Photo from UMPCPortal via Flickr

If you got an ereader for Christmas (or bought yourself one just because), you can’t miss Read an Ebook week. And if you don’t have an ereader, then you might be able to win one from some of the giveaways going on this week. Even if you don’t have an ereader, you can still read ebooks on your computer (or possible on your cell phone). More on that at the end of this post.

Read an Ebook Week is March 6-12 (that’s today until next Saturday) and it’s usually a good time to pick up some cheap or free ebooks. To start you off, you can find a list of links to publishers and authors who are supporting this week on the official site. There are lots of other sites participating, but that’s a good place to start.

Now if you don’t have an ereader, you can always download software to read ebooks on your desktop or laptop (this software also lets you read ebooks from most libraries):

• Stanza: For Mac and Windows, this program is usually used to transfer files to the iPod Touch/iPhone, but it can be used to read on a desktop.
• Calibre: For Mac, Windows, and Linux, this program is a more robust ebook viewer than Stanza. I haven’t tried it, but I’ve heard good things about it.
• Kindle (you don’t need a Kindle reader to read Kindle books!): If you find a Kindle book that you like, but don’t have the Kindle reader, you can download Kindle for Windows or Kindle for Mac to read on your desktop.
• Adobe Reader and Adobe Digital Editions: Most people are familiar with Adobe Reader (although if you’re on a Mac you probable prefer Preview). PDF format ebooks with Digital Rights Management restrictions usually require downloading Adobe Digital Editions (ADE) in order to read them.

So there you go: a week of free ebooks for anyone who wants them whether you have an ereader or not. Remember to return to sites daily because the freebies may change from day to day or only be available for a limited time or limited number of downloads.

Enjoy.

Cue obsessive sifting through the library catalogue to find any and all books on beading. This is the first batch:

The Illustrated Bead Bible: Terms, Tips & Techniques

By Therese Flores Geary

This is pretty much exactly what is sounds like. It’s not really the kind of book that you read cover to cover, but more a reference about beads and beading. I actually found it quite useful since I’m more of a I-don’t-know-what-to-call-it-but-I-know-what-I-like kind of beader. Online sellers often assume their buyers know all the terminology so it is a handy reference.

The Bead Bible covers beads, finishes, shapes, techniques, materials, findings (the metal bits that keep jewelry together ), and so on. There are an average (I’m guessing since I didn’t actually count) of about two colour pictures per page. Not one per definition, but more than I was expecting. Quite a few useful features are at the back: A Q & A for basics as well as an illustrated chart of bead shapes (helpful for people like me who need pictures instead of verbal descriptions for shapes), gemstone cuts, beading stitches and reference charts for gemstone hardness.

Creative Bead Jewelry: Weaving, Looming, Stringing, Wiring, Making Beads

By Carol Taylor

I took Creative Bead Jewelry out of the library because after a while you want to do more than just string beads on a single string/wire (not that those necklaces can’t be gorgeous). I have to admit that I flipped through it for the pictures more than I actually read it, but I did get a lot of ideas for new designs (which was my entire reason for looking at the book in the first place).

Although I haven’t tried any yet, there are a lot of practice projects in this book. Some come with diagrams, but others have entirely written steps so you have to be able to visualize from that (I’m pretty bad at doing that–I need the diagrams). It looks like it is designed for beginners since it includes diagrams for some of the weaving stitches and other techniques that are used in the projects.

Getting Started Stringing Beads (Getting Started series)

By Jean Campbell

I took this book out for the same reason as the book above (to get some ideas for stringing beads other than the obvious). It has some useful charts at the beginning, like bead sizes and shapes as well as definitions for tools, stringing materials, and various findings. There’s also a section on the basics of stringing (like finishing off the ends and attaching findings properly).

This book also has a bunch of projects in it. They are simpler than the ones in Creative Bead Jewelry in that they are mostly single string designs (not all, mind you). Despite the simplicity of the designs, the book really shows how much variety and interest you can get with a single string. That alone made it worth looking through the book for me, because you don’t always want to get into fancy stringing techniques.

