Blog
Fiction, Food, and Foolishness
Herbed Bread and author Ann Raina
Today, I welcome Ann Raina and feature her latest release, Famous Murders. She also shares a bread recipe…and Lord knows bread is one of my favorite things! If you like steamy romance, then check out her book! The recipe measurements are in grams, but I’ve included a conversion link.
FOOD
Ring-shaped Herb Bread
What you need:
40 g fresh yeast
1 tsp sugar
¼ l lukewarm water
500 g light wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tbsp oil
400 g raw ham
300 g onions (or 150 g dried onions)
4 bunches of mixed herbs (chervil, basil, chives, rosemary, thyme)
100 g pumpkin seeds
Also: 1 egg yolk, 3 tbsp milk
Here’s a link to convert grams to US measurements
https://www.convert-me.com/en/convert/cooking/
What to do:
1. Mix the yeast with the sugar and the lukewarm water and leave to rise for about 15 minutes.
2. Knead the flour with salt, oil, and the yeast mixture. Cover the dough and let it rise for about 30 minutes.
3. Dice the ham finely, peel the onions and dice them finely, too. Wash the herbs, shake them dry, and chop finely. Mix everything with the pumpkin seeds.
4. Knead the herb mixture evenly under the yeast dough. First, form a round loaf from the dough, then, starting from the middle, a ring.
5. Place the herb ring on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Whisk the egg yolk with the milk and spread it on the ring. Bake in the preheated oven on the middle shelf. Bake for about 30 minutes at 225°C in an electric oven (preheated).
FICTION
After three murders in the Washington, DC, vicinity, the FBI Agents Hayes and Beckham are assigned to solve the case. Although the murders seem incoherent at first, it becomes clear that there are connections between them. It turns out that the murderer is far from having reached the end of his deadly list.
Aside from the investigation, Agent Hayes has to find a way to get on with his demanding girlfriend and her challenging love games. Can he do both and not lose himself?
https://www.extasybooks.com/978-1-4874-2036-9-famous-murders/
Ann Raina on FB
https://www.facebook.com/ann.raina.7
FOOLISHNESS
scene from book one of the series – Twisted Mind
“Hell, Jason, can you for once be serious?”
Jason pursed his lips, and the flicker of amusement left his eyes. “She asked you to be frank from the first moment on, right? Right. She’s been frank with you and asked you about kinky games in the bedroom. It’s something she wants. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have asked. Why not play along? She’s fond of you, on the way toward coming to love you. Don’t think…too conservatively. As an FBI agent, you’ve learned to think outside the box. Only when it comes to a love affair, you want to do it strictly by the book? Get real! Jacklyn wants to have fun with you, and her fun includes some toys. As long as she stops when you…chicken out, you’ll both be fine.”
“Till the last sentence, I was close to believing you.”
Jason folded his arms and tried in vain to remain serious. “In my humble opinion, you’ve been overrun by her self-confidence so badly you’re still struggling to crawl out and get back in shape.”
“Right now, I see Wile E. Coyote.”
“You’re afraid she’s going to dictate every part of your relationship.”
“Isn’t it always like that? The woman controls the relationship? If she doesn’t want what the man proposes, you don’t stand a chance.”
Jason rolled his eyes and blew out air. “That’s too philosophical for lunch.” He continued eating his hamburger.
“So you think I should let her tie me up?”
Jason’s expression changed from amused to mock compassion. “Nick, if that woman screws you blind and sends you to heaven just because you’re tied up and gagged—why the hell not?”
