Daemon by David Suarez

Daemon by Daniel Suarez

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Jacket blurb: Technology controls almost everything in our modern-day world, from remote entry on our cars to access to our homes, from the flight controls of our airplanes to the movements of the entire world economy. Thousands of autonomous computer programs, or daemons, make our networked world possible, running constantly in the background of our lives, trafficking e-mail, transferring money, and monitoring power grids. For the most part, daemons are benign, but the same can't always be said for the people who design them.

Matthew Sobol was a legendary computer game designer—the architect behind half-a-dozen popular online games. His premature death depressed both gamers and his company's stock price. But Sobol's fans aren't the only ones to note his passing. When his obituary is posted online, a previously dormant daemon activates, initiating a chain of events intended to unravel the fabric of our hyper-efficient, interconnected world. With Sobol's secrets buried along with him, and as new layers of his daemon are unleashed at every turn, it's up to an unlikely alliance to decipher his intricate plans and wrest the world from the grasp of a nameless, faceless enemy—or learn to live in a society in which we are no longer in control. . . .

Read for March book group.

Oh heaven's. I had a hard time putting this down. This just hit all my happy buttons - a splash of speculative near-future science fiction, a healthy perception of being a mystery, solid characters fighting against the ghost in the machine, all leaving a person with the feeling that yeah, this could happen.

That being said, aspects of this were…gross. Motorcycle guy clutching his neck as he bleeds out, the club scene was just flat out disturbing (not saying it doesn’t happen…), and guys getting fried to a crisp, and other graphic scenes rather squicked me out and detracted from an otherwise very engaging story.

Since this book has been out for a while, I’m probably going to repeat what others have said:

I thought this had a strong and engrossing plot. I liked how there was one main thread, and then other characters were slowly interwoven in to show the reader just how pervasive the Deamon had become.

I felt the characters were all interesting, each playing to some unique strength that really pulled the story line together.

The gaming tie-in felt reminiscent of Neal Stephenson, Earnest Cline, or William Gibson.

I liked how this made me think about how something of this nature could happen and would your average person even realize the world was being run by a computer program, a bunch of carefully constructed algorithms (not an AI, big difference here)? Would your average person even care? As long as they still had Wifi access and could play games and music, probably not.

An observation and this is only because I feel I’ve been overly inundated with young females fighting against some futuristic dystopian government entity, of warrior women standing behind their king or fighting the Nazis, that there was an interesting lack of females in this book - the disturbing club scene, the FBI computer agent, the wife and the mistress.  Not complaining, just something I noticed.  
My biggest complaint was the ending – a serious W.T.F?

Recommended if you like speculative science fiction.

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Recipe Review from 3/19/2018

Spring is here!  I saw the first ship of the 2018 Shipping Season leaving on Wednesday.  I did find out later it got stuck in the ice out in front of the canal until 9p at night, when the tugs and ice breaker were finally able to get it free. 

 

 

The Meal Plan for week of 3/19:
Sat (L) leftovers   (S) homemade pizza
Sun (L) leftover chili  (S) Chicken Moussaka
Mon (yoga)  leftover moussaka
Tues (yoga) leftover moussaka
Wed - chaos
Thurs (yoga) Chickpea and bulgur burgers
Fri (yoga) leftover burgers


Lunches - leftover chili and stew, sandwiches, fruit, nuts and luna bars

 

 

Baked Chicken Moussaka (Ckng Lght, March 2018)  gluten free

The magazine claimed this was a "32 minute" dish from start to finish.  HA!  I say, HA! Hardly.  This easily took me closer to 45 minutes.  It takes nearly 30 minutes just to dig everything out of the fridge and prep.

Despite the very inaccurate time, this was surprisingly tasty.  Chicken definitely takes a back seat to the veggies, but it really adds a flavor punch.   I did have a couple of tweaks:  I didn't add chopped tomato, I added some leftover artichoke hearts, and 8 oz of cleaned and sliced mushrooms (using up some veggies in the fridge.  Don't skip the yogurt/egg topping unless you have to - that was a perfect compliment to the rest of the dish. 

This made three suppers for two of us.  Recommended.

Photo from cookinglight.com

1 tablespoon olive oil

10 ounces ground chicken

2 cups cubed eggplant
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 cup canned unsalted white beans, rinsed, drained, and slightly mashed
(I used 1-14.5 oz can)
1 cup chopped tomato
1 cup unsalted tomato sauce (such as Muir Glen)
1/4 cup unsalted chicken stock (such as Swanson)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup plain 2% reduced-fat Greek yogurt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
 2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted

 

 

Step 1

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Step 2

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add chicken; cook 5 minutes or until browned. Add eggplant, bell pepper, onion, thyme, and garlic; cook 6 minutes. Add mashed beans, tomato, tomato sauce, stock, salt, and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Spoon vegetable mixture into a 2-quart glass or ceramic baking dish.

Step 3

Combine yogurt and eggs in a bowl. Pour yogurt mixture over dish. Bake at 400°F for 12 to 14 minutes or until bubbly and yogurt mixture is set. Sprinkle with parsley and pine nuts.

 

Chickpea Burgers with Garlic-y Avocado Mash  (Ckng Light, March 2018)  vegetarian, gluten free

The Husband made this dish as I was tied up with class.   I forgot to ask him about assembly, but I do know when I walked in, the "burgers" were more "mush" than "patty".  We did note that the leftover mix firmed up by the time we were done with

We skipped the buns and didn't miss them (at least I didn't).  Given how soft the patties were, buns would have just made mush of eating the burgers.  I did add a couple leaves of butternut lettuce and some tomato slices.  These were surprisingly flavorful and I would make them again, tweaking the cooking the bulger part a bit.