And since I just received some colour-changing glass coffee bean beads in the mail, I’ll be wandering off to figure out what to do with those now:

I have read all of Gabaldon’s Outlander series, so I put The Exile: An Outlander Graphic Novel on hold at the library. It came in a couple days ago and to be honest? Meh.

Although I love the universe that Gabaldon has created, her books are a bit uneven in their story telling skill. For instance, her last book (An Echo in the Bone) is one I own only because it is part of the series and I might want to reread the series one day–but on its own, I wouldn’t pick it up to read again. It uses the frame story device and that’s a difficult device to use well (by ‘well’ I mean in such a way that both stories are integral to the book and you can’t imagine removing one and not irreparably ruining the story).  There’s another one in the series that uses a frame story and I only read the chapters that take part in the past when I reread it. Gabaldon doesn’t really manage to integrate frame stories well (my main issue with An Echo in the Bone).

Enough about the book series and onto the graphic novel.

I don’t read a lot of graphic novels, but I don’t think that contributed to my apathy about this book. Particularly since I love the Mouse Guard books–I own two and reviewed the first one.

The artwork is lovely although not as intricate as I like. For graphic novels, I like art work where I can find things on subsequent readings that I didn’t notice the first time around and that’s not really the case with The Exile. I think part of the ‘meh’ feeling is that I don’t form images of characters in my head when I read and almost completely ignore character’s physical descriptions (unless it is relevant to plot) so having the characters visualized for me is a bit disconcerting.

The problem, for me, was more with story. As in: there isn’t enough of it.

This is supposed to be a prequel/retelling of Outlander from Jamie’s point of view, but it’s really more from Murtaugh’s point of view. Aside from an unresolved (and not particularly interesting because it is quite undeveloped) subplot about a couple other travellers (Gellie and her mysterious lover), there’s not much new or interesting here. It doesn’t really stand on its own because if you haven’t read Outlander you can’t really fill in the blanks, and it doesn’t really add much to the Outlander series if you have read the books.

Interestingly, according to the author’s note, Gabaldon started out writing scripts for comic books. Actually, that’s the most interesting thing I got from the book. I don’t dislike the book; it just fails to spark any real interest. Unless you absolutely must have everything to do with Jamie and Claire, I’d check this out of the library instead of buying it.

Why am I telling you this?

Well, (a) I don’t want to start another blog, yet, for my beading, and (b) I’ll be reviewing beading books in the near future, which involves actual doing in order to evaluate the books (much like cookbooks). So I thought I might as well post my projects. Also: because.

My format is 3″ x 3″ because I didn’t want anything too big to be discouraging or really time consuming. After digging through my supplies from the last time I was beading, I settled on an Arctic scene with a polar bear (he’s made out of hematite, which is a black stone, but I’m still calling him a polar bear) and Aurora Borealis.

It turned out okay. There are bits I’m not happy with, but that’s normal. I only knew one stitch when I did this–and at some points I was doing it wrong–so it’s not very fancy in terms of texture. I’ve since come across some new stitches in a book I’ll review soon that would work better for the Aurora Borealis part. The “moon” is a pearlized button that was kicking around my craft box and the pine trees are pale blue sequins (though it’s hard to tell that from the picture).

Anyone else learning a new skill from books this year?

The recipes came from The Moosewood Restaurant Cooking for Health and The Moosewood Cookbook (1992 edition–I’ll address the one-star reviews for the 2000 version on Amazon further down).

Mashed Cauliflower

Cauliflower is still on sale, so when I came across this recipe I figured why not. It’s out of The Moosewood Restaurant Cooking for Health: More Than 200 New Vegetarian and Vegan Recipes for Delicious and Nutrient-Rich Dishes, which is also where I got the recipe for Roasted Butternut Squash, as well as Quinoa and Roasted Sweet Potato, and Tunisian Chickpea Stew. Oh yes, the forgettable Baked Fruit was from this cookbook too. Also, Maple-Glazed Root Vegetables.

