The Bitten Word

Books for Fall: Our List/Your List

 

Despite the lack of evidence published here this week, we have been cooking our little hearts out. Prepare for next week: We'll be serving so much Thanksgiving realness that you'll want to lick your laptop. 

But until then, let's talk about books. Here are some things we've read over the past few months that we've enjoyed, plus a few things that are at the top of our reading list. 

What have you been reading? And what should we read next? Here's our list:

 

• A Little Life (Hanya Yanagihara): The book all our friends love to hate. We cried. And cried. And cried. But we say read it. It's wonderful and terrible and hey, everyone needs a good cry now and then. 

• Why Not Me (Mindy Kaling): Utterly charming, and we don't watch "The Mindy Project." If you haven't read Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns), pick it up, too. 

• Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life (Steve Martin): Easily one of the best books we've read in the last year. Martin is a fantastic writer and this book offers an incredible glimpse into his life, and what it meant to be the biggest comic in the world. 

• Everything I Never Told You (Celeste Ng): Ng had us at her opening line: "Lydia is dead. But they don't this yet." We had trouble putting down this sprawling novel about a Chinese-American family. 

• The Martian (Andy Weir). We haven't seen the movie, but we read the book. We're not huge sci-fi readers but thought The Martian was a lot of fun.

What's next on our list:

Here are the books at the top of our reading list right now (with what we think these books are about): 

• My Kitchen Year: 136 Recipes That Saved My Life (Ruth Reichl): Ruth Reichl's chronicle (through recipes) of life after Gourmet. 

  This Is Your Life, Harriet Chance! (Jonathan Evison): An older woman wins a cruise; secrets are revealed (!!!). 

• Fates and Furies: A Novel (Lauren Groff): Divorce. Happy fall. 

• Ally Hughes Has Sex Sometimes (Jules Moulin): We assume Ally has sex. Sometimes. 

 

What say you? What should we all be reading?

Thyme-Basted Pork Tenderloin with Oyster Mushrooms

Food & Wine (October 2015)

 

We have officially entered showstopper season.  

It's the time of year for those jaw-dropping, stop-you-in-your-tracks, everybody-applauds-when-the-food-hits-the-table dishes. 

 

Sure, there's plenty to admire about spring and summer foods. (We absolutely have applauded the arrival of a beautifully grilled steak, for instance.) But there's something about fall and winter cooking that really brings on those drop-dead-gorgeous entrees, those stunning sides, those clutch-your-pearls desserts. 

 

Yes, it's showstopper season. And we submit this Thyme-Basted Pork Tenderloin with Oyster Mushrooms as entry No. 1. 

 

 

Crispy Salt-and-Pepper Chicken Skin

Bon Appétit (October 2015)

Bittens, sometimes you gotta listen to what the universe is trying to tell you.

And last week, the universe was telling us to make fried chicken skins.

English Muffins

Food Network Magazine (October 2015)

We have completely fallen for "The Great British Baking Show," which has to be the most charming thing on television right now.

If you're unfamiliar, it's a BBC show that's rebroadcast on PBS here in the U.S. It's home cooks taking on weekly baking challenges, but it's perhaps the most pleasant, drama-free reality television we've ever encountered.

Don't expect anyone to throw a pie here: It's all incredibly civil and absolutely delightful. Each episode features 3 baking challenges, and someone -- or sometimes two people, depending on the whims of the judges -- goes home. 

The judges, whose names are Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood (yes, really), are keen but kind in their critiques. 

In episode 2 of this season, the contestants were asked to make English Muffins (and yes, they referred to them as "English Muffins," even though they're in England). Here's what the judges were looking for: beautifully browned tops, with browned bottoms and white around the edges. Soft texture, with a good crumb structure and a muffin that's baked all the way through. As Mary put it: "I love the feel when I touch them, the sort of squidge at the sides."  

We don't know much about squidge, but we were inspired. And then lo and behold, Food Network Magazine had a feature about making English Muffins at home. We dusted off our baking gloves and got to work.

Cookbook Winners! Plus Our Predictions on Thanksgiving Trends

No, we didn't forget about the cookbook giveaway!

