First, a quick reminder: the Goodreads awards are in their final round, so last chance to vote for your favorites.
The Thanksgiving went well. Everyone was fed, everyone took a plate home. The kids cooked, especially Kid 1, who delivered a bonanza of deserts and deliciousness. The turkey and the duck are gone, but we still have an epic amount of ham. I may have to figure something out there.
Also we have a lot of cranberry sauce left over. Ok, so Kid 2 followed the recipe exactly, but I have to tell you, it’s less a sauce and more like delicious cranberry jam. I put it into my green tea last night and it was to die for.
I bought myself and Gordon a copy of Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey. It is the best thing ever. Ever. I love it. I had no idea it had so many roleplaying elements. The voice acting and character animation is to die for. So now I pirate the high seas and hide in the bushes to assassinate bandits in my spare time.
Today I’m beginning a long and terrible task of overhauling the Hidden Legacy website. The original website needed to be put up quickly, so I had used Divi. When you attempt to switch from that theme, it leaves a massive amount of shortcodes behind. Shortcodes are little snippets of code and so the entire site will look like a mess. I’ve delayed as long as I could, but the new updates are coming, and so there is no escape.
I will be spending the day making various magic circles. Oy. I wonder if I should invest in Adobe Illustrator to save myself some time. Mostly, I do it in Photoshop.
SAPPHIRE FLAMES is progressing. It’s fun, but we are very behind. Also, when you guys buy things sight unseen it’s enormously flattering, but also creates a lot of pressure. Like have nightmares at night pressure. Yesterday my husband told me to get dressed and then we went out on a nice date. We went to Outback and then ended up at our outlet mall, which is the second largest in US, at Kay jewelers. They had a sale and we picked out some wedding bands. They were sent to be resized.
Mine is very pretty and I am mildly terrified that I will somehow ruin it.
PS. I’ve read the comments on the last Innkeeper post. You guys sure are bloodthirsty. Maybe it should be Blood Demanding Horde instead of Book Devouring Horde. 😉
Great to hear your Thanksgiving went well! I was wondering how that smoked turkey came out. Now that you have a smoker you may want to try tea smoked duck one of these days. I always order it at chinese restaurants.
As for the leftover ham — RUSSIAN SALAD!!
Omg TEA SMOKED stuff! It’s ansolutely delicious!
Our favourite here (that we get from the supermarket) is Earl Grey Smoked Salmon. Insanely delicious.
Can“t BDH be both at the same time? 😉
Regarding pressure: well, it‘s too late for the next one (already preordered), but when would be the ideal moment to order?
(Seeing that Amazon actually cancelled my preorder when Diamond Fire came out due to some German book price law nonsense, I probably should order nearer to release date anyway.)
I’m going to agree with the definition of BDH being both at once. Also with the pressure thing, you do great work, this is just our way of showing appreciation. If there is a better time to buy for you though, tell us! Happier writers = happier readers!
I love to order at the release date. You buy it and it will be delivered immediately. IMMEDIATELY! You do not have to wait at all! 🙂
You should invest in Illustrator! It’s a little scary to learn at first, but the pathfinder tools are sure to make your life a little easier if you’re combining shapes. Just be sure to save often. It’s favorite thing to do is crash when you’re in the middle of an intensive project (it’s got auto-recovery, but you can never be too safe)
And for leftover ham…try a soup! Leftover Ham Soup (what I call it, don’t try looking for a legit recipe) is one of my favorite-post thanksgiving meals.
I call that junk soup. Ham and throw everything in. The ham bone makes a wonderful stock.
Cranberry sauce on ice cream! With dark chocolate
My God, this sounds good!! And I’m not a chocolate eater!
With shortbread or butter cookies. Let the holiday indulgence continue!
Especially for those not normally a dark chocolate person, just a light dusting of bitter cocoa powder. Or Matcha powder for both flavor and looks.
Congratulations on the wedding bands. I sold jewelry at a Kay’s for ages and wedding band sales were always so much fun, especially for couples who had been together awhile. Much less pressure. Unless there are lots of little diamonds in the band they are darned hard to ruin. If they do have diamonds, you have their warranty, right? So relax, and enjoy. I’m a compulsive gardener and one of the world’s most minor accident prone individuals; if it can be wrecked I’m the one to do it. So far the bands have held up for decades. Ah, just one thing. If these are nice gold bands, take them off when dealing with pool chemicals. Strong chlorine reacts with gold. You probably already know that, but I felt I had to be sure you knew.
Strong chlorine reacts with gold.
I did not know that, even though my first adult job was in a jewelry store. But it was a family business (not my family, alas), and therefore lacked a swimming pool. 😉
And now, thanks to you, we all know. My learning for the day!
It’s your fault. You guys are just to terrific at your job.
We freeze our leftover ham. Then we can either have an extra ham dinner, but usually se just put it in soups or casseroles during the year.
I’m not a big ham eater, but I enjoy it sometimes in sandwiches. I agree, freezing will take it out of sight.
Thank you to Gordon. That date idea sounded great. And the wedding bands! We’ve changed ours three times. It’s fun and a bit startling to see a new one on your finger.
Sapphire Flames will sort itself out. You need sleep. Please take care of yourself.
Hugs.
You’re just now realizing just how bloodthirsty we, the BDH, can be? We can be both. 😀 I needed a good laugh today. I must have picked up whatever it is going around. It’s mild, but I am so tired and coughing (with nothing coming up) when I laugh.
As to Sapphire Fire: please (on bended knee) don’t stress out about it. When it comes to us, it comes to us. I have not pre-ordered it since Barnes and Noble doesn’t let me until a known publish date is set. I agree with others that we can’t help it that you guys write so well (even when you think it’s crap).
So that is why I couldn’t preorder! Thanks for the info.
What Patricia says. Please don’t let us put you under pressure. We love your work, we know you always deliver your best, and we’re prepared to wait. Slot in as many date nights and Game nights as you need to relax along the way. We want to enjoy your gift for the next sixty years at least ? and we can’t do that if you burn out or get sick from the stress.
Hugs from New Zealand.
Happy to hear that you had a nice Thanksgiving. My Mother-in-law sent us home on Friday with leftovers, which I turned into Thanksgiving part two last night. I agree with the other posters about freezing the leftover ham. Good luck with the website!
I keep imagining that you ordered Hugh and Elara’s wedding bands. They sounded so beautiful.
Glad to hear you had the time & health to have what sounds like a good Thanksgiving. And that you are having some couple time.
Happy Holidays. Glad your Thanksgiving went well and you had a nice date and new wedding bands! Don’t feel pressure – just do what you do as you normally do it and the BBDH (Bloody Book Devouring Horde) will love what you two write.
I’ve been walking my dog around the city to all the NYC holiday spots – Rockefeller Center, the holiday markets in Bryant Park and Union Square, Times Square – lots of fun and she gets lots of attention from everyone. I’ve taken pics of her in all the spots, 4 of which will comprise the Holiday Card that is getting sent out this year. She is much more photogenic than I am!
It’s been 5 days of bliss at home with hubby and the dog. Normally when I have that much time off we travel but it has been so nice being at home with the 2 of them.
