Tater Tots, Pickles & Jam--Oh my! Guest Author Kelly Irvin (Giveaway)

** Weds. November 6th, 1:25 PM: CONGRATULATIONS to Kay M, our giveaway winner. And thank you ALL for stopping by the blog to make Kelly feel welcome. **

A favorite author of Amish fiction, my guest today has been writing professionally for more than 30 years. She and her photographer husband have two young adult children and share their happy South Texas home with two cats and a tank full of fish. 

Wave your wooden spoons in a warm Authors' Galley welcome for Kelly Irvin 

A writer’s life imitates art in the kitchen

By Kelly Irvin

When it comes to cooking and my writing journey, it seems that life has imitated art in recent years. I write Amish fiction which, as you can imagine, involves heroines who spend a great deal of time in the kitchen, either cooking, baking, or canning. I admit, I’m not the cook in the family. My husband is a fabulous cook and he enjoys it so I “let” him. Once a vegetarian, I’m not a big fan of meat, while Tim’s favorite food group is steak and bacon, preferably as often as possible. Strangely enough, writing Amish fiction has helped us bridge the gap. It’s added a sweet new dimension to our married life.

As I began to do research for my Amish romance novels, I acquired cookbooks so I could incorporate authentic foods in my stories. The more I mused over the recipes, the more the dishes—especially the desserts—called my name. For my first launch party, I made shoofly pie and whoopie pies to serve to my guests. I used a pat-a-pan pie crust recipe from The Amish Cook’s Baking Book by Lovina Eicher with Kevin Williams. Probably the first edible pie crust I’ve ever made from scratch (and the most fun).

This summer I came across a tater tot casserole recipe in Sherry Gore’s Simply Delicious Amish Cooking. She describes it as a staple in Mennonite homes everywhere. It has most of the important food groups: ground beef, peas (we use green beans), shredded cheese, onion, celery, and tater tots. A food group all their own. Anyone who knows me, knows I’m having a long standing love affair with tater tots. I’m willing to send extra time on the treadmill in order to have them on my plate now and then. Tim took the recipe and ran with it. I love it. My kids love. Tim loves it. Now my mother-in-law is serving it to my father-in-law.

But things really took off when in one of my books, I had to describe the steps necessary to can jams and jellies. The Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving landed on my cookbook shelf. Tim, like me, grew up in a house where the women folk canned in the summer. We have a good friend who has mustang grapes growing on her property. So we made grape jam. And strawberry. And raspberry. And blueberry. Give me a toasted whole wheat bagel, crunchy peanut butter, and homemade jam, and I’m in heaven.

Then Tim finagled his grandmother’s bread and butter pickle recipe from his mother. We graduated to pickle canning. He does the heavy lifting, while I help out with the simple things like washing jars or acting as a gopher. It doesn’t matter what I do (as long as I follow instructions to the T and stay out of the way when he’s on a roll). It’s that we’re in the kitchen together, working as a team. The aroma is mouthwatering and it reminds me of being a child in my mother’s kitchen. She canned tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, corn—all fresh from our garden. She and my Grandma Irene and my Great Grandmother Bertha would get together and buy a bushel each of Colorado peaches every summer and make peach jam, peach pies, peach cobblers . . . . It makes my mouth water to think of it and my heart sigh to remember being in the kitchen with them—four generations of women canning together.

It was not unlike the Amish canning frolics. Particularly when I remember how hot it was. We didn’t have air conditioning and summer in Kansas is a lot like summer in south Texas—endlessly hot and humid. The kitchen would fill with that steam floating in the air from the boiling water. We were all sweating, but we didn’t really think anything of it.

It’s not hard for me to reproduce that ambiance in the kitchen scenes in Love Still Stands. Bethel Graber has a disability and she is so afraid she won’t be able to be everything a wife and mother should be. She works out this system in the kitchen to get from the table to the stove to the counter and back without falling. She bakes pies and makes stew and learns to feel useful again. Tim and I don’t solve all our problems in the kitchen, but we are reminded we’ve been a great team for twenty-five years. We both bring our strengths to the table—or the stove—and they complement each other perfectly. 

" . . . a beautiful young woman with a passion for teaching . . .  But after being disabled in a terrible accident, overseeing a classroom is out of the question…and romance seems a long-lost dream. Bethel begins physical therapy, determined to make a fresh start. But that won’t be easy in the town of New Hope, where the locals seem anything but eager to welcome their new Amish neighbors. Amid growing intimidation from the community, Bethel must find the strength to face her many challenges and the faith to believe that God still has a plan—and a love—for her life.

