Guest Interview: Robin Bridges

I am so excited to introduce today's guest on the Pots 'n Pens blog: Robin Bridges!

By day, Robin is a mild-mannered writer of fantasy and paranormal fiction for young adults. By night, she is a pediatric nurse. Robin lives on the Gulf Coast with her husband, one soon-to-be teenager, and two slobbery mastiffs. THE GATHERING STORM is her first novel.

Dishing with Robin.

If you were marooned on an island and Pots & Pens granted your wish for only one book and one food, what would you choose?

Jane Austen's Complete Works and a never ending bowl of shrimp alfredo (comfort food with comfort reading!)

What is your A+, number 1 writing/editing/query-reading snack?

(Diet coke and Crown doesn’t count, right?) I’m a sugar junkie-  remember William Carlos Williams and his pilfered plums from the icebox?  I crave cold, sweet things when I write.  I’ll stick twinkies in the bottom drawer of my fridge until they’re slightly frozen, or mix blueberry pie filling and Cool Whip and eat it with a spoon.

What’s cooking? Can you share a bit about your next project?

A new paranormal romance set in Regency England.

If your book were a menu item, describe the restaurant that would serve it (e.g., type of food, atmosphere, music).

The Russian Tea Room!

Tell us about your edible specialty, and rate your skill in the kitchen: novice, not bad, or nominate me for a Michelin star.

I failed the cooking part of home ec in school.  (As well as the sewing part, but that’s another story.) My husband is the wizard of the Bridges’ kitchen.  That being said, once I went from using Weight Watchers recipes to using Paula Deen recipes, my dinner approval rating seems to have soared.  Who knew bacon grease + butter = love?

Sadly, now my husband has a new friend named Mr. Cardiologist and my days of pretending to be Paula Deen are over.  Goodbye, bacon grease.  I will miss you…

Recipe Row: What favorite recipe do you have for us today? (If you have a picture, please include it.)

In honor of my main character, Katerina, and in honor of my great-grandparents, who owned a bakery in Ukraine, here’s my favorite easy recipe for Russian black bread.  You can make it in the bread machine!

Russian Black Bread (From Allrecipes)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 c. water
• 2 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 2 1/2 c. bread flour
• 1 c. rye flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons margarine
• 2 tablespoons dark corn syrup
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
• 1 tablespoon caraway seed
• 1/4 teaspoon fennel seed (optional)
• 2 teaspoons active dry yeast

Directions

1. Place ingredients into the bread machine in order suggested by teh manufacturer.
2. Use the whole wheat, regular crust setting.
3. After the baking cycle ends, remove bread from pan, place on a cake rack, and allow to cool one hour before slicing.  

To learn more about the incredibly awesome Robin Bridges and her super cool debut THE GATHERING STORM, check out her website here.

Stewing...

I know my last post was a downer, so despite my oh-so-clever title, this one won't be. Promise.

However, the title does relate to this entry. You see, it all started with me being anxious and STEWING about things writing-related. I get into these moods where I think I will never come up with a new idea. You ever get those I'll-never-have-another-original-idea-blues? Talk about a song waiting to happen.

Well, I was in that kind of funk where I thought even if I did get an idea, it would be boring. And, of course, I then spent a few days feeling sorry for myself. When.... An idea appeared! It began on a drive with my family when I was not thinking about generating new ideas at all (of course, when you're not thinking about them, is when ideas pop up) and grew from there. Usually, I get a voice first, but this time it was just the idea. A few minutes later, though, there was a girl. (I would say the idea but I'm all worried about jinxing it.) Then, the concept kept growing, and what amazed me most about it was that it was not the contemp YA I normally write. And then I just about fell over because I never thought I'd get an idea outside of contemp.

I am in constant awe of all of you who write anything that has any sci-fi or fantasy element.

This new thing of mine? I'm told it's urban fantasy. It's present time, but there are gods. Doesn't matter. It's a story! Call it anything.

Ah, wait, the stew. Yes, so while in midst stew, I went over my sister's house, and stew was what she had prepared for dinner. (I'm completely serious, didn't add this to work with the story at all. Honest.). Now, I can cook many things, but stew like my grandma used to make is not one of them. I have made it correctly once in my life (when my hubby and I were first dating) and this was based on detailed notes my grandma gave me. However, I am certain there was an ingredient or step I did not write down because I thought it obvious, as the stew had not turned out the same since (almost 10 years ago). My sister's stew, however, was JUST like my grandma made it. And tasting it, and figuring out how to do it right (I plan to try making it on Wed.), made me even happier than coming up with my urban fantasy-whatever-it's-called idea.