Hope you had a relaxing holiday.
Is Kid 1 enjoying her new place? Wasn’t her old place the looked-great-but-had-lots-of-problems type?
If you need an idea for the ham, you could use it and make a big batch of pento beans and cornbread. It’s something my mom does with her leftover ham.
Leftover ham was always made into ham and cabbage soup in our household! It sounds so good right now I may have to go and make some myself…
Now that you have ordered your new wedding bands, the old ones should be nearly ready to show up. Good luck.
We were in school when we got married and could only afford 10 k gold ones. When I had my daughter 9 years later, I became allergic to metals in the hospital. Started with my stainless watch band. Then sterling silver stuff Then the wedding rings. Then 14k gold. Then white gold. Then 18k gold.Then 24 k gold. Then platinum. Then titanium. Basically I can’t wear any jewellery with metal. Which sucks
Allergy to metal is a trait passed down in my family on my dad’s side. Grandma and two aunts have it. I can’t wear metals either – no watches, bracelets or earrings. I can wear sterling silver and gold necklaces though. If it is not I can only wear the necklace once and then not again for a while. I hope I got my grandma’s longevity genetics (she was 103 and mentally sharp as a tack and quite healthy) along with the metal allergy 🙂
Have y’all tried painting the skin side of your jewelry with clear nail polish? That works for some people as a barrier.
Ham salad is very good. Just chopped up ham, mayo and dill pickles.
Cranberry sauce is good on waffles too.
Or dressing waffles. Yum
That fight scene was so good.
Thank you
Yes the BDH is blood thirsty. We were all waiting for the vampirates to get their comeuppance & boy howdy did they 😀
How about split pea soup? My mom used to put a ham bone in the pot…but who says you can’t add ham chunks instead? There were the usual casseroles & sandwiches too.
Split pea is my favorite soup! Load it up with the ham, baby! Especially if it’s got that yummy smoked flavor. Glad your Thanksgiving went well and that everyone seems over the ickies. Don’t stress over the pre-orders – just know that the BDH is always looking forward to new blood – I mean, books – and we don’t want y’all to feel pressured, just to enjoy writing the action packed, family & friend centric stories that make us laugh, cry, and cheer. We’d rather wait and re-read other things while we’re waiting than stress you out. Here’s to a happy, healthy holiday season!
Sorry you are feeling pressured about the pre-orders. I only bought mine this far in advance because I know that if I don’t I might forget (I have young kids, life gets busy, what can I say?).
As for the ham, I usually buy extras specifically to dice up, freeze and use in soups, with alfredo pasta and nights where nothing but a ham & cheese (preferably smoked) panini will do. for those quick and easy dinner nights. 🙂
And finally, care to share the recipe for cranberry sauce? I bought a batch of cranberries at Costco I haven’t used yet.
I’ve never used a recipe*. But I probably have a recipe for cranberry orange bread around if you’d like that.
* My sister asked me whether I can actually follow recipes, which kind of smarts because a) not only can I follow them, I can turn random shit I make up into them, which is actually harder and b) yo, bench work. But it smarts because I know why she’d ask.
My Dad is that way, he can walk into a kitchen and make something delicious out of what’s there, no recipe needed. I need the recipe as a starting point. I can alter per taste, but I don’t have a clue how to put things together without it.
I think the last time around I basically simmered the cranberries in a simple syrup with orange peel? and maybe star anise? Seriously, I would have to go digging through my memory, and it’s going to be a mess because I was cooking a bunch of other things, getting ready for a multi-course meal and managing the questions of other guests, the oven schedule, and what everyone was bringing. And it’s totally not indexed.
Ring adventure sounds lovely. So glad you found something you like.
I agree on the name! I’ve actually been calling this group the Battle Desperate Horde in my head given all the comments in the last several chapters. You guys do write great battle / fight scenes – both visually engaging and with characters we are emotionally invested in.
I am glad your Thanksgiving went well. Yeah, freeze the ham for chicken cordon bleu, homemade ham salad, and (my favorite) dry off the ham slice, spread with thin amount of cream cheese and then put sweet gherkins on one end and roll the up. Seal and cover and refrigerate, take them out and slice into pinwheels. Al alternative is to put a whole scallion in there instead of the pickle.
Enjoy the game and get some rest. We will be here when you are ready.
I can’t remember exactly how many books, novellas, short stories and scenes of yours I’ve read (anything I have heard about) and not once have I thought: “meh. Could have spent my time better”. This is a book with characters we already adore. Please don’t have anxiety nightmares over it. Unless they fuel your creativity.
Thanks for the Assasin Creed tip: now I know what to get hubster for Xmas.
Happily surprised to see the last chapter. Nice to know you had a great Thanksgiving even with leftover food. I’m visiting my son and painting granddaughter’s dresser and desk. So nice to have entire days to work on a project instead of weeks of odd hours. I’m waiting to order the next book, no pressure.
Glad you guys had a good thanksgiving. No more turkey and duck left is definitely good. Now is the time to post a good recipe for leftover turkey.
I can be the Blood Demanding Horde. So long there’s a new installment… ?
Your very creative world building and interesting plots along with kick #ss action is what I love about your writing!
Thank you for entertaining us so well.
Glad you had a great Thanksgiving and yay for new wedding bands. We are only so blood thirsty because Maud displayed such restraint in avoid bloody conflict with the vampirates leading up to this that it was sooooo hugely cathartic (plus, we just want to see The Sariv in action and see Seveline and Onda get what’s has been a loooooong time coming).
Vampirates and battlestations and Marland kicking ass, oh my!!
Cranberry sauce on yogurt! My favorite way to eat the leftovers.
Will Kid 2 share the cranberry recipe ? Love cranberry anything.
So happy you guys got some quiet time, and new wedding bands as a bonus! You deserve all the happiness.
In addition to the lovely suggestions above, if I’m lucky enough to have leftover ham I like to dice up a few slices and freeze them. Then they’re available to toss into scrambled eggs, a favorite from my (long ago) formative years.
My mom puts cranberry jam onto her cottage cheese or into plain yogurt. My husband just eats it right out of the jar.
Oh and I use leftover ham for soup. Or sauté with green beans or cabbage
I made cranberry sauce too and am looking for stuff to eat it on cuz I’ll burn out on turkey soon. Please don’t stress….we’ll be ready when you are. Glad you guys had a good Thanksgiving!
I don’t have any insights on graphic software…although there are new apps for IPADS that use a stylus to draw with. Don’t ask me which ones…I can’t draw a straight line to save my life!
Back to work tomorrow for me, but its been nice having time off even if I didn’t go anywhere. Got lots done around the house.
Have a great week!
I keep getting confused and thinking maybe I missed a round of Goodreads and going back… nope, okay, yup, that’s still my my vote.
If you’re not up to committing to an Illustrator investment you might try Inkscape? Free and open source, incredible rich (people use it to produce photo realistic graphics not infrequently) it is also a vector graphics program, and it exports to .svg as well, which is the standard vector graphics format. Like everything, there’s a learning curve, which is the disadvantage of learning it if you move to Illustrator – but then, you might decide not to bother. I switch back and forth between it and the GIMP, which is more or less open source Photoshop, as they each do different things better. (And I mostly do scientific illustrations and the occasional cartoon.)
