My fickle friend, the summer wind

I don't like summer.

There. I said it.

Sure, I like the sun. Of course I love all the great produce. I'm all about the beach reads. But is summer my preferred season? Absolutely not.

This wasn't always the case: when we lived in Oregon and Washington I lived for summer. Then we moved to Arizona. Seems like a weird place for a gal who dislikes summer, right? Not really. It's only 3 months of the whole year that you're totally miserable and the rest of the year is incredible. Not to mention that summer brings entire weekends spent in the pool and monsoons that shake your house and thrill you to your fingertips. No, I really liked summers in Arizona.

The Northeast did me in. That's because I can honestly say I never experienced autumn until I moved here. It seems to me the world is really alive - with color, with flavor, with texture. My reading tastes change and I open up my cozier books - a good example of this was when I read Stephenie Meyer's Eclipse. It came out in August 2007, and I was reading it on the train in summer, reading all about the rain in Oregon. It was moody and atmospheric...just not the kind of book for a summer day. I got about 20 pages in and realized I needed to wait until November, at which point I read it and swooned. Among other books, right now I'm re-reading Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen. It's a horrible summer read (for me, anyway), but I am reading it in anticipation for the cooler weather to come soon.

Most importantly, though, I loathe summer here in New York because I don't cook. My kitchen isn't air-conditioned and it gets no airflow through its window. I made paninis for lunch yesterday and I was a sweating lunatic by the time it got to the table, the heat in my kitchen driving me to the brink. I'm all about the no-cook, no-heat, no-effort meals in the summer. Last night I made Berry, Goat Cheese, and Pistachio Salad (Bon Appètit, 2007) for dinner. It had phenomenal flavor...but I also felt dissatisfied by it because I didn't do anything other than assemble parts. That's what it comes down to: I'm tired of assembling parts. I want to cook, to create!

Tonight, the same lack-of-drama ensued. I made Patricia Wells' Cucumber, Spring Onion, and Goat Cheese Salad Le Cinq-Mars. It was fresh, crisp, and lovely. But for heaven's sake, I wanted to COOK. I loved it, I did. But is summer over yet? What's a gal got to do to roast some root vegetables???

Cucumber, Spring Onion, and Goat Cheese Salad Le Cinq-Mars

Adapted from Vegetable Harvest by Patricia Wells (William Morrow, 2007)

1 cucumber, scrubbed and trimmed

3 scallions, trimmed and peeled

Several tablespoons Creamy Lemon-Chive Dressing

2 thick slices of bucheron (you can also use 1 goat cheese crottin and split lengthwise in two)

1. Score the skin of the cucumber all along the vegetable, using a fork or (in my case) this zester. This just makes it pretty. Cut the cucumber lengthwise in half. With a grapefruit spoon or (again, in my case) this deseeder. Discard the seeds. Cut each half into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Place in medium bowl.

2. Cut the onions crosswise into very thin slices. Separate into rings and drop into the bowl. Add just enough dressing to lightly coat the cucumbers and onions.

3. Arrange the salad on individual salad plates. Place a slice of goat cheese on top of each salad.

Some notes: I served this salad with slices of ciabatta bread and dipping oil. Additionally, I made the full amount of dressing, which is way too much for this salad. But I thought I'd use it for another salad this week. So feel free to halve the dressing recipe.

Eat, drink, and dream about my wool sweaters, waiting to keep me cozy and warm!

And then there were books...

And lest you think I did nothing but eat on my vacation, here is a list of the books I read:

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - I FINALLY read it and it totally delivered. Yowza. Luckily, Jen (of Reading Rants) is hooking me up with Catching Fire this week.

Titanic's Last Secrets: The Further Adventures of Shadow Divers of John Chatterton and Richie Kohler by Bradford Matsen - It really leaned toward conspiracy theory, and I'm not quite sure I'm buying what they're selling. A fascinating read, nonetheless.

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen - Read this a second time. It

makes me feel calm when my life is in upheaval.

Omnivore's Dilemma: The Young Readers Edition by Michael Pollan - I didn't quite finish it yet...it's dragging for me...

