Book Spotlight and Giveway - A Bad Hair Day Cookbook: Recipes from Nancy J. Cohen’s Cozy Mystery Series

Book Synopsis
Are you having a bad hair day? Whip out your whisk, snatch up your spoon, and prepare your palate. Inside the pages of this cookbook are recipes that will bring you good cheer.

Enjoy 160+ tasty recipes from Nancy J. Cohen’s popular Bad Hair Day cozy mystery series. Included in this cookbook are excerpts, cooking tips, and anecdotes written by hairstylist and savvy sleuth Marla Vail. From appetizers to desserts, Marla offers cooking tips and tricks along with commentary about the dishes she prepares for her family. Whether you’re a skilled cook or an eager novice, this cookbook will unravel the mystery of cooking. Put on your apron and plan to make some killer recipes. Bonuses Include:

•Meet the Sleuth
•Introduction by Marla Vail
•Cooking Tips
•Excerpts from Series Titles
•Themed Menu Suggestions
•“A Sabbath Dinner” by Nancy’s Mother

For Home Cooks, Food Lovers, Mystery Fans and Cookbook Collectors

Recipes are listed in these categories:

APPETIZERS
BEVERAGES
BREADS
SAUCES
SOUPS
ENTREES – BEEF
ENTREES – LAMB
ENTREES – POULTRY
ENTREES – FISH
ENTREES – VEGETARIAN
SIDE DISHES
DESSERTS

Author Bio
Nancy J. Cohen writes the Bad Hair Day Mysteries featuring South Florida hairstylist Marla Vail. Titles in this series have been named Best Cozy Mystery by Suspense Magazine, won a Readers’ Favorite gold medal, placed first in the Chanticleer International Book Awards and third in the Arizona Literary Awards. Nancy’s instructional guide, Writing the Cozy Mystery, was nominated for an Agatha Award and won a gold medal at the President’s Book Awards from the Florida Authors and Publishers Association. When not busy writing, Nancy enjoys cooking, fine dining, cruising, visiting Disney World, and shopping.

Author Links
Website:  https://nancyjcohen.com
Blog: https://nancyjcohen.com/blog
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NancyJCohenAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nancyjcohen
LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyjcohen
Instagram: https://instagram.com/nancyjcohen
Pinterest: https://pinterest.com/njcohen/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/nancy-j-cohen
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/nancyjcohen

Purchase Links –  Amazon Kindle   Amazon Print   Apple Books    Nook    Kobo    Books2Read    BookBub   Goodreads

Giveaway
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Book Review and Giveaway - Sifting Through Clues (A Cookbook Nook Mystery) by Daryl Wood Gerber

Book Synopsis

The Agatha Award–winning author of Wreath Between the Lines returns to the Cookbook Nook, where culinary mysteries are giving everyone food for thought . . .

Book clubs from all over have descended on Crystal Cove to celebrate the library’s Book Club Bonanza week, and Jenna Hart has packed the Cookbook Nook with juicy reads and tasty cookbooks. But she’s most excited about spending an evening with the Mystery Mavens and their moveable feast, when they will go from house to house to share different culinary treats and discuss the whodunit they’re all reading. It’s all good food and fun for the savvy armchair detectives, until one of the members of the group is found murdered at the last stop on the tour.

As if that weren’t enough to spoil her appetite, Jenna discovers that all the evidence points to her friend Pepper as being the guilty party. And with Pepper’s chief-of-police daughter too close to the case to be impartial, Jenna knows she’ll have to step in to help clear her friend’s name before a bitter injustice sends her to jail. Sifting through the clues, Jenna unearths any number of possible culprits, but she’ll have to cook up a new way to catch the killer before Pepper’s goose is cooked . . .

Includes tasty sweet and savory recipes!

My Review
Sifting Through Clues is a cozy mystery featuring Jenna Hart.  Jenna owns the Cookbook Nook, a bookstore in Crystal Cove, California.  As she is busy planning her wedding, she also is working at the Book Club Bonanza Week in her town.  When one of the other shop owners is murdered at a book club event, Jenna works to solve the mystery. 

This is my first read in the Cookbook Nook Mystery series.  I was interested in the book because I collect and sell vintage cookbooks online, and owning a cozy brick and mortar cookbook bookstore is one of my dream jobs!  I absolutely loved the cookbook mentions and food talk in this book.  It is a foodie's delight, and anyone who loves cookbooks will particularly enjoy this series.