Isn’t ham kind of the all purpose food additive? I mean, the one that’s not bacon? (Friends back home were frying up five pounds of bacon for drop biscuits and I’m still wondering how many biscuits were involved…) Juk! Greens. Mac and Cheese.
Omelets. Quiche. Random casseroles. Tossed with green beans, pasta, and the dressing of your choice.
See, if we were local, we could start the best brunch / dinner club!
Cheesy Potatoes with ham, best comfort food casserole ever! So glad you had a nice Thanksgiving. Loved the latest and agree that after watching Maud have to bite her tongue so long, the blood-fest was awesome. Thank you!
BD2H??
Ps ham freezes well…x
Glad Thanksgiving went well. I have to say, my favorite way to eat cranberry “jam” is on a sandwich with almost any meat. It is a surprising and refreshing taste treat.
Also, it’s worth saying that I don’t buy books sight unseen to pressure you, but to help you feel supported. Don’t obsess on my behalf. Feel loved and know that I’ll wait however long it takes.
+1
Cranberry sauce… in green tea?? ?
In Eastern Europe/Russia we habitually sweeten our tea with fruit preserve. Bitter cherry confiture is a particular favourite but cranberry comes close too.
Wow I’ve never heard of that before, I’ll have to try it! I guess I never imagined jam would be able to mix into water, but it is hot water after all. That’s a whole new world of flavors I never knew existed 😉
Raspberry jam or jelly, or pumpkin butter in hot chocolate are particular favorites of mine. (I don’t habitually sweeten my tea, but perhaps I should try it.)
Okay. I need someone to explain this jam-in-tea thing. I got some homemade lavender- lime jam which the maker said I could use in tea. I tried it and to add enough flavor, I added a quarter of the jar, and it was awful. It sounded really good, though. What did I do wrong?
Way too much, unless you were adding it to a pitcher. Remember that it’s full of sugar. Add about as much as you would honey. Lime-lavender is also a tricky combination and would probably do better with some teas than others, I would think. It would be awesome with a ginger tisane, for instance, or maybe a floral black like Earl Grey. Others may have more experience with this than I do.
I am totally with you. Lavender is a wonderful aromatic, but as a taste it can go bitter with these weird dry metallic undertones. Throw in lime and I can imagine it being quite wonderful, but clashing easily. (A lot of lavender foods aren’t that palatable to me, really, it has to be handled with a light touch. *munch* *munch* Mmm… powdery sweet soap!)
BDH- can’t we be both? And don’t stress on our behalf. I would patiently wait to order Sapphire Flames if it caused you less stress.
I really want to know what Dina and Sean are doing while Maud is off killing/kissing vampires. PLEASSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
Two recommendations for leftovers. One – ham into split pea soup…is wonderful if you like split pea soup. I am sure there are hundreds of casseroles and such that call for ham… Okay that was longer than I expected….
Two- leftover cranberry sauce. Years ago I ran across a recipe for leftover cranberry sauce crostata. It was marvelous. I failed to save the original and the blog went away….so improv a butter pie crust (or use an actual crostata crust recipe) …and put that sauce in there. Fold over the sides…it looks very rustic. If you do not have enough sauce left you can throw some apples or even jam in with the sauce…add some sugar, butter dabs, and bake. It is very yummy. Sorta like this minus the almonds…. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/trisha-yearwood/cranberry-sauce-quick-crostata-with-almond-crumble-5496908 Of course if you have ’em on hand…what the heck…toss them in!
I am loving the serial Innkeeper Chronicles! Thank you for sharing!
I don’t know if Kate not loving soup and boiled limp veg was a way of Ilona getting out her hatred of them, but I’ve always pictured it to be so ?. But I agree, smoked ham based soups are yum! Split pea and potatoes especially.
I’ve been obsessing about your stuffing, and the waffles made from stuffing from the Serious Eats website. Now I’m obsessing about stuffing waffles topped with cranberry sauce with a side of ham.
If you haven’t used illustrator before, it will not save you time until after you’ve put in a bunch of time learning the way the tools work and going through the tutorials. It’s incredibly powerful, and after you’ve put in a week or two practicing you’ll be able to whip out infinitely resizable magic circles.
Mac and cheese with ham. Ham in biscuits to make little sandwiches- turkey and cranberry sauce in biscuits is also tasty. And last year I found a great recipe for cranberrry sauce muffins, which were awesome.
We went out of state for Thanksgiving this year so have no leftovers. I’m seriously considering cooking a turkey next weekend to get the leftovers. Boil the carcass and bones to get stock, then pick off all the extra bits of meat that loosen up and make turkey rice porridge (congee). I’m totally into winter cooking & hibernation mode…
And if you make stock using both the bones of a chicken (or turkey, I imagine) and the ham bone you end up with a fabulous stock for something like Wonton Soup…. Then add in some wontons (premade from Costco work fine) to the stock and chopped ham for a good winter meal.
Honestly, pre-ordering makes it simpler. Purchase and you don’t have to worry about publishing dates or checking book sites. It just auto pops up in your email… “Your book, blank blank whatever, was delivered to your reading app or ereader such and such. It is a no brainer that we are going to read whatever it is you put out since we are the fans following your blog…. lmao
I thought continuously asking for Mauds kill count was a really big hint into our character. we make a cranberry salad that we call candy surprise.
LOL!
Happy thanksgiving! Sounds like you had a great time – us too. 🙂
Please don’t give yourselves anxiety over Sapphire Flames. You deserve every bit of our confidence. Frankly, we were all going to buy the book on Day 1 anyway, we’re just proactively getting our shopping out of the way and encouraging your publishers to shower you guys with big advances. The book will take the time it takes – enjoy your holiday season!!
Love, the Blood Demanding Horde <3
EXACTLY!! I pre-ordered to indicate to the publisher that you guys deserve big advances on anything you write, because it is a guaranteed seller. I am more than happy to wait for you to release your books on the date and time that works for you, so please don’t feel pressured by pre-orders. Believe me, if you wrote the phone book I would pre-order it, and be confident that you could make it funny and character driven. ? I’m glad you had a nice Thanksgiving, and my vote goes to split pea soup with ham!
+1 “Believe me, if you wrote the phone book I would pre-order it, and be confident that you could make it funny and character driven.”
ROFL!
Yes, we are happily both. Do not feel pressured by your crazy but loving readers. We’ll wait and eat soup….
Split pea soup: pop in ham bone while you’re cooking the peas with a lot of carrots and seasoning. When soft, blend the soup (having removed the bone?) then add evaporated milk for creaminess and chunks of ham. Can be frozen when you’ve had enough for awhile.
I make a cranberry sauce with candied orange peel… And always make extra because it makes yummy jam. Weird with peanut butter tho. Don’t worry about us, we’ll wait for the book… If we have too…
Enjoy your leftovers.
Cranberry strawberry jello salad:
Start with red jello- your choice of flavor or mix of flavors. Use a little less water than instructions say.
Add cranberry sauce or jelly
Add thawed frozen strawberries
Add pecan halves/pieces
After jello is half set, add more nuts and strawberries on top.