Aaaaanyway.

This cauliflower recipe is supposed to have fewer carbs than mashed potatoes. It certainly doesn’t taste like mashed potatoes, but it’s easy enough to make (overcook cauliflower and mash with sauteed onions, more or less) and tasty enough to repeat.

Roasted Butternut Squash

I had to find something to do with butternut squash left over from the soup I made (I know if I stick it in the fridge I will inevitably forget about it until it goes bad). This recipe is actually part of a larger recipe for making a roasted vegetable salad, I think. This is quick and easy and the squash comes out firm rather than mushy (I hate mushy squash).

Basically, chop up a butternut squash into 1″ chunks, add a few teaspoons of olive oil and a 1/4 teaspoon of dried thyme. Mix it up, put it in a pan in a single layer and cook at 400F for 20-25 minutes.

This recipe is my default for butternut squash. Easy and tasty enough to remake. Also, it’s likely to go with whatever else we have kicking around for dinner.

Quinoa and Roasted Sweet Potato

Sweet potatoes were on sale and just about anything you make with them turns out yummy. Usually I just stick them whole in the oven for about 40 minutes at 400F and then let them cool a bit before peeling off the skin (leftovers are good on pizza). I’ve done that a lot lately though, so I was looking for something else to do with them.

I found this recipe kind of bland (although, now that I haul out my cookbook, I see that I marked it as ‘good’ when I made it). It wasn’t bad, but it certainly didn’t attain the requisite “Yum, I have to make this again!” level of enjoyment. Cooking is enough work that if I’m going to bother to follow a recipe, the results better routinely hit “Yum–must make again.” I don’t need a cookbook to achieve “Meh, it’ll do.” I can accomplish that by ad-libbing on my own, thankyouverymuch.

Part of the disappointment is that the sweet potato is steamed on the stovetop rather than roasted. Roasting brings out the sweetness of sweet potato in a way that steaming doesn’t, so that was a letdown. And the leftover spinach rotting in the fridge because I hate cooking with spinach is mocking me, daily. Eh, your mileage may vary.

Maple-Glazed Root Vegetables

I have to admit: I screwed up preparing this recipe so I can’t really honestly review it as it was supposed to be baked. I love roasted root vegetables in the winter, but usually recipes call for an oil/herb mix that you coat the veggies in and then bake. This recipe has that oil/herb mix BUT it also has a glaze that you add later in the cooking. I may or may not have added everything at once.

*cough* Oops *cough*

I wasn’t trying to modify the recipe. I was just having trouble holding the cookbook open and was going more by the ingredient list than the instructions. I have made this before, but I didn’t take any notes and I don’t remember if I screwed it up the last time too (I am nothing if not a creature of bad habits).

Obviously, it wasn’t memorable the first time I made it, so I suppose that says something.

Tunisian Chickpea Stew

I’m somewhat on the fence about this recipe. It’s not bad, but I’m not sure it’s thrilling enough to offset the amount of work it is (most of which is hacking up the squash, but with chronic pain issues in the my arms, shoulders, and upper back, that’s a consideration).

I’ve had much better stews from my vegetarian slow cooker cookbook … which I’ll not link to just yet because the Amazon reviews remind me of why I cook so rarely from that book.

Baked Fruit

This is another recipe I wasn’t thrilled with. Basically it’s sliced apples in maple syrup and lemon juice baked in the oven. It’s okay, but I can’t see making it again unless we use it as a hot topping for vanilla ice cream or lemon sorbet.

Hmm, now that I look back on it, so far this cookbook isn’t particularly great as far as keeper recipes go. I was not expecting that.

The other cookbook I cooked from was The Moosewood Cookbook. I have the 1992 edition, which was the first revision of the 1977 book. Apparently there is a 2000 version that sucks (based on the one-star reviews). Keep that in mind if you decide to buy this one. The 1992 revision is lower fat than the 1977 original–I have no idea what they did to the latest version.

