– by Neil White (on my Kindle) – a really, really interesting book. It’s a memoir about the year the author spent in prison in Louisiana. About his sanctimonious attitude when he arrived there (he was convicted of kiting checks trying to keep his publishing business afloat) and what he learns during his year. But as much as it’s about his life as a prisoner, it’s more about the other residents of the prison – the last remaining lepers (Hansen’s Disease) who are provided for in the facility. Neil White is quite a character and I wondered more than once if he was ever going to “get it,” that he was greedy and egotistical. The book wasn’t published for about 10 years after his release, so at least he didn’t profit immediately by telling tales. The epilogue was so sad – listing the deaths of many of the leprosy patients and some of the inmates he came to call friends. One person at amazon commented that it was not worth reading because the author profited from his incarceration, and that he didn’t appear to have redeemed himself. I disagree – I think he did. If he didn’t, then he knows how to spin a good yarn. I choose to believe he learned a whole lot about himself and where his life took a (wrong) left turn, and that he’s trying to atone for his failings by publishing the book. You decide.
- by P.D. James (on my Kindle) – if I hadn’t read about this book in the Los Angeles Times a week or so ago I’d never have pursued this book. It’s nothing even close to her wealth of books of the mystery genre. But yes, it IS a mystery (not something I normally read) but it takes place about 5 years after Pride and Prejudice leaves off. That was the hook for me. An entertaining read and a way to keep in touch with all the lovable (and not-so) characters from Jane Austen’s classic. It’s not a page-turner in the true mystery-murder style, but it’s fun to read.
– by Judith Ryan Hendricks – I picked up this book at a lending library I use now and then. I have to laugh, though – the collection of books (probably numbering about 350 or so) is divided by paperback and hardback. And then by color. COLOR? I find that so ludicrous. But anyway, the title caught my eye. It’s definitely a novel, about a youngish woman who’s been a baker and a chef, but who is suddenly single. It’s about her struggle to find herself, to find a new rhythm of life. In the telling of the journey some recipes are included (baked goods, including bread-bread), which are available on the 
– by Ree Drummond (The Pioneer Woman) – most everyone who reads blogs knows about Ree – the Pioneer Woman, from Pawhuska, Oklahoma. She’s always entertaining, whimsical and enjoyable to read. A couple of years ago she wrote a memoir of her romance with Ladd, her now husband. I can’t count how many times, as I was reading this, that I was LOLing (Laughing Out Loud). She is such a witty writer and knows how to tell a story. Even though I know she married Ladd and has since had 4 children, I was caught up in her story from the first page. I wrote it up in more detail on
– (on my Kindle) Michael Tucker (from L.A. Law some years ago) and his wife, on a whim almost, buy a home in Umbria. An old, old, old house with two bedrooms, a kitchen, living room, I think, and a nice terrace (where a lot of living goes on in Italian homes and families). It’s the story of the purchase itself, the friends they meet, the neighbors, how Michael finds the best butcher(s), bakers and candlestick makers. It made me long for another trip to Italy, actually. They enlarge the home, although they’re not there for most of the construction. It’s a similar tale to Frances Mayes’ books and Peter Mayle’s books too, but it’s different. Tucker is a TV star; his wife’s a stage actress. They live on some higher plane than I do, for sure, with lots of friends with connections. But it’s a cute story and I enjoyed it clear to the end.
(Stacy Schiff); 
; and 
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Talk about a sensational soup! This is it. Maybe we were just in the mood for something different, and maybe it was just because we were with friends that this soup hit the spot. At around lunchtime, we stopped to visit our good friends Russ & Stacey (pictured down below with one of their two children) in San Jose. They’d just returned from a trip the night before, yet Russ, who loves to cook but so often doesn’t have time, made this great soup for lunch. It didn’t look difficult, as long as you have all the ingredients. That may be the tough part – finding the lemongrass, galangal and kaffir lime leaves. And the Thai chiles too.
There’s a photo of the chiles that I found on the internet – they can be both red or green. They’re HOT little devils, I’ll tell you. But they add a great punch to the soup. You likely could substitute other kinds of chiles in this preparation, but the red color definitely adds beauty to the finished soup bowl. Galangal is not something that’s stocked at my local grocery store, so will have to search it out. Same for the kaffir lime leaves and the lemongrass stalks. But I will be on the hunt. Soon. We have several Ranch 99 markets in our area (Asian foods), and I assume I’ll be able to find all of those items there. I’ll be making this soup and putting up a stock of it in my soup library. The recipe came from a cookbook I’m not familiar with – called Red Hot Chili Pepper. It contained lots of beautiful photographs, and a variety of recipes using chiles. Russ served this with a side of white rice, which you could add to the soup, or not. But the rice helped temper the heat.
When I make this soup, I may not add the little bit of hot chiles at the end, as they are so very hot. Burned my mouth and throat. But I think if they had been added to the soup earlier they would have dispersed some of their heat. I may consider adding just one chile. But heat is such an individual thing. I’m just warning you, in case you’re sensitive to chile heat, that these little guys pack a punch. Thanks, Russ (and Stacey), for the fun visit with you, and for this great recipe!
Thai Chicken & Chile Soup
Recipe: Red Hot Chile Pepper, consulting editor Jenni Fleetwood
Servings: 6
4 stalks lemongrass — trimmed
29 ounces coconut milk
2 cups chicken stock
1 piece galangal
2 small red Thai chiles — (very hot)
10 whole peppercorns — crushed
10 whole kaffir lime leaves — torn in pieces
11 ounces chicken breast — cut in thin strips
1 1/2 cups mushrooms — button or oyster, or your choice
1/2 cup baby corn — canned, drained, quartered lengthwise
4 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons fish sauce — nam pla
GARNISH:
3 scallions — minced
4 tablespoons cilantro — minced
1. Cut off the lower 2 inches of each lemongrass stalk and chop those. Bruise the remaining lemongrass.
2. Bring coconut milk, lemongrass and chicken stock to a boil. Meanwhile, peel and slice the galangal, and peel and mince the red chiles. Add galangal and HALF the chiles, peppercorns, half of the lime leaves to the soup mixture and simmer for 10 minutes. Strain this mixture into a clean pan. Heat, then add the chicken, mushrooms and corn. Simmer for 5-7 minutes. Add lime juice, fish sauce and remaining lime leaves. Bring back to a boil, then serve hot, garnished with the additional chiles, green onion and cilantro.
Per Serving: 472 Calories; 38g Fat (68.9% calories from fat); 14g Protein; 25g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 28mg Cholesterol; 771mg Sodium.
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