You can either mix the jello thoroughly, and have it be a little thicker than regular jello, or let the cranberry sauce settle towards the bottom and have a somewhat layered salad.
This is a family holiday favorite salad.
I like using ham in baked potato soup and it uses up leftover potAtoes too. Also good in other soups too.
I am like 78 hours into AC: Odyssey! It is soooo much fun. It’s a great stress reliever.
I have bought it, done the opening scene and haven’t had a chance to get back to it. I thought I would have time with my 2 days off over Thanksgiving to play. But I ended up going to Sioux Falls to buy a new car, clean out the garage so that my new, bigger SUV will now fit, cooking, etc. I never did get to play, but I did sneak in a rewatch of Jurassic World, so I got something done for R&R. 🙂
Now if the bigger SUV doesn’t get stuck in the snow drifts while going to and from work this winter, it will all be worth it.
Randomly made a Supernatural fan (me) giggle because you mentioned Sioux Falls! ?
Hope your new car gets you through the winter with no stress!
It’s rare to see a fellow South Dakotan out there! Hello!
?? I’m in Fargo! ?
I like your writing so much I read your blog (I don’t read blogs). Even when I hate the idea of a book (Hugh) or am slightly bored when hearing the initial premies (Maud) I end up loving the books to pieces (both, after reading them). Frankly, short of you going mental and killing off your main couple, I can’t see what you could do to make me REGRET buying one of your stories. So see it as a complement, and an sign of total trust, not as pressure. I don’t usually expect anything specific from your stories, I just strap in and see where you take me.
+1
Well put.
I do a great deal of reading, I have over 1000 books on my Nook for example. I even listen to audio books while driving around for work every day. So when I find an author that I particularly enjoy, I auto buy anything that they write as soon as I see that it is coming out. That includes our author lords, Nora Roberts/J.D.Robb, Faith Hunter, Ann Bishop, Patricia Briggs and a couple of others.
Some I buy without looking to closely when I see them out, like Devon Monk & Kalayna Price. But a good author can be hard to find. It is definitely a compliment and not intended as pressure. I just want to make sure that I don’t miss a minute of anything that you put out. 🙂
+1
+111. No worries. Be happy.
Harukogirl, Well expressed and almost exactly my sentiments except I do read a few author blogs/Facebook eg Jungle Red Writers(Julia Spencer- Fleming), Sharon Lee & Steve Miller, Linnea Sinclair, Jayne Ann Krentz, Patricia Briggs mostly to keep tabs on any new stories they may be releasing.
Rena, I am not sure how many books i’ve Got on my iPad but between iBooks and kindle I must have close to 1000 too. ( And that’s ignoring the audio books and dead tree copies .)
Over the years my list of autobuy authors has shrunk but I see that we like many of the same authors: Ilona Andrews, Patricia Briggs, Nora Roberts/ J.D. Robb so you inspire me to try Faith Hunter. From previous discussions on this blog I understand her Jane Yellowrock series is a good starting point.
Frances,
The Jane Yellowrock series is great, so is the spinoff Soulwood series. I also highly recommend Anne Bishop’s current series & new spinoff, “The Others”. Her earlier work is good, but the current series/spinoff is outstanding.
Rena/Frances,
I read many of the same series as you both. I have Anne Bishop’s Others in my TBR pile but I didn’t realise it was a spin-off of an earlier series – can you tell me which one?
I’m always looking for new ‘good’ authors but they’re getting harder to find simply with the volume of books coming onto the market.
+1
+1 Also, SAPPHIRE FLAME? Am i the only one who just heard about this now? Can’t wait for it. Just thinking about it makes me shiver with excitement. ?
+1! I also pre-order from my favorites, without worrying about whether or not I will like the book. I don’t think I bother to read the blurbs. Have yet to be disappointed, altho I often like one series more than others that the author may have. I’m enjoying Maud’s story immensely, but she’s not going to take the place of Dina in my heart, for instance. And I’m hoping I’ll like Catalina’s story half as much as Nevada’s. So far I’ve not particularly warmed to her, but that’s beside the point. I will enjoy what you two write! So don’t stress out.
Just as an aside, I have listened to Diamond Fire twice now and I find myself hoping that the new narrator’s male voices will improve with time. (sigh – I’m just spoiled. I didn’t like Renee’s take on Dina at first, mostly due to the accent, which I thought made her sound too old, but I got used to it.)
+1
you are one of about 5 authors that i autobuy as soon as it’s available. no pressure!
I totally agree!
+1
I’ve said it before, “I’d read your shopping list!” and I still mean it. I’ll read anything you guys think is worth it. (Even if you don’t, I still would.) If you need to push back a release date, even for something pre-ordered, I’m okay with it.
Not sure you 2 truly realize how hard it is to find GOOD authors. I’ve been reading for decades & I think I have a fairly good idea of what is good & you 2 are. I have less than a handful of writers in this category & even when you present material that you don’t believe is top-notch, it’s better than most other give as their best.
Romance is not my preferred genre, but if you switched to straight romance, I’d still read it. Take it from someone who’s been reading since the 70’s, just do you best and it’d still be better than most.
AMEN. No pressure – I just don’t want to miss a thing. Now, Nalini Singh at this moment – her I want to pressure. Bloody cliffhanger! I HATE cliffhangers!.
Totally agree. It annoys me when I am not told that the current saga is continued in another book. Now I cheat and read the epilogues. I will read both books when the remaining chapters are published and not before. I realize that all tales may not be finished in one book but a logical break is appreciated.
My kids heard me scream from upstars when I finished Nalini’s latest. They have never seen me scream when finishing a book before!!
I felt abused after reading that book. Readers are 11 books into that series (about $100.00 where I live), and not only do we get a cliffhanger, but there is absolutely no sense of when we can reasonably expect plot resolution (i.e. a HEA). As a result, I have cancelled my pre-orders for her other books and will not consider purchasing any future books.
I did the same thing! I felt manipulated and very angry.
I rarely get to read/listen to a book in the first hours after it’s released, no matter how devoted a fan I am, so I did hear the screams across the net, and know I was walking into some kind of cliffhanger.
…so I was kind of surprised how resolved it was for me. There are a lot of details we don’t have, but there was a resolution on the biggest dramatic tension, I thought, not only on what happened, but the core of what it meant. And an awful lot of foreshadowing / background information around different possibilities about what might be coming next.
And that might be the difference of having warning. IDK.
People who love books and read extensively are not children who require ‘warnings.’
We understand foreshadowing and the intricacies of plot development………..
We also have a firm understanding of eonomics.
Personally, I, my daughters, daughter-in-law, son and husband all read – not only for our jobs (technical manuals/periodicals can really be a bore), but to escape to the pressures of our daily lives.
In retrospect, I have noted that over the past few years, I have recommended and gifted friends, co-workers and struggling family members the ‘Andrews’ books extensively, but not the ‘other’ author/authors.
I now understand why.
Well, your experience of that particular book was clearly different from mine, but that’s pretty common.
(I recommend all kinds of books, but it usually has more to do with the person than anything else. IME, book recommendations are a delicate thing!)
