Shelby’s Cottage just posted her latest homage to the change of season and it is luscious.
After more heat than most of us have any desire for not to mention odd weather this is a wonderful lead into a cozier, quieter season.
Enjoy!
Month: August 2025
From the Reading Table: A Most Efficient Murder
A Most Efficient Murder by Anthony Slayton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I’m not sure how I discovered this book but it has been on my Audible Wishlist for a while. Recently I decided to give it a go and, I have to say, I rather enjoyed it.
While there is a definite Christie vibe (think Roger Ackroyd), it is very unlike anything I’ve read or listened to as a Cozy British Mystery. To be honest, that is a huge plus. No sweet young thing with no life experience saving the day. No dry as old cardboard story line.
What we have is subtle humor, characters that are not quite over the top, a rather interesting story (or should that be stories?) with a bit of a surprising ending.
This is one of those mysteries where I sit back and let the author take me where he wants me to go, as opposed to me trying to outwit him by figuring everything out as I go. I’ve discovered that when I approach books in this manner they are more enjoyable and less stressful.
What starts out as a celebration of an 18th birthday ends up with at least 2 murders and quite a bit of misdirection thanks to some well designed interference by at least 1 of the characters. At least one.
Things are not always what we are told and neither are the participants in the plot.
Worth the listen, or the read. I enjoyed it enough to add Book 2 to my wishlist.
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Grilled Cheese
And Other Delights!
Still fun after all these years. And, even with the weather, a tasty reminder of something luscious!
Julia Child’s Chicken Salad
It is no secret around here that I love Julia Child. She not only taught people how to cook but how to eat. One of the original foodies.
Julia understood that little things can have big impact. It isn’t just using fresh ingredients, it is how you use those ingredients that can make some thing good into something amazing.
There are thousands of recipes for chicken salad. Everyone has their own take on it. Check out Julia’s recipes for her chicken salad. Can you taste it? Granted she’d prefer homemade mayo but your favorite store bought will do just fine. Everything balances and accentuates other ingredients.
I’m thinking crackers…good sandwich bread…adding an apple…maybe some good cheese…All kinds of options.
Enjoy!
From The Reading Table: Clean in 15
So excited to learn that Mr. Carrington’s new book, Clean in 15, is in preorder! To learn more:
I have followed his cleaning adventures for years and have always learned something new.
Well done, Mr. C!
Dump Cake. Even in the Summer
Sometimes you just need a little something extra even if it means turning the oven on!
I’ve had a can of crushed pineapple and a box of yellow cake mix in my pantry for far too long. I’ve been craving a dump cake. You see where I’m heading, right?
The beauty of a dump cake is the flexibility of flavors you can play with. With the variety of cake mix flavors in addition to the pie fillings and canned or frozen fruits, you can pretty much create a masterpiece.
A word of warning, however, these things are not low calorie and are very rich. Consider yourself warned!
Pineapple Dump Cake
Easy. Tasty. Budget Friendly.
Servings 6
Ingredients
- 1 Box Cake Mix 15.25 ounce
- 1 Can Pineapple, Crushed 20 ounce
- 1 Stick Butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.Spray 13 x 9 baking dish with non stick spray
- Pour pineapple and juice into the dish and spread to cover the bottom of the dish.
- Cover the pineapple with the cake mix making sure all of the pineapple is covered.
- You can melt the butter or just slice it and then top the cake mix with the butter, your choice.
- Bake for 40 – 50 minutes or until fruit is bubbly and top is golden.
Notes
If you use canned fruit do not drain the fruit, add the entire can into the baking dish.
You can double the amount of canned fruit if you like.
You can add chopped nuts and or coconut.
Mixing and matching of flavors is an added bonus. Try a chocolate cake mix over cherry pie filling or a yellow cake mix over canned peaches.
Enjoy!!
Comics & Toons
One of my earliest memories is sitting beside the stove in the kitchen while my mom read the Sunday Comics to me. I also remember when The Flintstones, and later The Jetsons, played on Prime Time.
Yeah, I’ve been around a long time. 😀
I developed a love for Bugs Bunny that has never wavered. Daffy Duck, Elmer Fudd, Sylvester and Tweety, and even Marvin the Martian (& K9) are in that group, too.
Let’s just say Saturday Morning Cartoons have kept me happy for longer than there have actually been Saturday Morning Cartoons. As I once said, ‘Saturday without Bugs Bunny is a waste.’ aka: Thank goodness for DVDs, VHS, and even streaming.
The comics pages have always been packed full of interesting characters, situations, and thought provoking ideas. I still read For Better or For Worse even though I know how the strip ended in 2008. Peanuts, too, has been a staple. There’s no getting around the subtle, and not so subtle, honesty of the Peanuts Gang.
I do read newer strips, but most of my favorites have been around for a while. I recently enjoyed Arlo & Janis’ look back on the evolution of the strip. I haven’t read that one for very long, so this was intriguing.
I’ve been enjoying MeTV Toons, too. Lots of oldies but goodies and some really fun reminders of different directors, writers, designers. It is the perfect place to indulge in my Bugs Bunny obsession. LOL!
I know there are some folks who don’t understand why an ‘adult’ would want to watch ‘kids’ cartoons. And I know several adults who just don’t get it.