How about you? Have you ever written outside your comfort genre area?

Beef Stew Recipe:

Ing:

3 lbs beef for stewing (in raw meat section, already cut up)

2 packages of stew/soup veggies (or cut up your own favorites)

3-4 Tablespoons water

1 Tablespoon canola oil

Potatoes (optional)

Spices (salt, pepper, I like Adobo All Purpose Seasoning and dill is one of my favorites as well)

Steps:

1. Brown meat and spices in the canola oil in large pot

2. Add water and veggies to the mix (if using potatoes, don't add them yet). Cover and cook for 1.5-2 hrs (the longer, the better) on low (about 1 or 2 on an electric stove dial)

3. If you're using potatoes, cut them up to desired size and add them when there is about 45 minutes of cooking left. Also, you want to add a little more water when you put them in. Maybe another quarter cup, just to cover them.

4. In regard to the spices, you may add more as the stew is cooking too, depending on your tastes.

And that is all! Enjoy! And, don't be alarmed by the small amt. of water. In the past, I have always added too much and 1/4 cup is plenty.

The photo below is not of my sister's stew (they finished it before I had a chance to take a pic). It's from mccormick.com but it looks similar. :-)

Are You Ready?

It's November and for many people that means cooking up a great big turkey.

Ohhh. No, that wasn't the kind of turkey I meant. Let me be more specific.

For many people who are writers and participating in NaNoWrimo, November means cooking up a great big 50,000 words or so turkey.

 

Which is not to say that the NaNo turkey draft can't be shaped into something a lot prettier down the line. Just like that big ugly turkey will become a delicious entree.

Someday that frenzied first draft could look something more like this:

This year I am hosting Thanksgiving and participating in NaNo, so even as the temperature cools things are gonna be getting hot for me. Between planning out side dishes and subplots it is easy to become overwhelmed, but I am trying to take one thing at a time. 

Here's my plan. Every day I am going to try and get a few words down and in between I'll search the Internets for the best way to make turkey gravy without using that gross bag of innards that comes inside the bird.

So far my Nano count is lagging, but I already have one solid Thanksgiving plan - putting some turkey on the grill. There will definitely be a big bird in the oven, but since I have a large family it seems like a good idea to have a little extra turkey on hand, and for that we're gonna take things outside. I've even found the perfect recipe for it courtesy of Cook's Country. If you are also thinking of mixing things up this Thanksgiving - you can try it too!

And if you have tips for making the best of NaNoWrimo or Thanksgiving - I'd love to hear them!

Grill-Roasted Turkey Breast for Charcoal Grill

Why this recipe works:

Bone-in, skin-on turkey breasts cook relatively quickly, but most recipes still produce dry meat, bland flavor, and soggy skin. For a grill-roasted turkey breast recipe that turned out smoky, well seasoned, and juicy, we seasoned the turkey throughout using an overnight salt rub. We then wiped the skin dry and pierced it (to allow some of the fat to drain away), then applied a second rub just before grilling, which created a crisp, coffee-colored skin.

Serves 6 to 8 

During cooking, resist the urge to peek under the lid, as heat will escape and prolong the cooking time.

Ingredients

• 1 whole, bone-in, skin-on turkey breast (about 5 pounds)
• 3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon table salt
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup wood chips, preferably hickory

Instructions

• 1. Rinse turkey and pat dry with paper towels. Mix 2 tablespoons brown sugar and salt in bowl. Loosen skin from turkey and rub with sugar and salt mixture, following photos 1 and 2. Tightly wrap turkey with plastic wrap, place on plate, and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.
• 2. Unwrap turkey and pat dry with paper towels. Mix remaining tablespoon brown sugar and pepper in bowl. Rub mixture under and over turkey breast skin. Using skewer, pierce turkey skin all over, following photo 3.
• 3. Soak wood chips in bowl of water to cover for 15 minutes. Open bottom vent on grill. Light large chimney starter filled with charcoal briquettes (about 100 coals) and burn until charcoal is covered with fine gray ash. Place 13 by 9-inch disposable aluminum roasting pan in center of grill. Pour half of coals into pile on one side of grill and remaining coals on other side, leaving pan in center. Scatter wood chips evenly over coals, set cooking grate in place, cover (open lid vent completely), and let grill heat for 5 minutes. Scrape cooking grate clean.
• 4. Place turkey, skin side up, on center of grate (grill temperature should register about 400 degrees). Cover and grill until skin is well browned and crisp and thickest part of meat registers 160 degrees on instant-read thermometer, about 1 1/2 hours (grill temperature will cool down to about 325 degrees). Wearing oven mitts or using wad of paper towels, transfer breast to cutting board, cover loosely with foil, and let rest for 20 minutes. Carve and serve.
  

