I first heard about Gail Honeyman’s novel Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine when someone suggested it for one of my book clubs. I jotted it down, added it to the poll for September, hopped on the library wait list (just in case), and didn’t think much more about it. I’m actually glad I came into it with no real expectations because the whole experience turned out to be a pleasant surprise.
Eleanor Oliphant has worked in finance in the same small company her entire career. She is socially awkward and a bit of a curmudgeon, who is very reliant on her routine. A routine which includes eating pasta with pesto for dinner every night and drinking vodka until she passes out most weekends. Despite all of her peculiarities, Eleanor on the page is quite charming. My heart warmed to her, and I found myself laughing out loud on several occasions.
I’m excited to see what the rest of the book club thinks of Eleanor. I hope they enjoy her as much as I did! And while we chose to visit an Irish pub for our book discussion (as close to a British pub as we could find), I opted to make Eleanor’s favorite staple for today’s post – pasta with pesto.
I very much doubt she makes her own, but I couldn’t exactly plop some store bought pesto onto some pasta and call it a day. (However, if I had to make a recommendation for store bought pesto, I quite enjoy Trader Joe’s Pesto alla Genovese.) The pesto recipe I chose was so easy and delicious though, that I’ve been thinking of taking up my herb-growing again, just so I could have an abundance of basil and make this more often.
Best of all, it uses walnuts which are much more affordable than pine nuts – I think Eleanor would approve of that choice. To start, I toasted the garlic until it had some little brown spots.
Then, I moved them out of the pan to cool and toasted the walnuts as well. While those cooled, I assembled the rest of my ingredients – basil, parsley, grated parmesan, olive oil and salt and pepper.
I added everything to my food processor and blended everything until smooth.
I ended up having to add just a touch more olive oil, but use your best judgment as it comes together. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper if necessary.
I tossed some ribbed penne pasta (great for the pesto to cling to) with my freshly made sauce, dished it up and topped with some extra parmesan cheese for good measure.
Use your pasta of choice, and if you have any leftover pesto, it will keep in the fridge for a short while, or it can be frozen. Enjoy!
Toast the garlic cloves in their skin in a small skillet over medium heat, shaking often, until brown spots form, about 5 minutes. Remove to a small bowl to cool before peeling.
Meanwhile, return the skillet to medium heat and add walnuts. Toast until fragrant, 5 to 10 minutes, shaking frequently to prevent scorching. Remove from heat.
Combine peeled garlic, walnuts, basil, parsley, parmesan cheese, and olive oil in a blender or food processor; blend until smooth.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Serve as a topping on pasta (3/4 c. pesto per pound of pasta), as a spread on sandwiches, or as a garnish to soups.
Before I get started on today’s post, I want to announce the winner of my first ever Hungry Bookworm Giveaway, in honor of my 1 Year Anniversary (which I still can’t get over!). But, without further ado…
Congratulations, Laura!
I’m so happy to have made your day with your win. Your copy of Pachinko has already shipped, and you should receive it soon! (More details emailed to you as well.) Thank you to everyone who participated, subscribers new and old! It is much appreciated, and I hope you continue to enjoy my posts week after week. 🙂 Now onto another review and recipe!
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While usually I got to my own to-be-read list when picking book club selections, sometimes I try to be a little more open-minded. In this most recent case, I stumbled upon a Buzzfeed list that sounded like a perfect fit for book clubs – Books You Won’t Be Able To Stop Thinking About usually equals good discussion. As a bonus, I’d already a handful of them and liked most of them, so I filed it away for future use.
I don’t remember exactly what prompted me to choose Geek Love, but that’s how we got here. Katherine Dunn’s novel tells the story of an extremely unique family. At best, the Binewski family runs a traveling carnival and unique is probably a generous understatement. The parents, Al and Lil, despise “norms” and stop at nothing to breed their odd children, who go on to become acts in the Binewski freak show. Though many of the children died in the attempts at their creation, five remain. Arty, also known as Aquaboy, has flippers instead of hands and feet. The twins, Elly and Iphy, are conjoined. Chick, though a disappointment at first, is discovered to have telekinetic powers. And Olympia, our narrator, is a hunchbacked albino dwarf.