Malak Desert Child Book Tour
dire poverty with her drunkard father and her Saharoui mother and
sister. Her enemies are all the towns children who victimize her and
her sister because of their race and condition. Her only friend is a
single mother named Latifa, and Malak´s grandmother Jeeda Hazzah who
dies of cancer.
children of the Zoco who she fights singlehandedly. This is a magical
and often mystical story of a young girl and the people she stumbles
upon, as she is rushed away by her uncertain destiny, to the land in
which her mother was born, the Sahara Desert. The unravelling of
Malak’s story is also the unsnarling of the web of intrigue
surrounding the North of Africa, and it´s peoples and history, and
the reasons for many current dilemmas in this land of witchcraft and
mystery.
child and is struck by her magnificent courage and beauty. After a
significant episode with her drunken father and his cronies, having
interceded on the family´s behalf, he flees with them on a stolen
high-speed cruiser heading for Western Sahara and freedom. In the
course of their errant journey, they are taken into threatening
custody by the Algerian police. Malak´s personality and mystic
nature make of her the flux in an adventure which begins as a race to
return her to her maternal grandfather´s family. A flight of mercy
will become a race against time as Malak and her friends take on the
impossible. In this, they enlist the help of many tribespeople. Some
tribes known to all and others lost in the wastes of the mysterious
desert and the annals of history.The story comes to an emotional and
pent up conclusion in the least expected possible fashion.
children of schoolteachers and were reared with English discipline, immersed in romantic
literature on the one hand, and a large local family of uncles,
aunts, cousins and a doting grandmother, who was Spanish from Cadiz,
on the other.
Rosia, and Europa point areas of Gibraltar engaging in childish games and
adventures, reading extensively books such as Enid Blyton’ adventure series, ‘Famous Five,’
‘Secret Seven,’ ‘Swallows and Amazons Forever,’ John Buchan and the ‘Gorbals Die-hards.’
Saturday mornings were a day for avoiding the displeased grimaces of
monocled and overweight colonels, delving and searching through the shelves of the old
Garrison library to discover new horizons, characters, and
stories. The journey of discovery that had begun with Baba the
Elephant eventually began to grow richer as the classics were devoured.
to defend Israel. Shortly after, the arrival of General Moshe Dayan at the gates of Cairo, signaled to the world
that Israel´s direst moment had been overcome. Paul, at the earliest time
possible, set off in a steamer from Tangiers, sailing to Southampton.
After a spell in London, he left the UK to discover his roots in Malta.
He alternated callings as a tour guide of Morocco and recoverer of
broken down rented cars in the desert, tour guide of south Spain and
eventually running a flamenco club on the Costa del Sol, in the days
when the Costa was still a new and exciting place to visit.
East and the Philippines, and when Perestroika and Glasnost finally arrived at the hands of
Mihail Gorbacheff and the Soviet Union was open, set off to discover
the East there. He studied Russian at St Petersburg and spent time
travelling to the Republic of Udmurtia, Kazan, Siberia and up an
uncharted river to meet Tribes that still lived in the area. Later to
Nizhny Novgorod and the South Volga, then to the Ukraine travelling from city to city,
falling more and more in love with the great Russian writers and
painters as he went. Seventeen years ago at the age of fifty, Paul
contracted renal cancer.
He was operated on successfully at the Bullfighters Hospital in
Pamplona in North Spain. Metastasis was practically impossible the
surgeons happily reported. Two years later the cancer metastasised to his lungs on which
he was duly operated, and half of his lungs were removed.
Later for reasons undefined he suffered strokes in both eyes and lost
partial sight in one eye and total in the left which he duly
recovered by swimming and praying. Seventeen years have gone by since
the renal cancer was first discovered, and seven years since his last operation and
travels, practises martial arts and fervently believes that the Lord
leads him by the hand. After leaving the hospital
he spent some time in Tangiers, hairless, gaunt and on crutches, but
enjoying the warmth and affection of many new friends there. Then off
to Prague to study filmmaking, made several shorts but finally
decided that he would first write and then make movies when the time came.
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Lentil Salad and a Bit of Romance
With summer right around the corner, it’s time to think about eating dishes that won’t heat up the kitchen! What better than a delicious salad? This is super easy and a great cool dish on a hot day. I hope you’ll give it a try. I intend to do just that! I want to thank Jana for sharing the recipe, and one of her books. Be sure and check it out, and follow her on all of her social media. Followers mean so much to authors!!