Let it Simmer

It's officially slow-cooker season in my household. This week, I got out the machine and set it on the counter by the coffeemaker, where it will likely stay until March. I'm going to admit right now that I splurged last year and bought myself a combo pressure cooker/slow cooker/rice maker and it's genius. I'm still learning the fine art of pressure cooking, but that's a topic for another post. For now I want to talk about the slow cooking. Get ready for the writing/food metaphors...

I love to labor over details as much as the next neurotic writer and cook, but there's something to be said for not watching the pot. For set-it-and-forget-it. For putting all your ingredients together, walking away and letting the thing do itself.

Of course, with writing it never exactly happens on its own. (If only!) But a lot of important developments happen when we're not in front of the computer and not consciously thinking about the WIP. There's that slow simmer just barely bubbling under the surface that can happen when we sleep or go for a walk or watch a movie. And when you come back to the keyboard, it's like a revelation—ideas just pop, seemingly out of nowhere. So much can be accomplished with so little strain! We should all use our slow cookers more.

Anyway, onto the eats. I found this recipe online last winter. Then I proceeded to make it about four times over the following weeks. As Jamie Oliver would say, it's dead easy. (And this makes even his laziest recipes look Julia Childesque). I like to serve it with mashed potatoes, but sandwiches are good, too.

• 
  
• Slow Cooker Brats and Sauerkraut
• From TasteofHome.com
• Serves 8
• 
  
• 8 uncooked bratwurst links
• 1 can (14 ounces) sauerkraut, rinsed and well drained
• 2 medium apples, peeled and finely chopped
• 3 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 teaspoon ground mustard
• 
  
• 1. Place the bratwurst in a 5-qt. slow cooker. In a large bowl, combine the sauerkraut, apples,
• bacon, brown sugar, onion and mustard; spoon over bratwurst.
• 


• 
  
• 2. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until a thermometer inserted in the sausage reads 160°.
• 

Meet the Contributors: Michelle McLean - and a Guest Interview with Sandra Ulbrich Almazan

I am so excited to join all the amazing writers on this blog. Food and books = two of my all time favorite things :) The quick rundown on me: I write young adult novels, picture books, and non-fiction educational books (my first book, Homework Helpers: Essays and Term Papers was released in Jan of this year). I currently have a NF book on how to write poetry and a picture book on submission and a novel in revisions with my agent (the fabulous Krista Goering) so I'm a little antsy at the moment :) In addition to my personal blog, I'm also a contributor over at Operation Awesome.

A few goofy facts: I have an overflowing bookcase in every room of my house (including the laundry room); I think my treadmill attracts spiders because the two times I got on it (in my current house anyway) a spider dropped down from the ceiling right in my face - so I don't touch the thing.

I am also excited to be able to share a fun interview with Sandra Ulbrich Almazan, who just released her novella Lyon's Legacy.

If you were marooned on an island and Pots & Pens granted your wish for only one book and one food, what would you choose?

It’s harder to choose a single book than food; for food, I’d say chocolate. I can probably find more nutritious food on the island, but there aren’t too many wild candy bars roaming around. If I was going to bring a book to read (not just to use as a survival manual), it would be the complete works of Shakespeare. You could read that over and over and see something new each time.

If you were serving one of your characters his or her ideal meal, what would it be and why?

When I read that question, Joanna immediately popped into my head and asked for sushi. It must be hard to get good sushi on a spaceship.

If you could borrow one person's zest for writing and/or life, whose and why?

I’d like to borrow my four-year-old son’s zest for life. He has such enthusiasm for things like Halloween, and he has a great imagination too.

Hot out of the oven: What inspired your latest book, and what ingredients do you hope make it a tasty treat for readers?

It was inspired by a friend’s story about a woman who heard the Beatles perform in the Cavern, a club in Liverpool where they performed many times before they became famous. I wanted to add a science-fiction twist to that, so I came up with the idea of a time traveler going back to the past to listen to a concert by a famous musician. I asked myself who she was, why she was there, and how she got there, and eventually I came up with Joanna, sent on a mission to get DNA and clone the musician. Instead of using the Beatles, I created a single musician who lived in Chicago in the early sixites to be Joanna’s great-grandfather, the man she’s supposed to help clone.

I hope my readers will enjoy Joanna, a science geek with an attitude; George, the geneticist she falls in love with; the spaceship they travel on; and the old-fashioned Chicago Joanna visits to complete her mission.

What's cooking? Can you share a bit about your next project?

