Spicy, Sweet, & Smoky Barbecue Sauce | The Talented Ribkins

Welcome to the TLC Book Tours stop for The Talented Ribkins, debut novel by author Ladee Hubbard! I'll start by saying that after reading the book jacket, there were two initial things that made me want to read this novel. The first being mention of the characters having "superpowers", the second being the reference to W.E.B. Du Boi's essay The Talented Tenth. (Which, if you haven't read it before, I recommend checking out The Talented Tenth just before or after reading The Talented Ribkins.)

Pimiento Cheese | The Hideaway

Welcome to the TLC Book Tours stop for the first novel by Lauren K. Denton, The Hideaway! Although bits and pieces (pun totally intended if you read this) of this story are set in New Orleans, the majority of it takes place in a charming little town in Alabama called Sweet Bay.

Toaster Potatoes and Homemade Ketchup | The Martian #FoodnFlix

This month's Food 'n Flix pick is the 2015 Science Fiction/Drama flick, The Martian. If you're not familiar with the story, it's about astronaut Mark Watney's struggle and perseverance to survive after, presumed dead, he is left alone on Mars. Watney's smarts and good humor ensure that, while long, the journey is not boring.

Slow Roasted Yellow Cherry Tomatoes w/ Garlic & Marjoram

Tomatoes in March you ask? Why yes...tomatoes in March. Not something usually associated with the midwest in wintertime, I know. Well, unless you count the rows of jarred, canned, and dried tomatoes in many forms that line many a pantry. Like mine. I'm really not willing to go without tomatoes half of the year. Sure, I can be found breaking down and buying some Roma's from the market from time to time, as well.

Pan-Seared Salmon w/ Mixed Greens Pesto & Lentil Black Rice Salad

Today is the first Friday of the Lenten season, and in honor of that, Leslie and I are sharing fish and seafood recipes for today's edition of She Made, Ella Hace. So, here's the thing—I wasn't raised Catholic (and I'm not Catholic now), so I've never done the whole abstaining from meat on Fridays during Lent thing. And while my husband was raised Catholic, he's not a practicing Catholic now.

Pineapple Cranberry Chutney + Eat Like a Gilmore Cookbook Review

Happy Wednesday, and welcome to this week's edition of the Gilmore Girls coffee klatch! In anticipation of Netflix's Black Friday release date of Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, Chef Sarah Elizabeth and I have been binging and the discussing the original seven seasons and sharing recipes inspired by the show for almost 2 months now.

Since I binged like a champion, I've been done for a couple of weeks now. So, while I may have shared my thoughts on the series finale last week, my Wednesdays are reserved indefinitely for hanging with the girls. I'll pull ideas from random (and often seasonally appropriate) episodes and share other random Gilmore Girls inspired fun.

Chili Cheeseburgers | Fright Night meets 'Salem's Lot

Welcome to another round of the All Vampire Book and a Movie Challenge! Our assignments this month were Fright Night (the original) and 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King. The connection between these two stories comes in the form of two young men who discover discover and try to fight the vampire(s) that is killing the people in their hometown. Coincidentally, both of their love interests are turned, though with different outcomes, and a once-empty house that is now occupied by a vampire.

Crawfish Calas w/ Green Garlic Mayonnaise | Interview with the Vampire

Welcome to another edition of the All Vampire Book and a Movie Challenge! Our pick for June was Interview with the Vampire the book by Anne Rice and movie adaption, its screenplay also written by Anne Rice. Before this month, I only remember watching the movie in its entirety once, probably 20-ish years ago, around when it was released. Over the years I've caught bits and pieces on tv every once in a while, but I knew it would be like seeing it for the first time when I sat down to watch it again. This was my first time reading the book (or any of Anne Rice's books, actually).

The Book (1976):

Divided into 4 parts, this story begins in modern day. Louis, a 200-year old vampire is about to tell his story to a reporter (referred to as "the boy" throughout the book). His vampire life began in 1791 in his hometown of New Orleans. A plantation owner who cares for his mother, sister, and younger brother, he becomes distraught after the death of that brother who he "believed to be a living saint". Feeling guilty over his death, he's lost the will to thrive, and his choices began to show that. He "lived like a man who wanted to die but had no courage to do it himself", passing out in cabarets, walking dark streets and alleys alone and wishing to be murdered until one night he was attacked by a vampire named Lestat.

