the not so starving artist
#DavidSedaris @DavidSedaris #Calypso #HalfPriceBooks @HalfPriceBooks #Fitbit @Fitbit
I scroll through my email and see An Evening with David Sedaris. It’s at the Half Price Books flagship store in Dallas, or as I lovingly refer to it, the mothership. Calypso. He’s got a new book? No. It came out a year ago. Thank God for that email, because we hadn’t heard of it. I ordered a copy and could barely stand the 24 hour wait.
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#StevenRaichlen @StevenRaichlen #WorkmanPub @WorkmanPub #BrisketChronicles @BrisketChronicles #HorizonSmokers @HorizonSmokers
Steven Raichlen’s got a new book coming out tomorrow (April 30th), The Brisket Chronicles, and it is wonderful! I’m in love with this book and wish I’d gone with the hardcover already, as it is sure to be oh-so-very well used. He’s got everything in here from barbecue brisket favorites to his family’s holiday braised briskets and even brisket dessert. Like his other books, this has that same welcoming tone and desire to teach you how to get everything just right. His instructions are casual, yet really thorough. If you want to become the brisket master, he’ll help get you there. I was delighted to see that Steven smokes on the exact same smoker that I do, a Horizon RD Marshal that I lovingly refer to as Billy Bob. Spoiler alert – No, he never tells us what he’s named his smoker.
A huge thanks to Workman Publishing for letting me share the recipe for Real Deal Holyfield Brisket Breakfast Tacos with you! I’ll tell you all about the rest of the book afterwards!
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#ZuzaZak #Polska #Polish #pierogis #QuadrilleBooks #HardieGrant
Polska is a wonderful book filled with gorgeous, inspirational photos, homey, delicious Polish comfort food, and special-occasion dishes. It filled our home with the inviting scent of marjoram and onions. Zuza’s tone is very casual and inviting, and her instructions are clear.
The simple and delicious Turkey Escalope is going to find its way to the table often in this house, but her lovely Green Springtime Pierogi with Spinach Kasza and Cheese were over-the-moon good. A big thanks to Quadrille for letting me share the recipe with you! I’ll tell you all about the other dishes we tried after the recipe.
#TheoCooks @TheoCooks #Orexi @RylandPetersAndSmall @RylandPeters #RylandPetersAndSmall #RylandPeters
Smoky. Chocolate. Baklava. I’m listening. Theo Michaels has you smoke chocolate on the stovetop for a few layers in his baklava. Then there’s a few layers of pistachios, hazelnuts, walnuts, and cinnamon. Encased in flaky, buttery phyllo. Obviously, that needed to happen. I have one of those big old macho smokers in my backyard, so I smoked the chocolate in there. Then I made it a second time baking the whole baklava right in my smoker. Yeah. Either way, that baklava is even better than the title sounds. A huge thanks to Ryland Peters and Small for letting me share that recipe with you! I’ll tell you all about the book after the recipe. I have a terrible fondness for Greek cookbooks, and that shelf is extensive. Orexi! is my personal favorite to date. Hope you love it, too!
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#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.
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West Texas is my favorite part of the state. * There’s a killer dark sky program, with a museum and night sky party at McDonald Observatory in Fort Davis, right in the Davis Mountains. * Or go try out all the food trucks and play with outdoor art installations at the Chinati Foundation or Prada in Marfa. At night, you can go see the Marfa lights. I’m not saying it’s aliens. But aliens. * And Alpine is a cool little college town with lots of outdoor murals, galleries, Big Bend Brewery (NOT affiliated with the park), and a fabulous museum at the University. We once saw Monty Python’s Holy Grail performed at their amphitheater.
That’s not what this trip was about. This trip was all about hiking. Six days filled with it at Big Bend National Park and Big Bend State Park. Ahhhhh. We stayed at a darling cabana with a great view of the park just outside its entry in Terlingua.
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@RylandPetersAndSmall @RylandPeters #RylandPetersAndSmall #RylandPeters #tapas
A million years ago, or 23 to be slightly more accurate, my husband and I traveled around Spain, Portugal, and Morocco on our honeymoon. The trip was beyond amazing! The Prado Museum and Plaza Major in Madrid were fabulous. The salt-crusted fish and possibly skinny dipping on the coast in Marbella were delicious. And in Seville, we fell desperately in love with the flamenco shows and Maria Luisa Park. And the tapas and thick hot chocolate. Tapas everywhere. It’s a garlic-lover’s dream.
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