***

Thank you, Kelly, for this delightful (and delicious) peek into your kitchen. 

And now, Wynn-Wynn Media has generously offered a giveaway to celebrate Kelly's new book:

 A copy of Love Still Stands and a very cute set of owl potholders!

For your chance at the giveaway, please leave a comment about Kelly's post below. Be sure to include your e-mail address. I'll draw a winner (via Random.Org) on Weds. Nov. 6th and contact the lucky person by e-mail. US entries only, please. 

Meanwhile, happy reading and bon appetit! 

Home Shopping: I'm Not Talkin' QVC

If you've been following me on Facebook or Twitter, you probably know that just 2 days before I was due to fly to Indianapolis for the American Chrisian Fiction Writers conference, I had to cancel. Because I broke my ankle. Trust me, I would like to say that I did it skydiving or running with the bulls in Pamplona (like our hero Jack Travis in Trauma Plan). But the truth is I slipped on an ACORN, rolled my foot and broke my fibula. The dangers of autumn!

The doctor gave me the option of a cast or a walking boot--I'm sure you can guess which I chose:

Saying that I was disappointed not to be able to attend the conference--meet with agent, editors, fellow writers, other members of the publishing team  (and a reader I'd planned to meet for breakfast!) is an understatement. But it didn't stop me from dressing up for the Awards Gala and following all the excitement vicariously through Wynn-Wynn Media's "Live Blog: :

 Do you think the cane adds classy touch?

Being kept down for several weeks is putting a cramp in my style for sure, but at least I don't type with my feet!

For a "foodie" like me, one of the hardest things is not being able to go to the grocery store. My hubby is SO sweet and helpful, but grocery shopping isn't his passion--you can imagine the look on his face when I handed him a list and then waxed poetic on how to choose the best quality mushrooms. In truth, he did pretty well with just grabbing a huge handful and dumping them into the bag. 

He tried to talk me into trying one of those electric shopping cars, but I had a flashback to my first driving experience: ran my mother's Corvair Monza into the old piano we kept in our garage--I had yet to master reverse gear.

So today tried something I'd heard of: online grocery shopping with delivery.

 Propped the leg up, grabbed my mouse and clicked away, aisle by aisle through my neighborhood grocery store. Bread, pasta, frozen goods, milk, paper towels, the whole gamut right on to organic produce.

And that's where I got a little teary-eyed. There is no way to fondle fruits and veggies through a computer screen.

 Impossible to sniff a melon, press a fingertip against a nectarine.

This is real problem for me. The shopping "experience" includes that, along with reading labels, chatting with the produce people, inhaling the yeasty aromas from from the bakery . . . feasting on it all (I've been known to photograph grocery displays!) , enjoying the way it gets my creative cooking juices flowing. 

On the other hand, I do know lots of folks who hate to grocery shop. Enjoy it about as much as a root canal.

I'm guessing there are people who are someplace in the middle: can take it or leave it.

So I'm curious about YOU:

How do you feel about grocery shopping?

Have you ever tried online grocery shopping with home delivery?

Postscript: 4:00 PM (two hours earlier than expected) The grocery delivery has arrived--carried to my kitchen, quite politely:

I'm impressed. 

Easy as Pie: Bestselling Author Julie Cantrell (giveaway)

**Thursday Sept. 26th 11:45 AM** CONGRATULATIONS to our giveaway winner, Nancy E.! 

---

My guest today is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Into the Free, the Christy Award winning Book of the Year 2013 and recipient of the Mississippi Library Association’s Fiction Award. The sequel, When Mountains Move released September, 2013. She and her family live in Mississippi where they operate Valley House Farm. Please wave your wooden spoons and join me in a warm Authors' Galley welcome for Julie Cantrell! 

(I love that Julie has opted to answer one of my favorite Authors' Galley questions):

What would the characters of WHEN MOUNTANS MOVE order if they all gathered at a restaurant?

Well, Millie, my main character, would likely order something inexpensive and nothing to call attention to herself. Perhaps a baked potato or soup. And then she would share it with others at the table, not wanting to take too much for herself.

Her husband, Bump, would probably dive into a juicy Ribeye, while Fortner would just hunt his own dinner and avoid the stuffy constraints of a restaurant.

Because these books are set during the WWII era, Oka may not be allowed to dine in the restaurant due to her Choctaw heritage, and Mabel (who is featured more prominently in INTO THE FREE) certainly would not be allowed to dine with the others due to the color of her skin. Especially in Mississippi where the story first takes root.

