Weekend Cooking/Cook the Books: Call of the Camino by Suzanne Redfearn

 

One of the beauties of being involved in a book club is that some times you find yourself reading books that would otherwise not have crossed your reading radar. Some times, they don't work for you (Land of Milk and Honey, I am looking at you!) but some times they do. Call of the Camino is not a book that I recall hearing about before it being chosen for the current selection of Cook the Books. The question is did it work for me or not? Read on to find out!

When journalist Reina Watkins' nemesis at work is unable to make the start of a walk along the Camino that he was supposed to be doing for an article, she jumps at the opportunity. Not only is it a chance to get one up on Matt, but walking the Camino is something that she has always been interested in because her parents met on the trail years before. They both died when she was young, so armed with her father's journal, she is hopeful that it will help her understand her parent's story, and her own history. 

Because it is very last minute, she hasn't done any training and she only has her trusty Doc Martin's the first few days are very trying for Reina, but as the trek continues she begins to understand the call of the Camino - why so many people have been taking this pilgrimage for so many years. When she hears that Matt, her rival, is hot on her trail, she is determined that this time she will be the one who writes the better article, especially given her personal connection.

Interspersed with Reina's story, we hear her mother's story. Reina always thought her mother was Portuguese but it turns out that she was from Andorra. Caught up in the middle of a historical family feud, Isabelle chooses to join the Camino to escape from danger. Ill-prepared, she hopes that the mantra of the Camino, the Camino will provide, is true for her. 

The third voice in the story comes in the form of Reina's father's journal, and it is through this, and then a coincidental meeting that Reina learns more about Isabelle.

As readers, we are witness to the trials and tribulations of both women, from injuries to soreness, fatigue and danger. On the plus side there are the characters that they meet along the way, other pilgrims who are sharing in this significant journey, and it is this camaraderie that affected me the most.

I do know several people who have done the Camino. One of my friend's dads has done it three times, and her brother went with him one time and ended up meeting his now partner who lived in a different country. I definitely know that it changes lives, and we saw that with both of our main characters. Can I see myself doing the Camino? Not really. I do more steps when I am on holiday that I do the rest of the time but still, this kind of strenuous walking sounds too far, too far for me! I did, however, enjoy reading about it! And I would be more than happy to go to Spain at some point!

When this book was chosen, I immediately thought that I would be choosing some Spanish recipe. I did hope that something more would have jumped out of the text to help me decide. I thought about tortilla, but to be honest, I thought someone else would have chosen that to make.

Instead, it gave me the opportunity to pull one of my favourite cook books off the shelf. I say favourite, but it's a favourite book to look at. Even though I have owned it for years, and I posted about it for Weekend Cooking back in 2012, I don't believe I ever did get around to cooking from it! That changed this week.

The thing I loved about this book is that it gives you food history, regional specialties, spotlights ingredients and producers. It is an amazing book to look at and I love the dust jacket I have on my copy. The colours just pop! One thing I did find a little interesting was what wasn't in this book. It was originally published back in 2012, before the world went crazy for Basque cheesecake, alternatively known as San Sebastien cheesecake, and there is no recipe in the book for it! Just thought that was interesting!

I was hoping to choose a recipe that had been mentioned in Call of the Camino, or that at least came from the regions that the Camino passes through. In the end I chose this recipe for two reasons. One, there was a mention of roast chicken towards the end of the book, and I liked the fruitiness of this recipe, given that it echoed the part in the book where our characters stumbled across La Casa de los Dioses (The House of the Gods) where the walkers can help themselves to fruit. In the book it mainly talks about the watermelon, but I really, really don't like watermelon so I am going with apples and grapes.

In the intro to this recipe it mentions that in Asturias Reineta apples are used but the Golden Delicious variety is a good substitute. Asturias is one of the places that the Camino passes through so this recipe works as a regional dish. We ended up using a different variety of apples as there were no Golden Delicious at the supermarket.

It was an interesting recipe. I am not sure we would make it again. You can see the grape juice has kind of caught a bit, but the chicken itself was very moist, and it was interesting to have the apples and grapes with chicken. We would normally pair cooked apples with pork. We served it with roast potatoes as I wasn't really sure what else to serve it with.

