#WheretheCrawdadsSing #DeliaOwens #WhiskeyInATeacup #ReeseWitherspoon #BookClub #southern #crab

My book club recently read Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens. I was hook, line, and sinker in love with that book. It’s the story of a young girl, who spends her whole life struggling against the current, trying to find her way. It has everything – beauty, scientific curiosity, adaptability, trust, distrust, murder, plotting, hope, hopelessness, love, rejectance <I’m doubling down on that being a word>, and acceptance. She has a profound love and appreciation for her marsh, deemed unloveable by everyone else, echoing the world’s view of her.

I couldn’t wait to get together with my girlfriends and talk about it. It was a Reese Witherspoon book club choice, and she’s going to produce the film (yay!!!), so I thought it only appropriate to make Reese’s Crab Puffs for the gathering. The recipe is out of Reese’s book, Whiskey in a Teacup. I found someone who put the recipe up on Pinterest here, so you can try them, too. If you’re a fan of the Great British Bake-Off, you’ll realize you’re making something like a simple pate a choux. But this is Reese, so she just calls them puffs, and you can go along making this deliciousness without any pretense or thinking you should be intimidated. I love that. And these are divine. Please note that it says it makes 2 dozen. It makes 4 dozen. And I doubled the recipe to use up the crab and ended up with 8 dozen. LOL! It’s not a problem. They’re a bit addictive. And 6 of them are filled with plenty of crab, gruyere, and egg, with only 2 Tablespoons of flour, so it’s got a high protein, low carb ratio, making them pretty darn guilt-free to boot!






I was so excited when I saw Whiskey in a Teacup. I ordered some lovely teacups at the same time to put my whiskey cocktail in. When I mentioned it at the table, my two teen daughters said, βWho?β I gasped realizing theyβd never seen one of Reeseβs movies, so I grabbed a copy of Legally Blonde (OMGosh! I just saw that there are 3 of them!) right away to rectify that. Yes, it is absolutely timeless. They both thought it was laugh out loud wonderful. A few months later, my daughter came home and told me her dance teacher had taught them a variation on the ‘bend and snap’. Bahahaha!
Whiskey in a Teacup has equal measure of positives and negatives about it. I think it might be important to disclose that I am not a salon girl at all before I get started talking about the book. If you are, I think you’ll like the book more than I do.
I loved the book club chapter. Her lists are great and she has a fun menu to go along with a book club meeting.
Her memories, mainly of her dear grandmother, are rich with detail and charming. And she shares a good deal of her grandmaβs advice and some of her recipes. There are stories about the rest of her family, too, that paint a nice picture of her childhood.
Thereβs a chapter about her admiration of Southern icon, Dolly Parton, that I enjoyed. I had no idea that she sold shirts with What Would Dolly Do emblazoned across the front. Love that.
Thereβs a recipe for crab puffs. You know you want a crab puff! And thereβs one for a tea cocktail, but thereβs no whiskey involved. Lol!
Then the hair rollers. Thereβs a chapter on hair rollers that just seemed confusing. Back in the 70s, ladies would have loved this in fashion magazines, but itβs just so dated.
The chapters about monogramming and gifts felt out of touch, too. An add-a-pearl necklace for a little girl is terrific if sheβd indicated that she wanted one, otherwise it would seem like you were buying them a commitment to go finish the necklace off. And monogrammed sheets that need hand washing β I just canβt see adding that kind of work to hectic modern life.
Then thereβs little essays about things like honky-tonks. She spends the bulk of it talking about how everyone will dance with everyone, and no one judges anyone, and then undoes the whole thing at the end by saying she has a favorite dance partner she likes to bring, and that, of course, all the girls want to dance with him. Huh? Whereβd the sudden interest in whoβs good and whoβs not come in?
The whole book is very upbeat and optimistic. And thatβs great. But, it would have been a more interesting read if she talked about any sort of challenges she faced at all. Overall, itβs a very cute book, and will make you smile.
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Where the Crawdads Sing

Whiskey in a Teacup

Legally Blonde

Those *do* look delicious. I kind of take Reese Witherspoon with a grain of salt. I did love the first Legally Blonde film in a kind of snarky way but it’s good that we seem to have a more diverse, broad picture of adult femininity now than the one that she typically represents.
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I don’t really mind it. I wouldn’t be happy with any one representative woman for all of us. It takes a lot of data points to put a picture together.
So many actors and actresses have a specialty/type cast/one thing they nail. I think it’s pretty rare for anyone to really be able to do it all. Daniel Day Lewis gives us pretty distinct characters, yet always seems to have a sinister vibe in the background.
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Hey Jennifer how are you no seen you for a while
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Hey Mark! It’s nice to hear from you! Happy spring! π
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Well its nice to talk to some one people theys days no matter who they are they don’t talk it’s the way of the world with people in it am cool guy as you No I dont mind talking am board as hell thanks for message me back Jennifer you seem very happy sweet Lady
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[…] via Where the Crawdads Sing, Whiskey in a Teacup, and Crab Puffs β Jennifer Guerrero […]
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Thanks so much, OhioCook!
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wow they look simply awesome!
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Thank you, Nisha! π
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Like crawdads sing πΆ, haha. If they did, theyβd only do that in the shower, duuuh.
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Ha! Hi Greg! π
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Hi JG
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Those crab puffs look absolutely delicious. Yum yum! I definitely think I’m going to have to try those.
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Well, thank you, FoodInBooks! I hope you love them, too!
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What a fun post. And I love this recipe. Puffs indeed! I’ve only made them plain, as in gougeres, but with crab? Just brilliant!
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The texture changes with the fillings included right in the batter. It’s so flavorful and easy, though!
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Nice review of booksπ and the puffs look absolutely yumm, perfectttt with a cuppa tea or coffee π
Have an enjoyable weekend my dear Jennifer π
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Thank you, Jyo! Happy weekend to you, too! Itβs rainy here, so weβre taking a lazy morning sipping coffee and watching movies with the kids and dogs. πβοΈπΆ
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I feel old all of a sudden. My 3 year old doesnβt know who Reese Witherspoon is either! π
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You have about 10 years before you have to pull out Legally Blonde! π
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