Kat would order something expensive, and then she’d take tiny nibbles, declare she was stuffed, and waste the entire dish.

Here in my real life at Valley House Farm, where I live and operate a small-scale sustainable, organic farm with my family, we like to eat fresh fruits and vegetables from our harvests. As I’m writing this post, our pear tree is dropping gifts by the dozens, so today I thought I’d teach you how to make a yummy, scrummy pear pie...all from scratch.

You can choose a pie crust from the store or a recipe of your choosing, but here’s how we make a simple, no-fail homemade crust. The only trick is to use ICE cold water and cold unsalted butter (not margarine). Roll crust and press into greased pie pan (I prefer glass or porcelain for more even distribution of heat).

INGREDIENTS FOR PIE CRUST

·         2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling

·         1 cup (2 sticks or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, very-cold, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

·         1 teaspoon salt

·         1 teaspoon sugar

·         6 to 10 Tbsp ice water

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PIE CRUST

Mix flour, salt, and sugar together. Then add slices of cold butter, cutting it into the dry ingredients (or using a food processor if you have one. I don’t...sigh.) Mix until a course mixture forms, leaving bits of butter in the dough...that’s what makes a “flaky” crust. Slowly incorporate cold water until you form a dough. Spread dough on flat surface sprinkled with flour and knead lightly, shaping the dough into two disks. DO NOT OVER KNEAD. You can refrigerate these disks up to two days. I’m using one for a pie and one for a spinach quiche for dinner tonight. When ready, use a rolling pin to flatten one disk. Then, place in greased pie pan and trim as needed. (Young kids can play with the extra dough.)

Then, you pick the pears. Okay, if you don’t have a beautiful pear tree offering you fresh fruit each morning, you can pretend! Visit your local farmers market and try to support local growers. (Note, pears can be substituted with any kind of apples, but the green ones such as Granny Smith usually taste best in this kind of pie.)

INGREDIENTS FOR PEAR OR APPLE PIE

·         ¾ cup sugar

·         1 tsp. cinnamon

·         Dash or two  nutmeg

·         6-7 green apples or 8-9 pears, peeled and sliced thin

·         1 ½ TBSP butter

·         (1 unbaked pie shell)

INGREDIENTS FOR CRUMB TOPPING:

·         ½ cup butter

·         ½ cup brown sugar

·         1 cup flour

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Peel the pears, saving the scraps for the compost pile or the chicken coop. If you don’t have compost or chickens, I bet pinterest has some snappy way to craft pear peelings into a swanky fall centerpiece or something even Martha Stewart never thought of. I’m not that crafty, but our chickens are happy.

Slice pears into thin slivers (the smaller, the more tender they will taste in the pie, so don’t get lazy here.) Our horses love to nibble on the leftover cores.

Mix cinnamon and sugar. (You can certainly substitute sugar with no-cal/low-cal sweeteners like Splenda, etc. I prefer to use natural ingredients such as raw sugar or stevia. Today, for photo purposes, I’m using plain white sugar.) Add a dash or two of ground nutmeg. (Sometimes I add three or four.)

Mix pears lightly in with cinnamon and sugar and nutmeg, so they are completely coated.

Place pears into pie crust heat about 5-10 minutes until warmed through. Dot with butter when you remove the pie from warming.

Mix the crumble topping ingredients while pears are heating. Again, you’ll cut these together or use a food processor to blend a course crumble consistency. Then, sprinkle topping over the pears and bake for 30 minutes-45 minutes.

Serve warm with ice cream. YUM! (Remaining pie can be stored in fridge for a few days and reheated as needed.)

When Mountains Move, by Julie Cantrell, is the sequel to the Christy Award winning Book of the Year and Debut Novel of the Year, Into the Free, which earned a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly and became both a New York Times and USA TODAY bestseller.

It is the spring of 1943. With a wedding and a cross-country move, Millie’s world is about to change forever.

If only her past could change with it.

Soon after the break of day, Bump will become Millie’s husband. And then, if all goes as planned, they will leave the rain-soaked fields of Mississippi and head for the wilds of the Colorado Rockies. As Millie tries to forget a dark secret, she hasn’t yet realized how drastically those past experiences will impact the coming days.

For most of Millie’s life, being free felt about as unlikely as the mountains moving. But she’s about to discover that sometimes in life, we are given second chances, and that the only thing bigger than her past … is her future.

