Girls in White Dresses Review and New Book-of-the-Month

The book I chose for February was Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close. I read about half straight through and skimmed the rest. There are at least a dozen f-words scattered throughout the book, and call me a prude, but I really didn't think it contributed to the story. This book lacked emotion and feeling—of any kind. It had absolutely no plot.

You know how some books just compel you to read? Well, for me this was the complete opposite. I kept waiting for the story to pick up...and I'm still waiting. I thought I would be able to relate to the characters, but their stories are told in a way that just didn't interest me. There was no what happens next? sort of feeling at all. Sorry if you attempted to read this one. I give it a big thumbs-down.

 Anyways. On to new and exciting things. The Book-of-the-Month for March is

 Me Talk Pretty One Day 
 by David Sedaris

For those of you not familiar with him, David Sedaris is a humorist, author, comedian, and radio contributor. His book, Me Talk Pretty One Day, won him the 2001 Thurber Prize for American Humor and the title of "Humorist of the Year" by Time magazine.

From the inside flap: "David Sedaris's new collection tells a most unconventional life story. It begins with a North Carolina childhood filled with speech therapy classes and unwanted guitar lessons taught by a midget. From budding performance artist to writing teacher in Chicago, his career leads him to New York and eventually, of all places, France. Arriving a 'spooky man-child' capable of communicating only through nouns, he undertakes language instruction that leads him ever deeper into cultural confusion. Whether describing the Easter bunny to puzzled classmates or watching a group of men play soccer with a cow, Sedaris brings a view and voice like no other—'Original, acid, and wild,' said the L.A. Times—to every unforgettable encounter."

I chose this book because a friend of mine mentioned it to me a few months ago. She and I have similar taste in humor, so her recommendation seems worthy. I love a good laugh, so Me Talk Pretty One Day it is. Here's to an adventure in reading.

Cinnamon Chip Bread

Today I had a hankering for...something. I didn't know exactly what I wanted, so I headed to the pantry. And guess what I found lurking there? A bag of these lovelies:

These tend to be a seasonal item (at least in my grocery stores), but I had some leftover from Christmastime. These are a unique ingredient, so I wanted to do something special with them. And thus, Cinnamon Chip Bread was born. Yum.

On to the baking!

Cinnamon Chip Bread
Recipe by Sara (stuff-by-sara.blogspot.com)

1½ cups milk
¼ cup + 2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp yeast
½ cup butter, room temperature
2 eggs, room temperature
¾ tsp salt
6 cups flour
1 (10 ounce) bag Hershey's Cinnamon Chips

Before we get started, pop your cinnamon chips in the freezer. We'll get to those later.

Warm milk over low heat. You want it to be warm enough to activate your yeast, but not hot enough to kill it. About the temperature you would make your baby's bottle is perfect. Dissolve sugar in warm milk, then add yeast. Let this mixture hang out for 5-10 minutes. It should get a little foamy. (If it doesn't get foamy, start over. Remember, make sure your milk isn't too hot. If your yeast mixture doesn't foam up a second time, you might need to buy more yeast.)

Now it's time to start adding flour. I like to add flour in stages. I add about 2 cups of flour to my yeast mixture to start with. Then I add my room temperature butter. Then 2 more cups flour. Then I add my lightly beaten eggs. Then finish off with flour. This is a fairly soft dough, but it should start to pull away from the sides of the bowl as you knead it.

Work your dough into a ball, then cover your bowl with a tea towel (not a terry cloth towel--you don't want to get fibers in your dough). Let your dough rise in a warm place until it doubles in volume. For my dough, this was about an hour.

Now comes the fun part: the cinnamon chips! These chips have a low melting point, which is why I had you put them in the freezer. Take the chips out of the freezer, and add the whole bag to your dough. The cinnamon chips will thaw in a jiffy, so if you want chips (not smears) in your bread, you will work speedily. Gently work the chips throughout your dough. If your dough is a little sticky, spray your hands with cooking spray and continue on.

Shape your chip-laden dough into 2 logs, each about the length of your loaf pan. Grease your pans and place the dough inside. Now comes rising round two. Let your dough rise again until double, about 40 to 45 minutes.

Bake at 350º for 25-30 minutes.

Eat some hot bread smeared with butter. Aaahh.

If cinnamon chips aren't available at your local grocery store, you can order them online! I know a few other brands make cinnamon chips as well. I haven't tried any of them, but I'm sure they would substitute nicely.

Chocolate-Raspberry XOX Cookies

With Valentine's Day right around the corner, I thought it was time to get creative in the kitchen! These cookies fit the bill for a romantic (and scrumptious) treat. And with their striped centers, they are cute to boot.

This recipe starts with a rich chocolate cookie dough studded with miniature chocolate chips. Raspberry Hugs seal the deal with extra special flavor and a pop of color. Bake them up, and see if you can't get some Xs and Os from your sweetie.

Chocolate-Raspberry XOX Cookies
Recipe adapted from Our Best Bites

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 c. flour
6 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1 (10 ounce) bag mini chocolate chips
1 (10 ounce) bag Hershey’s Raspberry Hugs, unwrapped

Cream together shortening, butter, and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla, blend well.

In a separate bowl, combine baking powder, baking soda, salt, flour, and cocoa powder. Whisk together until the mixture is uniform in color.

Add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar/egg mixture. Combine well. Stir in chocolate chips. Refrigerate the dough for about an hour.

Heat oven to 350º. Spray your cookie sheet(s) with cooking spray. Roll chilled dough into balls, or portion out using a cookie scoop (I opted for the cookie scoop here). You want about a tablespoon per cookie. Bake for 9 minutes.

While still on the sheet pan, press a Raspberry Hug in the center of each cookie. Carefully transfer cookies to a cooling rack. Give these cookies plenty of time to cool. If the Hugs are having a hard time re-solidifying, feel free to refrigerate them. (I like to eat them when the Hug is still soft, but they're harder to package that way).

Enjoy with your sweetheart :-)

Note: I ran out of Raspberry Hugs before I ran out of dough. Of course, I didn't have a problem eating a few a few double-chocolate cookies. heh heh.