Like a car accident, I often wanted to look away, but I couldn’t help myself. It was gruesome and unbelievable, and honestly, so incredibly imaginative on Dunn’s part. It’s hard to explain many of my reactions to the book without sharing plot points, though a lot of it had me going, “Wait, what?” It wasn’t perfect, and I didn’t love it, but like the list that drew me to it, I will definitely never forget this one.
Though food was only mentioned in the periphery, as Dunn described the hustle and bustle of the midway, you could almost smell the freshly-made popcorn and the sugary-sweetness of the cotton candy. I went with a Sharp Cheddar Cheese Popcorn recipe to serve at book club, alongside the rest of the snacks, and later on I made some blue-ish Cotton Candy Ice Cream to accompany the book as well.
Both recipes were really quite easy, which is always nice. To start with the popcorn, I popped a half cup of kernels on the stove top just by following directions on the container itself.
Then, I combined the butter, garlic powder and salt in a saucepan, allowing it to melt. Once it began to simmer, I poured it over the popped popcorn, as directed, and stirred until it was all well-coated.
Then, with the popcorn on a sheet pan, I covered it with freshly grated extra sharp cheddar cheese and placed it in the oven under the broiler for a few minutes until the cheese was melted. I transferred most of it to a bowl (and snacked on the rest until everyone arrived!) and served it up.
The cotton candy ice cream was significantly easier than the Earl Grey Ice Cream I had made just before trying this recipe. If you’re looking for an easy way to get into the ice cream game, I’d recommend this one – it’s basically foolproof.
First, I combined the sugar and milk with a whisk, until the sugar was dissolved. Then, I added the vanilla, whipping cream and cotton candy syrup. (I used a pink syrup, and since I wanted it to be blue, I also added some blue food coloring in this step.) Once the mixture was well-combined, I poured it into my ready-to-go ice cream attachment and let it do its thing.
After 30 minutes, the ice cream was done…except that I prefer it to be a bit more on the hard side, so I stuck it in the freezer for a handful of hours before I actually was able to dig in. It was nothing like the ice cream I’d made before – where that was dense and rich, this was airy and light in flavor. Initially, I wasn’t sure I liked it as much, but the more I ate, the more I enjoyed it. Light and airy is exactly how cotton candy should be, regardless of if you’re eating the candy itself or an ice cream version of it. I ended up loving it 🙂
In a small saucepan, combine butter, garlic powder and salt. Melt butter and heat until starting to simmer.
Pour butter over popcorn. Stir until all popcorn is evenly coated.
Spread popcorn on a sheet pan, sprinkle with finely shredded cheese (I used a microplane zester to shred mine). Stir it around until evenly distributed.
Place rack in the center of the oven and turn broiler to low. Cook popcorn until cheese is melted (about 2-3 minutes). Watch carefully so it does not burn.
½ cup cotton candy syrup (I used Jelly Belly Cotton Candy Syrup)
1 tsp vanilla extract
food coloring (optional)
Directions
Before mixing ingredients, be sure that your chosen ice cream maker is ready to churn ice cream (attachments frozen, ice added, etc).
In a medium bowl, whisk together milk and sugar until sugar is dissolved.
Pour vanilla, heavy whipping cream, and cotton candy syrup into the bowl and whisk until combined.
If using food coloring: Depending on the brand of cotton candy syrup you used, the mixture might already have a pink hue. If you’d like the ice cream to be pink, keep this in mind – you won’t need to add much pink food coloring to get your desired color. If you’d like the ice cream to be another color than pink, don’t worry – as pictured, I used blue food coloring, and only had to add a few drops to achieve a nice light blue color. No matter what color you’re using, add the food coloring slowly (one drop at a time) and whisk thoroughly between each until the desired color is reached. Also, the hue of the cream should be a few shades darker than the color you’d like the final ice cream to be, as the whipped and frozen cream will appear lighter. TIP: If you’re still worried how your chosen color will look, add a little bit of the cotton candy syrup and milk to a separate glass or bowl and test your food coloring with it.
Pour the mixed ice cream mixture into the chilled bowl/attachment of your ice cream maker.
