A must read companion for Sleepy Hollow

 
I got The Secret Journal of Ichabod Crane by Alex Irvine just in time for the first episode of Sleepy Hollow this season.  This was the perfect companion for the show, whether you are just starting or have been watching from the beginning.

Irvine has Ichabod's turn of phrase down.  This reads just like Ichabod talks in the show: formal, older language usage, older ideals.  You can hear him in every line and thought.

Those thoughts are what make this so great.  You get a different perspective on events in the show (I love NorthStar conversation).  The best part is the teasers.  There are little hints dropped throughout the whole book about what has already happened and things that may be coming up.  I saw one in the first episode of 2nd season (I'm not telling) and it made me go back into the book to look for more.  You will be finding yourself referring to the book for bits of information and referencing the illustrations throughout.  It just deepens the experience of the show.

If you are a fan of the show Sleepy Hollow, you NEED to get this book.  Trust me, you won't regret it.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

I got my Sleepy Hollow fix!

I am an avid viewer of the TV show, Sleepy Hollow.  While eagerly (and not so patiently) waiting for the new season to start, the novel Sleepy Hollow Children of the Revolution by Keith R. A. DeCandido came up for request with Blogging For Books.  How could I resist?  I needed a Sleepy Hollow fix, so I requested it and started reading the day it got to my house.

I am a happy camper!  Basically, Ichabod Crane and Abbie Mills have to locate the Congressional Cross that Ichabod was rewarded with (but never actually received) before it can be used to resurrect a nasty witch.  The plot is well written, with nice twists.  Flashbacks are clearly written and logically consistent.  It is very easy to figure out where in the first season of the show that this story fits in.  DeCandido does include historical notes at the end of the story, which is especially nice because he does specifically state where the book does fall in the first season.

The best part of the way this book is written is how DeCandido handles the main characters' perspectives.  When he is writing from Abbie's point of view, he uses very modern language.  When writing from Ichabod's perspective, the language and structure change completely to reflect a Revolutionary-era Englishman's speech.  This keeps with the flavor of the show, and adds to the idiom confusion that is so amusing in the TV show.

All in all, it is a good way to get your Sleepy Hollow fix.  I hope DeCandido writes more of these novels.  I'll be waiting....

"I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review."  

Bahn mi on my mind

 

I have been hearing about bahn mi (pronounced "bun mee") on all my favorite cooking competition shows for quite a while now.  It has always looked fabulous and made me VERY hungry.  When the opportunity to review "The Bahn Mi Handbook" by http://www.randomhouse.com/author/105105/andrea-nguyen came up, I had to jump at the chance.

A bahn mi is a Vietnamese sandwich with some serious French influence.  It is one of the most quintessential street foods you can find in any Vietnamese city.

This book is really comprehensive.  It starts with the author's personal history with the bahn mi and how the sandwich developed in the Vietnamese culture. It then goes on to cover everything you need to make a perfect bahn mi:  bread, sauces, pickles, mayo, cold cuts and other meats, and vegetarian fillings.  Many of the meat and seafood preparations look like they would be fabulous on their own and then the leftovers used in the bahn mi.  There is even a section on alternative ways to prepare your bahn mi, including as a salad.  All the recipes are easy to understand, and look REALLY easy to make.  I even think I could manage the pate. 

After finishing, I started plotting what I was going to make first.  I think my next weekend off I'm going to making some mayo and a jar of daikon and carrot pickle and go to my local Asian market for some Maggi Seasoning Sauce.  My sandwiches will never look the same again.

"I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review." 

"The Soda Fountain" - my first review

Welcome to the first (of hopefully many more) book reviews on my blog.  I hope you find it helpful.

The first book I'm reviewing is "The Soda Fountain" by Gia Giasullo and Peter Freeman.  "The Soda Fountain" is one of the best cookbooks I have ever read.  It starts with a great history of the soda fountain in the US, transitions into how the Brooklyn Farmacy & Soda Fountain came into existance, and then went straight into how to create the traditional soda fountain experience yourself.  The recipes are clear and concise.  I've made 3 of the syrups (blueberry, strawberry, and the raspberry, which I substituted blackberries) so far, and can't wait to try more.  The recipes span everything you need for any ice cream and soda treat you could possibly want, and all the techniques for an authentic experience are explained perfectly.  This book will forever have pride of place next to my SodaStream, and my freezer and fridge will be eternally stocked with items from this book.

