Tuesday, June 30, 2020

New(ish) Books about France / New(ish) Books Set in France / New(ish) Books With any Connection to France







Cookbooks

Tasting Paris: 100 Recipes to Eat Like a Local

In the French Kitchen with Kids: Easy, Everyday Dishes for the Whole Family to Make and Enjoy

A Parisian Bistro: Le Fontaine de Mars in 50 Recipes

Drinking French: The Iconic Cocktails, Aperitifs, and Cafe Traditions of France, with Recipes by David Lebovitz



Novels

The Paper Girl of Paris by Jordan Taylor

The Paris Girl by Natalie Meg Evans

The Festival of Insignificance by Milan Kundera

Paris on Repeat by Amy Bearce

The Paris Library: A Novel by Janet Skeslien Charles

Waiting for Bojangles: A Novel by Olivier Bourdeaut

Paris is Always a Good Idea by Jenn McKinlay



Nonfiction

The French Photographer by Natasha Lester

Paris in Stride: An Insider's Walking Guide

Paris on Air: A Memoir by Oliver Gee

Dirt: Adventures in Lyon as a Chef in Training, Father, and Sleuth in Looking for the Secret of French Cooking by Bill Buford




Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Each Tuesday That Artsy Reader Girl assigns a topic and then post her top ten list that fits that topic. You’re more than welcome to join her and create your own top ten (or 2, 5, 20, etc.) list as well. Feel free to put a unique spin on the topic to make it work for you! Please link back to That Artsy Reader Girl in your own post so that others know where to find more information.

Saturday, June 27, 2020

Off to Paris in July




I don't have much to say about my week. Life has been so bleak here in the US that I hope you will forgive me but I'm leaving to spend a month in Paris and I'm heading out early. Today, in fact.






What do I plan to do during my month (plus possibly a few extra weeks) in Paris?


LEARN FRENCH
I broke down and bought a lifetime subscription to all languages (24 to choose from) at Rosetta Stone this week, and I've been working on my French. I'm also listening to Learn French with Paul Noble (on Hoopla). I've enjoyed using both Rosetta Stone and Learn French with Paul Noble in the past.


COOK FRENCH
I have several French cookbooks here, and I'm already working on a pork loin from one of them for dinner tonight.



DRAW FRENCH
I've been drawing every day for a month or so. I plan to put a French spin on my drawings.


WATCH FRENCH MOVIES
I hope to check out some French movies from my library. I have access to Kanopy through my library also, and there are at least three classic French movies on Kanopy that I have never seen.

LISTEN TO FRENCH MUSIC
Ah, French music. Perfect for daily yoga, I think. 


PUT TOGETHER A FRENCH JIGSAW PUZZLE
Jigsaw puzzles have been a comfort during my homestay of late. How about a French jigsaw puzzle


GOING THROUGH MY PHOTOS FROM MY TRIP TO PARIS LAST WINTER
Looking through Paris photos is wonderfully uplifting. Visiting Paris last winter was a happy time. Before all of this.


READ FRENCH
My favorite part of Paris in July is always reading books set in France. What books have I requested? Nonfiction, including The Whole Fromage; The Age of Comfort; Bonjour, Happiness; The Seven Ages of Paris; Vanished Smile. Children's books, including Zarafa, the Giraffe Who Walked to the King; Paris-Chien; King Louie's Shoes; A Dash of Magic. A graphic novel called Pablo. Cookbooks, including Barefoot in Paris. Adult fiction including French Pastry Murder; French Exit; The Chocolate Touch. 


Come along with me, if you'd like. 
I'm not terribly sure I'm ever coming back home.
It's lovely here in Paris.

What have you been doing this week?



I'm happy you found your way to the Sunday Salon. There are no requirements for linking up at Sunday Salon. Sunday Salon is simply a place for us to link up and to share what we have been doing during the week. Sunday Salon is a great way to visit other blogs and join in the conversations going on there. 

Some of the things we often talk about at the Sunday Salon:
  • What was your week like?
  • Read any good books? Tell us about them.
  • What other bookish things did you do? 
  • What else is going on in your life?

Other places where you may like to link up over the weekend are below. Click on the picture to visit the site.


My linkup for Sunday Salon is below.

Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Cookbook: Breakfast in Texas


Breakfast. It's my favorite meal of the day. It was a meal my mom did well. It was a meal my grandmas did well. My Grandma Ashley lived in the country, and her breakfasts were farm bacon, farm sausages, scrambled eggs, peach preserves, butter from the churn, plum jelly, black coffee, and those magnificent biscuits. If I had to pick a last meal, it would probably be my Grandma Ashley's breakfast. 


I picked up a copy of Breakfast in Texas a few years ago at the Texas Book Festival, and I've been trying recipes from it, a few each month, ever since.

What have I tried? Hill Country Cinnamon Rolls, with a filling of Texas pecans and cream cheese. Czech Cream Cheese and Blueberry Kolaches

   

I made Brunch Biscuits with Paula's Texas Lemon Butter last week (though, sadly, I didn't have Paula's Texas Lemon liqueur here to make the lemon butter). The author describes these biscuits as "made from a dough that's sort of a lazy cook's version of puff pastry." Yep, filled with butter (with a ratio of 2 cups flour to 1 cup buttermilk to 1 3/4 cups of butter). Wonderful layers. Delicious flavor.



I tried Brisket, Bacon, and Egg Breakfast Quesadillas for Father's Day. 


