 Grave Expectations by Alice Bell is a contemporary mystery book set primarily in the English countryside. This book follows Claire, a burnt-out Millennial medium, who utilizes her ability to see ghosts and teams up with her ghostly best friend Sophie, ex-policeman Sebastian, and far-too-cool non-binary teen Alex to figure out which members of a posh English family are guilty of murder.
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 I've read several autumn/winter-related books over the years that featured mulled apple cider, including There Arose Such A Clatter by C.M. Nascosta. Since the weather has finally become a bit cooler where I live, I thought it would be fun to turn this festive and warming drink into some delicious muffins.  These Lemon Lavender Cupcakes were inspired by the Cambric Creek Coven series (also called the Wheel of the Year series) by C.M. Nascosta. This series (which currently includes The Mabon Feast and Hexennacht) follows Elizabeth (a.k.a. Ladybug) Brackenbridge as she comes into her own power as a witch and organizes her own coven in the town of Cambric Creek.  Impromptu Match by Lily Mayne is the first book in her new series, Goliaths of Wrestling. This book is a cute, low-angst queer romance between Holt, an empyn who can feel other people’s emotions, and Taylor, a human. The second book in this series, Clean Finish, was just published a couple weeks ago. And the cute, low-angst vibes of this series continue in that romance between Larkin, Holt’s fae assistant, and Seb, Holt’s werewolf bodyguard. I really enjoyed reading both of these books and I can’t wait for the third book in the series to be released.  This Strawberry Sherbet recipe was inspired by A Blue Ribbon Romance and Milked by C.M. Nascosta. I previously discussed A Blue Ribbon Romance in my post on the Triple Scoop Choco Mocha Parfait, while Milked is a special edition that combines both Morning Glory Milking Farm and A Blue Ribbon into one book.
I’ve been pulling a lot of recipe inspiration lately from the Cambric Creek ice cream truck mentioned in these books because it’s been so hot outside lately and I’m currently trying to avoid using my oven. Fortunately, this Strawberry Sherbet is a light, icy treat that only requires a blender or food processor and a freezer.  Smile Beach Murder by Alicia Bessette is a contemporary mystery book set in the Outer Banks, North Carolina. This book follows Callie Padget, a former reporter, as she returns to her hometown after losing her job. This mystery was a great book to read while I was visiting my family in Virginia Beach, which is located relatively close to the Outer Banks. While I was home, my parents and I went strawberry picking so I would have plenty of strawberries to use for these muffins. I hope you enjoy these muffins as much as my mom and I did!
 Sweep in Peace by Ilona Andrews is the second book in the Innkeeper Chronicles series. This urban fantasy/science fiction series follows Dina DeMille as she manages her magic inn—and an assortment of off-world guests—set in modern-day Texas. As part of her preparations to host a peace summit, Dina hires Orro, a once highly regarded chef. One of the first meals Orro prepares for Dina and others is a simple roast chicken with salad for lunch because he believes simple dishes allow the skills of the chef and the quality of the ingredients to take center-stage.
 “100 Good Apple Recipes: Use Ohio Apples,” Agricultural College Extension Service, Ohio State University, 1915. Cookbooks like this one were used to distribute knowledge about the agricultural field. “The Cooperative Extension Service system got its start in 1862 when Congress passed the Morrill Act, which provided for a university in each state to provide education to citizens in the agricultural and mechanical fields. These colleges are known as ‘land-grant universities.’ The Ohio State University is Ohio's 1862 land-grant university” (Ohio State University). For more information on apples in America, I would recommend checking out this article on apples by The Food Timeline and this podcast episode by History Bites.  “Farm Bureau Cook Book,” Ohio Farm Bureau. No date.
I think this cookbook may have been published sometime in the 1940s because it lists several recipes as “sugarless” or containing the word “victory” in the title. Rationing items like sugar was common in the United States in the 1940s due to World War II. According to the Food Timeline, “Rationing was introduced in the United States by the Office of Price Administration in 1942 as a way to equitably distribute diminishing food supplies.” The regulations on rationing sugar remained in effect from April 1942 to June 1947. A couple interesting articles I found on World War II food rationing were “WW2 Rations + Victory Gardens” from Savor Tooth Tiger and “Here’s How to Make ‘Victory Cake’ With a Recipe From the World War II Home Front” by Lily Rothman for TIME Magazine.  A Blue Ribbon Romance by C.M. Nascosta is a short novel featuring a high heat, slow burn romance between Violet, a human woman, and Rourke, a male minotaur. This book follows the same timeline as one of her other books, Morning Glory Milking Farm, but is told from Rourke’s perspective instead of Violet’s.
Rourke loves sweets almost as much as I do, and, at one point in the book, he orders a Triple Scoop Choco Mocha Parfait with extra marshmallows and chocolate sauce from an ice cream truck at the local weekly shopping bazaar. I had to try recreating this parfait because 1) it sounded delicious, 2) ice cream is one of my favorite foods, and 3) there was a recent spring-time heat wave in the D.C. area and I had no desire to turn on my oven and make my apartment feel even warmer than it was.  “Secrets of Making Frozen Desserts at Home,” The Peerless Freezer Company.
This undated product cookbook was published by the Peerless Freezer Company likely sometime between 1914 and 1974. It features 150 recipes for a hand cranked ice cream machine. Originally, this company was called Dana & Co. but was renamed to the Peerless Freezer Company after it was sold to the Alaska Freezer Company of Winchendon, Massachusetts in July 1914. The Alaska Freezer Company manufactured ice cream freezers and other freezers from 1902 to 1974. In 1974, the company was purchased by a group of investors and renamed White Mountain Freezer, Inc., and continued to manufacture freezers and hand cranked ice cream machines until the early 1990s. In 2019, the town of Winchendon and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency began the process of demolishing the abandoned Alaska Freezer plant because the building was literally falling apart and there were concerns about asbestos contaminating the site. “A Guide to ROYAL SUCCESS in Baking,” Standard Brands Incorporated, 1939. This product cookbook by the Royal Baking Powder Company has a variety of recipes featuring baking powder and cream of tartar. The Royal Baking Powder Company was started in 1866 by the brothers Joseph Christoffel Hoagland and Cornelius Nevius Hoagland. A couple of interesting articles I found on the history of baking powder were “Baking Powder: How Baking Powder Works – Types of Baking Powder – How To Test Baking Powder” by Linda Stradley/What’s Cooking America, and “The Great Uprising: How a Powder Revolutionized Baking” by Ben Panko for Smithsonian Magazine. |
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I'm Elizabeth, the creator behind this blog. Here you will find a collection of recipes inspired by my favorite books and vintage recipes I've acquired over the years. Archives
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