Mahi Mahi Burgers Glazed with IPA-Hoisin Barbecue Sauce | #BeerMonth

Although I don't limit cooking with beer to once a year, I always look forward to April when Sophia from NY Foodgasm holds her annual #BeerMonth event! There are so many varieties and producers of beer, from big box to the small artisan, that I love seeing which one everybody cooking along will choose to use and what flavors they will be paired with.

I chose a hoppy Lagunitas IPA to cook with today. For anytime drinking, I normally gravitate towards stouts, porters, or dark ales, but when I'm in the mood, I can drink the heck out of something really hoppy and "bitter". This particular IPA, made with 43 different hops and 65 various malts, is a bit carmely and very easy to drink. It cuts fatty or heavy components of a meal easily, making it a nice accompaniment to a meal.

Honey Orange Spice Blend | #DominoHoneyGranules

Thank you Domino® Honey Granules for sponsoring this post. Visit your local retailer to pick up your own package and start sprinkling sweetness today!

January and February are usually my default down time when it comes to menu planning. After three fast and furious months of holiday inspired food, those couple of months are a welcome relief. But once the snow has melted and green starts to replace brown, and birds are chirping and tease outside my window, the itch returns. Those signs of rebirth signal not only the start of spring, but the return of the get-together. And that means menu planning!

While the first day of spring and St. Paddy's Day are both reason enough to celebrate, Easter plans usually wind up taking center stage. This is probably because it's really the first extended family get together of the new year. For as long as I can remember, we've eaten ham on Easter. Where our fall and winter holiday menus tend to be extensive, the ideas of a new beginning and spring cleaning seem to prevail this time of year.

Apricot Riesling Mustard

I have a wee addiction to condiments. My collection of homemade, gifted, and storebought jars and bottles always get to a point where they've taken over both the pantry and refrigerator shelves. I know something's got to give when I can't find a space to put any actual food (aka, food that isn't a condiment), yet there doesn't seem to be anything to eat beyond a mustard and jam sandwich. But it would be a sensational Spicy Mango Mustard and Vanilla Moscato Peach Jam sandwich!

Now is one of those times. This amazing batch of homemade mustard was the tipping point—the absolute last jar I could squeeze into the fridge. But it was worth it. Yellow mustard seeds plump overnight in a sweet Riesling wine before they get a blitz in the food processor. The crazy heat of the mustard is mellowed by the addition of some good apricot jam.

Soft Pretzel Sticks with Spicy Mustard Sauce

I recently went on a scavenger hunt with my main objective being to find something sparkly. That's right, I said SPARKLY! Why, you ask? It's all due to a not-so-secret secret society called blogger C.L.U.E.. I was given a blog to rummage around in and get familiar with, and since I already "know" the brains behind this blog, I a wee bit worried about finding something sparkly. When I think Debra, and her blog, Eliot's Eats, I think down to earth...I think from the earth...I think seasonal produce.

But, even though I couldn't recall ever seeing a bubble, a shimmering coating of sugar, or a colorful smattering of sprinkles adorning her food, I was on a mission to dig up some sparkle. I was moments away from turning her Maldivian Scrub into a sugar scrub...adding my own sparkle, if you will. But I decided that was changing things up a little too much (our goal is to stay fairly true to the original recipe). I worried that adding sugar and oil (and removing rice flour) may be too much fiddling. But I still plan on making it. This frigid, dry weather has my skin begging for a little resort getaway (at home).

So, I set forth once more. I didn't look far before I the answer was staring me in the face—pretzel sticks gleaming with the twinkle of sea salt. Done. Finito. Acabado.

Pickled Cranberries and a Dirty Cranberry Gibson

The cranberry-madness still has a hold on me. I seriously can't enough. Anytime time I make something, I stop to wonder if cranberries would go well in it. Over the years, I've always had at least two or three bags of cranberries in my freezer at any given time. Right now I have zero, and it's making me a little uneasy. I'm worried that next time I go to the market, they'll be all gone—that I'll have missed my chance for the season.