FOOD
Lentil Salad
This is one of my go-to recipes. I’ve taken it to many pot-luck dinners. Not only is easy to make and nutritious, it’s delicious. My family loves it!
19 oz. can lentils, drained
4 oz. crumbled feta cheese
1 red pepper – finely chopped
2 green onions – sliced
1 clove garlic – crushed
Dressing:
2 T. lemon juice
1 T. olive oil
¼ tsp. dried thyme
¼ tsp. each salt and pepper
Mix the first five ingredients together. In a small bowl, mix dressing ingredients together and then toss with salad. Chill before serving.
FICTION
Child of Mine
Lauren didn’t intend to sleep with her brother-in-law Cole on the day of her husband’s funeral. But now that she is pregnant, she’s not sorry. Cole’s given her a baby, a long-wished-for miracle. He’s been her friend forever, though she never told him or anyone else how unhappy her marriage to his cheating brother was. And she’s afraid to tell the small town that considered her husband a hero that the baby isn’t his.
Cole’s been in love with Lauren since he was sixteen. It kills him that everyone believes the baby is his dead brother’s. All he wants is to claim the baby, and Lauren, as his own. Though she marries him, will Lauren’s heart ever be his?
Lauren must tell the truth or risk losing Cole. Is her newly-discovered love for him greater than her fear of scandal in her hometown?
Buy Links:
The Wild Rose Press: https://www.thewildrosepress.com/books/child-of-mine-the-masonville-series-book-1
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Child-Mine-Masonville-Book-1-ebook/dp/B07MBVK9LY
Amazon.ca: https://www.amazon.ca/Child-Mine-Masonville-Book-1-ebook/dp/B07MBVK9LY
Amazon.uk: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Child-Mine-Masonville-Book-1-ebook/dp/B07MBVK9LY
Amazon.au: https://www.amazon.com.au/Child-Mine-Masonville-Book-1-ebook/dp/B07MBVK9LY
Amazon.de: https://www.amazon.de/Child-Mine-Masonville-Book-1-ebook/dp/B07MBVK9LY
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/child-of-mine-jana-richards/1130197427?ean=2940161413616
Ibooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/child-of-mine/id1449022684?mt=11
Kobo (Canada): https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/child-of-mine-16
Kobo (US): https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/child-of-mine-16
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Jana_Richards_Child_of_Mine?id=4WGHDwAAQBAJ
Walmart: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/child-of-mine-16
Jana Richards’ Social Media Links:
Social Media Links:
Website: http://www.janarichards.com
Blog: http://janarichards.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JanaRichardsAuthor
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/JanaRichards_
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/author/janarichards
Amazon UK Author Page: http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B002DEVWWG
Newsletter Signup: http://janarichards.com/contact.html#newsletter
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2892274Jana_Richards
Google+ Profile: https://plus.google.com/100820406211390323245
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jana-richards
FOOLISHNESS
This meme struck a cord with me because it’s so true! There are days I convince myself I have nothing to say. But mostly, I’m just lazy!
Like a lot of writers, I have a love/hate relationship with the act of writing, or at least with writing a first draft. Some days crafting that first draft makes my head want to explode. And then there are other days when I’ll do almost anything to avoid having to write. I’ve been known to clean my oven rather than write. It’s a wonder I ever finish anything!
But I do because, in the end, I love telling stories. And I love getting to The End.
Fiction, Food, and Foolishness
Today, I’m recommending a book I’ve just read. Star Island, by Carl Hiaasen. This is one of his older books, published in 2010, but it’s funny. If you haven’t read any of his work, check this one out.
The recipe featured today is one of my favorites. If you aren’t familiar with it, I hope you’ll give it a try. It doesn’t keep well so make sure most of it will be eaten the day you make it.
For the foolishness section today, I’ve added the SNL skit of Gail King’s interview with R. Kelley. It’s hilarious!!
As always, thanks for dropping by. I’d love for you to leave a comment.
Fiction
Meet 22-year-old Cherry Pye (née Cheryl Bunterman), a pop star since she was fourteen-and about to attempt a comeback from her latest drug-and-alcohol disaster.