Exactly what these guys have said!! I’ve been called a “voracious” reader…1 book usually per day if it’s a slow work day. You and Gordon are autobuy, and I NEVER follow blogs…except yours 🙂
I’d rather you push something back than be burned out and stop (horrifying thought!!!) Just keep doing what you do so well. We know your quality, so if we’re greedy for quantity, that’s our problem. Thanks so much for all you do!!!
tell me about it! The inferior authors I suffer through while waiting for the truly accomplished ones to publish can be pure torture.
… but, um, no pressure! ?
I’m not a blog reader either, but I’ve learned to read this one, in part because the Innkeepers are posted here and I have realized that it may take two or three days for the installment to reach my FB page even though I have it on the ‘see first’ status.
https://wweos/2053559811350063/w.facebook.com/EatingWell/vid is an interesting way to use T’giving leftovers. I might work for your ham. And the cranberry sauce, which sounds delicious.
+ 1
+1
+1
Right now people where I live are following the news about a river otter that has broken into the Dr Sun Yat-sen classical gardens and is eating all the koi carp from the decorative pond. There were originally 14 large and very expensive koi carp in the pond. The eldest was over 50 years old. The local parks board set a trap with tuna, salmon and chicken which the otter devoured. A small stick wedged into the trap prevented it from working. At that point there were 7 koi left. Then on the weekend a wildlife relocation expert came in and set 3 new traps. So far no Otter has been caught and another three Koi have been eaten. The staff at the garden have now removed the last 4 Koi so hopefully the Otter will be safely removed soon. People are voting in polls for Team Koi or Team Otter and the Otter has its own twitter account @ChinatownOtter. Here you’d likely call them the Koi devouring Horde.
Omg that’s terrible! But hilarious!
I want to be Team Otter, but 50 year old animals are 50 yo animals after all so Team Koi!
I love this story. Just goes to show nature has no respect for silly humans. I’m definitely team otter.
The news articles are hilarious! The otter’s ‘reign of terror’ and they brought in an ‘experienced otter trapper’ but declined to name him…I can see the headlines “The omnivorous otter versus the wily trapper” LOL
me too.
Yup it is on our news on the Island (Vancouver Island). Have to say I am happy if this is what is leading our news stories but sad the little rascal has killed the Koi – why did they not just temp. move the Koi out fr the beginning.
So not the appropriate gage for things, but koi freak me OUT. A neighbour keeps them and I can see the pond from my bedroom window and eeeeeeeeeeek. Team otter all the way.
I’m not a giant fan of the bulging eye goldfish, but koi did win me over.
The oldest pond at MS (I heard they were doing construction around that area…) had a bunch of koi, and in particular, there was a giant black one that would swim up whenever I came by, and follow me around like a dog. Very smart and interactive – got to be very fond of it.
I can’t decide which team. I ? otter but also ? the koi. Don’t understand what took so long to quarantine the last few koi, cos water-ferrets aka otters are good hunters.
This. Every bit of it.
Glad Thanksgiving went well.
Sorry about the anticipated headache with the re-work of the Hidden Legacy site. I thoroughly enjoyed Diamond Fire and am looking forward to Sapphire but will wait a minute to pre-order. Not because we’re giving you nightmares (sorry about that), but because when I pre-order before the cover reveal, my Nook doesn’t gets the cover. I keep refreshing hoping the cover for Diamond Fire will load in eventually. If any of the BDH knows how to fix this I would be grateful.
Loved the latest installment of Sweep! Helen is such a precious little B.A.!
My Nook does the same thing. The only way to get the cover, I found out with my Nook before the one I have now, is to get a new Nook. All the covers show. There is no way I’m going to do that until the one I have goes kaput.
Another way I found is to delete the non covered book and buy it again. Either way it will cost. ?
I found archiving the book and then unarchive normally works for me..
Good to know. I’ll give it a try. 🙂
I usually don’t pre-order by more than a few weeks, because I’m predominantly an audiobook listener, and those links go up later. (Schedule allows for more listening…)
But oh, when my schedule allows for a fair bit of listening (it depends on the kind of work I’m doing) I sometimes end up buying / checking out some supremely dubious fiction. I mean, that’s how one finds new cool authors, but there’s a lot of “I’m in a mood, and nothing I have sounds right and… oh hell, I’ll take a chance on this.” Some great finds that way, but also some things I’ve finished only because my hands were covered in things I didn’t want on my phone, and fuck it. …and a lot I haven’t exactly liked, but i’ve enjoyed in the way you enjoy b-movies.
I’m fairly chill and flexible, I guess – if there are authors whose style and skill I generally like, I’m very rarely going to regret buying books from them.* I’d prefer that people branch out and do things that are different, and take chances, and keep themselves fresh. I’d prefer that they’d take more time, if that’s what it takes. I’m still going to go in with a much higher level of reliability that this is going to be fun
* There is of course the jumping the shark phenomenon, but that’s kind of different.
Awww! Congratulations on the new rings!!!
I’m currently playing Assassin’s Creed Syndicate and Origins. Going to get Odyssey in the new year to dive into.
I did not know jam in tea was a thing. Will definitely try it next time 😀
Also, if it isn’t too much trouble/intrusive, can Kid2 share her cranberry sauce recipe?
I haven’t worn my ring since getting pregnant with our youngest. She’s now 6 months old and my finger’s still too fat to fit lol my hand feels unbelievably… Empty.? I’m glad you guys got replacements, that feeling is kind of annoying.
My husband can barely get his ring on or off due to weight gain through the years. He doesn’t wear it much, it’s too dangerous d/t the machinery he works around.
He asked me this weekend to purchase this new silicon type of ring on the market. I had never heard of them before. He had seen a follow worker wearing one. Took care of it last night through Amazon, a set of four ( different colors).
A friend of mine has his tattooed on
Hi Amy!
Just wanted to tell you that she posted that the recipe used for the cranberries was from @deannahoak listed under Favorite Thanksgiving recipe—Brandied Cranberries. It was posted under an earlier blog–a couple of days before Thanksgiving.
Hope that helps you out.
? bless you, sis
Try ham and dumplings…..just like chicken and dumplings but with ham. Make stock from the bone, your favorite biscuit dough for the dumplings ( I cheat and use Bisquick), simmer, add ham…..yum. good for winter nights
Something extremely popular in my family for ham is ham snacks. No real set recipe but the basis is a mixture of ham, hard boiled eggs both of which are chopped into small pieces, shredded cheese (cheddar or marble) and green onions sliced thin. Mix together in large bowl. In separate bowl mix 3 parts mayonnaise with 2 parts chili sauce and 1 part mustard. Add sauce mixture to meat mixture. There should be enough of the sauce to hold the ham, egg, cheese and onion together. You then spoon mixture onto hamburger bun halves and broil til cheese is just about to brown. Usually 1slice of ham and 1egg is enough for two bun halves. The rest is to taste. Ham snacks are tied to a lot of good memories so I wanted to share.
That’s very similar to something my family makes with leftovers, but gerkins instead of onions and we eat it cold not broiled (savages, I know).
I will try your way with Christmas leftovers this year!
I was thinking split pea soup with the leftover ham. I make gallons of it then freeze it in two serving containers. I liked your ideas too!