Last night we notified the winners (if you're listed below, check your email).

We absolutely loved hearing your Thanksgiving trend predictions! They were creative and hilarious and we can't wait to see who's right. 

We've been giving it a bit of thought ourselves. Here are our three best guesses: 

• Savory desserts
  
  
• Rye flavors in stuffings and sides
  
  
• At least one recipe that features paw paws. (They seem to be having a moment.)

 

So ... the winners! In no particular order (oh, and we decided to name 11, not 10), here are the randomly selected commenters who will win cookbooks, along with their predictions for T-Day trends:

Switchel

Cook's Country (August/September 2015)

We're not sure if #TBT (Throw Back Thursday) is still a thing, but it's Thursday, and we're here to continue our old-timey drink kick.

It started with the Concord Grape Shrub we tried from Bon Appétit, a sharp but sweet concoction that we turned into a cocktail. 

Then we were leafing through Cook's Country, and way in the back of the magazine, where readers share Heirloom Recipes (share yours!), we saw Harriet's submission for a Switchel, a recipe she got from her grandfather. 

They're both equally fun to say, but what's the difference between a shrub and a switchel? Based on what we've read, it seems that both drinks have similar ingredients -- including vinegar -- shrubs incorporate fruit for flavor. Switchels, on the other hand, use a sweetener -- in this case, maple syrup -- in place of fruit to balance out their flavors. 

But there was one more ingredient in this switchel that made us do a double-take: oats. 

Chicken-and-Squash Curry

Martha Stewart Living (October 2015)

Even though we didn't write about it this year, we had a decent season in our little backyard garden.

Early in the year, we had a really nice crop of lettuces and other leafy greens. We had tons of cherry tomatoes -- almost every day throughout July and August, we tromped out to the garden and grabbed a handful of those sweet little tomatoes and threw them into whatever we were cooking for dinner that night. And we had lots of nice fresh herbs -- almost more basil than we knew what to do with.

But there was one thing this year that was a bit of a surprise: squash.

Okay, it wasn't really a "surprise" per se. We put a lot of effort into growing and fertilizing the squash. But the surprising part? The squash came out pure white.

We posted this on Instagram at the end of August, but we're still just as flummoxed.

We thought we'd planted good ol' yellow summer squash, but, well, we must not have. 

The other big surprise about the squash was just how much we got. After a couple of fruitless (vegetableless?) years trying to grow squash, we wound up with four or five big gourds like the one in that photo. We sautéed one or two, which worked great. (In taste and texture, this mystery squash ended up somewhere between a summer squash an a winter squash -- firmer and crisper than a yellow summer squash, but not as firm and creamy-tasting as a butternut.)

Anyway. 

When we saw a special feature all on squash recipes in the new issue of Martha Stewart Living, it seemed like a great way to use the rest of our bumper crop.

You Could Win a Cookbook! Give Us Your Predictions for This Year's Thanksgiving Trends

Believe it or not, we already have Thanksgiving on the mind.

Fakesgiving is on the calendar. And as the weather starts to cool down, thoughts of stuffing and turkey are dancing through our heads. 

Since 2010, we've been tracking the hottest Thanksgiving trends, as seen through all the food magazines we read. In 2013 it was all about Brûléed Pumpkin Pies, Classic Turkeys, and Savory Desserts. Last year, it was Global Flavors, Fennel, and Take-Apart Turkeys. 

What will this year's trends be? The magazines aren't out yet, so it's too soon to showcase them, but let's see if you Bittens can predict them. 

So here's how the giveaway works: Comment on the bottom of this post with your best guess for a trend we'll see this year. Your predictions don't have to be correct: 10 randomly selected comments will receive a cookbook from America's Test Kitchen. (Be sure to link your email address when you comment; otherwise we won't be able to contact you.)

We'll announce the winners next Thursday, October 8. 

Good luck! 

 

Previous Thanksgiving Trends: 

• 2010 Thanksgiving Trends
• 2011 Thanksgiving Trends
• 2012 Thanksgiving Trends
• 2013 Thanksgiving Trends
• 2014 Thanksgiving Trends