Let me know if you pick this up and which recipes you try.  I will keep adding to this post with how the different recipes go.  So far the blackberry syrup is the favorite, with the other two I've tried being very well received.  Hope to hear from you all soon!

I'm Back!!!

I know it's been a while since I last posted, but things have been chaotic around here.  I have a new job, my son is now in middle school, and I'm just trying to breathe and not let my house turn into a pit.

I'm back with new ways to save.  I'm also going to be adding my journeys through getting my son to try new foods (he's pretty picky), and some book reviews.    I'm really getting into books about how to do things your self, like making soda or re purposing items for your house.  This blog is going to become more lifestyle oriented, but I will still be throwing in my tips on how to get the most for the least.

Come join the Zen!  I think it will be a fun journey that we can all take together.

It's birthday time!

Yep, it's coming up on my birthday. No, you don't need to know how old I am. I don't tend to dread my birthday each year, I am too focused on what is going to show up in both e-mail and my snail mail box. It is the month of FREEBIES!!! How is that possible? Let me show you the ways....

The first step starts about 2 to 6 months before your birthday. Go to EVERY site for EVERY restaurant, coffee shop, clothing store, and anything else you can think of and sign up for their e-mail lists. Most places that have e-mail lists ask for birthdate, and sometimes an anniversary or other significant date. That means that sometime in the month of your birthday, you will receive an e-mail or a postcard with an offer for your birthday. These offers can range from a free appetizer with an entree purchase, a free entree, a buy one get one free offer, a free dessert, a dollar amount off your purchase, or another offer. So far, I have gotten a free single scoop cone with purchase at Friendly's, a free appetizer with entree purchase at Carrabba's, a free one topping medium pizza at Hungry Howie's, a free grande beverage at Bigby, a $10 off coupon at Victoria's Secret card, and a $10 off coupon at the Express.

The second step is to read the fine print on ALL of your offers. You need to know what conditions have to be met to get your offer. Sometimes they have very limited dates that you can redeem in. Merchandise coupons tend to have restrictions on what you can and can't buy with the card. Sometimes the free item has to come from a certain part of the menu or can't exceed a certain value. Also, I have gotten pizza coupons that require you to pick up your pizza instead of having it delivered. If needed, go through the fine print and highlight the conditions so you don't forget them, or you can ask about them before you start making your purchase.

The third step is to keep your eyes open to maximize your purchases. Here's an example from what I've done so far with this year's freebies. As I said above, I received a $10 off a $10 purchase or more from both Express and Victoria's Secret. I discovered a few years back that the cards you receive from them in snail mail can be used twice - once online and once in the store. However, you do need to make your online purchase FIRST, because the stores take the card from you when you make the in-store purchase. So I found a 5 panties for $15 offer on the Express website, and got a clearance sweater from Victoria's Secret's website for $16.99. $10 off covered the shipping and handling and some off the purchase price. Not bad. Then I went to the stores and got a 5 panties for $26 deal at Victoria's Secret and a nice $19.90 top from Express. I also got the $10 off of those. Best guess, I probably spent about $40 for well over $150 worth of items. My kind of savings.

Long ago I decided that even as I get older, I can really look forward to my birthday because I can really clean up in the freebie department. By the time all my coupons are in, I can probably eat lunch or dinner free for at least a week and a half and get a nice amount of items free or greatly discounted from stores. I end up feeling a bit spoiled by all of it, but I will take it and enjoy a month of stuff just for me. Hope you have fun getting ready for your next birthday!

Gifting on the cheap

Sorry it's been so long between posts. Life is crazy, and it just gets crazier as the holidays near. Everyone is out looking for the perfect gifts to give, but a lot of people are strapped because of the economy. Freebies are harder to come by, so why not fill out your gifting with some home made gifts. There are recipes out there for everything from cocoa mix to spiced nuts. My favorite gift to give is home made marshmallows. Really, home made marshmallows. People still give me funny looks when I hand them some, but taste changes their tune soon enough. I've been getting requests from local friends for the recipe, so I'm going to post it here and put some of my own variations and tips and tricks at the end.

