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Here are the tastingspoons players. I’m in the middle (Carolyn). Daughter Sara on the right, and daughter-in-law Karen on the left. I started the blog in 2007, as a way to share recipes with my family. I’m still doing 99% of the blogging and holding out hope that these two lovely and excellent cooks will participate. They both lead very busy lives, so we’ll see.

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BOOK READING (from Carolyn):

Music of Bees, Eileen Garvin. Absolutely charming book about a woman in midlife, lonely, who raises bees, also makes unlikely friends. Heart-warming and very interesting about beekeeping.

A Postcard from Paris, Alex Brown. Really cute story. Dual time line, 1940s and present day about renovating an old apartment in Paris, things discovered.

Time of the Child, Niall Williams. Oh such a good book. Very small village in Ireland, 1960s. A baby is left on the doorstep. The town all whispers and helps. I listened to an interview of the author, which made me like him and his books even more.

Sipsworth, Simon Van Booy. If you like animals you’ll swoon. An old woman who really wants to die finds a tiny mouse in her house and befriends it and finds a reason to live. Utterly charming book.

The Forger’s Spell, Edward Dolnick. True story. For seven years a no-account painter named Han van Meegeren managed to pass off his paintings as those of Johannes Vermeer.

If You Lived Here, You’d be Home by Now, Christopher Ingraham. Could hardly put it down – about a journalist who takes on a challenge to move to small town in Minnesota and write about it. He expects to hate it and the people and place, but he doesn’t. Absolutely wonderful true story.

The River We Remember, William Kent Kreuger. 1950s, Minnesota. A murder and the aftermath. Could hardly put it down. Kreuger has such a vivid imagination and writing style.

How the Lights Gets In, Joyce Maynard. An older woman returns to New Hampshire to help care for her brain-injured son. Siblings and family, lots of angst and resentments.

The Filling Station, Vanessa Miller. Every American should read this book. A novelized retelling of the Tulsa massacre in 1921. Absolutely riveting.

The Story She Left Behind, Patti Callahan Henry. Love this author. Based on a true story. A famous author simply vanishes, leaving her husband and daughter behind. She had invented a mystical language no one could translate. Present day, someone thinks he’s solved the riddle, contacts the family. Really interesting read.

The Girl from Berlin, Ronald Balson. Love anything about Tuscany. An elderly woman is being evicted from a villa there, with odd deed provenance. Two young folks go there to help unravel the mystery. Loved it.

The Island of the Colorblind, Oliver Sacks, M.D. Nonfiction. The dr is intrigued by a remote Pacific island where most of the inhabitants are colorblind. He also unravels a mystery on Guam of people born with a strange neurological problem. Medical mysteries unveiled. Very interesting.

The Bookbinder, Pip Williams. Post 1914 London. Two sisters work at a bookbindery. They’re told to not read the books. One does and one doesn’t. One has visions beyond her narrow world; the other does not. Eventually the one gets into Oxford. Lovely story.

The Paris Express, Emma Donoghue. 1895 on a train to Paris, a disaster happens. You’ll delve into the lives of many people who survived and died in the crash.

A Race to the Bottom of Crazy, Richard Grant. This is about Arizona. Author, wife and child move back to Arizona where they once lived. Part memoir, research, and reporting in a quest to understand what makes Arizona such a confounding and irresistible place.

The Scarlet Thread, Francine Rivers. A woman’s life turned upside down when she discovers the handcrafted quilt and journal of her ancestor Mary Kathryn McMurray, a young woman who was uprooted from her home only to endure harsh frontier conditions on the Oregon Trail.

A Place to Hide, Ronald Balson. 1939 Amsterdam, an ambassador has the ability to save the lives of many Jewish children. Heartwarming.

Homeseeking, Karissa Chen. Two young Chinese teens are deeply in love, but in China. Then their families are separated. Jump to current day and the two meet again in Los Angeles.

North River, Pete Hammill. He always writes such a good story. A doctor works diligently healing people from all walks of life. His wife and daughter left him years before. One day his 3-yr old grandson arrives on his doorstep.

A Very Typical Family, Sierra Godfrey. A very messed-up family. Three adult children are given a home in Santa Cruz, Calif, but only if the siblings meet up and live in the house together. A very untypical scenario but makes for lots of messes.

Three Days in June, Anne Tyler. The usual Anne Tyler grit. Family angst. This wasn’t one of my favorites, but it was entertaining and very short.

Saved, Benjamin Hall. Author is a veteran war reporter. Ukraine, 2022, he nearly loses his life to a Russian strike. Riveting story – he survives, barely.

Grey Wolf, Louise Penny. Another Inspector Gamache mystery in Quebec. She is such an incredible mystery writer.

