Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Want Chocolate? Get a Monkey.

No Monkeys, No Chocolate by Melissa Stewart

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Do you know how chocolate is made? It is made by monkeys. No, really! Melissa Stewart and Allen Young say so in No Monkeys, No Chocolate. Let me explain about how this book shows you that. There are three parts of the book: The first is the basic story about how cocoa beans become chocolate. The second part is a paragraph underneath it is simple sentence going into more detail about that creature or plants role in creating cocoa trees/cocoa beans. Finally, the third part […]

A cabbage adventure

Snail Crossing by Corey R. Tabor

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“Cabbage bound! I’m cabbage bound! Head in the clouds, foot on the ground.” And boy is Snail ever! Nothing will stop them from getting those cabbages: not cars, crows or antsy ants. A funny scene about making friends and a not seen twist makes this a fun new story about determination and friendship. I was not sure what to expect from Snail Crossing by Corey R. Tabor. Maybe I thought it would be about how a snail keeps on going, no matter the danger or […]

Art and Love Everywhere

Coming to My Senses: The Making of a Counterculture Cook by Alice Waters

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A family friend gifted me a year-long membership to Master Class, the website containing video courses from experts in all kinds of fields. My favorite thus far has been Herbie Hancock on music and Gary Kasparov on chess. I’ve learned so much about being open to life and taking risks from both. One class my spouse and I have enjoyed watching together is about cooking. The class is taught by Alice Waters. Waters teaches in what appears to be her own home kitchen. It’s got […]

A problem of too much cake and spoilers

The Big Book of Amazing Cakes by The Baking Show Team

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I am a little bit glad that Netflix now runs the most current Great British Baking Show because I don’t have to worry as much about spoilers and cookbooks. A few seasons/years ago, I had to be out of town for about two weeks in the middle of when a season was airing, ended up in a bookstore in London, and found out that Nadiya had won the season because she had a new cookbook out on display. This past season I also got spoiler-ed […]

3:2:1 Cooking and Baking is all about the Ratios

Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking by Michael Ruhlman

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Out of the blocks I have a confession: a friend gave me this book because I love to bake. I read recipes for fun, which isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. I found Ratio to be a great book for bakers and perhaps to a lesser degree, cooks. The ratios for different doughs: bread, biscuits, pie crust, pasta follow pretty strict formulas of flour, water and fat. Baking is often more chemistry experiment than free flowing expression of one’s imagination. Too much fat, flour or sugar […]

Make Samosa, Do Good in the World

The Kitchen without Borders: Recipes and Stories from Refugee and Immigrant Chefs by The Eat Off Beat Chefs, Siobhan Wallace, Penny De Los Santos

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I love food. I love flavor. While there are individual ingredients and dishes I don’t care for, I have yet to meet a cuisine I disliked. I love people and learning their stories. I especially love when people are sharing something about which they are passionate. The Kitchen Without Borders ticks a lot of my boxes. I received an arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Eat Offbeat is a catering company in New York City started by and employing immigrants and refugees. […]



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