I actually have a three-course meal in the works. The appetizer is “The Fighting Roses of Sharon,” a standalone fantasy story about three generations of women in a small town with an unusual annual ritual. Next comes Twinned Universes, the sequel to Lyon’s Legacy. Both of those are in the revision stage. Finally, I’m drafting a fantasy novel called Scattered Seasons, about a group of four women called Season Lords who must combine their various magics to protect their country.

Half-baked ideas: Not every idea is a winner. Written or not, what's the most ill-conceived story idea you've ever had?

I once wrote a story about a woman who wrote birth announcements for people who would become famous at some point in their lives; the announcements were supposed to be the opposite of obituaries. (She had some way to look into the future to predict what they would do.) But I couldn’t explain the concept clearly or fill some of the plot holes, so that story is staying on the shelf where it belongs.

Thanks so much to Sandra for hanging out with us today! If you'd like a copy of Lyon's Legacy you can find it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords. Be sure to check out Sandra's blog for more info on her and her books.

Recipe Time! Chocolate Cake in a Cup

This is one of my all time faves and my kids absolutely love it. It's very fast, very easy, and perfect for a chocolate lover :D It's especially perfect for Nanowrimo (which is coming up TOMORROW!!) since it takes about a minute to throw together and only 3 minutes to bake. Can't get better than that for a writer with a deadline :D

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
dash of vanilla
dash of baking powder (optional)
handful of chocolate chips or nuts (optional)

Directions:

Mix everything together in a big mug

Microwave for 3 minutes

Eat :D

I usually top it with whip cream or powdered sugar. You can also make a healthier version of this by using almond flour and Stevia in place of the regular flour and sugar. This is a fast, fun chocolate fix and fun to do with your kids. They can mix and cook everything themselves so it's a blast for them.

Enjoy!!

Guest interview: Diana L. Driver

It’s my pleasure to introduce Diana L. Driver, who “writes the kind of stories you’d like to read.” Her books cross the genre lines from Young Adult adventure/suspense to Mystery to Romance. She’s currently working on a Cozy Mystery and a Norse Fantasy based on the myths and legends of the Northern Traditions, including Runelore.

Diana's Mayan books initially attracted me, but I've since discovered her expertise ranges from history to quantum physics to conspiracy theories--gotta love it! We now blog together on The Writers’ Lens.

So, Diana, if you were marooned on an island, and Pots & Pens granted your wish for only one book and one food, what would you choose? One Book – The Boy Scouts Outdoor Field Guide! I know nothing about foraging for food, building a shelter, or which plants might or might not be poisonous. And, if Pots and Pens were to offer me a choice of one food it’d be cherry cheesecake!

Taking a survival guide—that makes perfect sense. And yum, I love cherry cheesecake! Have you also got a favorite literary feast or treat? I’d have to say the “A Martha’s Vineyard Mystery” series by the late Philip A. Craig. Each book is set in Martha’s Vineyard and I love not only the setting, but his characters and plots. My sister lives on Orcas Island, Washington and (except for the murders), Philip Craig knew his island personalities. 

It’s stretching your boundaries time. Is there a food you’d love to learn how to cook or a different genre or type of book you’d love to try to write? I’m currently working on an historical fantasy series which is turning out to be extremely challenging and very much a stretch of my boundaries. I’ve been reading and rereading old manuscripts just to get a feel of Norse thinking and priorities during the 700’s. Then, of course there’s all the background information that’s needed to make the book feel authentic. 
 

Hot out of the oven: What inspired your latest book, and what ingredients do you hope make it a tasty treat for readers? My latest book, The Maya, People of the Maize, is a companion book to my novel, Ninth Lord of the Night. I think of it as a sample of Mayan information that encourages the reader to explore further the various aspects of the Mayan culture. Just as Ninth Lord of the Night offers the reader a full course of mystery and suspense with a touch of paranormal, The Maya, People of the Maize offers the reader a solid background from which they can choose to continue learning about this fascinating culture.    

Since I love ancient Mesoamerican cultures, those were certainly a tasty treat for me! At Pots & Pens, we know too much salt can ruin an exquisite meal, and the perfect dessert tempers earlier mistakes. What ingredients can destroy a book through overuse or salvage a book despite its flaws? Any overused writing technique will detract from a story, but if the plot is exciting and the characters are well-developed, then I can forgive a lot. Stephen King wrote in one of books, that “It’s not the teller, it’s the tale.” I agree with that. 

Recipe Row: I see you’re getting prepared for that desert island with today’s recipe—very clever!

New York Cherry Cheesecake!!