This recipe originally came from Family Circle magazine.

Peppermint Marshmallows

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup crushed candy canes or mint candies
1/8 teaspoon salt

1. Into a small bowl, sift together confectioners' sugar and cornstarch. Line a 13x9x2-inch baking pan with nonstick foil. Coat with nonstick cooking spray. Sift 2 tablespoons of the sugar-cornstarch mixture into the pan, tilting to coat sides. Leave any excess in the pan.
2. Place 2/3 cup water in a large bowl. Sprinkle with gelatin. Let soften 5 minutes.
3. In a medium-size heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat sugar, corn syrup, candy cane pieces and salt over medium heat about 7 minutes until sugar and candy are dissolved, stirring occasionally. Strain into bowl with gelatin.
4. Beat on high speed with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, 10 to 15 minutes. Spread into prepared pan and smooth top. Dust with 2 tablespoons of the sugar-cornstarch mixture. Let set at room temperature for 2 hours.
5. Lift marshmallow from pan using foil. With a wet knife, cut into 6 squares. Spread remaining sugar-cornstarch mixture onto a baking sheet. Invert marshmallow block onto sheet; cut each square in 9 pieces. Toss marshmallows in sugar-cornstarch mixture, and set on a pan to set an additional hour. Store, loosely covered, at room temperature.

Tips and Tricks
-Set EVERYTHING out before you turn on the heat under the pan with the sugar/syrup/candy mixture. Once that pan is on, you aren't going anywhere until it is melted.
-Try to work near a sink. When you go to strain the sugar mixture into the bowl with the gelatin, turn your faucet on hot and let it run. You will want to put the saucepan, strainer, and stirring utensil under that water as soon as you are done with them so the sugar won't turn into a rock.
-Use room temperature water for the gelatin. If the water is too cold, the sugar can harden before you start beating it.
-When you go to cut the marshmallow, dip your knife in COLD tap water before each cut. Otherwise your knife will stick and your cuts won't be as nice.
-You can forgo the cornstarch if you want to. Just be VERY liberal in your use of confectioners' sugar on your foil and on the marshmallows.
-If you are nervous about working with hot sugar and being sure that you are at the right stage, you can use a candy thermometer and heat the mixture until you are at soft ball stage (about 240 degrees). I eyeball it. The surface of the sugar should be bubbling briskly, and when you pull out your stirring utensil the sugar should be a nice liquid with no signs of any granular sugar left.

Variations
Wintergreen- substitute hard wintergreen candies for the candy canes. If you can find wintergreen candy canes, use those so that they impart a nice pale green color to the marshmallows.
Cinnamon- substitute hard cinnamon candies for the candy canes. I used the Brach's cinnamon candies that are the same size as Starlight mints. I'm sure you could use red hots also.
Caramel- substitute HARD caramels for the candy canes. I used Werther's. They will not come out quite as fluffy as any of the others, but the texture is still good.
Vanilla-substitute 1/2 cup granulated sugar for the candy canes, and in the last couple minutes of beating add 1 Tbsp of good vanilla extract.
Corn-free-This is a multi-step alteration. First, you will need to take granulated sugar and blitz it in a food processor to make your own confectioners' sugar, unless you know a brand of confectioners' sugar that doesn't use corn starch in it. Second, you will need to get either a rice syrup or a cane sugar syrup like Lyle's Golden Syrup to use instead of the corn syrup. Last, any flavoring or candy you use needs to be checked to make sure that corn syrup or corn alcohol are not ingredients.
Chocolate - Start off like you are making vanilla marshmallows. When you are nearing the end of your beating time, bring 4 Tbsp. of water to JUST bubbling, then add to a bowl containing 4 Tbsp. good quality cocoa powder. Mix to dissolve the cocoa in the water. Add the cocoa liquid all at once at then end of your beating time, and continue to beat JUST UNTIL they are combined. If you beat too long, the cocoa fats will make the marshmallow start to fall.

These are just the variations I have tried over the last few years. I'm planning new things to try when I'm not under the gun for gifts. Have fun, experiment, and let me know what wacky flavors you come up with!