Marinated Chickpeas

We usually have the same salad every night, made by the other half (that’s the extent of his “cooking”). It’s your basic tomato, lettuce, celery deal. It’s nice to have, but gets a bit bland sometime so if we have extra chickpeas hanging around we toss them on top. But even that is a bit bland.

The chickpeas in this recipe are marinated with fresh ginger, raw garlic, raw onions, and oil (there’s probably salt and pepper in there too). I really like these on salad. Actually, I really like these as a snack as well. This is definitely a recipe I’ll make again: quick, easy, tasty, and versatile (dump them on rice, salad, whatever floats your boat).

Cream of Asparagus Soup

This is actually the first recipe in the book. I’m generally not a fan of cream soups. The canned ones are vile–the less said about them the better. I took a chance though since asparagus was on sale and the recipe said low-fat milk was fine for the recipe.

The soup was actually pretty good. Cooking the asparagus was a bit finicky, but I think that’s more asparagus-related than recipe-related. It’s a bit too finicky to make regularly, but definitely a good cream of asparagus soup recipe.

In case anyone is wondering, I’ve tried a lot of recipes in this cookbook and have been happy with most of them. But I have an older version than what bookstores are selling.

If you’ve cooked these recipes or from these cookbooks, what did you think? And if anyone has the 2000 version of the Moosewood Cookbook, I’d be interested in your experiences with it. Apparently it’s different enough that they call it The New Moosewood Cookbook (whereas mine is simply a revised edition of the 1977 version).

This week I had to find a use for a cheap bag of onions, cheap cauliflower, and a dessert that was under 200 calories. The recipes I ended up trying were Roasted Caramelized Balsamic Onions, Cauliflower Steak, Pineapple Sorbet, and Lemon Sorbet. Whew! I don’t normally manage this many new recipes in a week.

I was going to try to take pictures, but I didn’t manage it this week. Maybe next week. It would be nice to have pictures in my recipe binder to remind me of what a dish looks like.

Roasted Caramelized Balsamic Onions

Bags of onions were on sale for $1 so I bought first and figured out what to do with them later. I came across a recipe for roasting onions with butter, balsamic vinegar, and thyme in Moosewood Restaurant New Classics (p. 125). Why not!

I lined the pan with parchment paper (this significantly cuts down on whining from the other half who does the dishes) before putting the onions in and covering them with the butter/vinegar/thyme mixture. The recipe called for two large onions, but I only had medium and small so I put in four of those instead.

They turned out pretty tasty and got a “You can make this anytime” from the other half.

It looks like the recipe is over on Food.com, if you’re curious.

Cauliflower Steak

This is a recipe that my Mom got from Vij’s at Home: Relax, Honey: The Warmth and Ease of Indian Cooking cookbook (you can also find the same Cauliflower steak recipe over on Straight.com). I very rarely buy cauliflower because I’m not very fond of it steamed and I really don’t have any recipes for it (well, I’m sure I have recipes, somewhere in my collection of cookbooks, but I haven’t come across any that feature cauliflower yet).

Since this recipe was passed on from my Mom who had already made it, I didn’t make any changes other than cutting the salt in half (which is a default in our family since we’re not used to a lot of salt). Basically, this is a tomato masala sauce that you cook “pie-shaped” pieces of cauliflower in for about 15 minutes.

I found it a bit oily (it calls for 1/2 cup of oil but I would halve that next time) but other than that it was nice and spicy. The other half declared it the best cauliflower he has ever had, so the recipe is definitely a keeper with less salt and less oil.

One thing that I didn’t realize until I figured out the calories per serving, is that cauliflower is very high in Vitamin C (each serving, or 1/6th of a cauliflower head, is 120% of the daily Vitamin C requirement). Huh. Who knew?