I love scalloped potatoes and ham…very comfort foodl Here’s the recipe I use:
https://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/scalloped-potatoes-and-ham/
I pre-order your books because I trust you guys implicitly. There’s a short list of authors that I can say that about. I have every book you’ve ever done. The only one I waited on was Hugh’s story, because I hated him, and couldn’t imagine how you were going to redeem him. You did. You guys blew me away with that book. You’re both really gifted. Your work is uniformly excellent. Hidden Legacy may be my favorite series of yours, except….
I love Maude and Arland. All of the Innkeeper books are fabulous, but, wow, those two, with Helen…
So, relax, de-stress yourself. You’re amazing. Your books are killer. Thank you. There has never been a bad one. Ever. ?
+1!!!!!
+1!!!!!
Ring adventure sounds lovely. So glad you found something you like.
I agree on the name! I’ve actually been calling this group the Battle Desperate Horde in my head given all the comments in the last several chapters. You guys do write great battle / fight scenes – both visually engaging and with characters we are emotionally invested in.
Exactly.
If the book isn’t ready, I will get it when it is. Ya’ll are good about keeping us up on things. I understand. (One of the books on my preorder list was just moved back for a 5th time – a total of 16 months if I remember the original date correctly. I assume the author has a health problem. She hasn’t cancelled the book, so neither have I.)
The main reason I preorder a book is so I won’t forget to buy it when it comes out. Yes, I can forget when an A-list book is coming out when I checked last week. Also, I am lazy. Do it now, stop worrying.
One of the other reasons I preorder a book, at least partially, is to give the author and/or publisher a hint of what demand might be. It’s hard to say “We don’t need much of a print run.” when the preorders are stacking up…
If you need to reschedule, so will I. A preorder is meant as a vote of confidence, not as pressure.
Oh, and my kindle count is (blushes) pushing 5K.
I will let you know how many boxes of real books I move at a later date. They will be numerous. I’ve been accumulating for 60 years…
kommiesmom:
thanks for giving me a maniacal grin… I have so many books that if I suddenly expire my family is gonna call me names. Ha Ha Ha
The glee of that scene, my sister and brother …why did she do that? comments and was she a hoarder? … I will be receiving glares from them toward the sky and I will be snickering.
I was doing a spring clean and realized I had over 30 containers of books .. stacked 3 rows deep.
Preorder so I won’t forget. Yes, this. And then suddenly realise that I have a Charles Stross “the Labyrinth Index”, Ilona Andrews “Diamond Fire, Ben Aaronovitch “Lies Sleeping”, and an ARC Lee Murray “Into the Ashes” coming out, one each week for a month. Is there any better present for your birthday month? Why, yes! SotB is coming to the big resolution. Squeee!
Have you tried Benedict Jacka’s Alex Verus? He and Ben Aaronovich’s Peter Grant are my two preorders from across the pond.
Unless you decide to completely change your style of writing (e.g., Finnegan’s Wake) or the genre of your writing (horror mystery antinovel) we, the pre-ordering fans, love the characters and worlds, and the style in which you create them, and only wish you to continue, for as long as you are enjoying too.
+1
To be honest, I would be willing to follow the authorlords to a new genre, so long as it isn’t horror. Horror upsets me — yes, I’m a hypersensitive wimp, I know. But I remember what Ilona did with that Red Ridinghood rewrite demonstration, and it was gripping. (Both the demo and the final draft of the story opening.)
I understood the complaint about us pre-ordering too soon to mean that the publisher then presses the authorlords to complete earlier, which is of course uncomfortable. Especially in situations like the one where they’d got halfway through before realizing they pretty much had to rewrite the whole thing. I don’t remember which one it was, but clearly the rewrite worked out all right in the end.
Glad your Thanksgiving was a success. And I also want cranberry sauce recipe .
Congratulations on your new rings, good job Gordon.
I love your work, andPat Briggs AnneBishop, Seanan McGuire and NicholasPetrie( new mystery author fabulous) so I will buy sight unseen. I trust you guys, and you will never fail me.
But I am old-school. No kindle, I like to hold books, read them, look at them on my bookshelves.
And I just love The Baylor family . And also Innkeeper series, the Edge, Kate Daniels.
And we are greedy, bloodthirsty very loyal fans. Plus you have fantastic funny scenes . Priceless.
Please don’t have nightmares, we believe in you and your wonderful creative worlds.
Thank you ,I went back to Clean Sweep in 2012, and remembered how it helped me survive a very dark time. Dina and Sean meeting, Sean peeing on the apple trees. And I laughed. Very few laughs that year, and each laugh and each chapter helped me to see a future. Thank you.
There’s a link to the cranberry recipe in the Nov 21st Thanksgiving menu blog.
Also, to use up extra ham, I make ham salad sandwiches by mixing ham, softened cream cheese, a little garlic powder, and crushed pineapple (drained) in a food processor. Combine to taste until soft and spreadable. If the mixture is too thick add a small amount of the drained pineapple juice. Sread the mixture on buns, toast, rolls, or use in place of tuna of chicken salad. You can use it in tortilla wraps, too. This also works good and tastes wonderful when you substitute leftover turkey and cranberry sauce.
We make ham salad too, but with mayo ( Helmann’s) and dill pickles. I have done green olives instead of the pickles and really like it. I have also use cream cheese for chicken salad and like the results. I will have to try that with ham.
Blood Devouring, yes … bwahaahaahaaa!
Please don’t stress on our account. We will love it. No matter what it will be – I have a nagging suspicion you can turn me to horror if you wanted.?
I have read you books so many times (thank god for kindle, a paperback would not have survived such obsessive usage) because you are great. And I admit to impatience and thoughts of cloning you guys so we can get more.? And also admit that when I buy a book that disappoints (by other authors) I go back to re-reading one of yours to comfort myself.
Happy you had a peaceful Thanksgiving! Wish you only the best!
Hi Ilona and Gordon! I’m so happy for you that you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I’m even happier that you had a nice date night and got two new wedding bands! That is a special moment! I haven’t read the next installment tpyet but will tonight. So thank you so much in advance for your gift in posting that. I’m going to be asking for blessing that everything go well for you two for the next two months so you can get caught up on your writing timelines. ?
Ilona and Gordon please don’t feel pressure to keep producing at the amazing pace you two work at. One thing I can say with certainty that as eager as the BDH is to read anything you write I think I can speak for most of them in saying that we can wait. You guys are more prolific that the vast majority of authors and personally I’d rather you continue in a long, happy and fulfilling career writing high quality stuff that both you and your readers enjoy than if you’re just writing to satisfy our greedy reading needs. So please NO PRESSURE. Happy belated Thanksgiving, no more advice to be given. Thank you guys
Sechat nailed the sentiment;
we like how you write, what you write.
Our difficulties & horrors of pre-orders are not in your control. Book Covers that don’t appear, Card charges made 10 months AFTER pre-order, Publisher delays … l’m gonna set the bad aside …
How YOU write, what YOU write, is what we are purchasing. I am past a series; l purchase your author name with expectations, of delight whimsey & a different way of looking hearing & thinking of approaches/exposure to types of world genres.