Crust:

2 cups (200 grams) of graham cracker crumbs

½ cup unsalted butter, melted

¼ cup granulated sugar

Filling

32 ounces cream cheese, room temperature (use full fat, not reduced or fat free cream cheese)

1 cup granulated white sugar

3 tablespoons all purpose flour

5 large eggs, room temperature

1/3 cup heavy whipping cream (double cream)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Topping

1 can Comstock pitted Cherries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack in center of oven.

Grease, or spray with Pam, a 9 inch (23 cm) springform pan. Place the springform pan on a larger baking pan to catch any leakage while the cheesecake is baking.

 

For Crust: In a medium sized bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter. Press the crumbs evenly over the bottom and about 1 inch (2.5 cm) up the sides of the springform pan. Cover and refrigerate while you make the filling.

For Filling: In bowl of your electric mixer place the cream cheese, sugar, and flour. Beat on medium speed until smooth (about 2 minutes), scraping down the bowl as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well (about 30 seconds) after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the whipping cream, vanilla extract and beat until incorporated. Remove the crust from the refrigerator and pour in the filling. Place the cheesecake pan on a larger baking pan and place in the oven.

 

Bake for 15 minutes and then lower the oven temperature to 250 degrees and continue to bake for about another 60 - 90 minutes or until firm and only the center of the cheesecake looks a little wet and wobbly. (The baking time can vary due to the differences in ovens, so make sure to check that the cheesecake is firm with only the center being a little wet and wobbly.) Remove from oven and place on a wire rack.

Remove from oven and carefully run a knife or spatula around the inside edge of pan to loosen the cheesecake (helps prevent the surface from cracking as it cools).

Let cool completely before covering with plastic wrap. Refrigerate several hours, preferably overnight. Top with one can of Comstock’s cherry filling (undrained) and serve

Tips:  Sometimes the surface of the cheesecake cracks.  To help prevent this from happening do not over beat the batter, especially when creaming the cheese and sugar. Another reason for cracking is overbaking the cheesecake.  Your cheesecake is done when it is firm but the middle may still look a little wet. Also, make sure the springform pan is well greased as cracking can occur if the cheesecake sticks to the sides as it cools. 

Learn more about Diana and her books at her website

Marinade Makes the Difference: Ideas and Chicken Fajitas

We’ve all heard the stories. Literary lightning strikes, and the perfect concept erupts in the writer’s mind fully grown, like armored Athena bursting out of Zeus’s skull. (No, really, that’s her origin story!)

Sure, I’ve been there a time or two. A complete story comes out of nowhere and begs me to write it down. By and large, though, this isn’t how it works. And I would argue that even those fully formed ideas are much improved by plunging them into the mental marinade for a while.

Mental marinade—yeah, I know it sounds like something a zombie chef would use—is the combination of themes, dreams, and schemes that fill up a person’s conscious and subconscious mind. It’s the primordial soup where most brilliant ideas start. So what better place could there be for nurturing a concept into a story, or better yet, for evolving that story you want to tell into the story you need to tell?

Mental marinade. It’s a resource, not an excuse. While one idea soaks, another can find its home on the page. How long you let ideas bathe is up to you. (My work-in-progress has absorbed nearly a decade's worth of creative nutrients.)

Mental marinade. It’s fun to say, and whether you use it for hours, weeks, or years, the flavors it brings out are well worth the wait.

Although I wish I could say today’s recipe is completely mental, it does at least feature marinade. A good fajita is fun, impressive, and versatile—plus you get to add your own toppings! It’s also tough to screw up. Even a mediocre fajita is worth the wait, but with any luck, we can a do bit better than mediocre.

Chicken Fajitas

Ingredients:

6 boned chicken breasts

¾ tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. sea salt

1 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. garlic salt

1 tsp. chili powder

1 c. lemon juice

6 T. vegetable oil

6 T. wine vinegar

Optional ingredients: (Important—make second batch of seasonings and marinade if cooking veggies, but omit the sea salt.)

2 large bell peppers

2 onions

Cut chicken into strips ¼- to ½-inch thick and put in shallow pan.

Mix dry seasonings and rub evenly over chicken. In a separate bowl, mix lemon juice, oil, and vinegar. Pour over chicken, making sure each piece is completely coated. Marinate for at least 1 hour. (Longer is better.)

If peppers and onions are used, give them the same treatment as the chicken, but omit the sea salt.

Cook on skewers over grill or in pan/skillet over medium heat until cooked through.

Taste before serving, and adjust seasoning according to your preferences. Serve with tortillas and all the fixin’s. But please ignore my pitiful plating. :(

Note: This recipe responds well to alterations (fresh limes, Tabasco, a tablespoon or two of Jack Daniels, etc.).

Let’s get marinating!