A few weeks ago, on the strength of a rather glowing review, I added Matt Haig‘s The Midnight Library to my bulging Kindle library. And although I never read books in the fantasy genre – well, I DID read Like Water for Chocolate once upon a time – I could not stop reading Haig’s bestseller, … More “Try Before You Buy”: Matt Haig’s “The Midnight Library”
On any given New Year’s Day, I start out, always, with the best of intentions. I resolve to carry through with certain goals/outcomes for the year. I think of New Year’s like the first day of school, with brand-new, blank pages in a notebook or gleaming white screens on a laptop. Full of promise and … More About Those New Year’s Resolutions …
Check this out — a recent cookbook all about Halloween, for kids young and old: Ghoulish Goodies: Creature Feature Cupcakes, Monster Eyeballs, Bat Wings, Funny Bones, Witches’ Knuckles, and Much More! (Frightful Cookbook), by Sharon Bowers (2009). Eat, drink, and enjoy the creepy yuckiness of Monster Eyeballs, Chocolate Spider Clusters, Buried Alive Cupcakes, and Screaming … More Saints, Souls, and Haints: Ghoulish Goodies
This is the last post I plan to write for “Gherkins & Tomatoes.” At least for a long while. After almost 10 years, it’s time to fold up the tent, so to speak, and move on. Thank you, all of my regular readers, for stopping by, I’ve loved getting to know you and sharing opinions. … More Lauren Groff’s “Florida”: Nurturing Noirishness
“Anyone can cook anything and make it delicious.” That’s what chef/teacher Samin Nosrat promises, right up front, page 5, in her stunning debut – Salt Fat Acid Heat. Everybody loves an optimist. And I count Ms. Nosrat among that merry band of people, those who amble through the world with a smile on their faces, their … More A Pinch of Alchemy: Samin Nosrat’s Salt Fat Acid Heat
I love food from India, I mean, I really, really do. And so when I had a chance to review Madhur Jaffrey’s latest, well, what could I say??? Heck, YES! Here’s my review, of a marvelous book, on that wonderful new magazine from the U.K. – Modern Salt: MADHUR JAFFREY’S “VEGETARIAN INDIA: A JOURNEY THROUGH … More Madhur Jaffrey’s “Vegetarian India”: My Review on the”Modern Salt” Site
Several years ago, I set up an informal experiment with an observation of two: in my tiny two-person household, I cooked and ate only Indian food for one month, relying heavily on cookbooks by Julie Sahni and Madhur Jaffrey. I felt terrific, with more energy and alertness than I knew what to do with. Of … More The Wonder Spice: A Review of Turmeric, a Cookbook by Colleen Taylor Sen and Helen Saberi
I know, I said my last post was the last until after Christmas, but I wanted to share something with you this bright sunny day. Not long ago, some people who write the remarkable web site “Female & Fungi” contacted me about my book, Mushroom: A Global History. They wanted to know more about the … More Mushrooms at Female & Fungi