Jumping in at the 8th book of the series, I did go back and forth to the (very helpful!) cast of characters page many times as I tried to learn everyone's identity and relationships.  I definitely would recommend reading this series in order, as it has a very large cast of characters and I think it would be helpful to know their back stories from the beginning of the series.

I really liked Jenna.  She was a smart amateur detective and a likeable character.   I enjoyed getting to know her fiance Rhett, her friends, and the other shop owners too.  She even has a lovable cat named Tigger.

I especially loved the setting of Crystal Cove.   The author does a wonderful job with descriptions and establishing a strong sense of place.  I found myself Googling to see if Crystal Cove is a real place, because it seemed like somewhere I would enjoy visiting.  I found it is a fictional town, although there is a real Crystal Cove State Park in California.

The mystery was well done and kept me guessing!   The book moves quickly and would make a great weekend or vacation read.

I recommend Sifting Through Clues for fans of cozy mysteries and especially for anyone who loves cookbooks or foodie books.

Author Bio

Agatha Award-winning Daryl Wood Gerber writes the nationally bestselling Cookbook Nook Mysteries as well as the French Bistro Mysteries.  As Avery Aames, she pens the popular Cheese Shop Mysteries. Daryl also writes stand-alone suspense. Fun tidbit: as an actress, Daryl appeared in “Murder, She Wrote.” She loves to cook, and she has a frisky Goldendoodle named Sparky who keeps her in line!

Author Links

VISIT MY WEBSITE: www.darylwoodgerber.com

SIGN UP FOR MY Newsletter, which comes out once a month and with a new release
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Amazon: http://bit.ly/Daryl_Wood_Gerber_page

Purchase Links – Amazon – B&N  – Kobo  – Google Play

Giveaway
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Book Review - Sweet Potato Soul by Jenne Claiborne

Book Synopsis
Jenné Claiborne grew up in Atlanta eating classic Soul Food--fluffy biscuits, smoky sausage, Nana's sweet potato pie--but thought she'd have to give all that up when she went vegan.  As a chef, she instead spent years tweaking and experimenting to infuse plant-based, life-giving, glow-worthy foods with the flavor and depth that feeds the soul.

The result? Her first cookbook, SWEET POTATO SOUL, offering 100 vegan recipes that riff on Southern cooking in surprising and delicious ways, beautifully illustrated with full-color photography. Jenné revives the long tradition of using fresh, local ingredients creatively in dishes like Coconut Collard Salad and Fried Cauliflower Chicken. She improvises new flavors in Peach Date BBQ Jackfruit Sliders and Sweet Potato-Tahini Cookies. She celebrates the plant-based roots of the cuisine in Bootylicious Gumbo and savory-sweet Georgia Watermelon & Peach Salad. And she updates classics with Jalapeño Hush Puppies, and her favorite, Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls.

Along the way, Jenné explores the narratives surrounding iconic and beloved soul food recipes, as well as their innate nutritional benefits--you've heard that dandelion, mustard, and turnip greens, okra, and black eyed peas are nutrition superstars, but here's how to make them super tasty, too.

From decadent pound cakes and ginger-kissed fruit cobblers to smokey collard greens, amazing crabcakes and the most comforting sweet potato pie you'll ever taste, these better-than-the-original takes on crave-worthy dishes are good for your health, heart, and soul.

My Review
I am a long time vegetarian, a southern girl, and a great fan of soul food ... so Sweet Potato Soul immediately appealed to me!   

The first thing to know:  this is a beautiful cookbook, with great food photos.  The recipes are laid out one to a page, with ingredients and 1-2-3 directions, just the way I like.

I really loved the introduction on southern food.  Jenne Claiborne even details pantry items for southern cooking, southern fruits and vegetables, spices, baking staples, sweeteners.  There is a short section on varieties of sweet potatoes!

I also loved her Five Healthy Rules I Live By (p. 19, longer details in book!):
1. Avoid all animal products.
2. Eat your colors.
3. Don't count calories or protein.
4. Go 80/20.  (unprocessed/processed)
5. Make everything delicious.

