Snow Day Reads

LUCY BURDETTE: Oh boy, our Reds in New England have been whacked by winter lately. And it looks like more to come...The good news? Perfect weather to read and to find out what you're reading! 

During our trip, John and I both devoured

The Light Between the Oceans by ML Stedman, which is the story of a light keeper and his new wife who are stationed on a tiny island off the western coast of Australia. One terrible decision leads them into more and more tragic outcomes. Gripping! I also enjoyed catching up with two of my favorite mystery series, both long on character development, Julie Hyzy's All the President's Menus featuring White House chef Ollie Paras, and Stone Cold, CJ Box's newest installment in game warden Joe Pickett's series.

What are you reading Reds, to cope with the dreadful weather?

 
HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN:

Hank's birdbath becomes a topiary

Let me first recommend Shannon Kirk's Method 15/30, coming soon. It is incredibly good, truly (reviewer Hallie, please note!) about a young woman who is pregnant who is kidnapped (really , stay with me) and what she does to get away. Its sort of The Ransom of Red Chief meets ah, well, you tell me when you read it. I have the Todd's new book ready to go, and The Girl on the Train, (of course, sigh) and I just finished a debut called Hangman's Game, which I loved--the star/sleuth is a....professional football player. No kidding, and it's pretty great! You don't have to understand football, which I kind of do, or even like it, which I also kind of do, if it's a game that matters. (I will pause now while you remember where I live!)  Oh, and Michael Sears newest, Long Way Down-- truly good--one reviewer compared him to Ian Fleming. Yeesh. Now THAT's a good review!

Hallie's driveway

HALLIE EPHRON: It's NOT snowing today but the roads are still dismal. So far 4 FEET(!) of snow in a week and more on the way. It's nutty.

Yup, I'm reading AND writing... Thinking of taking down To Kill a Mockingbird in anticipation of the NEW (but written in the 50s) Harper Lee novel that's been announced with much hooplah. I hope it's good.

Right now I'm reading Holly Robinson's Haven Lake and loving it. So far at least it's the story of a teenager who runs away from home and ends up with his new stepmother's hippie-dippie mother who has a sheep farm (that was of course once a commune). A great read for anyone looking for an interesting and not cliched older woman character. And the kid is spot on. It's not  mystery but I am so hooked.

Also I'm in the middle of Mary Roach's Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal. A journey through the digestive system and the history of what we know (or think we know) about it. She's a very funny writer and asks the questions of experts that the rest of us would be too embarrassed.

DEBORAH CROMBIE: We have gone from freezing to warm to back to freezing here in Texas. But I love the idea of  a snow day to do nothing but read. Such a luxury! But I have been reading, of course--all three of the James Runcie Granchester books (on which the new PBS series is based) and I adore them! I hope there will be more! Also, the new Miranda (Dean) James, a Charlie Harris and Diesel book called Arsenic and Old Books, and a fabulous debut novel called Past Crimes by Glen Eric Hamilton. He's being compared to Dennis Lehane, Robert B. Parker, and John D. MacDonald, but I'd add a little Lee Child to the mix. The book is that good. Both these lovely guys will be our guests next week. AND I got my hands on a ARC of Mark Pryor's new Hugo Marston book, The Reluctant Matador. I LOVE this series--I think it is my find of the year.

Red readers, how are you holding up this winter and what are you reading?

Cooking Through The Storm -

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING:  Snow and ice storms have been sweeping across the country (here at Jungle Reds, we've been getting updates from Deb, who's been in the thick of it in her north Texas home) knocking out power in its wake. It's hitting New England and the East Coast tonight. And of course, this is just the beginning of December. There are still three more months of winter to get through (four in Maine.) Usually, we do recipes on Sunday, but today we're going to talk about eating during the power outage.

A few basics on hand will make the experience a lot less painful. 

1. Have a selection of canned goods on hand, including tuna and canned chicken if you're not vegetarian. Peanut butter, hard cheese and canned beans are also good sources of protein. Make sure you have an old-fashioned non-electric can opener!

2. If you know there's a potentially power-cutting storm on the way, prep some foods. Rice can be cooked, bagged and frozen. Brown stew beef and fry up some hamburger. Roast a sheet of veggies, or a chicken. Hardboil the eggs - they'll last much longer. Use up the stuff that's most perishable for dinner while you're waiting for the storm to hit. 

3. Stock in paper plates, disposable cups and plastic utensils. Trying to clean up the kitchen when you have no heat or hot water is grim. Promise yourself you'll be twice as good about recycling for the next two weeks to make up for it.

4. Remember, refrigerators are meant to keep cold in, heat out. Once you've lost power, open the door as little as possible. Know what you want and gather all your ingredients in one go. Once the power comes back on, chuck anything that you suspect may have gone off.

So what do you cook? Of course, you can get by without cooking at all. Sandwiches on a nice multi-grain bread with some trail mix or fruit will keep you going forever. But it's a truth universally acknowledged that being in the midst of a winter storm is when you most want a warm meal. 


Do you have a woodstove? You can cook just about anything that can be cooked on a stovetop. I've made soups, grilled sandwiches, chili, eggs and sausages, and of course, heated up any number of leftovers. Stoke it up high and keep an eye on the food - once the stove is hot, things cook much faster than you might expect. I also have a couple trivets that I can use to keep food warm but not boiling or scorching. Don't forget to keep a kettle going for moisture and to make hot cocoa. Here are some recipes from Backwoods Home Magazine.


Do you have a fireplace?  Were you a girl/boy scout? Remember those foil packets? They do just as well in your fireplace at home as they did in Camp Weetchi Watchi. You need coals and embers, not flame, so you may want to rakes the former to one side of the fireplace to cook in and keep an actual fire going on the other side. If you're a camper and you have one of those lightweight portable grills, so much the better. You can grill over the embers and keep some hot water going for the tea. Here are some foil-packet recipes and cooking tips from The Art of Manliness.  




No fireplace or woodstove? No, I don't suggest using a camp stove indoors. I know some people do, but it always seems like a 911 call waiting to happen. The best suggestion I can make comes from a friend who lives without fire. When she knows a storm is on the way (see preparation, above) she cooks a big stew in her slow cooker. She keeps it simmering on low once its done. Like refrigerators, slow cookers are designed to maintain temperature as long as you don't leave the lid off. She stretches the stew with crusty bread and has been known to wrap the slow cooker in a towel to insulate it even further. Our friends at Cooks.com have a few recipes you might want to try.

Wrap a cozy throw around you and your sweetie and dig into that warm meal. The weather outside is frightful, but your dinner's so delightful...