As to nightmares:
Technology has crashed, the internet is gone. On your wall in your writing den there used to hang an Olivetti. On a flea market crawl one weekend you found new ribbons & a repair kit for it …
nightmare/s …paper supplies … printing … distribution …
TECH is up and they still manage to mess up all of the above
Enjoy your rings. You’re making my taste buds crazy with envy
Yay Rings!
As for the epic amount of ham – I like a cheesy mac and ham (leave out the mustard, cayenne and garlic:
https://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/cheesy-macaroni-with-ham/be37eda3-738b-4b25-bf5b-82ae6ed41582
Happy Thanksgiving weekend to you both! I haven’t played the assassins creed series but I’d be open to trying AC Origins, especially if there’s RPG elements.
I will hold off on pre ordering HL4, don’t want to stress anyone out ☺️
Hmm. Theres an idea. A 1930s olivetti on my wooden file cabinet with a couple of my antique cameras. I just had my last dose of chemotherapy Monday before last. Rereading your works and others helped with the harsh part. We live one county over from Woodstock, Ga. My husband made your signing a date for us. Took me to dinner and a little light exploring beforehand. He had read a couple of KDS but that hooked him into reading the rest. We both enjoy your writing style.
I purchase as soon as I can because I want to show support (to the authors, but also the publishers). I’m sorry that causes y’all distress. I’m happy to wait (I mean, if I can wait for Song of Ice and Fire, well….).
Quiet weekends are good and I hope you enjoy them frequently!
We generally do a very simple cranberry sauce (usually just water, sugar and lemon zest). I’ve always loved taking a spoonful and adding it to ginger ale.
Very happy your Thanksgiving went well. Very grateful for all your books.
Hoping this recipe (and a suggestion or two) helps out with the leftover ham situation.
Ham and Cheese Bread: You can use pizza dough or thawed out bread dough equivalent to 2 loaves. Mix 2 cups chopped, cooked ham; 1 1/2 c. cooked vegetables (broccoli; peas and carrots; spinach) and 3 cups shredded cheese.
Roll out the dough and make 2 16×10-inch rectangles (or the size of the baking pan you have at your house). Lay out bottom dough in greased pan. Spoon or sprinkle out the mixed meat, cheese and veggies to 1/2 inch from edge. Top with the other rectangle and seal the edges. Brush the top with beaten egg or melted butter and sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds, or corn meal. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or till nicely brown. Cool a few minutes in pan and cut and serve.
If the dough is fresh, you can make to the point of sealing the edges then just freeze the whole thing and wrap well in foil or food wrap. Just bake it (still frozen in foil for about 30 minutes, then unwrap to brown, if you want) when you don’t feel like cooking and serve it with a nice soup.
A Different Lasagna: Layer 1: Lasagna noodles topped with chopped ham, ricotta, shredded mozzarella, parmesan and Romano. Top with white gravy or milk sauce.
Layer 2: Lasagna noodles topped with shredded cooked poultry , ricotta , mozzarella, Romano and parmesan. More white gravy.
Layer 3 : Lasagna noodles topped with cooked ground or shredded beef, mozzarella, ricotta, Romano and parmesan. White gravy again.
Top with lasagna noodles topped with your marinara sauce and cheeses.
Bake at least 45 minutes in 350 degree oven or till whole thing is bubbling.
You can also make Ham a la King over biscuits.
Or ham and potato salad.
Hoping you get through your schedule without stressing yourselves out further…
.
I don’t know if anyone else has mentioned this but have you looked into Inkscape as an alternative to Adobe Illustrator? It is a free open source vector drawing program very similar to Illustrator. I’ve found that if I know something can be done in Illustrator that it can be done in Inkscape too. I just have to find it. There can be a bit of a learning curve but Google and YouTube are your friends. I use it to make the charts for my crochet patterns.
+1
I have most of my lab using Inkscape, or Inkscape and the GIMP in combination. I love it to death, and it’s become my preferred medium for anything but straight photo manipulation – but vector graphics are a different way of thinking about things than pixels. (OTOH, once you get it, they are a lot more versatile than pixels.)
Photoshop vs Illustrator. Illustrator is built to fine tune type and fonts, specifically for pre press. Learning curve is fierce. And speaking of curves, you get lovely curves because it is all vector generated. (curves are calculated mathematically)
Photoshop is a lot more user friendly. Illustrator is user hostile. Downside if you are placing a lot of type, it is pixilated, and will show some jaggies. But did I mention it is a lot easier to use? A lot?
Good luck
Your Thanksgiving sounds like a true feast, and I am sure people are thankful to be invited. I love the fact you had a duck as well as other more traditional things. As a chef, I sometimes want to tweak the old standards to avoid fatal boredom, but no one will let me. So, I applaud the duck.
Lots of ham? Split pea soup with ham. Potato gratin with onions, Gruyere cheese, caramelized onions, thin slices of apple, thin slices of HAM, potatoes, some cream and some stock. Mustard Greens, kale, blackeyed peas, and ham. Braised cabbage, carrots, potatoes, ham in either beer or wine (riesling or gewurztraminer) with sharp mustard. Quiche, of course, but I like ham, spuds, and sharp cheddar for something different. Pasta with diced ham, onion,peas, and cream. I have recipes for all of these if they catch your appetite. Gimme a shout if you’d like.
A suggestion for leftover ham:
Shred the ham into nice thick strips for chewy, or thin strips for crunchy.
In a large bowl pour a generous amount of maple sypup or honey (I like maple syrup), add a couple of spoonfuls each (or more) of chilli powder or flakes, and garlic powder (if you like the taste) and mix thoroughly.
If you have other favourite herbs or spices consider adding them as well. Eg Cumin or Chinese five spice or Garam Marsala…. endless possibilities.
Toss the ham shreds through the mixture till thoroughly coated, drain on a cake rack over a catchpan till they stop dripping. (Save these precious drips to reuse with more ham, or add to your next salad dressing, or even gravy.)
Dump (arrange?) the coated shreds on a parchment covered baking tray, or into an air fryer basket, or into a dehydrator, and bake, cook, or dry till they are at your preferred consistency.
Truly yummy.
A Chinese friend also told me they make delectably chewy honey ham by painting ham slices on both sides with a honey and Chinese five spice mixture. They then grill the slices over a brazier or bbq, until they begin to caramelise and slightly charge on the edges. You can paint the slices with more spiced honey while they are grilling if you want a sweeter more intense flavour.
No money/time for the AC series sadly, although I am normally a devout follower.
Did not mean to stress you out, all we expect is your normal greatness. But I suppose once everyone’s bits and pieces get together, the snowball of expectations can cause an avalanche and that must be slightly horrifying. Really sorry, should we wait for the book next time? As a considerate member of the BDH, what would be better for you, the AL?
Glad to hear the Feast of Thanksgiving was a success!
For the site rebuild, after playing with a lot of different themes I’ve found it is, in the end, worth paying for a really capable top-end theme like Avada, so that it has all the bells and whistles you might later want to add on.
Voted. It could have been tough because I really enjoyed Red Sister and its sequel Gray Sister. But still, Hugh. Who’d have thought it? I think you achieved the impossible there.
