June RandomKit: "Cookin' the Books"

Welcome to June RandomKit!

This month we will be “Cookin’ the Books.” This slang term originally referred to using accounting tricks to make a company’s financial results look different so as to deceive (Investopedia.com). It is based on an old secondary definition of the word “cook,” which meant to present something that was altered in an underhanded way (Grammarist.com). For this month we will use a different definition!



Your June challenge is to select a book that is related to food, beverages, or cooking, in many and any forms. Selections could include nonfiction or fiction. Cookbooks, biographies, memoirs, mystery novels, travel narratives, fiction novels, anything that includes references to this month’s theme, all are fair game. So, let’s get cookin’!

Nonfiction Suggestions:

The Amish Cook by Elizabeth Coblentz
Comfort Me with Apples by Ruth Reichl
Eating for England by Nigel Slater
Kitchen Confidential byAnthony Bourdain
My Life in France by Julia Child (and many others by Julia)
On Rue Tatin: Living and Cooking in a French Town by Susan Hermann Loomis
The Sharper the Knife, the Less You Cry byKathleen Flynn
Waiter Rant by Steve Dublanica
The Wine Lover’s Daughter by Anne Fadiman

Fiction Suggestions:

Bakeshop Mysteries by Ellie Alexander
Black Coffee by Agatha Christie
Cast Iron Cooking Mysteries and Donut Shop Mysteries by Jessica Beck
Hannah Swenson Mysteries by JoAnn Fluke
Key West Food Critic Mysteries by Lucy Burdette
Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously by Julie Powell
Oxford Tearoom Mysteries by H.Y. Hanna
The Poisoned Chocolates Case by Anthony Berkeley
Tea Shop Mysteries by Laura Childs
A Year in Provence and other novels by Peter Mayle

The wiki is here: https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/RandomKIT_2022

Yummy theme! I can recommend the Three Pines series by Louise Penny and the Verlaque and Bonnet Provençal Mysteries series by M. L. Longworth as other examples of mystery series featuring food. I can't read a Three Pines book on an empty stomach :)

I've recommended the Inspector Chen mystery series by Qiu Xiaolong before, but for anyone interested, the books always have a lot of detail re. food tea, and that detail on meals, cooking, and meal prep/tradition is a big part of what brings Chinese culture to life in the series, so I'd say those books would absolutely fit.

Meanwhile...I've meant to read Bailey's Cafe by Gloria Naylor for ages, so I think I'll go with that one!

Not sure what I'll read yet, but I can recommend Fictitious Dishes: An Album of Literature's Most Memorable Meals by Dinah Fried and Finding Freedom: A Cook's Story; Remaking a Life From Scratch by Erin French. I do have Skirt Steak by Charlotte Druckman on my TBR but will look to see what else might fit.

Oh this will be fun! I have several on my TBR including
Finding Freedom a chef's memoir
My Italian Bulldozer Tuscany, food, love
but I think I will choose Love and Saffron since everyone is buzzing about it right now.
Second up will be The Family Chao. I heard an interview and was intrigued to read this family story that takes place in Wisonsin with the backdrop of a family restaurant.

If you are looking for some light and delicious reads, I would recommend Mastering the Art of French Eating. Delightful, informative and deliciously inviting.
Also for a fictional option I'd recommend The City Baker's Guide to Country Living Light, fun, focused on pastry.

>6 beebeereads: Yes, Love and Saffron! I read and reviewed that one, and I think you would like it.

Thanks for all for the tea-riffic suggestions so far. I forgot to mention that kid's books are okay too for this challenge.

I will be reading one of the antique cookbooks that I purchased when I took my mother antiquing. I will also try a couple of recipes contained therein.

Just the month for me to read Tea is So Intoxicating by Mary Essex.

The most obvious choice on my TBR shelves isMary, Queen of Scotch by Rob Rosen but I think this is a theme which will become apparent as I read other books.

Haven't checked my tbr yet, but likely there will be a cozy mystery there. Will see what else there is before making a final decision, though!

I'll read The Templars Last Secret, the next in the Bruno Chief of Police series. There is a beautiful dining table on the jacket so there may be much fancier dining in this one than usual for Bruno.

I have Love and Saffron on hold at the library so I may read that one early if it comes in. Another on my TBR I'd like to get to is My Place at the Table: A Recipe for a Delicious Life in Paris by Alexander Lobrano.

I'm guessing that I'll have a couple of cookbooks and maybe a cozy mystery. I think Brunetti is up next month instead of Bruno in the group read so I probably won't skip ahead there although I always love Bruno books for the food.

Thanks to all for sharing! It sounds as if there are some good books in the offing here.

I have quite a few on my Kindle that would work, as well as some cookbooks that I picked up at a recent library sale. Also Waiter Rant might be up for a re-read, or another chef biography. I recently ordered a copy of Wife of the Chef so that might work too. Lots to choose from!

Suggestions
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
Salty, Bitter, Sweet by Mayra Cuevas
Baker's Magic by Diane Zahler
The Music of What Happens bill Konigsberg

Most of these are Young Adult and easy quick reads.

