Recently Read (Sept)

It's turning out to be a medieval month...I listened again to Mistress of the Art of Death...before reading her newest book in the series...sort of medieval CSI or Bones.... (the audible reader, Kate Reading, is wonderful to listen to)

Mistress of the Art of Death opens with a clever takeoff on Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, which introduces the central players, a group of pilgrims returning from the shrine of the newly canonized St. Thomas à Becket: a prior and a prioress (from rival abbeys); two knights, lately returned from the Crusades; an overweight but very shrewd tax collector; a gaggle of citizens; and three Gypsies, who are in fact secret investigators sent by the king of Sicily to discover the truth behind a series of gruesome murders near Cambridge.

The Serpent's Tale ....which I actually read last year since it wasn't out yet on Audible (but it is now)...continues the story of Adelia...the medieval Miss Marple...

"A deliciously dark and effective concoction of historical fiction, suspense, romance, adventure and forensics." -Miami Herald

and now the third installment...Grave Goods

When Glastonbury Abbey, one of England’s holiest sites, is burned to the ground, Henry summons the “Mistress of the Art of Death” to identify two skeletons found among the rubble. Could they be the bodies of the legendary King Arthur and his Lady Guinevere? King Henry hopes so. News of King Arthur’s demise would help him snuff out the rebellion in Wales for good.

Again, listening to Kate Reading adds to the enjoyment of this series...

The Boy-Bishop's Glovemaker is the 10th installment in Michael Jecks medieval mystery series....there are 28 books now in the series and while not exactly "page turners" (he spends a lot of time throwing you red herrings but his solutions are still pretty obvious )....butyou learn a lot of fascinating info about this period of English history....the first in the series is The Last Templar...it's good to read them in order as the lives of the main characters unfold throughout the series...






And back to the present....a woman sheriff in Arizona...The 13th in Jance's Joanna Brady series, Damage Control....again...a good basic mystery series...again good to read sort of in order as the life of the main character, Joanna Brady, is part of the charm of the story.

Apple Strudel

Apple Strudel (three strudels)

1 pkg Phyllo Dough (thawed, room temperature)
2 cubes butter, melted
bread crumbs

8 apples
1/2 - 1 C raisins
1/2 C chopped walnuts
cinnamon

Peel and slice apples; mix with raisins, nuts and cinnamon.



Working with Phyllo...it's important not to let the phyllo dough dry out while you're assembling the strudel. After opening the dough and removing the first sheet, immediately rewrap and cover with a damp towel. The dough leaves may be difficult to separate; if some tear, don't worry...just use pieces to keep building your strudel.

I work on a dish towel covered with wax paper...it helps to lift the strudel as you roll it.
Place one sheet of phyllo on wax paper; brush with melted butter and some plain bread crumbs (abt 1 Tablespoon per layer). Add layers, brushing with butter and more breadcrumbs until you have 6 layers. Then scoop 1/3 of the apple filling along the long edge; roll up, pinch ends and place on cookie sheet. Continue making two more. Brush with butter and slash tops diagonally with knife...bake at 350 about 45 minutes until apples are done.

Recently Read (Aug 24-31)

Gone Tomorrow

The 13th "Jack Reacher" mystery

The Bronze Pen

I thought Sadie might like this...it was pretty good...about a girl who gets a magical pen and whatever she writes comes true...sort of..

Sea of Monsters

This is the second book in Rick Riordan's "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" series....the first was The Lightning Thief. That's being made into a movie coming out on Feb 12, 2010...directed by the guy who did Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. (Chris Columbus?)

Birds of a Feather ...the 2nd Maisie Dobbs mystery....these kind of grow on you...set in England after WWI...an interesting historical setting..

Hawaiian Haystacks

This lets the picky eaters put just what they want on their plate!

Mix and heat:
(You can keep the chicken separate from the "gravy", but I usually mix them together)
2 C cooked chicken
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 C sour cream

Cooked rice

Put the rice on your plate; then I usually put the chicken gravy over the rice and everything else on top, but some people like to put the chicken on last....whatever!

Various toppings, such as:

chinese noodles, diced tomatoes, sliced green onions, peanuts or cashews, coconut, crushed or chunk pineapple, craisins or raisins, shredded cheese, chopped celery, diced green pepper, bacon bits...and if you put a maraschino cherry on top you can call it a Chinese Sundae.

Nieman News

It's September....the "back to school" month...here are some pictures from long ago Septembers....above...Mrs. Nieman with some of her students at Woodrow Wilson Jr. High School in Oakland...about 1970.
1986...Michael
1986....Kendra
Kaity ...1991
David....1986Here's the SS Hollenbeck ship that used to be on the school playground...Karl's in the picture somewhere..
Also this week...Kendra and Dustin moved to this nice house in Orinda..lots closer to work for Dustin, just a block from Brady's school...
And this past couple of months Mark has really been working out and eating healthy....he's lost about 30 pounds so far! Looking good, Mark.

Bookworm Contest

We had a bookworm club this summer for Brady and Carson (and Parker)...kind of like the library...the boys got a bookworm circle for each book they read ...and after they got a bunch, Gma Pat took them to Burger King....we didn't quite make 100 since Kendra and Dustin moved this week....but they read (or listened to) a lot!

Bye, bye baby...(Penny and Jess)

I stole these cute pictures off Kendra's blog....it's been so fun to have Dave, Jess and Penny here this summer...and to have Kendra and the boys come over to swim and eat popsicles...it's funny...Parker totally associates popsicles with Gma Pat...even when I go over to his house...he runs up and welcomes me "The Pat, the Pat"....and after about 15 seconds, asks questioningly..."Gossicle? (popsicle)"I love it!