Learn more at www.juliecantrell.com

Blogsite: www.juliecantrell.wordpress.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/juliecantrellauthor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JulieCantrell

Email: julie@juliecantrell.com

***

Oh, Julia what a delightful post! I'm alternately intrigued (by your characters!), laughing, drooling, and sighing . . . I SO love that you have an organic farm--my fantasy. Including the compost, chickens and horses.C I loved that our Texas home bordered a very large ranch, and I could toss veggie/fruit leftovers to eager deer horses, cows . . . and goodness knows what else after darkness closed in!  And your pear pie: I can smell it from here. "Yummy scrummy" indeed!

Now for some extra fun, the fabulous Wynn-Wynn Media is offering a great giveaway package: A copy of When Mountains Move, a DaySpring mug, and some Tazo tea--ALL perfect accompaniments to a slice of that fresh pear pie!

To be included in the giveaway, please leave a comment below that includes your e-mail address. US entries only. The winner be chosen (via Random.Org) on Thursday September 26th and notified by e-mail.

Meanwhile, happy reading and . . . Bon appetit! 

Shampoo ala Mode: It's Peachy

Because I've had several requests for this recipe (and I'm busy packing for the ACFW conference), I'm going to repeat this post. Enjoy! 

***

I see that confusion on your face.

You're thinking, "What does shampoo have to do with ice cream and peaches?  Yes, I do enjoy teasing you. We'll get to the shampoo and ice cream. But first, let's start with the peaches. A yummy recipe you can tuck away for summer--and my husband's favorite:

Cobbler ala Calvert

4 cups sliced peaches, sprinkle with a Tbl. lemon juice (if using frozen peaches--2 pkg-- omit lemon juice)

Mix in med-lg. saucepan:

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 Tb. corn starch

1/2 cup water

1/2 tsp. grated nutmeg

Cook over med heat, stirring, until thickened

Add 1 Tbl. butter, 1 Tbl. Grand Marnier liqueur (optional) and sliced peaches. Cook 5 minutes.

In another bowl mix:

1 cup flour

2 Tbl. sugar

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

Cut in 1/4 cup cold butter until crumbly

then add 1 beaten egg and 1/4 cup buttermilk

Stir with fork til mixed

Pour peach mixture into deep pie pan

Spoon cobbler onto top of peaches in tablespoon size mounds

Bake in pre-heated 400 degree oven for approx. 25 min., or golden brown

Serve warm with vanilla ice cream--enjoy!

I like using sun-warmed summer peaches:

With a few yummy, rich extras:

While the peaches are simmering, mix the cobbler dough:

Spoon it onto the warm peaches and it's ready for the oven: 

Bake until golden--can you smell it yet?

And now for that ice cream . . . or in this case, gelato:

Be still my heart: Peach Cobbler--all you need is a spoon:

There you are.  Oh, what about the shampoo?  And what's that got to do with peaches?
Everything, in this romantic snippet from TRAUMA PLAN. 

Our hero and heroine enjoy a romatic sunset view overlooking a Texas peach orchard:

***

“Well . . .” He slid the blanket from under his arm. “Sun’s sinking fast now. Let’s find a spot without cactus and fire ants and get set for the show.”

Riley helped to spread the blanket and sat, not surprised that Jack settled close beside her. After the plane, the dancing, and sharing so much over the past couple of weeks, it felt natural. Visiting his hometown and this beautiful place made her want to know even more about him. Despite Jack’s reckless reputation—which he managed to bolster at every opportunity—Riley sensed some vulnerability when it came to his family. We have that much in common. 
“
There,” he said, pointing toward the west. “First streaks of pink. The peach blossoms are that same color. In March, sunsets are pink from sky to tree . . . to the shower of petals on the ground below. My aunt called it Ballerina Valley—not the best tactic to recruit a boy for orchard labor.”

“You worked here?” she asked, easily imagining him as a boy, sun-browned, scurrying up a ladder. “Picking peaches?”

“Picked them, ate them, pitched them. And squashed the mushy ones on my sister’s head.” Jack touched a fingertip to Riley’s hair, a smile teasing his lips. “I invented peach shampoo.”

***

Of course, you'll have to read the book to see how it all plays out.

And grab some of those summer's end peaches and surprise someone you love with a great dessert . . . I think you're going to enjoy both.

Meanwhile, I'm off to Indianapolis for the annual American Christian Fiction Writers' Conference. Where I'll have a chance to chat with readers, fellow authors, aspiring authors, agents, editors and other industry professsionals--including several folks you have welcomed here in the cyber kitchen!

Happy reading, friends, and . . . Bon appetiti!

