Posted November 2, 2016 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 1 Comment
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Wow! Maybe it’s because I’ve been cooking like a madwoman all month, but I feel like October just zipped by. One minute I’m just finishing up my London Fog Lattes for Sherlock at the end of September; the next I’m posting a Poe-themed cocktail for Halloween.
…but the zippiness may also have something to do with the fact that this month we had a wedding, Friendsgiving, the Mister’s grad school graduation party, and a friend stay the weekend. Busy as it was, it was SO GREAT to spend our weekends with family and friends, especially since schedule conflicts have made it hard for us to visit ANYONE the past few months.
But anyway, on to food! Let’s take a look back at our October menu before I share our next Book of the Month hint…
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Posted October 31, 2016 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 1 Comment
All Hallows Eve is here, and with it, the end of our Edgar Allan Poe menu! Even though I don’t normally post recipes on Mondays, I thought it would be fun to share one on Halloween…and when I found a “The Raven” cocktail recipe a couple months ago, I knew I’d found the perfect way to bookend our Poe menu.
The recipe below is my interpretation of The Raven cocktail, which was originally developed by Ashley at Smarty Had a Party. The cocktail below is a delicious combo of 3 of my favorite flavors: blackberry, pomegranate, and mint. With a little white rum, it makes for a refreshing, darkly sweet (but not too sweet) drink. Enjoy while reading your favorite Edgar Allan Poe poems!
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Posted October 27, 2016 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 4 Comments
Back when I first decided to make an Edgar Allan Poe menu, I knew I wanted to include a tribute to The Masque of the Red Death, but there were almost TOO many options for how to include it! Should I make red velvet skull cake? Pan de muerto? A grim reaper cocktail? Then I saw a recipe for skeleton cookies on Pinterest developed by Donna Hay, and I knew I’d found my inspiration!
Instead of using a ginger cookie recipe as my base, I used this awesome chocolate cookie recipe from A Baking Moment and added red food coloring to turn it into red velvet. Once I’d baked my “red velvet men,” all they needed was a little icing to give them skeleton bones. Easy and tasty!
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Posted October 20, 2016 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 4 Comments
Today our spooky Edgar Allan Poe menu continues with Moon Phase French Fries! Several months ago I saw a post by Linda from The Baker Who Kerns, in which she described making moon phase cookies. I loved the concept and decided to make a savory version with roasted potatoes. They’re super easy and fun to make: just slice, season, and bake! And the ready-in-seconds spicy ketchup adds just the right kick to balance it all out (the ketchup is an Epic Meal Time recipe I adjusted to my own taste). Talk about a great side dish for a Halloween party…or a salty snack for some late-night reading!
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Posted October 13, 2016 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 13 Comments
Today we’re continuing our Edgar Allen Poe menu with Coffin Pizza Pockets! Death features prominently in most of Poe’s works, making these a great snack companion while reading The Premature Burial, The Fall of the House of Usher, Annabel Lee, and a host of other Poe works. Nothing like some festive food to put us in the mood for Halloween, right? 😉
These macabre calzones are filled with steamy homemade pizza sauce and melted mozzarella cheese, brushed with butter and garlic onion seasoning to make them extra delicious. Enjoy!
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Posted October 6, 2016 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 4 Comments
UPDATE: There is an new version of this recipe available in my cookbook, A LITERARY HOLIDAY COOKBOOK.
Happy October, folks! Since Halloween is just around the corner, I decided to do a spooky literary menu in honor of the season. Our theme this month is Edgar Allen Poe!
For our appetizer, we’re starting with a tribute to Poe’s famous poem, The Raven. These deviled “raven eggs” are a Halloween-y variation on our Cracked China Deviled Eggs. I used the cracked dying technique to create a black, spidery pattern over the eggs. I thought it would be fun to make the insides purple, and to avoid more dye, I used my own variation on a beet and avocado deviled egg recipe from Amazingly Tasty.
If beets aren’t your thing, I still highly recommend giving these a chance. I’m not normally a beet fanatic, but I love the subtle difference in flavor they bring to the filling. Plus, they’re healthier than normal deviled eggs, since they forgo the mayo and mustard—and you just can’t beat that color! 🙂
NOTE: The eggs need to soak for 7 hours before being peeled (this is what helps achieve the spidery pattern in the dye). I recommend hard boiling the eggs the night before you want to make the recipe and letting them soak overnight.
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Posted September 29, 2016 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 7 Comments
For our Sherlock Holmes bonus recipe, we’re making a recipe I first heard of when researching this menu: London Fog Lattes. These are lattes made with EARL GREY TEA! And I was so excited to try them. Plus, there’s nothing more British than Earl Grey, so they’re a perfect send-off for Sherlock! 🙂
P.S. The recipe I use here is kind of a mash-up of two recipes I found online: one from Gimme Some Oven and another from The Busy Baker.
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Posted September 22, 2016 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 13 Comments
For our Sherlock Holmes dessert, I wanted to make something quintessentially British. I tossed around ideas for all kinds of recipes—jammie dodgers, trifle, Victoria sponge, and various tarts. Then I stumbled across brandy snaps!
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Posted September 15, 2016 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments
A Study in Scarlet: the very first Sherlock Holmes case ever! Of course I had to include it in our Holmes menu, but since no specific foods play a big role in the story, I decided to draw my inspiration from the name of the case itself. We’re making a culinary study in scarlet: Roasted Tomato and Red Pepper Soup!
This particular recipe is my take on a soup that was originally developed by Pretty Practical Pantry. This savory, satisfying soup is the perfect side dish to accompany our Sherlock Steak Sandwiches. So stir some up and get to sipping—we’ve got a case to solve! 🙂
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Posted September 8, 2016 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 6 Comments
Sherlock Holmes is famous for having a sparse appetite, but cold beef sandwiches seem to be a weakness of his. He indulges in them several times throughout the books, mostly while traveling on a case. I can see why! What could be better brain food that hearty bread, protein that sticks to your ribs, and some choice toppings to wake your taste buds?
The recipe we’re making today features toasted whole wheat bread, seared steak, arugula, and homemade horseradish sauce (it’s an interpretation of an appetizer I saw at The Kitchen Alchemist). It’ll set your brain cells whirring in no time!
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