Jennifer Moorman's Blog, page 23

Cooking Through Fiction: The Nixie's Song — Nick's Buffalo Chicken Pizza

I don’t like change (unless it involves the seasons). I’m a creature of habit. I’ll even admit that I don’t like change even when it’s for the better. I eventually adapt to the new situation or habit, but at first, I resist. I grumble. I whine.“Nothing endures but change.” HeraclitisBeyond the Spiderwick Chronicles, created by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black, follows a new set of characters as they find out the faerie world is closer than they imagine. The story opens with Nick reluctantly gi...

Cooking Through Fiction: The Wrath of Mulgarath Crackerjacks

Remember when cereal boxes had awesome prizes inside? Decoder rings, those weird red viewfinder sheets, secret codes, masks you could cut out and wear, and mazes on the back of the box. Remember when you could disassemble the whole cereal box and make a board game or even a house? I remember one cereal box had a “ghost finder” inside. Zoinks! Did I ever test it out? Heck yes! Was it a success? What do you think?When I think of hidden prizes, I also think of crackerjacks. Although I wasn’t a f...

Cooking Through "The Baker's Man": Chocolate Caramel Bombe

When I got the idea to cook my way throughThe Baker’s Man, I wasn’t immediately thinking of how challenging some of the recipes would be. Today’s recipe is inspired by Chapter 5: Chocolate Caramel Bombe. At this point in the novel, Anna feels as though a bomb has gone off in the center of her life, and although she doesn’t know how to fix the damage, Eli is more than willing to help her. She’s just not sure if this is a good idea or a bad one.I’ve never made a bombe in my life, and once I sta...

Cooking Through "The Baker's Man": Hidden Heart Pound Cake

During the month of February, the bakery in Mystic Water becomes a whirlwind of crimson hearts, iridescent sugar pearls, and dark chocolate candies. The wind carries the scent of melting sugar, and the air sparkles like tossed pink confetti.The townsfolk come into Bea’s Bakery looking for what only Anna can bake, and they leave with boxes and bags full of treats that will lighten their hearts, put a spring in their steps, and renew hope in their dreams.One of Mystic Water’s February favorites...

Cooking Through "The Baker's Man": Love Letter Tuxedo Cake

The days leading up to Valentine’s Day are some of the busiest for Anna at Bea’s Bakery in Mystic Water. The sugar-sweet air in the bakery swirls out the door, enticing people from blocks away. They’ll stop mid-sentence and follow the scent of baked goods.The glass cases in the bakery are packed with fudgy brownies that warm your heart, sugar cookies that make you feel like a child again, and cupcakes decorated with hearts and glittery sugar and swirls of delicious buttercream.Townsfolk are e...

Cooking Through Fiction: The Ironwood Tree — Soft Pretzels

When I think of sporting events, I immediately think of the food I’ll want to eat when I get there even before I think of the game. I love going to live sports, and I’m excited when I have good seats (close enough to see the game without looking at the giant screens). But if I’m honest, I’m more interested in the food because some foods I eat only when I’m at sporting events.I’d like to say that my culinary tastes have improved during the years because as a child, I used to order those giant...

Cooking Through "The Baker's Man": Mudslide Cookies

We like to describe situations in life that are less than stellar using colorful imagery, similes, metaphors, idioms, etc. because saying, “This sucks,” isn’t always the classiest choice.We go from the frying pan into the fire. We stand on sinking sands. We leap from sinking ships. We see a light at the end of a tunnel only to find out it’s an oncoming train. We watch life go downhill from here. We are upthatcreek without a paddle. We bark up the wrong trees, beat dead horses, and open cans o...

Cooking Through Fiction: Lucinda's Secret — Sugar Cookies

Remember that moment when you judged someone too harshly and you realized that person had just experienced the worst day of his or her life, and you suddenly became a Class-A jerk for not “taking a walk in those shoes”? Or the time you complained that your waitress didn’t refill your tea glass often enough, and then she had a breakdown moment when she told you that her fiancé just left her? How about the afternoon when you cursed someone who was driving well below the speed limit, and when yo...

Cooking Through "The Baker's Man": Morning Glory Muffins

Cooking throughThe Baker’s Manhas been a lot of fun so far. It’s been a great reason to get together with the friends who helped me during the writing process. After digging me out of bogs and listening to me bounce around ideas for months, they deserve mountains of sweet treats! Today Jenna and I bring you Chapter 3: Morning Glory Muffins.Up to this point, Anna O’Brien has felt her heart shatter likepeanut brittle, and her best friend Lily tries to soothe the ache with pizza and a bottle ofr...

Cooking Through Fiction — Simon's Butterscotch Toffee Skillet Cookie

When I was a kid, I would describe myself as having been mischievous (which I used to pronouncemiss-chee-vee-us; is this because I am southern or are others led astray by the pronunciation?). And being mischievous led me to make a few—okay, a lot of righteously stupid decisions.A few of my less-than-stellar ideas: Eating Play-Doh. Because Play-Doh has a peculiar, yet tantalizing smell, it had to taste good. It doesn’t. Eating soap. If bath soap smells so good (again with the smells), surely i...