Novel Food #18: the finale

Welcome to the roundup of the 18th edition of Novel Food, the literary/culinary event that Lisa of Champaign Taste and I created in 2007 and that I continue to host with great pleasure. Novel Food is about literary works (prose or poetry) that inspire the preparation of dishes. The event brings together two of my passions: literature and food.

Like all its predecessors, the current edition includes a lovely set of posts, each describing a literary work that the blogger read and the dish that the reading inspired. Please, follow me on a short literary/culinary tour. For each contribution, I will offer a small bite to whet your appetite for more: follow the link to read the details. I hope that by the time you reach the end of this post, you will have a nice reading and cooking list to be used in the near future.

Ruhama of rumahama presents What the Moon Saw by Laura Resau,
which inspired her to parepare some Mexican Hot Chocolate

"Clara's parents don't know what to do with her, as she keeps disobeying on a grand scale." They send her to live with her grandparents in a remote area of Mexico, where she discovers, among other things, the magic of Mexican hot chocolate. In her post, besides giving a recipe, Ruhama shows us a Mexican molinillo (wooden whisk) in action.

Lucia of Torta di Rose read Blackberry Wine by Joanne Harris (published in Italy as Vino, patate e mele rosse) and prepared Ciambelline al vino di visciola (ring-shaped cookies with sour cherry wine)

In this novel, the unusual narrator is a bottle of wine from the year in which the protagonist was born. "The story inspired me to bake ciambelline (ring-shaped cookies) with sour cherry wine... a special wine based on an ancient wild cherry species widespread in the Marche region, in Italy." The cookies can be prepared with any kind of wine, not only of grape but also of other fruits.

Rachel of and then make soup was inspired by Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series
to make Corn Dodgers

"Near as I can tell from my online research and her books, this was a variety of “johnny” or “journey” cake – a rough equivalent to today’s trail mix or granola bar. You made them ahead and they’d keep, even if they needed dunking to make them palatable after a few weeks in a rucksack or a saddlebag. Corn dodgers can be as simple or as fancy as you like."

Paz of The Cooking Adventures of Chef Paz read Mattanza:  Love and Death in the Sea of Sicily by Theresa Maggio and was inspired to prepare Pasta, Chickpeas, Onions and Oregano

"I couldn’t help but be fascinated... Mattanza is a powerful, captivating story of man, fish, life, death and love. Perhaps, I should have prepared some kind of tuna meal. However, I... felt like preparing a simple pasta dish... Making pasta and steaming up the windows during winter (or anytime of the year) sounds like a good idea to me."

Ana of Sweet Almond Tree read Love by Toni Morrison
and prepared  Pineapple-Coconut-Orange Smoothie

In her novel, "Morrison explores the different facets of love, its proximity to hate, and its destructive effects on the psyche when it is missing from one’s life, especially the life of a child." This smooth-as-silk smoothie reminds Ana of Silk, the fictional town in which Love is set, once famous for Cosey’s Hotel and Resort, on the Southern East Coast.

Inspired by The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri, Simona of briciole (your host)
baked reginelle (sesame seed cookies)

"Sicily smells of sesame seeds. Not the actual island, but the Sicily of my memory. I close my eyes, I whisper "Sicilia" and I smell toasted sesame seeds. The same thing happens if I read about Sicily: I open one of my Montalbano books and my nose smiles."

Simona of briciole was also inspired by Faceless Killers by Henning Mankell
to prepare Bean and Albacore Tuna Salad

"One recurrent motif in the novel is [the protagonist's] wish to start eating better, a resolution that gets repeatedly postponed to the following day when, supposedly, he will have more time to choose mindfully how to feed himself. But the healthy, nutritious salad in his thoughts never materializes on his plate, so I thought I would make one for him."

My special "thank you!" goes to the event's participants: I hope you had as much fun as I always do when I host this event. You will find a link to this roundup and to those of the earlier editions on this page.

The next edition of Novel Food will be in early summer: I will announce it here, on The Food Blog Diary, and other venues, so stay tuned. The Food Blog Diary is the lovely event announcement site created and maintained by Jacqueline of Tinned Tomatoes. Visit the site to read about current events and let her know about your event and she will post it on her well-organized site. Thank you, Jacqueline!

In the meantime, read good books (maybe with the next Novel Food in mind), cook good dishes, and otherwise savor life's local and seasonal offerings.

Arrivederci!

Comments

[ruhama]

Yay! Looking forward to perusing everyone's entries!

[Merisi in Vienna]

Fascinating books and food!

I read "Mattanza" years ago and have hardly ever eaten tuna since then. Recently I watched a documentary about this annual rite and the images were so gruesome, I can't imagine ever eating Italian tuna again.

[Rachel]

Oh boy - lots to read *and* to eat! Mmmmm... what fun this was!

[Paz]

Simona: Thanks for hosting Novel Food. It's always fun to participate in it.

[Paz]

P.S. I'm inspired to reread The Shape of Water. I miss Montalbano. *sigh*

[Simona Carini]

Thank you, Ruhama.

Thank you, Merisi. I have seen photos but not videos. Speaking of tuna, have you seen the movie Jiro Dreams of Sushi? I am referring to the images inside the Tokio fish market.

I am glad you had fun, Rachel.

Thanks to you, Paz. Do you mean you have read all the volumes available in the library?

[Phil in the Kitchen]

Inspiring and varied selection as ever. This challenge always makes me want to read or reread absolutely everything featured.

[Simona Carini]

Thanks, Phil. That's great: and I hope you'll enjoy your reading/re-reading.

[lucia]

Ciao Simona! Eccomi tornata alla cucina...che bella raccolta "ispirata"
Un abbraccio

[Simona Carini]

Bentornata, Lucia. Grazie!

[Jacqueline]

Thanks for the plug Simona, I just came over to find out if the next Novel Food was.

[Simona Carini]

Hi Jac. I will announce the next edition mid to late May and I will certainly let you know. Thanks!