Churn ice cream for 25-30 minutes or until desired consistency is reached. If you’d like soft ice cream, serve cotton candy ice cream immediately. If you’d like firmer ice cream, transfer the ice cream to your chosen storage container and let it freeze for another 4-6 hours.
It’s another edition of Show Us Your Books! But, before I kick off what I’ve been reading lately, I wanted to remind all of my readers about my 1 Year Blogiversary Giveaway! This Friday, August 11th is your last chance to enter to win a free book – pick the book you most want to read from my first full year of blogging at The Hungry Bookworm, and you could be chosen to win! Full details in last week’s post. Good luck 🙂
Linkup Guidelines: This linkup happens the second Tuesday of every month. The next is Tuesday, September 12, 2017. 1. Please visit and comment with both of your hosts, Jana & Steph 2. Please display the button or link back to me and the linkup hosts on your blog post 3. Please visit a few other blogs who’ve linked up and get some book talk going!
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine– We picked this book for my September Good Reads & Good Eats book club, but my library hold happened to come in sooner than I expected. This book reminded me a lot of A Man Called Ove, except that the curmudgeon was 30-year-old Eleanor. I found her oddly relatable and caught myself chuckling at her wry, sometimes out-of-touch observations. Definitely can’t wait to discuss this next month!
Passed the Time Just Fine
Cloud Atlas– People love this book, but I’m not one of those people. It was long and confusing and sometimes too on-the-nose about itself. The characters and chapters I enjoyed, though, kept me from hating it. I’m glad I read it – at over 500 pages, it was a feat! – but I just won’t be reading it again.
Geek Love – Weird is an understatement for this book! Katherine Dunn created a carnival of freaks that had me cringing but also kept me reading for more. It prompted interesting discussion at my book club, and it led to some tasty popcorn and another ice cream recipe, so I can’t complain. 🙂
Pachinko – Another book club pick, I was looking forward to Lee’s saga about Koreans living in Japan, a slice of life I honestly knew nothing about. The writing was excellent, but the story was full of sadness. It was good, but it was emotionally rough – as I said in my book club, I liked it, but I don’t think I’d recommend it.
Not Worth It / Did Not Finish
I may not have read a lot this past month (some of my choices took a while to get through…), but I didn’t have any I disliked nor did I have any I left behind. It was a good month!
Currently Reading
The Other Einstein– I’m smack dab in the middle of Marie Benedict’s novel about Albert Einstein’s first wife Mileva Maric, who was also a physicist. As a feminist, the story intrigued me as soon as I heard of it, and I’m certainly enjoying it so far. More to come, of course 🙂
East of Eden – I haven’t technically started this, but it’s next in my queue! I’m mostly putting it here to hold myself accountable, since it’s been hanging out on my TBR list for a while now…
Until next time!
This post contains affiliate links. Full disclosurehere.
My friend Deanna, who you may know recognize from my short series of Gilmore posts, absolutely loves David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas. I had read one of his other novels a while back and wasn’t a fan, so when she actually let me borrow it (an embarrassingly long time) ago, I was reluctant to read it and find it underwhelming. But, I finally decided I should rip off the bandaid, so to speak, and recently gave it a try. It was definitely not underwhelming.
Cloud Atlas is a complicated story five spanning centuries, going from the 1800s to the distant future and back again. Each character has only two chapters, one where they’re introduced as we move through the future and one as we head back in time to the beginning. (Excepting one, of course, who is there only in the middle of the story.) It’s a very interesting concept, and I probably wouldn’t have chosen to start it on a boat in the middle of the 1800s, but it is what it is. Thankfully, Deanna had warned me about the first chapter, and though it took quite a while to get into, I persevered.
As with all books, there were characters I liked better than others and some i disliked altogether. The problem with the structure, however, was that I was stuck with the ones I didn’t really like for a long time in a row and then I had to “look forward to” seeing them again on the boomerang back. The novel was also a little too self-aware for my taste. Mitchell wrote a lot of commentary on the structure and the characters and the meaning of it all into his own characters’ mouths and thoughts, which I typically don’t enjoy.