Pineapple Sorbet

We’ve been eating ice cream lately since it has been on sale, but milk products do unpleasant things to my stomach so I had the brilliant idea of making sorbet (commercial sorbet around here invariably has milk products in it so buying it is out). Since pineapples were on sale, I looked for a pineapple sorbet recipe. Conveniently enough, the instruction booklet for my KitchenAid stand mixer ice cream attachment actually has one.

Pineapple Sorbet Recipe

• 1 cup cold water
• 1 cup sugar
• 5 1/2 cups chopped pineapple
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp lime or lemon juice

1. Mix water, sugar, corn syrup and salt together in a bowl until all the sugar is dissolved.
2. Finely chop 1/2 cup of pineapple and set aside.
3. Puree five cups of pineapple and lime juice in a food processor.
4. Mix sugar mixture and pureed pineapple.
5. Freeze in ice cream maker.
6. Add chopped pineapple in last few minutes of mixing or mix in after.

Tasty. Easy to make. It calls for 1/2 cup of chopped pineapple (the rest is pureed) but I found I don’t like frozen chunks of fruit in my sorbet so I think I’ll just puree it all next time. Uses about one pineapple. Apparently the same recipe can be made with peaches so I’ll have to try that this summer if we get some good ones.

Lemon Sorbet

I found this recipe online at Cuisinart after I made the pineapple sorbet and the other half was looking a titch forlorn since he hates pineapple.

Tasty, but a little tart (I may have added too much lemon juice; I did lose count). The other half didn’t like the first spoonful (too tart), but it grew on him after a few mouthfuls and he’s now happily making his way through the container.

See you next week.

Today, he was back again and has been sitting there for hours, presumably freezing his fuzzy little butt off, conducting surveillance of the street from his little bunker (he’s pretty much invisible from the street, or even from the driveway). We’re not sure how many days he’s been hanging out, quietly keeping watch, but if he sticks around much longer I’m going to have to give him a name.

Any suggestions? I’m hoping you can help me come up with something more original than “Snowball” or “Sir Hops-a-lot.”

This is my cookbook bookcase (doesn’t everyone have a cookbook bookcase?):

Most of these are vegetarian or pescatarian, including an almost complete collection of Moosewood cookbooks (95% of the recipes I’ve tried from Moosewood cookbooks have been worthwhile which is a pretty good track record for a cookbook). I’m not exactly sure how I’m going to blog about this. Right now I’m thinking a weekly post of what I tried, how it turned out and which cookbook the recipe came from.

And if anyone else wants to join in, that would be nice too.

Thoughts?

I know snow is part of the seasonal cycle here in Canada. And I know that living in a Prairie province that we’re going to get a fair dump of it every winter. I’m okay with that. I really am. There’s even some good uses for snow. It’s not all bad. But do you think you could give the snow to someone else? Just for a little while? It’s just that we’re running out of room to put it all:

See? After five feet it gets hard to shovel it onto the snow bank.  So a little reprieve, please?

Thanks.

P.S. Snow for sale at a very good rate. Pick up only.

Despite the cheesy name, I decided to check it out since it is now a free download (it was originally published by a major publisher over 30 years ago).

If you’re doing exactly what you want for a living and have no regrets or unfulfilled dreams, then this book is NOT for you. If you have dreams, but don’t know how to make them come true, this book IS for you. If you don’t know what your dreams are, this book IS for you.

Unlike most books of this type, this book is based on the premise that we are flawed individuals and that we don’t need to turn into perfect superbeings in order to live the life that we want (good thing too, because that’s never going to happen with me). This book is for the procrastinator, the person who starts a diet on Monday and has fallen off the wagon by Wednesday (if he or she even lasts that long).

The first part of the book is focused on discovering what your dreams are. The premise is that we are told too soon as children to be practical–stop dreaming, stop being silly, stop thinking grand thoughts. Even if we are allowed to keep dreaming, most of us are not taught how to explore our interests. That’s part two of the book: how to get from dream to reality.

Everyone should check out this book and since it’s free there’s no excuse not to.