Teeth and Sleep

The Little Miss has been keeping me busy over the last week or so. She has been cranky, clingy and is sleeping slightly less than usual. The sleep alteration has included the addition of through-the-night wakings once again.

All of this to push through three new teeth.
Only one has managed to fully emerge so far, but the second should not be too far behind. The third is there, but not making a dash for the open air yet.

***

This photograph was taken in one of her new favourite places, between the sofa and the windows. It is now a narrow "hidey-hole" space that only she can really move in. Did I mention that she likes squeezy spots? I feel a spelunker in the making. This is definitely not an inherited trait from me - I'm not so great in very tightly confined spaces, I have far too much imagination.
The Little Miss on the other hand has a wild side that likes squish, speed, falling and general rough-and-tumble.

The Month of July in Books

Here were the five works for July.

Fiction:

Murder in the Dark

This is the most recent episode in the Phryne Fisher mystery series. Set at the "Last Best party of 1928", it is a tale of kidnap and impending murder. Phryne is on form here, with a diverse range of characters - the Golden Twins and their acolytes; polo players from city and country; manor house staff; and her own usual retinue.
A good read. Interesting twists and turns to the plot. Keeps you guessing.

Love over Scotland

This is the third book in the 44 Scotland Street series. It once again follows the stories of Pat, Domenica, Matthew, Angus, Lou and Bertie.
This is a great easy reading series with characters that draw you into their lives. My only issue with the whole thing is my continuing wish to slap Bertie's mother Irene. God forbid, there must be people out there like her, and their children must be cringing as they read Bertie's story.

The following two books are a rediscovery of an author. Quite some time ago I read the first in the Katie Chandler series "Enchanted, Inc." and I was interested to read more. Unfortunately at the time the library didn't have any of the other books. I forgot about her until the other day when completely by accident I happened upon book 2 and 3.

Once Upon Stilettos

The original entry in the series, Enchanted, Inc., is described by Armchair Interviews as:

..."chick lit" at its finest. Bridget Jones, move over. Shanna Swendson is offering up fantasy for the Buffy, Sabrina and Bewitched crowd.

And that pretty much sums it up for the entire series. Magic. Cute wizards. Gargoyles. Fairies. Times Square. All in one package.

Damsel Under Stress

Katie Chandler is a small-town girl and magical immune living it up in New York City. She works for MSI, a magical spell-making and selling company tucked away in a corner of Manhattan and spends a great deal of her time and this series helping to thwart the attempts at selling bad magic by a rogue wizard and ex-MSI employee. At the same time we get to follow her romantic aspirations for fellow MSI employee and uber-wizard, Owen Palmer.
Yes, this is definitely chick lit for Buffy fans.

Non-Fiction:

Reading Magic

Mem Fox is a children's author of some note. This is her guide to reading aloud with and for your children.
If you already know or instinctively would or do read aloud to your kids, then this simply tells you why it's such a great idea. Most of the ideas are supported anecdotally and I have to say that it didn't really tell me anything particularly new. Still, it was a small book and a quick read.
I can't say that I would recommend it particularly.

***

Next month may be a little sparser on the ground. I am attempting to take a few steps along my Booklitzer Book challenge by reading The Poisonwood Bible, Dune and Frankenstein. I will try to lighten this load with the works of P.G.Wodehouse, but even the great Jeeves and Wooster may not be able to pull me through this one.

See you next month.

Gastronomy: Creamy Cashew Korma

This is Ms O's creative cooking week.
Nope. Don't get your hopes up. What it actually means is - stop cooking the same old stuff and try something new, darn it all to heck.

Personally I like to borrow cookbooks from the library before committing my cash to them. It saves a lot of heartache when you find that you don't actually enjoy the same tastes as the author. So this week, on my library trip I picked up a couple of books by well known authors Rose Elliot and Nigella Lawson. First up will be recipes by Ms Elliot. This one comes from Vegetarian Supercook.

Creamy cashew korma

Vegan. Preparation time: 20 minutes. Cooking time: 40 minutes. Serves 4.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon rapeseed oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
50g (2oz) cashew nuts
400ml (14fl oz) coconut milk
400ml (14fl oz) water
small handful of curry leaves (optional)
175g (6oz) okra, topped and tailed
250g (8oz) cauliflower florets
250g (8oz) broccoli florets
salt and pepper
chopped coriander leaves, to garnish

Method:

1. Heat the rapeseed oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion, cover and fry for about 10 minutes, or until tender. Stir in the garlic, turmeric, cumin and ground coriander, and cook for a minute or two longer.


2. Grind the cashew nuts to a powder in a coffee grinder, food processor or using the fine grater in a hand mill. Add them to the pan, along with the coconut milk.


3. For a really smooth sauce, you can now purée the whole lot in a food processor or blender (or use a stick blender in the saucepan) or, if you prefer some texture, leave it as it is.


4. Return the mixture to the pan, if you've puréed it, and add the water and curry leaves, if using. Leave to simmer for 20-30 minutes, stirring from time to time, until thickened.


5. Just before the sauce is ready, put the okra, cauliflower and broccoli into a pan containing a depth of 5cm (2 inches) boiling water. Cover and cook for about 6 minutes, or until tender. Drain, and add the vegetables to the korma, stirring gently. Season with salt and pepper.


6. You can serve this at once, but if there's time, let it rest for a while - even overnight - for the flavours to intensify. Then gently reheat. Scatter with coriander before serving and serve with hot white basmati rice.

Notes:

This is a pretty simple and basic recipe. It isn't strongly flavoured at all. In fact, if you like curry, you will probably want to zap it up a lot.
However, it makes a good base with which to play around with the flavours. We used green beans instead of okra, and added sliced chicken breast after step 2 and allowed it to cook along with the sauce.
It's a definite keeper for our household, but it will be tweaked to suit our taste.

Bon apetit.