I know my review isn’t exactly glowing, but I didn’t hate it. I’m actually glad I read it, and I can see why Deanna (and others) like it so much. The story it tells is very intriguing. Weirdly, it made me want to see the movie for a different and visual perspective. It also made me want to make some cloud eggs. A book that fit perfectly with the latest hipster trend – what luck! (Kidding, but only a little bit.)
In my research, I found a recipe that wasn’t too intimidating (though most of them seemed mostly doable). I also found an interesting article from NPR that made me feel a lot better about the whole cloud egg trend. Wouldn’t you know it, what’s old is new again – in food as in everything else.
To start, I preheated my oven to 450 degrees and assembled my ingredients and bowls. I separate the old-fashioned way (hands only), so I just had a couple of bowls to divide the whites and yolks into.
With the whites separated, I seasoned them with salt and pepper and used a hand mixer to whip them into stiff peaks. I carefully folded in the Parmesan cheese. On the baking sheet, I made 4 separate mounds of the whipped whites and indented them so my yolks would have somewhere to lie later.
After they baked for 3 minutes, I took the sheet out of the oven and added one egg yolk to each egg white cloud. It went back into the oven for 3 more minutes, until the yolks were set. I served with toast, perfect to mop up the runny yolks.
3 TBS finely chopped fresh chives, for garnish (optional)
Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Spray lightly with baking spray.
Separate egg whites and egg yolks, placing the egg whites in a large bowl and each yolk in its own small bowl.
Season the egg whites with salt and pepper. Using a whisk or a hand mixer, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Gently fold in Parmesan.
On the prepared baking sheet, create 4 mounds of egg whites and indent the centers of each to look like nests. Bake until slightly golden, about 3 minutes.
Carefully add an egg yolk to the center of each egg white cloud. Season yolk with salt and pepper. Bake until the yolks are just set, about 3 minutes more. Garnish with chives, if using, and serve immediately.
The original recipe doesn’t call for spray the parchment paper, but I found that my finished eggs were a bit difficult to get off after baking. Additionally, the original recipe has you add all egg yolks to one bowl – obviously this creates less dish cleaning afterward, but it’s much trickier to get them out later without breaking them. (I broke two, despite being extremely careful.) The call is ultimately yours, but be careful!
PLUS: If you haven’t entered for your chance to win a free book yet, there’s still time! Enter my 1 Year Anniversary Giveaway through Friday, 8/11. More details in Sunday’s post.
This post contains affiliate links. Full disclosurehere.
Last year, I made my first Hungry Bookworm recipe on June 27th for an upcoming book club meeting, where we discussed The Age of Miracles. A few days later, on June 30th, I published my very first post. I was nervous and excited, but clearly, it worked out – and today is my 1 year blogging anniversary!
I can’t believe a whole year has already gone by, but I’m really happy that I’m still going strong. Sometimes you start an endeavor and you’re not quite sure where it will go or how it will turn out. I have definite improvements to make, but mostly, I’m loving blogging. I’ve had the opportunity to make (and eat!) 56 new recipes across the 63 posts I’ve written. Of those posts, 50 have been book reviews and another handful have been wonderful book memes that have connected me with so many other amazing book bloggers.
I decided to take a look back at all the recipes I’ve made and books I’ve read over the past year and choose some highlights. Here they are:
Favorite Savory Recipes
Grown-up Ramen: I don’t always love the books I read. Who does? But, in this case, a crappy book led to an amazing recipe. I had so much fun planning for this one, and I was legitimately excited when my first attempt at a soft-boiled egg turned out picture-perfect. Oh, and by the way, the ramen itself was amazing. It will definitely on my menu when cold weather starts in again.
Breakfast Casserole: This one made the list mostly because it was one of the few blog recipes that I specifically made for people other than Scott and myself (post-holiday brunch with my parents), so it was a big deal at the time. Also, it’s ridiculously easy, ridiculously delicious, and I’ve already made it several other times and, whenever I share it, people love it. Plus, it’s pretty versatile and I’ve discovered that my favorite meat add-in is sausage. Bring on the breakfast and brunch potlucks!