Now meet Cherry again: in the person of her “undercover stunt double,” Ann DeLusia. Ann portrays Cherry whenever the singer is too “indisposed”– meaning wasted — to go out in public. And it is Ann-mistaken-for-Cherry who is kidnapped from a South Beach hotel by obsessed paparazzo Bang Abbott.
Now the challenge for Cherry’s handlers (über-stage mother; horndog record producer; nipped, tucked, and Botoxed twin publicists; weed whacker-wielding bodyguard) is to rescue Ann while keeping her existence a secret from Cherry’s public — and from Cherry herself. The situation is more complicated than they know. Ann has had a bewitching encounter with Skink, the unhinged former governor of Florida living wild in a mangrove swamp, and now he’s heading for Miami to find her . . .
Will Bang Abbott achieve his fantasy of a lucrative private photo session with Cherry Pye? Will Cherry sober up in time to lip-synch her way through her concert tour? Will Skink track down Ann DeLusia before Cherry’s motley posse does? All will be revealed in this hilarious spin on life in the celebrity fast lane.
Food
Seven Layer Salad
In a large bowl, place 1 head shredded lettuce. The bowl will be over half full.
Over the lettuce, add in layers:
½ cup chopped bell pepper
½ cup chopped celery
½ cup chopped purple onion
10 oz. frozen English peas, cooked and drained
Then spread 1 pint mayonnaise over salad
sprinkle 2 TBS. sugar over mayo
Add 4-6 ozs. Of grated cheddar cheese
Then top with 6-8 slices of crispy fried bacon.
Cover with plastic wrap, seal well, and refrigerate until served.
Foolishness
FICTION, FOOD,FOOLISHNESS with L.M. Hedrick
Today, I welcome L.M. (Lynette) Hedrick where she shares her recipe for Sourdough bread. She grew up listening to her mother Mattie’s stories about her WW2 love for US Navy Diver Charlie. She used Mattie’s 30 letters from Charlie, and together with her insightful editor/advisor husband, Bud, they completed extensive research to give reality to The Rigel Affair. Lynette has published multiple short stories for NZ magazines. Both Lynette and Bud have completed numerous Creative Writing courses at Auckland University. Lynette is an accomplished expressionist Artist, with works sold internationally. I hope you’ll try her recipe and follow her on social media. Here’s a link for conversion to US measurements.
https://www.gourmetsleuth.com/conversions/grams/gram-conversions
FOOD
Sourdough bread
A traditionally French shaped sourdough boule. Allow yourself about 3 –4 hours for the dough to be mixed, folded and shaped ready to place in the coldest part of the fridge to prove overnight.(If you are new to bread making, you can, instead of shaping the dough and putting it into a banneton, grease a 2lb bread tin liberally with butter, let the dough rise in it overnight in the fridge and then bake as per the recipe instructions below.)
Equipment:
A large mixing bowl
A round cane banneton
2 clean tea towels
A baking stone or a Dutch oven or La Cloche
A large heatproof pan, a sharp knife or ‘lame’ to slash the dough with
Ingredients:
300g water
100g sourdough leaven (made with your starter)
100g of stoneground organic wholemeal flour
400g organic strong white flour
10g fine sea salt mixed with 15g of cold water
25g rice flour mixed with 25g of stone ground white flour (for dusting your banneton)
Semolina to dust the bottom of the baking surface
Makes 1 loaf
Directions:
Late afternoon
Mix
In a large bowl whisk your water and starter and mix well. Add all the flour and mix until all the ingredients come together into a large ball.
Cover with a clean damp cloth and let the dough rest on the side in the kitchen for between 30 minutes and 2 hours – this what bakers call Autolyse
Fold
Add the salt mixed with the water and dimple your fingers into the dough to allow the salty water and salt to distribute evenly throughout the dough. Leave for 10 mutes.
Next, lift and fold your dough over, do a quarter turn of your bowl and repeat three more times. Repeat 3 times at 30-minute intervals with a final 15-minute rest at the end.
