted Red Pepper Tahini Slathering his spinach pie with a bright roasted red pepper tahini, he talked about functional foods. Read Recipe Soup, Vegetarian, Vegan, Entrees Sweet Potato Black Bean Soup Add an avocado for garnish or sprinkle with a little cheese for the perfect dish! Read Recipe Muffins and Breads, Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Baking, Vegan Gluten-Free/Nut Free/Vegan Banana Bread The recipes uses 2 bananas and a whole small seed apple. Read Recipe Vegan, Vegetarian, Baking, Cakes & Pies & Icing Chocolate Peanut Butter Frozen Pie A refreshing dessert in the summer and a pleasingly light dessert to nibble on after a heavy winter meal. Read Recipe Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Dips and Sauces, Vegan Edamame – Avocado Dip Alene pulled out her old blender and made an edamame/avocado dip followed by a kale and parsley... Read Recipe Vegetarian, Baking, Breakfast, Muffins and Breads, Cakes & Pies & Icing Chocolate Zucchini-Pear Cake GF Healthy enough for breakfast! Read Recipe Dips and Sauces, Vegan, Vegetarian Zucchini Dip/Sauce It's so delicious! You can use fresh dill or fresh mint for this perfect dip! Read Recipe Vegetarian, Cakes & Pies & Icing Cocoa-Bear Cake (AKA Dragon’s Milk Cake) Neal bought her a beer and invited her to a Cubs game. That had been her first stout, and she thought it was so... Read Recipe Entrees, Vegetarian, Vegan Oven-Baked Sweet Potato-Black Bean Empanadas Ruthie dropped off a tray of frozen sweet potato-black bean empanadas. Read Recipe Soup, Vegetarian, Gluten Free, Entrees, Vegan Alene’s White Gazpacho She blended a white gazpacho and served it with homemade rolls for lunch, then let the kids lie in her bed watching... Read Recipe Muffins and Breads, Baking, Vegetarian, Breakfast, Cakes & Pies & Icing Chocolate Zucchini – Apple Cake Yes, we eat this for breakfast! Read Recipe All Recipes Baking Breakfast Cakes, Pies, & Icing Cookies & Brownies Dips & Sauces Entrees Gluten-Free Muffins & Breads Soup Vegan Vegetarian Load More

< Back A Faithful but Melancholy Account of Several Barbarities Lately Committed Jason Brown January 7, 2020 The ten linked stories in Jason Brown 's A Faithful but Melancholy Account of Several Barbarities Lately Committed (Missouri Review, 2019) follow John Howland and his descendants as they struggle with their New England legacy as one of the country's founding families and the decaying trappings of that esteemed past. Set on the Maine coast, where the Howland family has lived for almost 400 years, the grandfather, John Howland, lives in a fantasy that still places him at the center of the world. The next generation resides in the confused ruins of the 1960s rebellion, while many in the third generation feel they have no choice but to scatter in search of a new identity. Jason Brown earned his MFA from Cornell University, and was a Stegner Fellow and Truman Capote Fellow at Stanford University, where he taught as a Jones Lecturer. He has received fellowships from the Yaddo and Macdowell colonies and from the Saltonsall Foundation. He taught for many years in the MFA program at the University of Arizona and now teaches in the MFA program at the University of Oregon. He has published two books of short stories, Driving the Heart and Other Stories (Norton/Random House) and Why the Devil Chose New England For His Work (Open City/Grove Atlantic). His stories have won several awards and appeared in Best American Short Stories, The Atlantic, Harper’s, TriQuarterly and other magazines and anthologies. Several of his stories have been performed as part of NPR’s Selected Shorts, and his collection Why The Devil Chose New England For His Work was chosen as a summer reading pick by National Public Radio. Stories from the new collection have appeared or will appear in Southern Review, Prairie Schooner (winning their editor’s prize and receiving special mention in the back of Best American Short Stories), Electric Literature, Bellevue Review, Dalhousie Review and the Editor’s Prize from the Missouri Review . Listen to Episode Buy Book Previous Next