BRISKET, BACON, AND EGG BREAKFAST QUESADILLAS

1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 large jalapeno, stems, seeds, and veins removed, minced
8 eggs, whisked with 1/3 cup medium-hot water and 1 teaspoon kosher salt until frothy
6 smoked bacon slices, cooked until crisp, then drained well and crumbled
8 (8-inch) flour tortillas
2 cups shredded gouda cheese
1 pound barbecued beef brisket, sliced thin and heated
4 ripe homegrown tomatoes, cut into small dice
5 green onions, thinly sliced, including green tops
2 cups salsa of your choice

In a 12-inch nonstick skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the minced jalapeno and saute for a minute or two. Turn the heat down to low-medium and add the beaten eggs, stirring rapidly. Cook, stirring constantly, until the eggs are almost set, then stir in the crumbled bacon. Continue to cook, stirring, until the eggs are softly scrambled, but done; leave no runny, uncooked egg, but don't cook then until they are stiff. Set aside to keep warm.

Place the tortillas on work surface and scatter some of the cheese over each one, covering the entire tortilla. Divide the brisket between the tortillas, allowing about 2 ounces per tortilla. Lay the sliced brisket on one side of the tortilla. Scatter some of the diced tomatoes, green onions, and salsa over the meat, then top each with a portion of the scrambled eggs. Fold the top half of the tortillas down over the fillings to make half-moon shapes. Heat a large dry skillet over medium-high heat. Cook each tortilla until the cheese is melted and heated through, sticking the quesadilla together, about 2 to 3 minutes per side, turning once. 

To serve, cut each quesadilla in half and serve, passing additional salsa if desired.





For more wordless photos, go to Wordless Wednesday.

Weekend Cooking was created by Beth Fish Reads and is now hosted by Marg at The Intrepid Reader (and Baker). It is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page. For more information, see the welcome post.

Il est Juillet et il est temps pour le merveilleux Paris in July hosted by Thyme for Tea! (*It is July and it is time for the wonderful Paris in July!)

Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Top Ten Tuesday Turns 10! Celebrating 463 Top Ten Lists on Readerbuzz





Looking back through my past posts, I learn that (apparently) I missed the first nine prompts for Top Ten. But after that, I rarely missed a week. 

To celebrate ten years of Top Ten Tuesday, I've spent hours and hours and hours looking through my old Top Ten Tuesday posts. I've created a list of the Top Ten Topics on Top Ten Tuesdays and I've sorted (most of) my past posts accordingly.


TOP TEN TOPICS ON TOP TEN TUESDAYS:
LISTS, LISTS, AND MORE LISTS:
463 LISTS ON READERBUZZ


Top Ten Seasonal/Annual Lists





and 85 more seasonal/yearly lists like this...



Top Ten Lists of Various Genres

Top Ten Favorite Love Stories in Books

Top Ten Favorite Books-about-Books












Top Ten Lists about Authors

Top Ten Favorite Authors

Top Ten Authors That Deserve More Recognition



Top Ten Lists about Characters

Top Ten Villains and Criminals and Other Sorts of Bad Guys

Top Ten Characters I'd Name My Children After





Top Ten Lists of Words, First Lines, Titles, and Book Quotes



Top Ten Lists about Books You Might Have Overlooked

Books I Feel As Though Everyone Has Read But Me



Top Ten Lists of Books That Could Be Difficult to Read






Top Ten Lists of Surprising Books

Top Ten Lists of Books-to-Movies



Top Ten Lists About Books in a Series







Top Ten Lists of Children's Books

The First Books I Had on My Bookshelf

Books from My Childhood I'd Love to Revisit

Top Ten Books I Wish I'd Read as a Kid






Top Ten Lists You Shouldn't Bother Reading Because My Answer Was Basically "None" 

Top Ten Books I Want To Reread





Top Ten Lists of Paris Books

Top Ten Books That Take Place in Paris

Most Hyped Books about Paris I Haven't Yet Read

Last Ten Books about Paris I Acquired: What to Read? What to Read?

French Books I've Enjoyed That You Might Have Missed

Top French-ish Things I Love

Ten Great Books Set in Paris

Ten French-ish Things Reading French-ish Books Have Led Me To Do

Books That Could Use a Little More...Paris

My Favorite Posts from the Past About France

Books with Eiffel Towers on the Cover: A Where's Waldo Adventure

Children's Books Set in Paris: Books I Haven't Read Yet

Des Livres Courts Sur Paris Qui Sont Babuleux (Short Books About Paris That Are Fabulous)

Books That Take Me Straight into the World of Paris

Favorite French Stories from Childhood

Wonderful French Book Characters

I Can't Resist Buying Books With French Things on the Cover

My Favorite Settings in Paris

Paris + Food: A Love Story



Top Ten Lists about Blogging

Top Ten Reasons I Love Being A Book Blogger and a Bookish Person

Top Ten Blogs/Sites You Read That AREN'T about Books




Top Ten Lists of Book Settings





Top Ten Lists Where I Geek Out About Book-ish Things



Miscellaneous Top Ten Lists






Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Each Tuesday That Artsy Reader Girl assigns a topic and then post her top ten list that fits that topic. You’re more than welcome to join her and create your own top ten (or 2, 5, 20, etc.) list as well. Feel free to put a unique spin on the topic to make it work for you! Please link back to That Artsy Reader Girl in your own post so that others know where to find more information.