Shape
Shape the dough lightly into a ball then place into a round banneton dusted with flour (If you don’t have a banneton then use a clean tea towel dusted with flour inside a colander). Dust the top with flour, then cover with a damp tea-towel
Prove
Leave your dough to one side until it is 50% bigger then transfer to the fridge , and leave to prove there for 8 – 12 hours.
Bake the following morning
The next morning preheat your oven to 220°C for at least 30 minutes before you are ready to bake. Place your cloche or baking stone in the oven and a large pan of boiling water underneath (or use a Dutch oven). The hydration helps form a beautiful crust.
Once the oven is up to full heat, carefully remove the baking stone from the oven, taking care not to burn yourself dust with a fine layer of semolina, which stops the bread sticking, then put your dough onto the baking stone and slash the top with your blade. This decides where the bread will tear as it rises. Bake for an hour.
Turn the heat down to 180°C (and remove the lid if you are using a Dutch oven) and bake for another 10 -15 minutes. You need to choose just how dark you like your crust, but I suggest that you bake until it is a dark brown – it tastes much better.
Storage
Sourdough is really best left to cool completely before slicing and is even better if left for a day to let the full flavor develop.
FICTION
The Rigel Affair by L M Hedrick is a Chilling WW2 Thriller Novel with Rip-Roaring Romance!
Abandoned by his part-Cherokee Ma, Charlie Kincaid escapes servitude with his uncle. He jumps a boxcar, accompanied by his schoolmate Roxy, who is escaping troubles of her own. Charlie becomes a US Navy Diver.
Mattie Blanc is from a genteel New Zealand family. But when her brother’s friend persuades her to take a ride, it all goes horribly wrong. Desperate, she flees her family’s stifling expectations for a new life in Auckland.
After the 1941 Pearl Harbor attack, Charlie sets sail for Auckland aboard the USS Rigel. And there she is, the girl of his dreams. Mattie is everything that Roxy isn’t—sophisticated, tender, and patient. But the war intervenes… Rigel embarks for the Pacific war zones.
Charlie’s letters are sporadic. Mattie is tormented by doubts; did he truly love her, or was it only a dream?
The Rigel Affair produces a rip-roaring wartime romance and chilling danger unknown to most.
Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/Rigel-Affair-L-M-Hedrick/dp/1684331625/
Author Website: https://lmhedrick.com/
YouTube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMNYR28B5F0
Twitter page: https://twitter.com/lmhedrick
Author Blog: https://lmhedrick.com/homepage/blog/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/lmhedrick/
Instagram Page: https://www.instagram.com/lmhedrick/
Pinterest Page: https://www.pinterest.nz/lynette5567/pins/
LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/in/l-m-hedrick-88b822124/
Google Plus Page: https://plus.google.com/u/0/101171457191732133324
FOOLISHNESS
Moojie Littleman Book Tour
and uncontrolled mystical powers, Moojie is taken by his father to
his grandfather’s wilderness farm. There, Moojie meets an
otherworldly clan of outcasts that he wants to join. Following a
series of misadventures–magical and mystical–he is summoned by the
call to a great destiny … if only he can survive one last terrifying trial.
Moojie Littleman is being lauded as a classic. A haunting, visionary
tale spun in the magical realist tradition of Gabriel Garcia
Marquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude and Madeleine L’Engle’s A
Wrinkle in Time, the profoundly unique voice and heart-stirring
narrative recall great works of fiction that explore the universal desire to belong.
teachings. Born in Pensacola, Florida, she grew up in California,
accompanied by seven siblings, and surrounded by horses, real
cowboys, and the occasional rattlesnake. She has always been drawn to
helping others, a trait that began, to her mother’s horror, with
bringing home swallow chicks stricken from their nests. She has
worked as a journalist, lay minister, and infant massage instructor
for mothers and babies at risk. Her studies include Literature and
Creative Writing at University of California, Santa Cruz and Stanford
University’s Writer’s Workshop. She lives with her husband and
son in a Carmel cottage old enough to make you sneeze. “The
Improbable Wonders of Moojie Littleman” is her first published novel.
for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!