Hot Dog! Guest Authors: Caryn Rivadeneira & Anita Lustrea

**Weds. Sept. 4th, 11:38 AM: Congratulations to our giveaway winner, Diana Montgomery! And thank you ALL for stopping by to make my guests feel welcome**

Today's guests are each sought-after writers and speakers in their own right, and have recently combined talents for their first work of fiction: Shades of Mercy has just been released. 

Please join me in a warm Authors' Galley welcome for: Caryn Rivadeneira and Anita Lustrea! 

Food Lies and Maine Truths

By Caryn Rivadeneira

I tell two lies about food.

The first: “I gave up Diet Coke.” True enough I no longer buy it by the case and stock it in my fridge, and I no longer consume it daily. But really? When I’m having one of those days, when I have too much to do and have gotten too little sleep, I’m off like a (sluggish) shot to get my $1 Diet Coke at McDonald’s—or better, the 69 cent Big Gulp Diet at 7-11.

The other lie: I never eat hot dogs. Once again, I don’t eat them at home—though I do buy them for my kids. But any time any one has ever offered me one, I eat it. With mustard, celery salt and a pickle, please. I am Chicagoan, after all.

So naturally, when my co-author Anita Lustrea invited me over a few weeks ago to plot out book #2 in our Maine Chronicle series and offered me a Diet Coke and a Maine red hot dog, I jumped the chance. But not before adding, “I never eat hot dogs ….”

To be fair to me, I’d been dying to try one of these fabled hot dogs ever since Anita and I started working on our book Shades of Mercy together. Though the red hot dogs themselves don’t appear in the book, they were one of many culinary tidbits I picked up about Maine during the process.

Before we began our project, I was as likely as the rest of you to think Maine and think lobster. Right?

Turns out, they eat more than lobster rolls in Maine! Who knew? Well, my co-author did. And throughout the book-writing process it was her job to write about the vast and varied culinary delights that hail from the northern most parts of Maine.

Though I’d tried few of these foods, all of them left my mouth drooling and made me wonder how on earth I might get my hands on and mouth around some of the delicious food we wrote about. Anita was gracious enough to share some recipes here.

Maine Baked Beans with Molasses ( Famous Saturday Night Bean Supper)

1 lb. beans (jacob’s cattle beans or yellow eye beans)

3 T brown sugar

Scant T salt

½ t dry mustard

2 cloves garlic minced

dash salt and pepper

either small piece of salt pork, or several slices bacon cut up and added, or 1 T bacon grease

¼ C molasses

⅓ C ketchup

Wash and pick over beans and discard imperfect ones. cover with water and soak overnight. Discard water and put beans in 4 quart or larger pot. Cover with water and add other ingredients. Bring to a simmer and keep adding water all day, do not let go dry. simmer for approximately 6 hours.

Serve with fresh homemade bread or warm rolls.

Paul Millar’s Molasses Cookies

1 C molasses

1 C brown sugar

1 C shortening, margerine, or half butter, half lard

2 eggs beaten

2 t vinegar

2 t soda dissolved in 2 T water

(mix together above ingredients)

5 C flour

1 t salt

2 t ginger

½ t cloves

(sift together all dry ingredients, then add to wet ingredients)

Let stand until cold, or overnight in refrigerator

roll out and cut into ¾ inch thick cookies

bake at 400 degrees 8-10 minutes.

It's 1954 and the world-even the far Northwoods of Maine-is about to
change. But that change can't happen soon enough for fourteen-year-old Mercy Millar.
Long tired of being the "son" her father never had, Mercy's ready for the world
to embrace her as the young woman she is-as well as embrace the forbidden love she
feels.

 When childhood playmates grow up and fall in love, the whole
community celebrates. But in the case of Mercy and Mick, there would be no celebration.
Instead their relationship must stay hidden. Good girls do not date young men from
the Maliseet tribe. At least, not in Watsonville, Maine. When racial tensions escalate
and Mick is thrown in jail under suspicion of murder, Mercy nearly loses all hope-in
love, in her father, and in God himself.

***

Thank you, Caryn and Anita--my mouth is watering after reading that recipe for baked beans! 

And now, on to the giveaway. The generous Wynn-Wynn Media has put together this prize package:  A copy of Shades of Mercy and a very cute (Pier 1)  lemon soap set for the kitchen. 

For your chance at the giveaway, please leave a comment below that includes your e-mail address.  The winner will be chosen (via Random.Org) on Weds. September 4th.  U.S. entries only, please. 

Meanwhile, happy reading . . . and bon appetit!