Since that hasn't happened yet, I'm just gonna go with the flow. So,  you know how Food Network Magazine has those awesome little inserts every month? They have titles like "50 Pies", "50 Potato Salads", "50 Super Bowl Snacks", "50 Smoothies", "50 Things to Make with Bacon"... those may be my favorite part of the whole magazine. I have a ton of them (okay, not a ton—but at least 27) stacked on my working bookshelf. They full of great ideas and inspiration. You probably know where I'm going with this.

Yes, there was one on cranberries. It was in the November '14 issue, and titled (surprisingly) "50 Things to Make with Cranberries".  I'm thinking of trying all 50. Maybe that will make my little obsession disappear. Today, I'm checking two off the list—pickled cranberries, and the cocktail that they tumble perfectly into.

Roasted Grapes with Thyme

I went back and forth for a few days trying to decide whether or not to share this recipe today. I mean, it's roasted grapes—that's it. Simple to make, no big frills, no huge backstory. Just roasted grapes. For all I know, I was the last person on the face of the earth to actually make (or try) them. I've seen them floating around in one form or another for a number of years now. I've been meaning to make a batch. I finally did. They're everything I thought they would be. I didn't roast them alongside a chicken or a pork roast. I didn't press them into any focaccia dough. I didn't toss them with some perfectly cooked tender grains. They're just grapes, but they're totally worth sharing. Because maybe I wasn't the last person in the world to try them.

It's usually the simple pleasures that delight me the most. I'm constantly amazed by the product of time and temperature. Slowly simmering fruit and a bit of spice can yield a jar of rich, silky fruit butter (like this Cardamom Pear Butter). Roasting broccoli and cauliflower takes both of those humble veggies to a whole different level. Pureed fruit and a low, slow heat produces chewy and sweet fruit leather. Duck legs wiling the day away in a bath produce meat so meltingly tender it just falls into your fingers at the lightest touch (like these Asian-inspired Braised Duck Legs). Nothing more than time, steady heat, and its own rendered fat can turn pork into the most flavorful Carnitas you'll ever taste.  It's kind of amazing.

Roasted Buttercup Squash & Tahini-Yogurt Dip

Somehow, we've already reached the halfway mark of the Twelve Weeks of Winter Squash. Today kicks off week numero six! My personal goal is to use a different squash each week than I've featured so far this year. That means no more pumpkin or butternut squash recipes. Sadly it also means no more spaghetti squash. I can't guarantee inspiration won't take control and wind up requiring one of these varieties, but I'm going to try my best.

As of today, I can officially check buttercup squash off of my list, too. I like working with buttercups because they're fairly manageable—smallish (for a winter squash), thinner skinned, seeds scoop out easily. Once cooked, their flesh is creamy and sweet (though not as sweet as a butternut); it also tends to have less moisture than a lot of other varieties.

Yesterday I was looking for something to munch on while doing all of my Sunday-things—laundry, dishes, housework, prep for the upcoming week...last minute oh-I-just-remembered homework. I found a recipe from Food & Wine for a dip made with butternut squash and decided to switch it out for the buttercup I had hanging out on the counter. With a few other minor adjustments, I had my munching food.

Cardamom Pear Butter + Castello Aged Havarti Cheese Pairing

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Castello® in conjunction with Honest Cooking. All opinions are my own.

I've often waxed poetic on the subject of cheese, otherwise known as  my ultimate weakness. I could live on cheese plates alone. You know, because they're always accompanied by other good things like bread or crackers, fruits and nuts, slices of charcuterie, perfect little condiments, and of course, alcohol. Nibbles and tastes, turn into swoons and flutters, turn into claiming a cheese tray as my dinner plate. Really, what more does a person need?

I could blabber on and on about the virtues of a well thought out cheese plate, the kind that includes several cheeses and an array of complementary food and drink. Today I'm partnering with Castello® as part of their #CastelloArt campaign, so I'm going to do something a little different and feature a single cheese—Castello® Aged Havarti.

"Castello® Aged Havarti is based on the authentic Danish recipe for Havarti dating back to 1952. Made from traditional cheese methods with the addition of a special culture, the Castello® Aged Havarti is then matured for 12 months.