The next selection for Cook the Book is called Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal. Not sure what to expect with this one. I guess I will find out when I read it!

I am sharing this post with Foodies Read, hosted at Based on a True Story.

Roast Chicken with Apples and Grapes (Pollo con manzanas y uvas) - Claudia Roden

Serves 4-6

5 Golden Delicious apples
Juice of ½ a lemon
1kg white seedless grapes, destalked
1 x 1.5kg chicken
Salt and pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
75g butter


Peel and core the apples. Cut one in half or into quarters, so the pieces will push easily inside the chicken, and the rest of the apples into 8 slices each. Drop the slices into a bowl of water acidulated with the lemon juice to prevent them from discolouring.

Blend half of the grapes in the food processor and collect the juice by pressing the mush through a small-holed sieve with a wooden spoon. Discard the skins left in the sieve. You should get about 250ml of juice. Stuff the chicken with the halved or quartered apple and put it in a baking dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and rub with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Turn the bird breast side down in the baking dish and pour in 125ml of the grape juice. Roast in an oven preheated to 190°C/gas 5 for 45 minutes, then take the chicken out, turn it over, pour the remaining grape juice over it and return to the oven. Cook for another 30 minutes or until the chicken is brown and caramelized and the juices run clear when you cut into the bird between the leg and the body with a pointed knife.

While the chicken is roasting, heat the butter with the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a large frying pan. Put in the drained apple slices and the remaining grapes and sauté over a medium heat, turning over the fruits and shaking the pan gently until the grapes are soft and golden and the apples tender and caramelized. It can take 20 minutes. Transfer to a baking dish with their juices and reheat in the oven when you are ready to serve.

Weekly meals

Saturday - Out for dinner
Sunday - Roast Chicken with Apple and Grapes (new)
Monday - Baked Gnocchi (new)
Tuesday - Enchilada
Wednesday - Molten Pumpkin Pasta Bake (new)
Thursday - Out for dinner
Friday - Takeaway

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Blog tour: An Island Promise by Kate Frost

 

When Bella, Gemma and Laurie are 21 years old they head off to the Spanish island of Ibiza ready to have the time of their lives. Sun, music, copious amounts of alchohol, hot me and great friends for forever - it's a recipe to party! At the end of their holiday they promise to do it all again in 10 years time!

Fast forward ten years. Bella agrees to accept an events manager role at a luxury hotel in Ibiza. She has been working hard on establishing her career since recovering from a terrible accident years before, but it is time for a change. In Bella's mind, that trip to Ibiza was where she met the one who got away, the man that no other man has ever lived up to. They may have only spent a few days together, but still! It's also a great opportunity for Gemma and Laurie to come and visit her too.

The girls who were going to be besties forever are still friends, but the reality is that they are nowhere near as close as they once were. Gemma appears to live a perfect life, but appearances can be deceptive. And Laurie has her own challenges. And they all have secrets from each other, and it turns out that at least one of them has secrets from 10 years ago.

When Bella starts her new job, she meets her new boss, Caleb, a guy that came to Ibiza to make his fortune and stayed.  He is a widower who has remained close with his wife's family, runs a luxury hotel. Bella and he soon become friends, but is he ready to move on from his past.

I really enjoyed meeting the girls and seeing how their lives have turned out, even if it isn't at all how they imagined. Let's face it, I think a lot of us can relate to life not necessarily turning out the way we thought it would when we were young!

This is my third Kate Frost book, and they have all been set on different islands. I must confess I have never been fussed about the idea of going to an island like Ibiza. Dance music isn't really my deal, but I loved reading about the other side of Ibiza, the more traditional and cultural aspects.

If you are looking for some sunshine on a beautiful island, this might be the book for you!!

Thanks to Netgalley, Rachel's Random Resources and the publisher for the review copy. Check out the other stops on the blog tour below!

I am sharing this with the New Release Challenge hosted at The Chocolate Lady's Book Reviews.

