TaMara

Cross-Posted: Food In Fiction, Underway Recipes

Cross-posted from What’s 4 Dinner Solutions.

One of my favorite things is recipes in fiction novels. I’ve featured quite a few of them here.

So when I began to write my own fiction, I wanted to include recipes. Run Aground (Book 1 in the TJ Wilde Trilogy – for sale here) featured Smashed Potatoes and Lemon Piccata Chicken

My newest book, Underway (Book 2 in the TJ Wilde Trilogy) features two recipes. Tahini Walnut Rolls (recipe here) and Sausage and Grapes below.

Underway is on sale now, here. You can read Chapters 1 and 2 here.

From 2015:

…I decided to experiment with flavors I would have never thought of on my own. Facebook and blog friend Michael F, shared a recipe on Facebook from Italy, in Italian no less, and the photo intrigued me. I let google translate the recipe (which was a hoot) and went about putting my touches into it.

It was so unusual, my most reliable recipe testers politely declined my dinner invite. Totally understandable. But I will tell you I was pleasantly surprised how well this turned out. If you like pork and apples, this has a similar flavor palate. It was also quick and easy to prepare. I’m glad I decided to experiment.

All right, if you’re up for something new and different, here you go, tonight’s featured recipe.

Sausage and Grapes

8 links Italian sausage (I used spicy, but you could use any style sausage you favor)
1/2 sweet onion, finely diced
2 tsp fennel seeds
1 cup green seedless grapes, washed, dried and halved lengthwise
1 cup red seedless grapes, washed, dried and halved lengthwise
salt and pepper to taste (I used none, didn’t need it)
angel hair pasta
freshly grated Parmesan

skillet

Slice sausage links into four pieces each, add to skillet and fry on medium high for about 10 minutes. Add onion and fennel seeds, cook another 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are translucent. Add grapes, stir until well mixed, cover and let simmer for an additional 10-15 minutes while pasta cooks.

Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain well.

You can toss with the sausage mixture, or serve separately. Serve with Parmesan.

The pasta was my addition. When I asked Michael what would be a good side, he suggested eggplant or roasted potatoes. Roasted zucchini spears would probably work well, too.

Paris in the Fall: The Food

Rodin Museum

I have so many photos from the trip, but very few are of iconic images – I tried to look for the unusual and eye catching. Or the occasional T-Rex.

So the food. Much to tell. Most of it good. I loved how fresh everything was, milk, cheese, bread. Oh, the cheeses! Oh, the breads! Nothing, and I mean nothing, compares to the breads there. Breakfast was the basic Le petit déjeuner en Français and it made me very happy (and full) each morning :

Photo courtesy of Larilyn, as I took no pictures of food on the trip. :-(

The croissants varied by location, but when they were fresh, they were absolutely delicious. And I had two chocolate croissants (pain au chocolat) that were fabulous. By far my favorite pastries were the raspberry tart (tarte aux franboises) and the lemon tart (tarte au citron), both of which I want to recreate this week. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Rodin’s Garden

There were some fun things we tried. One was of course, the Nutella crêpes, the other was a great hot dog from a street vendor, served in a toasted baguette with cheese. One of the best meals we had was in our hotel on Sunday (after a very, very long day we didn’t have it in us to go anywhere else). They have a garden in the courtyard (just beneath our window, btw) and used those fresh ingedients in their kitchen. Magnifique!

Musée d’Orsay – my favorite museum by far

The most interesting and surprising thing about the food was how little sugar was involved, even in the pastries. And the ketchup. And the chocolate. You’d be surprised how much more flavorful food is without the over-sweetness we are accustomed to – much more complex flavors are allowed to blossom. I actually brought home 2 boxes (oh, how I wish I’d bought a dozen) of St. Michel’ Galette Salted Butter cookies because they were so perfect with a cup of coffee after dinner.

Walking the Seine

And the coffee…well that’s a post all its own because I came home determined to make the terrific coffee we had there. Even in our hotel room. Yum. I have succeeded.

Walking the Seine, continued..

That’s about it. Nothing in any of the bistros or other restaurants really stood out. We were warned that outside the pastries, cheeses and breads, the food might be disappointing. So we were prepared. We did sample a little bit of everything, so I think overall it was a terrific experience.

I have a few more pictures to share, so probably have one more wrap-up post. Until then….

Paris In The Fall: Day 1

I’ve been having difficulty putting Paris into words, which is why the delay in my promised posts. I think I just feel that everything that can be said about the City of Lights has already been said. But I’ll give it a shot.

Paris was beautiful and I enjoyed every moment of it. The people were friendly, kind and welcoming. Fall was in full force as we walked….everywhere. We mastered the Metro and wound our way through the tree line streets to museums, gardens, cafes and the cemetery.

The Eiffel Tower was directly outside the hotel window creating a pretty sweet nightlight with hourly sparkles.

I found many things as I walked through quiet museums and busy neighborhoods, but what I did not find was my heart. There was beauty, art and history, all things I love. But I was really surprised that as much as I loved it, it was not the zing to my heart that I expected.

Maybe a girl can only have one city steal her heart, and mine was stolen by Boston long, long ago. Still, every day in Paris was a lovely adventure.

There’s more and I’ll share in the days to come…especially the cemetery…

Artist Quotes

Artist Quotes from Run Aground Notes

Life is intrinsically, well, boring and dangerous at the same time. At any given moment the floor may open up. Of course, it almost never does; that’s what makes it so boring. – Edward Gorey

In love, the one who runs away is the winner. – Henri Matisse

I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s not really possible to help others. – Paul Cezanne

Only love interests me, and I am only in contact with things that revolve around love. In our life there is a single color, as on an artist’s palette, which provides the meaning of life and art. It is the color of love. – Marc Chagall

All content on this blog is copyrighted Annie DeMoranville and Annie DeMoranville Writes 2012-2017. It may not be reproduced, copied or reblogged without prior permissions.

Images

Images from notes on Run Aground

All content on this blog is copyrighted Annie DeMoranville and Annie DeMoranville Writes 2012-2013. It may not be reproduced, copied or reblogged without prior permissions.