I also got together with three of my favorite librarians: BJ Toewe, Karen Fischer, and Linda Bellock. These three women are the reason I'm blogging today, working as a librarian and in publishing. They work at Salem Public Library and took a chance on a 22-year-old kid with no library degree and not one ounce of experience with children. They hired me as a library assistant and, fast forward twelve years, here I am today. We got together for a delicious meal at BJ's house, overlooking a lake, sitting outside and laughing up a storm. It's glorious when you're able to go back to where it all started and be thankful for all your opportunities.

That said, we didn't really talk books: we gossiped. You know how librarians are...

Eat, drink, and bring a strong back on vacation to carry all your books.

Airline Food, Red-Wine Soaked Fried Bread, and Homegrown Stimulus

Once again, I find myself having to apologize for the dearth of blog posting lately. You see, I have a glittering, sparkling day-to-day life that often prevents me from writing as much as I like - I'm terribly busy and important doing any number of fabulous things.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

And as is customary when I've been absent awhile, everyone else has still been blogging. I have found all kinds of fantastic treasures in my Bloglines and email inbox:

• The List Universe has put together the Top 10 Most Overrated Novels. I'm down with Emma being on that list, especially when compared with Austen's other work. The listmakers got the right one; if they had stuck Sense and Sensibility on there I would have had some choice words for them. However...the Lord of the Rings trilogy?! They're out of their minds...or they're just as bad as those trolls that come along and say useless things with the sole purpose of pissing people off.


• I heard from Ellen at Avec Sucre...who heard from Clotilde...about this complaint letter sent to Sir Richard Branson regarding the food on a Virgin flight from Mumbai to London. Funny, funny stuff, my friends. Read it and weep.
  


• ALA has posted the phone calls made to the authors and illustrators for the Youth Media Awards at ALA Midwinter. Fun stuff! My favorites were Laurie Halse Anderson saying over and over, "Oh my goodness, oh my goodness!" and when hearing that she would be invited to be on the Today show Beth Krommes said, "I watch that show every morning!" For the record, I found Neil Gaiman's swearing hilarious!
  


• In yet another intersection of food and children's literature, Readers' Books in Sonoma has a fantastic display idea: "homegrown stimulus package." In addition to having child-friendly books like Tillie Lays an Egg and Extraordinary Chickens on display, they also have locally grown eggs and will soon have local produce and preserves. Talk about exemplifying the idea of community! Thanks to my daily Shelf Awareness email for that tidbit.
  


• I can't believe I'm admitting this but...I found a version of milk chocolate that I actually like. Café-Tasse has been my chocolate of choice for awhile (with Dagoba, Vosges, and Scharffenberger making cameo appearances). My favorite Café-Tasse bar has been the Noir-Café (dark chocolate with coffee); however, I unintentionally grabbed the Lait-Café last time I was at the store. Well, you heard it from me first: it's Really Good. Incredibly creamy, equally rich. And it doesn't taste all jacked up on sugar. Granted, I'm not converted - I'll still go for the Noir. But I will thoroughly enjoy the Lait while it lasts. (And this all reminds me of an article in the NY Times a year ago today about milk chocolate making a comeback. I scoffed a year ago but now...)
  


• I'm a geek and here's why: I get the email updates about Spain...On the Road Again. I've been watching the show casually and enjoying it. It would be so wonderful to make some of the food that they eat but I feel that part of the reason it looks and sounds so good is because it is local to Spain. I'm just not going to get the same freshness of produce and seafood here...because, you know, I'm in NYC in February. Nevertheless, I might have to try this recipe. To quote Mario: "Fried bread soaked in wine...dangerous." Indeed. Here's it is:

TORRIJAS

Serves 6

* 3 cups olive oil
* 2 cups dry Spanish wine
* 3 large eggs
* Eighteen half–inch–thick slices crusty Spanish bread (or substitute a baguette)
* 1/4 cup sugar, mixed with 1/4 cup ground cinnamon

* Mosto (recipe for Mosto follows below)

Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat until it reaches 365 degrees Farenheit. Meanwhile, pour the wine into a large shallow bowl, add the bread, and let soak for 8 minutes. In another shallow bowl, beat the eggs until well mixed. Working in batches, remove the bread from the wine, draining well, add to the eggs, and let soak for 2 minutes; drain well, add to the hot oil, and cook for until golden brown, about 1 minute per side. Drain on paper towels, then sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar, drizzle with mosto, and serve to friends.