Norwegian Fish Stew: The reason this made my top three was because I was pretty nervous about making this – exuding confidence to Scott, but mostly wondering if it would be something we actually wanted to eat when it was finished. I felt the same way about the book – hesitant in the beginning, but in the end, loved them both. This was just an amazing recipe for fall, a really warming and filling soup that I will be making again. And this time I know to not invite any guests over for about a week afterward due to the smell. 😛
Earl Grey Ice Cream: Yes, I just made this, but I’ve already made it four more times because it was such a hit when I brought it to work, so it’s definitely top of mind. (And, despite efforts to get me to start making ice cream full time, I won’t be doing so…) Most of all, it is one of the best ice cream flavors I’ve ever had, and it was way easier than I expected.
Swedish Dream Cookies: This is another recipe I’ve made multiple times since trying it for the blog. I loved the book that brought them to me, and I ended up loving them way more than I expected to (for coconut reasons, which I explained in the original post). They’re pretty foolproof for people who don’t always excel at baking – ahem, me – and absolutely delicious.
Exploding Truffles: I made these in honor of the wonderful Weasley twins last Halloween, and like the two of them, this candy was pure fun. The combination of chocolate truffles and Pop Rocks surprised some unsuspecting tasters and brought delight to those who were expecting a bit of an explosion.
Runners-up: Strawberry Pie (memorable – and not just because I had to bake the crust 3 times to get it right) and Funfetti Cake (easier than I expected, over-the-top and super fun to share)
Favorite Dog Recipe
Just kidding, I only made one recipe for dogs, but it was great. Beta loved the little bone-shaped treats and so did all of the coworkers’ dogs that I shared them with. They’ve inspired another pup-friendly recipe coming up soon!
Favorite Books
Small Great Things: This has been my only 5-star book in the last two years that wasn’t in the Harry Potter series. I’ve had some very close calls, but no question, this is the best one since I’ve been blogging. It stuck with me for weeks after reading it, and I’m still thinking about it and recommending it to people. If you haven’t read it yet, do it.
My Grandmother Asked Me To Tell You She’s Sorry: Ah, this novel was just so charming. I was completely immersed in the story of Elsa and her grandmother’s fairy tales. It also led me to the aforementioned Dream Cookies, which I am forever grateful for.
Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk: Apparently I love charming novels, because this one falls into that category as well. I was drawn to this book because, like myself, Lillian Boxfish is also a woman of the advertising industry, and it was based on a real person. It made me appreciate where we are today and the women who led us here, though as whole, we still have a long way to go. (Bonus reason: Oreo Cheesecake)
Runner-up: Bridge Daughter, which was such an interesting concept I couldn’t resist and literally went out to get the book as soon as I heard about it from a friend. It also led to my “biggest blog surprise” moment when the author Jim Nelson approached me to be a part of an online cookbook because of my early post about his novel. I was so honored to be asked and have my recipe for Zucchini Pancakes chosen to accompany his work in KP Authors Cook Their Books. It’s one of the few recipes that I made my own (usually preferring to use recipes from people far more gifted at recipe-creation than I am), but it’s also one that I’m proud of. It turned out to be delicious and it fit the story well, which has really been the point of Hungry Bookworm from the start – good books leading me to good food.
More than 600 people visited my blog last year, and over 1,000 visitors have already dropped by in 2017! I’m still astonished by and so grateful for the positive feedback I get on my blog on a regular basis. I looking forward to another year of reading, eating, and sharing it with all of you!
And, finally, to celebrate I’m doing an Anniversary Giveaway! You can win a copy of your favorite book from the first year of Hungry Bookworm posts (US only). See details below:
You must be a blog subscriber (if you aren’t already, follow me here!)
Leave me a comment that includes your favorite blog post – this is the book you’ll be sent if you win
Share this post on social media and be sure to tag me – Facebook (@hungrybookwormblog), Instagram or Twitter (@dreammkatcher). One share/tag is plenty, but feel free to share more widely if you like!
The winner will be selected by random drawing on August 11, 2017 at 6 PM Eastern time. I’ll post the winner in my next post on Saturday, August 12 – so come back then to see if you’ve won a free book!
Thank you all for making my first year as The Hungry Bookworm a great one! Good luck!
This post contains affiliate links. Full disclosurehere.