>15 Kristelh: Oooh, thanks for the suggestions! Hooray for quick reads.

Here are a few more easy YA reads:
Meet Me at the Cupcake Cafe
The Secret Ingredient
Frosting and Friendship
Close to Famous
Cream Buns and Crime
Pie
The Teashop Girls

Plus lots of Amish Bakery novels and Assaulted Caramel and other novels by Amanda Flower.

I read early as I was able to fit it in. Recipes II From Our Restaurant Associates: Lazarus Celebrating 100 Years of Fine Food. I ate several times at the Tea Room at the Columbus, Ohio, Lazarus Department Stores when I was a child. It was a great treat to firstly be in the "big city" and also to eat at such a "fancy" place. When I saw this cookbook on FB Marketplace, I snapped it up! I've read each recipe and remember the chicken salad well. I made a ham/rice/apricot casserole and it was quite delicious--a keeper.

>17 Tess_W: Reminds me of my (rare) childhood lunches at Marshall Field's Walnut Room in Chicago. I remember the first time I went "downtown" on my own (about 12 or 13)--my mom drew me a map, so I could find Field's, Carson Pirie Scott, the main library and other places I wanted to visit. I have a Marshall Field's Cookbook that I bought some years ago when they were being taken over by Macy's, with some of their famous recipes.

I am going to go with Chop Suey Nation by Ann Hui. This is a memoir by a Chinese/Canadian as she explores the history of Chinese in Canada and the many "chop suey" restaurants that they ran.

>18 kac522: Oh yes, Marshall Field's was a special treat for us as kids. We would go there at Christmas to see the huge Christmas tree and eat lunch there. A local department store where I grew up also had a tea room and included a monthly birthday party for kids whose parents had accounts there. Check out Tea at the Blue Lantern Inn for a walk down memory lane.

>19 DeltaQueen50: Mmmm, now I want "Chinese" food (well, Western Chinese)... But I don't want to spend the money!

I thought I'd be more likely to choose a cozy mystery, but I'm not sure I noticed any food related ones on my tbr (but I skimmed). What I have picked out are these two as possibilities:
- The Dorito Effect / Mark Schatzker
- Twinkie Deconstructed / Steve Ettlinger

> I enjoyed The Dorito Effect. There is also Omnivore's Dilemma, Fast Food Nation The Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction.

I also like the books; Forks over Knives and The China Study Cookbook.

I have two of the Cupcake Mystery series to read For Batter or Worse and Strawberried Alive. I'm looking forward to quick easy reads as I start back commuting into the office. I save my "heavier" reads for when I am home and can fully concentrate.

I've completed A Taste for Vengeance by Martin Walker, A Bruno Chief of Police mystery. Not only does Bruno cook for friends at home he also teaches a day at Pamela's new cooking school for tourists.

I finished The Saturday Night Supper Club which was disappointing. The main character seemed self-centered and willing to blame others for her own career crash. The title had little to do with the story line. I might still like to read one more in the series though.

i suggest Magic Bitter, Magic Sweet by Charlie N. Holmberg which has a comfy, baking theme to it along with magic.

I have completed Chop Suey Nation by Ann Hui. This was a delightful book that explored small family-run Chinese restaurants across Canada and casts a light on the Chinese immigrant experience. Guaranteed to make you crave Chinese Food!

I've just finished Cruel Candy by Mildred Abbott, book 1 in the Cozy Corgi mystery series. The book features a woman who moves to a small town to open a book shop with her dog and the neighboring shops on either side are bakeries run by elderly sisters. The baking played a much more prominent part ofthe story than I would have thought for a series focusing on a bookshop owner and her dog.

>28 DeltaQueen50: Let me just add - I sure do like my ginger beef! I don't remember when I learned that was a Western Canadian thing. It's been part of my Western-Chinese diet as long as I can remember!

ETA: I don't eat meat very often, anymore, but (except when I get Chinese food with my vegetarian friend) I still often will get some ginger beef.

Well, I LOVE this challenge!

>6 beebeereads:
>7 LadyoftheLodge:
Just checked out Love and Saffron from the library. Thanks for the tip!

>18 kac522:
>20 LadyoftheLodge:
Loved dining at Marshall Field's as a kid. My Grandmother and aunt would take me downtown on the 'L'.

>30 LibraryCin: I was surprised about the origins of Ginger Beef as well. It's one of my favorites and pretty much always included when we order Chinese.

>32 DeltaQueen50: I think I had heard it was "invented" here in Calgary before I knew it was really only known in Western Canada. I have been to the Silver Inn Restaurant, where they invented it, too. Oddly enough, it's very close to where I lived for 17 years, but I've only been there once, and it was after I'd moved further away!

Some I liked that fit the topic -

novels
Aftertaste: a Novel in Five Courses
The School of Essential Ingredients
Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors
Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe
Larissa's Breadbook: Baking Bread And Telling Tales With Women Of The American South
Friendship Cake

Non-Fic
Best Cook in the World: Tales From My Momma's Table

>29 staci426: I have read most of the books in this series. Not all of them focus so much on the food as the earlier ones do.

