Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes and Olive Oil Gelato

Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes
by Maureen Johnson

I am much more excited about this recipe than I am about the accompanying book, but I'll stick to form and start with the book anyway. It may just be me, but I couldn't suspend imagination enough to really enjoy “Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes.” The protagonist, 17-year-old Ginny, gets sent on an unchaperoned European tour by a recently deceased aunt. Moreover, she is not supposed to contact anyone from back home. I don't remember a single instance in which she calls her parents to let them know she's okay. (Maybe she does—I listened to the audio book and can't go back to check!) She does “break the rules” and message her best friend via the internet, but...that's it. Add to this the fact that Ginny seems basically clueless, and it's a wonder that everything turns out as well for her as it does.The whole time, all I could think was “What the heck was this aunt thinking?!?”

What I did enjoy about the book, though, was that it lets the reader take their own European tour. From exploring Harrods in London, to the house of the vestal virgins in Rome, to the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, this book would be a fun resource for anyone seeking to become a little more familiar with some of the more famous sights of Europe, or for a middle-to-high school student preparing for a trip. I've been to Europe a few times (England, Italy and Holland), and it brought back good memories in addition to bringing some other sights and cultural events to my attention.

In conclusion, “Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes” was both fun and slightly cringe-worthy (but I'm getting old).

Now, this olive oil gelato is purely delicious. I found the recipe on Food 52 and was a little suspicious because it uses water and no cream. But then I read the author's notes, which said that she had had similar reservations when she first encountered the recipe. These were put to rest as soon as she tasted the end product. So I stuck with this recipe because it only uses six ingredients, including the water. AND IT WAS AMAZING! So creamy! So unique! I would love to make it again with different varieties and even flavors of olive oil. The only downside is that this recipe makes a very small batch. I just made it last night and, three small ramekins later, it is all gone. :( 

I chose to pair gelato with this book because, out of all the delicious foods Ginny eats in all of the fascinating places she visits, I most felt like making gelato. Ginny eats gelato for the first time in Rome. Overwhelmed by all the flavor options, she goes for the easy choice of strawberry. But it's not strawberry season, and I wanted to try something new. So here it is! 

Link to the book on amazon: Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes

Olive Oil Gelato

3/4 c. coconut sugar (this is what I used, but it does turn the gelato light brown. The original recipe

           calls for regular sugar)

1/4 c. plus 2 Tbsp. water

3/4 c. whole milk

Large pinch salt

4 egg yolks

4-6 Tbsp. olive oil 

1. Make sure you have pre-frozen the bowl for your ice cream maker! 

2. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks until frothy. 

3. In a medium saucepan, heat sugar, water, milk and salt over medium heat until just before it 

     simmers. 

4. Pour the warm mixture slowly into the eggs, whisking the whole time. Pour that mixture back into 

     the saucepan, and return to heat. Heat until the mixture begins to thicken, about 185 degrees. 

5. Remove from heat and pour into an airtight container. Cover and refrigerate several hours. 

6. Pour the chilled mixture into your ice cream maker, and churn/freeze as directed by the machine. 

7. Enjoy immediately, or freeze. 

Here is the link to the original recipe: Olive Oil Gelato

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place and Tiger Cake

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book 4: The Interrupted Tale 

by Maryrose Wood

I can hardly wait to read The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place series with my son. This series is so much fun—and educational, too! Plus, the educational parts only enhance the delightfulness of the books. Author Maryrose Wood does a brilliant job of inserting information into her narrative in a way that never makes the reader want to skip over the more didactic bits, thanks to her sense of humor.

The Incorrigible series follows young governess Penelope Lummly (aka Lummawoo) as she begins her new position at Ashton Place caring for Lord and Lady Ashton's three new wards—recently discovered living in the woods with a pack of wolves. Alexander, Beowulf and Cassiopeia Incorrigible, as they become known, are wild but bright and eager to learn. Penelope Lummly, a “Swanburn Girl” (i.e., a graduate from the Agatha Swanburn School for Poor, Bright Females), is more than equal to the task of teaching and loving the wolfish children.

Beyond learning the ropes of her new position, Penelope also falls into the need to do some detective work: Who are the children's parents? Where are her own parents? Who may be trying to harm them? She learns a little bit more in each installment of the series, but, as of book 5, still has a lot to figure out.

Link to The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book 1: The Mysterious Howling on amazon.com: The Incorrigible Children Book 1 

I chose to make a Tiger Cake to go with the fourth book because Penelope is teaching the children about poetry—especially iambic pentameter and William Blake's “The Tyger”. Tigers and cake are both reoccurring themes in this book. In addition to frequent recitations of Blake, the children dress up as “Postal Tigers” when delivering mail around Ashton Place, and, of course, they are always very excited about cake!

This cake is made with olive oil instead of butter or vegetable oil, which—in addition to a half teaspoon of white pepper—gives it a very interesting flavor! It may not seem like it'd be a popular children's cake, but recipe author Alice Medrich says that it was named by a five-year-old boy who adored it. I will also include a link to Alice Medrich's wonderful cookbook, Bittersweet, which includes this recipe as well as my favorite brownie recipe ever! (And many, many other delicious-sounding recipes for chocolatey treats!): 

Bittersweet

Tiger Cake:

½ c. cocoa powder (not Dutch Process)

½ c. sugar

1/3 c. water

3 c. all-purpose flour

2 tsp. Baking powder

2 c. sugar

1 c. extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp. Vanilla extract

¼ tsp. Salt

½ tsp. White pepper

5 eggs

1 c. milk

1. Whisk cocoa powder, ½ c. sugar and water together in a medium-sized bowl. Set aside.
   
   
   
   
   
2. In another bowl, whisk flour and baking powder together.
3. In bowl of electric mixer, whisk sugar, olive oil, vanilla, salt and pepper. Add eggs, one at a time, and continue to whisk until the mixture is thick and pale.
4. Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients, then ½ c. of milk; another 1/3 of the dry ingredients, the rest of the milk, and the rest of the dry ingredients. Whisk between each addition.
5. Stir 3 cups of batter into the cocoa mixture.
6. In alternating layers, pour the cocoa and regular mixtures into a greased and floured 12-cup bundt pan. Because the batter is fairly thin, the layers will naturally swirl while baking.
   
   
   
7. Bake at 350 F for 60-70 minutes.