GUEST POST
A Life of Magical Realism: My Novel to Film Adventure
Not everybody likes award-winning movies. Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water won four
Oscars: best picture, best director, best original score, and best production design, but some
critics called it pedantic, shallow, unoriginal, and manipulative. It is no surprise that a film that
plunges into stark contrasts is also eliciting polarized reviews. Controversy seems to badger
great works. The novel of the same title, co-authored by del Toro and Daniel Kraus, hasn’t won
nearly the same acclaim as the film. But here’s why I’m happy: magical realism has finally found
a toehold in mainstream America. If the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has a
finger on the national pulse, it seems America is ready for stories that treat supernatural and
mythic themes as a natural part of life.
I’ve been drawn to mysticism and spirituality most of my adult life. During this time, I’ve
witnessed a number of healings (my own and others’)—from the common cold to terminal
cancer—without the aid of medical science. So-called miracles have become a natural part of
my life. As a writer, I am excited to build stories on this premise. With a little help from Charles
Dickens, I follow a tradition of subverting expectations and use irony to call into question social
and religious traditions. For example, in The Improbable Wonders of Moojie Littleman, I address
Pappy’s bigotry in a historic (and personal) context while showing him also as protective of biracial,
disabled, troublesome Moojie. On the other hand, Moojie, who is developmentally
challenged, is often wiser than Pappy and the adults around him. Another example can be found
in The Whale Rider. Paikea, the protagonist, is excluded from her grandfather’s search for the
next tribal chief because she is a girl, but she is more capable than any of his male candidates.
My greatest wish as a writer is to create stories that show characters subverting human
expectations by awakening to their divine nature. For the past year I’ve been working on the film
adaptation of Moojie Littleman, Book 1. Adaptation and screenwriting are completely different
from novel writing so there are a number of changes to the story, but the basic themes and
premise remain true to the book. My mentor, John Crye—writer, actor, producer, editor, and
former CEO of Newmarket Films (produced The Whale Rider)—is as excited about magical
realism as I am. While my screenplay is still in development, I credit John’s magnificent
oversight for this pre-production review:
“The Improbable Wonders of Moojie Littleman” is an emotionally powerful and viscerally
stunning fantasy with a fascinating and hard-hitting family drama not overshadowed by all the
spectacle. We are, with Moojie, entering a strange new world here where the incredible seems
possible. At the heart of the story is always his quest for belonging, a universal human drive that
resonates even in such extraordinary circumstances. The Light-Eaters are intriguing and
capable of holding our interest with both their capabilities and thematic nature. Nahzi is a
particularly breathtaking and memorable element. They are inspirational as well, and we can
see that it is Moojie’s time with them that helps him mature in the way that he does, whether it is
taking responsibility for starting the trouble, or telling Babylonia he loves her with the stirring
speech, “The day I met you, it was like I fell asleep and woke up in a better world.”—THE
BLACK LIST, Hollywood (Aug/2018)
Europe, Australia, and South America have long-embraced magical realism in art, literature, and
film. It is thrilling to see it finally recognized in America. Thanks to David Lynch’s legacy, and
other commercially successful films, like Being John Malkovich, Donnie Darko, and Edward
Scissorhands, the road has been paved for stories that normalize mythical, spiritual, and
mystical experiences. If you are drawn to films like this, you’re going to love the Moojie film!
Here are some magical realist films worth seeing: The Whale Rider, Beasts of the Southern
Wild, Amélie, Micmacs, The Delicatessen, The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey, and Pan’s
Labyrinth.
So it’s onward and upward! Time to get back to work. Just finishing the fifth revision of the
screenplay. Two more books in the works will complete a Moojie Littleman trilogy. I love hearing
from you. Whether you are parenting or writing or being the CEO of a national corporation, I
want to hear how you are following your dreams!
Ann Everett, Best Selling Author
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{I hope you enjoy this sweet, short-story romance!}