About the book

An Island Promise

Three friends, a Balearic promise and a summer that could change their lives forever…

For twenty-one-year-old Belle Madden her first holiday to Ibiza with best friends Gem and Laurie was memorable for all the right reasons: partying the night away, planning a future filled with big dreams and making a promise to return in ten years to celebrate living their best lives – hopefully…

Fast forward a decade and Belle is desperate for a change. Eager to escape her relationship troubles, she jumps at a job opportunity that takes her back to the White Isle.

Despite loving island life and her new job, Belle realises something is missing. With their busy lives the three friends have drifted apart, their friendship fractured. Remembering their promise to return, Belle seizes the opportunity to organise a reunion holiday.

After the initial excitement of being back together in Ibiza, cracks start to appear. A lot can change in ten years. Dreams can be shattered, love lost and hope destroyed. And when secrets are revealed, long suppressed emotions begin to unravel…

Will Belle repeat her past mistakes or can a second chance summer be the beginning of a happy-ever-after for friendship as well as love?

Purchase Link - https://mybook.to/islandpromisesocial

About the Author 



Kate Frost is the author of several bestselling romantic escape novels including The Greek Heart, and The Love Island Bookshop. She lives in Bristol and is the Director of Storytale Festival, a book festival for children and teens she co-founded in 2019.

This Week....

I'm reading

Last week I shared that I was feeling a little unsettled reading wise, mainly because I couldn't decide what I wanted to read. This week I fixed that by finishing all the books that I had started recently, plus getting ahead on my review reading! It's been a busy reading week

I finished both Daughters of Tuscany by Siobhan Daiko and Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-Reum. My review for Daughters of Tuscany will be up in the next couple of days. I also finished The Readers Room by Antoine Laurain

I also started and finished A Love Letter to Paris by Rebecca Raisin, which I will also have a review of in the next few days.

Amazon Prime Reads included The Bookstore Wedding by Alice Hoffman this month, so I picked that up and read it very quickly. It really is a short story, coming in at around 30-40 pages. There was a lot in that short story though!

Finally, I decided to start read The Stolen Hours, which is the second book in the Wild Isle Trilogy by Karen Swan. I have decided that this is going to be my Scottish book for my read on a theme book club.

That feels like a lot this week!

I'm watching


We are now into the second week of Tour de France, and we tend to watch around an hour or so each night! Every night there is a 5 minute cooking show which features the food of the region that the bike race is visiting, called Plat du Tour which I really enjoy!

It's hard to believe that before I met my husband I had only ever seen one Star Wars movie, and that that was on a date. Now I end up watching everything as it comes out. This week we started watching The Acolyte which is the latest series.

This was the last weekend of the Spanish Film Festival, so I convince hubby to come and see a movie called The Teacher Who Promised the Sea, which was a really movie film. It's the story of a woman who is looking for her great-grandfather who went missing in the 1930s. Along the way she learns about her grandfather's childhood, and the role a teacher played in it. This teacher really existed which makes the story even more moving. I definitely recommend both this movie, and the one that I talked about last week as well.

Here's the trailer:

I have had another Spanish film called Lemon and Poppyseed Cake on my to be watched list for a couple of years but I hadn't been able too find where I could stream it. I was looking for something else when I stumbled across it so I had  to watch it. This was very different to the other movie, feels a bit more soapie, but I liked the story and now I need to make someting lemony and poppyseedy!


Life

Other than what I mentioned above not a lot to tell life wise. We are counting down to our holidays which will be here before we know it. I think all the main things are booked

Posts from the last week


Top Ten Tuesday: Purple!

Paris in July: Since Last Paris in July

Paris in July: An Astronomer in Love by Antoine Laurain

Weekend Cooking: What I Baked in my Kitchen in June

Six Degrees of Separation: Kairos to A Nurses Life


I've linked this post to It's Monday, what are you reading? as hosted by Book Date

Blog Tour: A Wedding in the Sun by Leonie Mack

 

Do you ever feel like anything that can go wrong will? For Jo and Adrian it feels a lot like that. First, the two, who don't like each other at all after an unfortunate run in about Christmas in the PTA, are stuck on the same plane. And then they find themselves on the wrong side of the Pyrenees. They should be in Spain at the wedding of their exes, providing emotional support to their kids but instead they are  diverted to France.