Mosto: Boil 3 cups of dry red wine with 1 cup of sugar, a cinnamon stick, and a splash of fresh apple cider until it is reduced by three-quarters (it will be thick and syrupy). Allow it to cool, then store it in a clean wine bottle. Use whenever you need a sweet, grapey punch, in everything from a salad dressing to an ice cream topping.

• I have only very recently discovered the blog of my two new friends, Cindy and Lynn. They reviewed Dear Julia and I loved what they had to say. I hadn't made the parallel between Zemser and Joan Bauer but I think Cindy is right on.

Eat, drink, and beware of that food on Virgin...or any airline really.

What have you read lately?

I’m constantly plagued and haunted by how few books I actually get to read. I mean, if I were to be honest with myself, I really do read a lot…at least, I read a very realistic amount, given my life circumstances. Nevertheless, I always want to read more. In an attempt to calm myself down* by taking stock of how much I really do read, I’ll do a round-up of my reading lately:

- Rapunzel’s Revenge by Shannon Hale and illustrated awesomely by Nathan Hale

I’ve already heard some criticisms – a colleague thought the speech bubbles didn’t match the actions taking place in the same panel. I don’t know, though, I just didn’t see that. Anyone that has met Shannon Hale can attest to her fantastic wit and cleverness, and I’m so glad that she has created a book that allows her humor to shine. Nathan Hale’s art is stunning – in particular, there is a scene when Rapunzel is shut in her tower, and it shows the various stages of Rapunzel’s grief. It’s incredibly well-done: poignant and moving without being scary. Additionally, there are moments when Nathan perfectly captures Shannon’s wit and really brings it to life. As a librarian, I’m constantly looking for quality graphic novels for the younger set, and this is one of those. It’ll appeal to the adventurous 8-year-old and the more independent 16-year-old.

- Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

Just what the doctor ordered. It was enormously clever, and the social commentary was spot-on. That Jane Austen was cheeky! Pride and Prejudice gets all the love because of Mr. Darcy; even then, I believe most of that stems from one of the men on my Top 5 List: Colin Firth. But I digress… Life has been insane lately and, since I’ve felt so out of control, Sense and Sensibility was a cozy, timely, lovely reminder that everything always turns out just as it should be.

- I haven’t read these yet but I just have to share that one of my Favorite Publishing People, Ellen Greene at Harcourt, recently sent me a packet of books. There were all kinds of fun F&Gs but, being the darling person she is, she stuck in two paperbacks for me: Organic, Inc.:Natural Foods and How They Grew by Samuel Formatz and A Pig in Provence: Good Food and Simple Pleasures in the South of France by Georgeanne Brennan. Given how much I loved From Here You Can’t See Paris, I think A Pig in Provence will be right up my alley. Thanks to Ellen and here’s to hoping that she gets her cute self out to NYC soon!

- Because I’m all in love with Shannon Hale now (as if I ever stopped...well, okay, there was that Austenland misstep), I picked up Book of a Thousand Days, which I’ve had sitting on my desk for months. So far, I’m loving it, of course. But I’m also waiting for it to pick up – the premise has been set, now where are we going from here? I’ll keep you posted.

And that’s my book round-up for now. I’m already plotting my next book…I got invited to an event this Thursday night – it’s a panel discussion with Molly O’Neill, Judith Jones, and others discussing Julia Child’s influence on the culinary world. I can hardly wait. So I’ll most likely be picking up My Life in France next…

Eat, drink, and be well-read.

* aided by the glass of Sauvignon Blanc next to me – is there anything else to drink on a 90+ degree day with 60% humidity?