Now on to the recipes!  In Sweet Potato Soul you will find:
Breakfast
Salads and Soups
Greens and Sides
Mains
Sweets and Drinks
Pantry Staples and Sauces

I have three things I look for in cookbooks:

Are the recipes vegetarian (or can I tweak them to be veggie friendly)? 
Yes, this is a vegan cookbook!

Are the ingredients readily accessible at any grocery store?
Yes, the ingredients in this book are delightfully accessible foods that should be available anywhere.

Are the recipes straightforward and easy to make on a busy work night (i.e. 30 - 60 minutes tops)?
Most of the recipes are pretty straightforward.  Some do include multiple steps.  For instance, Low Country Grits (which looks amazing!) does require the cook to also make either Creole Red Bean Sausage or Smoky White  Bean Sausage ... so not a great work night recipe.

To give you an idea of the delicious variety of recipes in this cookbook, here are a few that particularly appealed to me:  Sweet Potato Skillet Home Fries, Sweet Potato Pie Smoothie, Bourbon BBQ Tempeh Sandwiches, Georgia Watermelon and Peach Salad, Coconut Corn Chowder, Jalapeno Hush Puppies, Spicy Fried Cauliflower "Chicken," Happy Hearts "Crab" Cakes, New Orleans Style Red Beans and Rice, Cajun Blackened Tofu Sandwich, Smoky Black Eyed Pea Cakes, Georgia Pecan Pie, Ginger Kissed Peach Cobbler ... and this is just a small sampler!

I rate this vegan cookbook five stars and highly recommend it to anyone who loves southern cooking, vegan cooking, or vegetarian or "Meatless Monday" cooks who want to add more plant based southern food to their diet!

I received a copy of this book from Blogging for Books.

Weekend Window Shopping at Birdhouse Books

Happy weekend! 

I have some fun new additions to my store, and would love to share them with you.  You'll find all these books at Birdhouse Books on eBay.

Miss Osborne-the-Mop is a hard to find children's book by Wilson Gage.  This story of a magical mop is charmingly illustrated by Paul Galdone.
 

Trixie Belden and Mystery in Arizona is a 1965 hardcover edition with cameo endpapers.

I have three adorable children's books in my shop now starring Boo the dog.  The photographs are so incredibly cute!

I just listed two great cookbooks by  George Stella.  One is Still Livin' Low Carb.

I also have George Stella's The Complete Low-Carb Cookbook listed.

COMING SUNDAY - This lovely hardcover edition of Little Women is by Great Classics for Children.

COMING SUNDAY - Tim and Sally's Beach Adventure is a cute hardcover picture book.

COMING SUNDAY - I love this book!  Walt Disney's Alice in  Wonderland is a lovely hardcover, dustjacket edition with illustrations by Mary Blair.  (She is one of my favorite illustrators.)

COMING SUNDAY - This big sturdy hardcover is a special read-aloud edition of Charlotte's Web by E.B. White.

COMING SUNDAY - This lovely hardcover is a 25th Anniversary edition of Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak.

I hope you'll stop by my store and browse -- I have over 1700 treasures there waiting for perusal!

Weekend Window Shopping at Birdhouse Books

Hi all!

I've been busy this week.  I have 36 auctions running and will be putting more up on Sunday night.  I have a lot of variety, and hope you'll stop by -- and bookmark to visit next week as well.  (Lots more to come!)

You'll find these items at Birdhouse Books on eBay.

The Treasure of the Padres is a 1964 children's book by Betty Baker, illustrated by Leonard Shortall.

Hideaway House is a 1953 children's book by Adele and Cateau de Leeuw.

Keep a Silver Dollar is a 1966 children's book by Marjorie Reynolds.  This horse book also features a lovable Jack Russell Terrier!

This lovely 1949 edition of The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson  Burnett features illustrations by Nora S. Unwin.
 

This especially lovely 1945 edition of Black Beauty by Anna Sewell features illustrations by Fritz Eichenberg.

What a cute vintage Christmas postcard, with a little girl on snowshoes holding a squirrel!

This 1910 vintage Christmas postcard features two little girls, an old fashioned Christmas tree, and red poppies in the foreground.

On Your Sixth Birthday is a sweet 1920's vintage postcard for a child.

This 1918 vintage Christmas postcard depicts a child holding packages - with an illustration by Charles Twelvetrees.