When the mishaps keep on coming, Adrian and Jo are thrown together more and more, and they start to realise that maybe the other person isn't too bad. But it's a bad idea to fall for your exes new partners ex. Try saying that quickly twice

I have read a number of Leonie Mack books now and I love them. With all the things going wrong, it could feel madcap, but it doesn't really. Along the way we visit Lourdes, as well as the southern coast of Spain, with a side of history around Spanish guitars.  

This is another great read from Leonie Mack. Bring on the next one!

Thanks to the publisher, Netgalley and Rachel's Random Resources for the review copy. I am sharing this review with the New Release Challenge hosted at The Chocolate Lady's Book Reviews.

About the book

A Wedding in the Sun

Four exes and a wedding. And a road trip no one expected…

Jo Watters would rather do anything than go to her ex-husband Ben’s wedding to perfect Monica, and if it wasn't for her beloved children she would already be far, far away. But having promised to be civilised for the sake of their soon-to-be-blended family she is headed to Spain with a fixed smile and hoping for a very fixed drink!

But when Jo realises that she’s on the same plane as Monica's ex-husband, the devastatingly handsome but equally cantankerous Adrián, she thinks her trip can’t get any worse... she’s wrong. When bad weather forces the plane to land the wrong side of the Pyrenees, and the hotel they’re sent to only has one double room available Jo begins to wish she was anywhere - anywhere - but here...

Determined to get to the wedding however they can, Jo and Adrián make an unlikely team, but as their disastrous trip continues, Jo starts to wonder if fate has other ideas for her and Adrián, especially when he seems to be getting more handsome by the day…maybe this trip won't be so terrible after all?

Purchase Link - https://mybook.to/aweddinginthesunsocial

About the author

Leonie Mack is an author of romantic comedies with great international locations and big feelings. She loves a happy ending and shares that love in every book she writes! Her titles take readers across Italy and as far as the Caribbean.

Leonie is a journalism graduate, a language nut and loves to travel, particularly on foot, by bike and by train. After growing up in Australia and living most of her adult life in London, she now lives in Germany, among the vineyards on the Main river.

 

Social Media Links –  

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeonieJMack

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LeonieMAuthor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leoniejmack/

Newsletter Sign Up: https://bit.ly/LeonieMackNews

Bookbub profile: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/leonie-mack

Top Ten Tuesday: Foodie TV and movies

 

 

Welcome to this week's edition of Top Ten Tuesday which is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week the them

e is Non-book Freebie so I decided to talk about foreign movies.

The whole point of this post at the beginning was to talk about a movie called Language Lessons which I watched a couple of weeks ago and really enjoyed. Then I started putting my list together and realised that I could easily make a list of ten which are all about food! So here are ten foreign foodie TV series or movies I have enjoyed. 

Midnight Diner (Japan) - I have watched a season and a half of this. Every now and again I think I should watch more. (Review here)

Foodie Love (Spain) - I binged watched this during lockdown (Review here)

Tuesday Club (Sweden) - I watched this as part of the Scandinavian Film Festival and really enjoyed it! (review here)

Babette's Feast (Sweden) - Something of a foodie film classic. (Review here)

The Perfect Dinner (Italy) - I saw this one as part of the Italian Film Festival last year. (Review here)

The Recipe (Korea) - This was one of the earliest foreign movies I posted about on this blog. (review here)

The Tasting (France) - My most recent French Film Festival movie. I saw this a couple of weeks ago and just posted about it last weekend. (review here)

Delicious (France) - This is supposedly the story of the first restaurant although I am not sure how historically correct it is! (review here)

Kings of Pastry (France) - These days I watch Bake Off:  The Professionals to see amazing creations like the ones in this, but these were next level. (review here)

Romantics Anonymous (France) -  I have probably watched this movie 3 or 4 times over the years. It is a lovely film (review here)

Oh, and watch Language Lessons. It was good!

I will be sharing this post with Weekend Cooking which I host here each Saturday.

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page

Weekend Cooking: Chorizo and Sun Dried Tomato Tortilla

One of our most useful kitchen acquisitions of the last year has been the slow cooker/pressure cooker that I received for my birthday in June. At the time, I had no idea that I needed one, but we have used it quite a lot.