For me, there is magic in those drawings, whether or not they are animated or static. And when I take a step back to appreciate the work (!!!) involved, my appreciation grow.
If you get a chance, please take a minute to observe the comic strips and the cartoons you have access to. Listen to the dialog. Watch the movement. Follow the story. Don’t be afraid to chuckle, or even laugh out loud, when something strikes your funny bone. That is what they were made to do, after all.
Enjoy!
Learning About
I have long been a fan of what could be called DIY shows but that really isn’t quite accurate. From the New Yankee Workshop to This Old House, from The French Chef to America’s Test Kitchen, from Sewing With Nancy to Fons and Porter I have had the opportunity to learn a lot about a topic or two that I might, or might not, have any prior knowledge about.
When we started gaining access to The Great British Baking Show, I started learning a lot about non-American baking. As a rather decent baker, this show was eye opening and fascinating. With Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry as judges, not to mention eventually Pru Leith, I couldn’t help but learn a lot.
A few years ago I happened across The Great British Sewing Bee and was immediately captivated. I am NOT a garment maker, I am a quilter. Totally different skill set. That being said, I have been fascinated by garment construction even though I have had no interest in trying it myself. The Sewing Bee has been an education in and of itself. With top sewing teachers and a Savile Row tailor, it is impossible not to learn a lot about construction.
Recently I came across The Great Pottery Throw Down. I can’t begin to tell you how much I have learned about a process, a skill set, that I had never really given much thought to before.
When I would think about pottery what came to mind was tableware. It never dawned on me that pottery includes hand made tiles, sinks, lamp bases, sculpture, and a whole lot more. Watching the show has taught me so much, not to mention given me a greater appreciation for the processes involved.
There are loads of reality competition shows out there but the ones that really interest me are the ones where I can watch enthusiasts develop their skills, create amazing things and support their fellow contestants.
I may never use the skills I’ve seen but I can appreciate what I have learned. Then again, one day I might decide to give one of these processes a try. You never know!
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Don’t Mind Me, I’m Just
Pondering the upcoming school year (!), thinking about the weather, waiting for my groceries…
I have my coffee within easy reach, the door is open to the screen (can you believe we have yet to reach the mid 70s) and I am thinking about how fast ‘summer’ has sped by.
End of the last school term seemed like yesterday until I realized that next term is set to start before the end of August in many places. I’m still getting used to the Back To School Sale ads, not to mention the Halloween items that are currently available. And, yes, I did splurge on some Pumpkin Cookie Dough. A limited edition I couldn’t really find an excuse not to get some. UPDATE: Turns out that the store was out of that particular item… Good for me! LOL!
Grocery shopping has become even more … interesting as prices rise. It takes a firm hand on the meal plans, the pantry, and the budget to find our way through that potential landmine.
You know things are bad when you can buy groceries on credit, right? And I don’t mean credit cards, either.
On a cheerier note, the grass is still green, despite the high temps and the odd rain we have had lately. My lawn care guys showed up the other day ecstatic that it was ‘only’ 80 outside.
I still have my <cough> summer binge watching to do. I have at least one series to get under my belt before the new season arrives. Everything else is going to be filler throughout the week.
FWIW I am still having a blast watching The Great British Sewing Bee. So many creative people and such amazing clothes! And I don’t sew clothes. LOL!
What are you up to? Are you looking forward to the end of Summer and return to school or are you just getting into enjoying summer?
Whatever you do, take time to rest and regroup.
From The Reading Table: There Will be Bodies
There Will Be Bodies: A Flavia Albia Novel by Lindsey Davis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is the first book in the series to take place out of Rome. I admit I rather enjoyed that! Falco & Helena Justina used to leave Rome every once in a while, which seemed to give the reader (and I suspect the writer) a much needed change of pace.
This time, Flavia Albia and Manlius Faustus are tasked by his uncle Tullius to clear a property that he just purchased sight unseen. Said property was damaged when Vesuvius erupted 10 years earlier.
Needless to say, bodies were found, mysteries were discovered, and to no one’s surprise, Flavia Albia is caught up in the search for the truth of what happened.
I enjoyed spending more time with Faustus’ workmen. I also enjoyed the folks who journeyed with them to the villa, and who came along later. Most of all, I enjoyed Faustus and Albia together. We get a look at a solid partnership, much like Falco and Helena’s.
I always enjoy the epilogues. Ms. Davis has a wonderful habit of dropping pebbles throughout her books about many things but it is in the epilogues that she provides a glimpse into the future. I admit I am often caught off guard by the realization that these books, as with the Falco series, are memoirs written many years after the fact.
It was heartbreaking to learn of the impact the volcano’s eruption had not only on Falco but the rest of the family. Albia’s recollections filled out what little we had learned about Falco heading to Pompeii to find his nephew and family only to return empty handed and broken hearted. She had accompanied her father, seeing the destruction at the time and now the ravages 10 years after.
I find myself pondering Suza’s recovery from her adventures i the prior book. Dromo might actually be maturing. A bit. Maybe. How many children???
Looking forward to an audiobook I hope will be coming soon. As much as I enjoy reading these books, I prefer to listen to them!
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