Maple Almond Butter

Last year for Mother's Day, I shared some Lavender Shortbread Cookies that were inspired by my mom's dreams of running a lavender farm. This year, I decided to go in a slightly different direction and share something I love for Mother's Day. I mean, I'm a mom - so that's okay, right?

It's something that (in my house) I, and I alone, love: almond butter. That's a good thing and a bad thing all wrapped into one little glass jar. It's good because that means I don't have to go thorugh the experience of craving some, and then going to grab the jar only to realize that it's no longer there. Because somebody else ate it all and didn't tell me so I could replace it.  It's bad for the exact same reason. It's there waiting for me to eat it. All. Every single time I walk by and spy it on the shelf or in the fridge. Oh, let me grab a spoon...

Really. I do that. It's entirely addictive. But in all fairness, I do the same thing with cookie butter. And chocolate hazelnut spread. Apparently I enjoy eating expensive spreadable things from a jar.

Chilled Shrimp w/ Romesco Sauce

I know this is kind of weird, but chilled shrimp reminds me of Christmas. I've told the story before, but in case you haven't heard it, I'll fill you in. Ever since I can remember, my extended family has always come together at my grandparent's house during the holidays. Now, inevitably life happens, and there are years when you just can't make it. But the thing is, you always know what you're missing. Our routine...or maybe tradition is a better word...has never strayed too far year to year.

Does everybody love their grandparent's house? I mean, the people themselves, of course - but the house itself? Because I do. I've always dreamed of having a house just like theirs. Only updated and in a different location. It's a split-level ranch and though it may not look like it from the outside, has tons of space. So, although the family has grown exponentially, we all still fit nicely.

But anyway, the dining room has one wall that is filled by sliding glass doors that lead out to the back yard. Since they live in Michigan, there's not much call for opening them on Christmas Eve (you know, it's freezing and snowy outside), so the vertical blinds are closed and a table is butted up against the space, turning it into a wall. This table holds platters piled high with sliced ham, baskets of hawaiian rolls, trays of veggies with bowls of dip set in the center. Scalloped potatoes, dips both hot and cold, piping-hot bacon-wrapped water chestnuts, and the pièce de résistance - a giant dish filled to the gills with delicate pink shrimp and a bowl of cocktail sauce.

Orange-Fig Jam

When it comes to my slow cookers, the thing that they are most often filled with is meat; big roasts or a pile of chicken thighs. Or it's filled with soups, stews, or chili. Unless it's the holidays, then there is probably some mulled wine taking up residence. I have made cake in my slow cooker. Once. And okay, my small one often holds some sort of warm dip. But they are capable of so much more!

And since our Sunday Supper theme for this week is Slowly Bringing in the New Year, I decided that now was the perfect time to veer off the path, and use my slow cooker for something that I've never used it for in the past - jam. It makes sense to make jam in a slow cooker, if you think about it. The low, steady heat prevents scorching.

Figs and oranges go together like peanut butter and chocolate. And the scent of them doing their thing in the corner of the kitchen is bound to put a smile on your face. And warm you right up if it's as cold where you are as it is where I am (it's supposed to be anywhere from -40 to -56 overnight with the wind chill). You know, as long as you don't actually set food outside.

Currywurst Mit Pommes

The first time I tried Currywurst was just over six years ago on the streets of Germany in my teensy-tinsy kitchen.  I was in the throws of a lounge-chair-vacation (tell me lounge chair doesn't sound better than lawn chair), issue 101 of Saveur in my hands.  If I remember right, it was just a small article, probably only a one-pager.  But that small article was my introduction to the most popular German fast food, Currywurst.

The thought of sausage sitting in a pool of curried tomato sauce, alongside french fries, would haunt me for days.  Until I finally made it.  It continues to haunt me.  I will get random cravings for Currywurst a few times a year.  And no, they don't just go away.  I have to actually make a batch.

I've tweaked that original recipe here and there over the years to find one that is perfect (in my mind).  But the thing is, I've never tried any Currywurst but my own.   But I know in my heart of (German) hearts that it's the real deal.