One day we were at Kmart and found a cookbook which has recipes for both uses. We then bought volume 2 of the book, and once again we have many, many recipes that we want to try. On Sunday we decided that we needed to pick one to try and we chose a recipe for Chorizo and Sun Dried Tomato Tortilla, because it isn't your normal casserole/stew type recipe.

We did, however, come a bit unstuck. Firstly, my husband who does most of our cooking got called out to a job with the community service organisation he volunteers for, so I had to cook. And then secondly there was an issue because the recipes calls for the tortilla to be layered up into a 20cm cake tin and then put inside the pressure cooking. The only problem is that my 20cm cake tin has small handles on the side, which prevented it from lowering into the pressure cooker. So because I was couldn't use the pressure cooker, I cooked the potatoes in a saucepan.

I therefore had to improvise, which is not my strong point. I am not someone who can open the pantry door and take a bit of this and that and then create something delicious. I am a recipe follower so an obstacle such as the one I mentioned above is one that causes me to panic a little! Well, I am a recipe follower until I'm not. 

I was therefore quite pleased with how this worked out given that I had to adapt the recipe! Instead of following the recipe as written below, I cooked out the zucchini, onion and chorizo a bit more, and then baked it in the oven for around 45 minutes covered in foil, then another 15 minutes without the foil. I also forgot the garlic, but I only just realised this now! And that I put 25g of parmesan in instead of the cheddar cheese. The parmesan was supposed to go on some rocket to accompany the tortilla which we didn't want to have.

Sun dried tomato isn't one of our normal go-to ingredients.  We did enjoy it as is but we are thinking that you could adapt the ingredients quite easily. We are thinking about maybe doing chorizo, red capsicum and onion and get a delicious tasting lunch dish that we could prepare on the weekend and have for lunch during the week.

Chorizo and Sun-Dried Tomato Tortilla

Serves 6.

3 medium potatoes (600g)

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 large onion (200g), sliced thinly

2 cloves garlic, crushed 

250g (8oz) cured chorizo sausages, thinly sliced

3/4 cup (135g) semi-dried tomatoes, chopped coarsely

2 medium zucchini (240g), grated coarsely, squeezed dry

10 eggs, beaten lightly

1 cup (120g) coarsely grated cheddar cheese

Peel potatoes and cut into 5mm (1/4in) slices. Place in a 6 litre (24-cup) pressure cooker; add enough cold water to just cover. Season with salt. Bring to the boil and cook for 5 minutes or until three-quarters cooked; drain. Spread potato slices on a tray to cool

Dry pressure cooker. Heat half the olive oil over medium heat; cook onion, garlic and chorizo, stirring for 5 minutes or until onion is soft. Stir in tomatoes and zucchini; season to taste.

Lightly grease a 20cm (8in) cake pan; line base and side with baking paper. Cover base with potato. Spread vegetable mixture evenly over potato. Combine egg and half the cheese; season. Pour egg mixture over the vegetables. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Cover tightly with foil. Fold a 60cm (24in) length of foil to make a narrow sling; place under the pan. This allows for easy removal from the pressure cooker. 

Place a trivet n base of the pressure cooker and add 1 cup (250ml) water. Place cake pan, with foil sling, on trivet over the water; secure pressure cooker likd. Bring cooker to low pressure. Reduce heat to stabilise pressure; cook for 45 minutes or until just set. Release pressure using the quick release method. Alternatively if using an electric pressure cooking, your cooker will stabilise itself.

Preheat over grill (broiler) to high. Transfer tortilla, top-side up, onto a greased over tray. Cook under the grill for 5 minutes or until cheese is golden

Weekly meals

Saturday- Apple Pie and Cream

Sunday - Chorizo and sun dried tomato tortilla

Monday - Japanese chicken curry with rice

Tuesday - Salmon teriyaki stir fry

Wednesday - Spanish tuna pasta bake

Thursday - Honey chicken with rice and broccolini

Friday - Burritos (out for dinner)

Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book reviews (novel, nonfiction), cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs, restaurant reviews, travel information, or fun food facts. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend. You do not have to post on the weekend. Please link to your specific post, not your blog's home page.