All the Colors of the Dark, Chris Whitaker. A missing person mystery, a serial killer thriller, a love story, a unique twist on each. Could hardly put it down.

Orbital, Samantha Harvey. Winner of 2024 Booker Prize. I don’t usually like those, but I heard the author interviewed and she hooked me. This is not a normal book with a beginning, a story and an end. It’s several chapters of the day in the life of various astronauts at the ISS (Int’l Space Station). All fictional. She’s been praised by several real astronauts for “getting it” about space station everyday life.

The Blue Hour, Paula Hawkins. An island off Scotland. Inaccessible except when the tide is out. Weird goings on. An artist. A present day mystery too.

Iron Lake, William Kent Krueger. A judge is murdered and a boy is missing. Riveting mystery.

Tell the Wolves I’m Home, Carol Ricks Brunt. 1980s. A 14-yr old girl loses her beloved uncle. Yet a new friendship arises, someone she never knew about.

Four Treasures of the Sky, Jenny Zhang. 1880s, a young girl is kidnapped in China and brought to the United States. She survives with many hurdles in the path.

The Boy Who Fell out of the Sky, Ken Dornstein. Memoir, 1988. The author’s brother died in the PanAm flight that went down in Lockerbie, Scotland. A decade later he tries to solve “the riddle of his older brother’s life.”

Worse Care Scenario, T.J. Newman. Oh my. Interesting analysis of what could/might happen if a jet crashed into a nuclear plant. Un-put-downable.

Song of the Lark, Willa Cather. Complicated weave of a story about a young woman in about 1900, who has a gifted voice (singing) and about her journey to success, not without its ups and downs.

Crow Talk, Eileen Garvin. Charming story which takes place at a remote lake in Washington State, about a few people who inhabit it, the friendships made, but also revolving around the rescue of a baby crow.

The Story Collector, Evie Woods. Sweet story about some dark secrets from an area in Ireland, a bit magical, faerie life, but solving a mystery too.

A Sea of Unspoken Things, Adrienne Young. A woman investigates her twin brother’s mysterious death. She goes to a small town in California to figure it out, to figure HIM out.

The King’s Messenger, Susanna Kearsley. 1600s England, King James. About one of his trusted “messengers,” and his relationship with a young woman also of “the court.” Lots of intrigue.

In the Shadow of the Greenbrier, Emily Matchar. Interesting mystery in/around the area of the famous resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.

Isola, Allegra Goodman. Hard to describe, survival story on an island in the 1600s.

Save the Date, Allison Raskin. Rom-com, witty, LOL funny. Clever.

The Sirens, Emilia Hart. Numerous time-lines, Australia. Mysteries abound, nightmares, abandoned baby, weird allergies.

Red Clay, Charles Fancher. LOVED this book. Mostly post-Civil War story about the lives of slaves in Alabama during Reconstruction.

Stars in an Italian Sky, Jill Santopolo. Dual time line, 1946 and recent time. Love stories and a mystery.

Battle Mountain, C.J. Box. Another one of Box’s riveting mysteries. Love his descriptions of the land.

Something Beautiful Happened, Yvette Corporon. A memoir of sorts in Greece, tiny island of Erikousa, where the locals hid Jews during WWII. All elusive stories told by the author’s grandmother.

The Jackal’s Mistress, Chris Bohjalian. 1860s Virginia, about a woman who saves the life of a Union soldier. Really good story.

Song of the Magpie, Louise Mayberry. Really interesting story about Australia back in the days when it was mostly a penal colony. Gritty strength of a woman trying to thrive with her farm.

The Boomerang, Robert Bailey. A thriller that will have you gripping the book. About a lot of secrets surrounding the president (fictional novel, remember) and his chief of staff and about cancer. A cure. Such a good story.

Care and Feeding, Laurie Woolever. Really interesting memoir of a woman driven to succeed in the restaurant business. She worked for Mario Batali and then Anthony Bourdain. Gritty stories.

Everything is Tuberculosis, John Green. Maybe not a book for everyone. A real deep dive into the deadly tuberculosis infection, its history. I heard the author interviewed and found the book very interesting.

The Book Lovers Library, Madeline Martin. Fascinating read about Boots’ drug stores’ lending library. And the people who worked in them.

The Arrivals, Meg Mitchell Moore. LOL funny, about a middle-aged couple whose children (and their various family members) return to the family home and the chaos that ensues.

My Life as a Silent Movie, Jesse Lee Kercheval. About grief. A big move to Paris, finding herself a new life with a new set of real blood family.

Escape, Carolyn Jessop. Another memoir about a woman really in bondage in Utah, Mormon plural marriage.

 

Tasting Spoons

My blog's namesake - small, old and some very dented engraved silver plated tea spoons that belonged to my mother-in-law, and I use them to taste my food as I'm cooking.