I quite enjoyed A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking, which I believe would fit this theme well, if anyone's looking for a recommendation.

>36 lavaturtle: I enjoyed that book too. Lots of fun and creativity.

Finished Bailey's Cafe, and true to everything else I've read by Gloria Naylor, it was simply fantastic.

I've finished Fannie's Last Supper by Christopher Kimball which didn't turn out to be as good as I had hoped considering how long it's been in my TBR pile.

July thread is up.
https://www.librarything.com/topic/342338#n7861451

>40 lowelibrary: Thanks! I like it!

I've read The Diva Steals a Chocolate Kiss

French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Giuliano
This is an interesting comparison of the culture of eating between women in France and America. Giuliano offers the same good advice that my French friend has always followed. It makes sense.

I am reading Just Hand Over the Chocolate and No One Will Get Hurt by Karen Scalf Linamen. I love the fact that every chapter number is inside a chocolate chip.

I’ve been reading and enjoying this all month and finished The British Museum Cookbook by Michelle Berriedale-Johnson.

Another one I am counting for this challenge is Santa's North Pole Cookbook by Jeff Guinn. A cute cookbook of holiday favorites from around the world. Santa tells the history of the Christmas tradition of the country and how that food is related to the tradition.

I read Chop Suey Nation by Ann Hui. >19 DeltaQueen50: got me with a BB. Thank you, Judy.

Sadly, I DNFd Love and Saffron. After 30 pages I found myself skimming. The book had failed to capture me so I moved on. Sorry to the universe who loves this book.

I read Love and Saffron for this challenge.
Liked the Pacific Northwest setting for one of the women.
I recognized all those places from when I lived in Seattle.

I'm currently reading Infused: Adventures in Tea, by Henrietta Lovell, for this challenge.

>47 VivienneR: Glad that you enjoyed it. I took it as a book bullet from Paulina (mathgirl40) so it's great to pass it along!

>46 lowelibrary: That one sounds like fun! I like Christmas books any time of the year.

>48 beebeereads: I am sorry you did not like this book, but no problem here. We all have likes and dislikes, and some books just do not fit our reading likes, regardless of public opinion. Better not to waste reading time slogging through something you are not enjoying.

>53 LadyoftheLodge: Thank you and I so agree with you. I moved on to The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois and I am loving it so far! I do have another for this CAT but I won't get to it in June. I just got Search by Michele Huneven from my ILL. Sorry touchstone not working. I am looking forward to reading it in July.

The Dorito Effect / Mark Schatzker
4 stars

This is a look at food and flavour. For decades now, food has become very bland – this includes meat, fruit, and vegetables. Because the companies and farmers want more and more yield for less and less money. This = no more flavour. So companies started creating flavours to make the food taste like what they should have already tasted like… and flavours to make foods taste like whatever they want them to taste like. But with the real flavour gone, so is much of the nutrition. And that is not getting put back into the foods, only fake chemical “flavours”.

This was so interesting. And so sad. It makes me want to go back in time to taste all the flavours that used to come (naturally) with food (without having to add fake flavours, sauces, spices, etc). A few people here and there are trying to bring back some of the original strains for some of the foods (chicken, tomatoes), but the industrial farmers and companies don’t want any part of it unless it can be done just as cheaply and create just as much yield. Sad sad sad. Would love to have some companies catch on to this (and yes, I realize it would be more pricey).

>52 LadyoftheLodge: Not only was this an interesting read, learning about Christmas traditions around the world, but I now have about a dozen new recipes to try.

Read Food : The vital stuff an anthology of fiction and non fiction pieces and exerpts centering around food, cooking and eating. Several pieces contain recipes, although not any I would attempt to follow. Very much an artefact of its time (the mid-nineties) and with a majority of male contributors I am reminded of a certain, once ubiquitious, male dominated, intellectual style that I am grateful has mostly disappeared - or at least is no longer represented in my library.

I have finished Kulturgeschichte der österreichischen Küche, a history of Austrian cooking which was both entertaining and informative. I may even try one of the recipes.

I read Chef's Kiss, a love story between a pastry chef and the kitchen manager at the food magazine where she works.

>32 DeltaQueen50: >33 LibraryCin: >47 VivienneR: Just catching up with the conversation here. I recall one of my close friends, who grew up in Calgary, talking about "ginger beef". Even though my parents owned a Chinese restaurant in Quebec when I was young, I had no idea what she was talking about. It was only after I finished Chop Suey Nation did I realize that it's a Western Canadian thing!

My parents did offer Beef and Macaroni, which is more common in Quebec's Chinese restaurants. :)

>60 mathgirl40: Even though I spent years in Ottawa before coming back to the west, I never realized that Ginger Beef was a Western Chinese-Canadian dish either. I just thought that I hadn't ordered it when I had Chinese food back East. It is delish, however!

>60 mathgirl40: My parents did offer Beef and Macaroni, which is more common in Quebec's Chinese restaurants. :)

Oh, I've never heard of that in a Chinese restaurant! I guess when it's not really Chinese food, that's why you get the variations by location. Never really thought of it before, though.