This Art Deco Easter postcard, with two bunny rabbits, is my personal favorite of the cards I've listed recently.  It would look amazing framed!

COMING SOON!  I have several adorable dog books coming to my store featuring Boo, "The World's Cutest Dog."

COMING SOON!   I have some great like-new cookbooks, including this Pillsbury The Big Book of Easy Baking with Refrigerated Dough.

COMING SOON!  This big Wolfgang Puck Makes It Healthy cookbook is signed by the chef.

Thanks for reading and visiting my shop.  Wishing you a wonderful weekend!  

It's a Very Vintage Black Friday

Hi all!

Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, usually starts my Christmas shopping.  I always envy those smart people who shop early and are finished shopping months in advance.  I am not one of them, though!

I do a lot of shopping online, especially at eBay, Etsy, and Amazon.  I value gifts that are unique and special.  If you're doing some vintage Black Friday shopping, I hope you'll stop by my store:  Birdhouse Books on eBay.    I'm running a 25% off sale through midnight on Cyber Monday, December 1.

I love, love, love vintage Christmas items. You'll find hundreds of beautiful vintage Christmas cards in my shop.  These are great to frame, and also make sweet small gifts, tucked into a greeting card with a personal note from you.  Just click here if you'd like to browse:  vintage Christmas cards at Birdhouse Books.

Ornaments!  I have a few unique ornaments, like this Georgia ornament, in my store.  I have MANY more ornaments to list the next couple of weeks, so please keep checking my ornament department.

Vintage children's books are the very heart of my store.  If you're looking for a special gift for a child, please pop by: vintage children's books at Birdhouse Books.   I love finds like I Like Trains by Catherine Woolley, pictured here.

There's a lot more - vintage sewing, crafts and needlework kits, vintage cookbooks.  I hope you'll stop by if you're in the mood to shop from the comfort of home:  Birdhouse Books on eBay.

Book Giveaway: A Little Coffee Cookbook

Hi all!

Just because it is Tuesday and I'm clearing some space on my shelves here ... I'm hosting a giveaway to win A Little Coffee Cookbook by Janet Laurence.

This gently used cookbook is very cute, with 60 pages of delicious recipes using coffee.   I am removing some of the newer cookbooks from my store, Birdhouse Books, in order to make more shop space here.  You will find many vintage cookbooks in my shop (along with children's books and vintage cards galore!).

Entry is easy, with the Rafflecopter form below.   The giveaway will close on Tuesday, July 15 at 11:59 PM.  I will use Rafflecopter to randomly draw a winner.

Thanks for visiting my site, and I hope you'll enter for this cute cookbook.

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Born in the Kitchen: Plain and Fancy Plantation Fixin's - a rare cookbook by Flora Mae Hunter

Born in the Kitchen: Plain and Fancy Plantation Fixin's is a rare and hard to find vintage cookbook by Flora Mae Hunter.  Flora Mae Hunter was born on a plantation in Thomasville, Georgia in 1911.   In this book she recounts her life, growing up on a plantation, and shares many traditional Southern recipes.  This book is signed by Ms. Hunter with an inscription on the front endpaper.   The recipes look great!  The one that sounds especially tempting to me is Orange Cake with Chocolate Sundae Icing.  You'll find this book in my eBay store - Born in the Kitchen vintage cookbook at Birdhouse Books.  It would be of interest to anyone who collects Southern cookbooks, Black Americana, or Georgia history.

Community Cookbooks

I love community cookbooks!  They are so much fun, as they give a sense of the time and the place that they came from.  These are usually paperback cookbooks, many with spiral binding, collected by members of a church, PTA, school, or community.   The recipes always have the contributing member's name, and sometimes have a story about the recipe as well.   The older ones that I have in my store date from the 1960's to 1970's, all the way to the present.   You'll find many to browse through at Birdhouse Books (community cookbooks).

Pictured:  a community cookbook from the New York Sons and Daughters of Liberty

The Joy of Retro Cooking

One of my favorite things to list is vintage cookbooks. I love the recipes, the recipe names (!), and the great vintage food photography. It is such great fun to get a glimpse into the everyday lives of families through the food they ate.

I'm going through a BIG box of cookbooks right now and should have many more online by this evening. Much fun awaits!

http://tinyurl.com/me9ob4