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Posted in Salad Dressings, on June 18th, 2013.

creamy_lemon_citronette

A happy camper am I when I find a new citrusy salad dressing recipe. EVOO, lemon juice, shallots, garlic, a little tiny bit of crème fraiche and chives. Delish.

I must say that amazon does a great job of letting me know when a new cookbook comes out that fits the kind of home-cook profile I must have on their background servers. They send me emails at least once a day about something, but when this one popped up, and I read the author’s name (I own several of her cookbooks), I jumped on it immediately. Michele Anna Jordan lives and works in the Sonoma area. She’s a writer, has been a caterer in the past, does a radio show and develops recipes, obviously!

If you’ve read my blog for any length of time, you know that I make all of my own salad dressings. It’s a rare day that I’ll use a bottled dressing, and that’s only if I’m desperate for time. So with this new cookbook in hand, Vinaigrettes & Other Dressings: 60 Sensational recipes to Liven Up Greens, Grains, Slaws, and Every Kind of Salad, I flipped through the first section on sort-of standard vinaigrettes and this one spoke to me.

Citronette. What IS that, exactly? It must be French, and I couldn’t find a true definition online, but I did find that it differs from a vinaigrette in 2 ways: (1) it uses lemon juice instead of vinegar (that’s the citron- part of the word); and (2) it’s unstable, meaning it doesn’t make an emulsion. It probably could since it has crème fraiche in it, but for this, you want a more clear dressing. Even with the dairy in it, it’s not a cream-style dressing.

Probably because of the crème fraiche in it. This one isn’t made in a blender or food processor – although I suppose you could, but then it wouldn’t be a citronette, you see (read above paragraph). Jordan just says combine the ingredients, in order, in a glass jar. The shallots, garlic, salt, lemon zest and lemon juice are allowed to mingle a bit before you add the oil – likely that draws out the flavors from the shallot and garlic. Then you add the crème fraiche, olive oil, pepper and shake vigorously.

citronette_tomatoes

Normally (and Jordan recommends) using this on a green type salad, but I had some lovely little cherry tomatoes and fresh basil and this dressing just seemed to call to a combination. Jordan does recommend using it within 2 days. Hope I can do that. It doesn’t make a huge quantity, so you should be able to use it up before it’s over the hill.

green_beans_citronetteAnd here’s what I did with the remainder – I tossed it on freshly cooked Blue Lake green beans, and then sprinkled the top with my Peppered Pecans. Loved the taste – particularly all the garlic. This dressing is very garlicky, just so you know . . .I used 2 cloves of garlic, and by day 2 the garlic was very pronounced. If you aren’t a garlic lover, you might want to keep the garlic to just 1 clove.

What’s GOOD: the FRESH taste of it, but obviously that’s because of the freshly squeezed lemon juice. It has a lovely clean taste. Lots of flavor from the shallots and garlic. It would be delish on a green salad. Jordan recommends a salad with red onion, blue cheese crumbles, chickpeas, pasta salad, or over grilled fish. That last sounds wonderful.
What’s NOT: well, it’s a bit fussy, but really it’s only the shallots, garlic and chives that require fine mincing. Otherwise it’s simple.

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Creamy Lemon Citronette

Recipe By: Vinaigrettes and Other Dressings, by Michele Anna Jordan, 2013
Serving Size: 6

1 small shallot — finely minced
2 medium garlic cloves — finely minced
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Kosher salt to taste
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon creme fraiche
1 tablespoon fresh chives — finely minced
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. In a jar (with a good seal) place shallot, garlic and lemon zest. Add lemon juice and let sit for 15-20 minutes.
2. Season generously with salt, add olive oil, seal the jar and shake it vigorously. Add creme fraiche and mix or shake again.
3. Add chives, season with pepper, taste again and correct seasonings if needed. It is best served immediately, but will keep for up to 2 days, refrigerated.
ALTERNATES: (1) Lime Citronette – replace lemon zest and juice with lime zest and juice and use cilantro instead of chives.
(2) Preserved Lemon Citronette – replace lemon zest with a tablespoon of minced preserved lemon peel.
Per Serving: 131 Calories; 14g Fat (95.8% calories from fat); trace Protein; 1g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 2mg Cholesterol; 2mg Sodium.

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  1. Lana @ Never Enough Thyme

    said on June 19th, 2013:

    I do so enjoy a citrus vinaigrette and this one is just different enough that I can’t wait to try it. Even before I got to the part of the post about using it on green beans, I was already thinking that very same thing. This on a salad with a good loaf of crusty bread…why, that’s all I’d want for a summer dinner.

    You’ll like it, I’m certain! I even loved my own photo of the dressing, with the little bit of cream sitting at the bottom. Salad dressings never look all that appealing, but this one did. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. . . carolyn t

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