< Back The Kudzu Queen Mimi Herman January 24, 2023 Kudzu salesman James T. Cullowee arrives in Cooper County, North Carolina in the spring of 1941 to spread the gospel of kudzu. It can apparently feed cattle, improve soil, grow with no effort, be turned into jam, and cure headaches. Mattie Lee Watson is struck from the moment she sees Mr. Cullowee, and dreams of both becoming Cooper County Kudzu Queen and strolling on the Kudzu King’s arm. But Mattie’s best friend is faced with calamity, Mr. Cullowee seems to be as sneaky and destructive as kudzu, and Mattie realizes that she’s the only one who can fix the mess. Mimi Herman's The Kudzu Queen (Regal House, 2023) is a gripping coming-of-age story about family, trust, race relations, and friendship in the face of divisiveness, alcoholism, mean girls, prejudice, and evil. Mimi Herman is a Kennedy Center teaching artist and director of the United Arts Council Arts Integration Institute . She has taught in the Master of Education programs at Lesley University, served as the 2017 North Carolina Piedmont Laureate, and been an associate editor for Teaching Artist Journal. Since 1990, she has engaged over 25,000 students and teachers with her warm and intuitive teaching style. Mimi holds a BA from the University of North Carolina and an MFA in Creative Writing from Warren Wilson. She is the author of A Field Guide to Human Emotions, Logophilia and The Art of Learning . Her writing has appeared in Michigan Quarterly Review , The Carolina Quarterly , Shenandoah , Crab Orchard Review , The Hollins Critic , Main Street Rag , Prime Number Magazine and other journals. Mimi has performed her fiction and poetry at many venues including Why There Are Words in Sausalito, Memorial Auditorium in Raleigh and Symphony Space in New York City. When she's not writing, Mimi codirects Writeaways writing workshops at a chateau in France, a villa in Italy, an adobe in New Mexico and a manor house in Ireland--and does her own plumbing and carpentry work on her almost hundred-year-old house. Listen to Episode Buy Book Previous Next

< Back Chocolate Zucchini-Pear Cake GF November 12, 2019 Prep Time: 15 Minutes Cook Time: 35 Minutes Serves: 6-8 Slices of Cake Tags: Vegetarian, Baking, Breakfast, Muffins and Breads, Cakes & Pies & Icing About the Recipe I’ve been experimenting with different combinations of fruits and vegetables in cakes. Most zucchini cake recipes include a full cup of oil, but pear sauce works as a substitute for half of the oil. The pear also adds enough sugar to be able to cut down the usual cup of sugar to 1/2 cup. Of course, the addition of chocolate chips more than makes up for that missing half cup of sugar. I served this cake at my mother-in-law-s 96th birthday, and everyone thought it was moist and delicious, except for a 4-year-old great niece who didn’t like the glaze (added to make it look more festive, but a little too sophisticated with its mocha flavor). SMOTHERED: A Whipped and Sipped Mystery Ingredients 1 juicy pear (seeded, with skin) 1/3 cup water ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (optional but delicious) ½ cup brown sugar ½ cup canola or olive oil 1 TBSP apple cider vinegar 2 eggs 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp vanilla ½ tsp salt ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips Preparation Blend zucchini, pear and water in a processor until smooth Add everything else except chocolate chips, blend Add chocolate chips and pulse a few times Pour into a greased and sugared loaf or 9” baking pan Bake about 35 minutes in a preheated 350-degree oven Cool before turning onto a serving plate Sprinkle w/confectioners sugar or serve as is – healthy enough for breakfast! Previous Next