I buy your books because I love your style of writing, the humor, the character interaction and the worlds you create. That’s why you’re on autobuy for me and all of that doesn’t show in the blurb anyway, so why would I wait for it?
We could already see from the snippets and the novella that we’re going to like the next book 🙂
Your writing is?
God bless you ..
Glad you enjoyed your family/ friend/ feast time
And sending best wishes for more ease n goodness your way..
I don’t know if anyone else has suggested it, but Inkscape is a free illustrator similar to Adobe Illustrator, but not as user friendly. I have been playing with it recently and like it for what I am doing. I have been making svg’s to 3d print or cut.
Happy that your Thanksgiving was a success. May I shamelessly ask for Kid 2’s cranberry sauce recipe? I love all things cranberry…
For the leftover ham, an Austrian recipe that I favor is Ham and Noodle casserole. A recipe can be found here: https://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/schinkenfleckerln-ham-noodle-casserole-512345 I would omit the mace and milk myself, but tastes vary. Add a salad, and you can feed 4-6 adults.
Don’t worry about the pressure. You and Gorden have been completely consistent in your writing. I know few authors that have been. For me, you, Thea Harrison, and Patricia Briggs consistently deliver. Have confidence in your writing. I highly dought people will be disappointed.
If you like Assassin’s Creed, you should try The Witcher 3 and Dragon Age: Inquisition.
If you like Assassin’s Creed, you should try The Witcher 3 and Dragon Age: Inquisition.
I always preorder anything you and Gordon write. There are very few authors I can say that about. Don’t think of it as pressure however. It’s just us fans that want to make sure we will get it first when the book is done. I live in fear that I will miss the date if I don’t preorder it. Nothing is worse than when people talk about the book and you forgot to timely order it. Sigh. So, no pressure, just love for your work.
if you have lots of leftover ham – have you ever made hamballs? like meatballs but with ham. my mom makes wonderful ones with this sweet/spicy sauce – the only ingredient I remember is maple syrup but i think there may be mustard in there as well. Great over mashed potatoes.
Complete eradication of kozor house aka child killing house, isn’t blood thirtsy. It’s a public service…….
I cut out this recipe for Dog Team Tavern Bar Dip decades ago (the online versions I’ve seen seem to be different). It works great as a dip with the usual suspects (crackers, veggies, etc) but it can make a nice ham salad for lunch as well. My hubbs doesn’t like spicy food so I usually leave out the wasabi powder, but this can easily be flavored with any spice you prefer.
1 1/2 cups cottage cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup coarsely ground smoked ham
1 tbsp. wasabi powder
Mix all ingredients, spoon into a crock and refrigerate overnight.
I’ve been preordering all your books for the last two years. Because I think your talented writers, and I’ve never been disappointed. You two have a gift for story telling. I think someone could practice and improve on their writing, but you have an innate sense of how to build worlds and complex characters that draw you in.
What I’m trying to say is, I like the way you write, so no pressure, just be yourselves. Preordering gives me a little count down and I look forward to reading it.
If you don’t mind I would love to see a picture of the new rings. Thank you for all the fun reading!
One of my favorite uses of leftover ham is for breakfast sandwiches. There are a million recipes for potato pancakes out there so I won’t go into those details, but the filling is 2 eggs, 1 tbsp milk/cream/half and half, 1 tsp sliced chives (fresh or dried), shredded ham and shredded cheese to taste (for me that’s about 3 tbsp each – your mileage may vary). Beat the eggs with the cream until they are a uniform yellow. Mix in shredded ham, chives and cheese. Heat a pan with a little bit of butter and cook the mixture, stirring gently, until the eggs are done. Sandwich that concoction between two crispy, thin potato pancakes. This makes one sandwich, but feel free to double/triple/quadruple to make enough to feed everyone.
Dear Ilona,
Sounds like time is a precious commodity right now. Maybe Adobe Illustrator
would give you back some time and lessen the tension of too much to do and
way to little time. If you have a few dollars left, grab a copy of “Essentialism”
by Greg McKeown. My favorite book ever! He helps uber successful people
(like you) reduce the tension and get more of what you want out of each day.
The book just saved me a whole lot of money on a kitchen redo I didn’t
really need by finding a simple work around. It’s the kind of book you can keep in the bathroom and absorb it a little bit at a time.
Ilona,
My computer jumped to another post and this won’t make any sense there.
Sounds like time is a precious commodity right now. Maybe Adobe Illustrator
would give you back some time and lessen the tension of too much to do and
way to little time. If you have a few dollars left, grab a copy of “Essentialism”
by Greg McKeown. My favorite book ever! He helps uber successful people
(like you) reduce the tension and get more of what you want out of each day.
The book just saved me a whole lot of money on a kitchen redo I didn’t
really need by finding a simple work around. It’s the kind of book you can keep in the bathroom and absorb it a little bit at a time.
I don’t want you to feel pressured! I pre-order your books because I like your writing. Take your time, I will wait.
Soooo Sorry. ?
Aren’t ALL books bought sight unseen? Unless you are a library user, you’re buying a book without having read it first. IOW, sight unseen. I’m pretty sure if you are reading it first in non-library context, that’s “stealing”.
Cover art stopped drawing me in a long time ago, and 90% of the time the back-of-the-book-blurb makes a book sound TERRIBLE. I LOVE Kelley Armstrong, but some of her books’ blurbs were so bad they turned me off reading them for a while. I generally go by authors I like and sometimes “people who liked X author also liked Y-B authors.” And by who is writing the “you should read this!” sentences.
We had a huge amount of homemade cranberry sauce left over, too! I made a cheesecake and topped it with cranberry. It was a nice combo.
Cranberry sauce can be added to apples to make a very amazing cranberry apple pie. When I’m in a hurry I use the canned apples, if I have time I cook the apples with the cranberries. Add spices to your taste (I’m a cinnamon and clove girl). Also this year on a random suggestion I used flattened cinnamon rolls as the crust. They were a pain because they don’t “roll” well with the rolling pin, its easier to “mush” them by hand. It was a big hit.
I second your recommendation(s). I have done/do the same things. When I am living in North America, in September, I will buy 20 to 30 bags of cranberries to freeze. Through Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter….you can do an amazing number of things with cranberries/sause…….
Here in Europe, fresh and jared cranberries are VERY expensive. I pay almost €3 for 150g of fresh cranberries in Germany, and my husband pays £1.50 to get me 310gms of cranberry sauce from England.
If you mince the ham, mix with breadcrumbs, herbs and an egg to bind, you can make actual ham-burgers & they are delish, especially with cranberry sauce/jam ?
I put my leftover cranberry sauce on plain yogurt. It is amazing!!!!
I followed the recipe for cranberry sauce from the bag and two that I add vanilla extract and almond extract a little bit of sea salt and call it good and it’s super yummy. If I want to use it in a cranberry torte I just add a little cinnamon to it. Anyway I always have plenty left over and my daughter and grandkids absolutely love when I make cream of wheat and put in this cranberry sauce. It makes the cereal taste So outstandingly Divine. I’ve never heard of it put in tea but that’s something I’m going to have to try.