< Back Iconoclast: A Sean McPherson Novel Laurie Buchanan August 29, 2022 A trained killer without a drop of human compassion shows up early in Laurie Buchanan’s second Sean McPherson thriller (Iconoclast (Spark Press 2022)). She has no problem murdering a woman and taking her place at a writer’s retreat in beautiful Washington State. But she’s controlled by a Seattle-based crime family that is spreading its tentacles across the Bellingham Bay, a perfect location for trafficking drugs and people across the Pacific Ocean. The book opens with the murder of a priest, who turns out to be the brother of the retreat’s proprietor, and a gourmet cook. The lovely Pine and Quill offers several cabins, one for each writer, and enticing-sounding gourmet meals. The iconoclast is there to kill someone who might know too much, and it takes some time before Sean McPherson, a former cop, is pulled in. Can he save his fiancé and protect the other guests? Laurie Buchanan, who earned a PhD in Holistic Health with a emphasis in energy medicine from National University of Natural Medicine in Portland, Oregon, writes the Sean McPherson novels— fast-paced thrillers set in the Pacific Northwest that feature a trifecta of malice and the pursuit and cost of justice. A cross between Dr. Dolittle, Nanny McPhee, and a type-A Buddhist, Buchanan is an active listener, observer of details, payer of attention, reader and writer of books, kindness enthusiast, and red licorice aficionado. Her books have won multiple awards, including Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Gold Winner, International Book Award Gold Winner, National Indie Excellence Awards Winner, Crime Fiction/Suspense Eric Hoffer Awards Finalist, PenCraft Award for Literary Excellence, and CLUE Book Awards finalist Suspense/Thriller Mysteries. In addition to reading, her passions include long walks, bicycling, camping, and photography— because sometimes the best word choice is a picture. Listen to Episode Buy Book Previous Next

< Back The Merciful Jon Sealy February 2, 2021 In The Merciful (Haywire Books, 2021) by Jon Sealy nineteen-year-old Samantha James is killed while riding her bike home from work in a small coastal town one dark summer night in South Carolina. It’s a hit and run, and when they learn who did it, the townspeople want Daniel Hayward, the alleged driver, to pay for his crime. The headlines are compelling, but the truth is unclear. Everyone has an opinion - the media, the prosecutor, the defense attorney, Daniel, and Samantha’s family. Delving into each of the characters, the author pauses to reflect on culture, social pressures, family, and history. Ultimately, The Merciful is a morality play about one moment, one accident, one decision, and the way an instant can change the course of a life forever. Jon Sealy is the author of The Whiskey Baron , The Edge of America , and The Merciful , as well as the craft book So You Want to Be a Novelist . An upstate South Carolina native, he has a degree in English from the College of Charleston and an MFA in fiction writing from Purdue University. He currently lives with his family in the suburbs of Richmond, Virginia, where he is the publisher of Haywire Books. When he's not writing or editing, you'll probably find him lifting weights in his garage, playing "swing monster" with his kids, or rafting on a river. Listen to Episode Buy Book Previous Next

< Back Jollof Rice and Other Revolutions Omolola Ijeoma Ogunyemi April 18, 2023 Omolola Ijeoma Ogunyemi’s novel Jollof Rice and Other Revolutions: A Novel in Interlocking Stories (Amistad 2022), is a moving and unforgettable collection of stories that span a lifetime. Four young girls rebel against a boarding school principal and the aftermath stays with them throughout their lives in this complex weaving of relationships and customs. Stories about immigration, powerful mothers and strong-willed daughters lead into stories about raising boys, searching for home, and seeking happiness. Ogunyemi references Nigerian history and traditions prior to the changes enforced by the missionaries, and considers a dystopian future, but the friends continue to love and count on each other across the years and the miles. Omolola Ijeoma Ogunyemi was born and raised in Ibadan, Nigeria. A finalist for the 2009 PEN/Studzinski Award, her stories have been published in New Writing from Africa 2009 (a collection of PEN/Studzinski Award finalists’ stories), Ploughshares, and mentioned in The Best American Short Stories 2018. Her poetry has appeared in the Massachusetts Review, the Indiana Review and Wasafiri. She graduated from Barnard and UPenn with bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in computer science. Omolola is a Professor of Preventive and Social Medicine at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in South Los Angeles, where she teaches and conducts research on using biomedical informatics to reduce health disparities. Jollof Rice and Other Revolutions, her first book, was selected as a New York Times Editors Choice (October 20, 2022), made The New Yorker's list of "Best Books of 2022 So Far," was a Los Angeles Public Library pick for "Best of 2022: Fiction," and was the October 2022 selection for Roxane Gay's Audacious Book Club with Literati. Omolola lives in California with her husband and loves to try out new restaurants, especially fusion cuisine. Listen to Episode Buy Book Previous Next