3/4 cup water

Photo from cookinglight.com

1/2 cup uncooked bulgur

1 (15-oz.) can drained unsalted chickpeas

2/3 cup chopped scallions onion
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 large egg  (used 2 small eggs)
1 large egg white
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 ripe avocado
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1 grated garlic clove
4 whole-wheat hamburger buns

Step 1

Bring water and uncooked bulgur to a boil in a small saucepan; cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 12 minutes or until water is absorbed. Cool slightly.

Step 2

Place drained unsalted chickpeas in a large bowl; mash until almost smooth. Stir in chopped scallions, ground cumin, 3/4 tsp. kosher salt, smoked paprika, 1 large egg, and 1 large egg white. Stir in bulgur. Shape into 4 (3/4-in.-thick) patties.

Step 3

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium. Add patties to pan; cook 5 minutes on each side or until browned and done.

Step 4

Mash 1 ripe avocado; stir in 1/8 tsp. kosher salt and 1 grated garlic clove. Divide patties and avocado mixture among 4 whole-wheat hamburger buns

The Fix by David Baldacci (Amos Decker #3)

The Fix by David Baldacci

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Jacket Blurb: Amos Decker witnesses a murder just outside FBI headquarters. A man shoots a woman execution style on a crowded sidewalk, then turns the gun on himself.

Even with Decker's extraordinary powers of observation and deduction, the killing is baffling. Decker and his team can find absolutely no connection between the shooter - a family man with a successful consulting business - and his victim, a schoolteacher. Nor is there a hint of any possible motive for the attack.

Enter Harper Brown. An agent of the Defense Intelligence Agency, she orders Decker to back off the case. The murder is part of an open DIA investigation, one so classified that Decker and his team aren't cleared for it.

But they learn that the DIA believes solving the murder is now a matter of urgent national security. Critical information may have been leaked to a hostile government - or, worse, an international terrorist group - and an attack may be imminent.

Decker's never been one to follow the rules, especially with the stakes so high. Forced into an uneasy alliance with Agent Brown, Decker remains laser focused on only one goal: solving the case before it's too late.

Read as an audio book.

Premise of the book is the newly formed FBI task force of agents and citizens has been re-located from Quantico to Washington DC, and Decker is not exactly thrilled about this. Alex has taken the liberty of securing housing for her and Amos, neglecting to tell Decker that this was a project in conjunction with Melvin Mars (book #2). Meanwhile, the Task Force has been shifted away from cold cases and was put on a murder that, ironically, Decker witnessed. As the team investigates, they begin to realize what seemed to be a straight-up murder-suicide was a lot more complicated involving international espionage.

I enjoyed this installment with a couple of caveats:

I swear, the next time someone in any mystery whines "I don't understand!" I am going to toss the book out the window.

I did not care for Alex in this installment. It seemed like every time a page turned, she was irritated at Decker for this, that or the other thing. I found her protectiveness of Melvin as he starts to date Harper to be unrealistic - while the group got to know each other in book 2, I didn't feel the relationship had developed to the point where she should be telling Melvin's prospective dates to back off.

I also didn't think it was realistic in how quickly Melvin was brought into the group and the case, when all along Harper is preaching "Top! Secret! Clearance!".

The bit with the tenant being caught up in some Mexican cartel activity was wrapped up a bit to quickly, almost as if the author realized it was getting in the way of the main story.

And the Dabney (spelling?) girls/women were annoying as all get out - but this could be attributed to the narrator, who, kudos, at least made them sound like spoiled rich women.

My minor quirks taken care of, I will say really liked this installment: I enjoyed the group dynamics and how the team acted like a team, how Decker was feeling pressure to solve a case because he had the perfect recall, and the twists and turns the mystery took were quite enjoyable. And yes, at the end it's Decker who puts all the pieces together to save the day because that's what Decker does.

Recommended - but definitely start with book #1 if you haven't done so already.




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Recipe Review from 3/12/2017

Shipping season supposedly opened this week - I've seen the ice breaker out, but no ships yet.   Pup went to the groomers (I failed with my English Setter with some basic grooming, trying to do better with the Springer) and had his feathering taken off in anticipation of Mud Season (ah, the joys of living in the country).  He looks a bit...nekkid...now.  Still getting used to that.  And other than that, a rather uneventful week with temps moving into the 40's.  Yay!

The Meal Plan from week of 3/12
Sat (L)  out    (S)  leftovers...
Sun (L) Chili   (S)  Hawaiian shrimp
Mon (yoga)  leftover hawaiian shrimp
Tues - Curried Tofu
Wed - Curried tofu
Thurs (yoga)  Birds and Brews
Fri - Brats and a side


Sheet Pan Hawaiian Shrimp (Ckng Lght, March 2018) gluten free*
I've been intrigued by sheet pan suppers the past several months and this is a continuation of that.  These are a bit more involved than previous recipes I've posted, the theory being that ingredients don't cook at the same rate, so you want to add them in stages.  So you have the simplicity of everything cooking on one pan, but, you have to watch times and add additional ingredients. 

This wasn't oo involved when all was chopped and cooked.  I am SUPER excited that my grocery store now carries pre-cooked rice!  I thought I was going to have to pre-cook some, but lo!  There it was!  And, I made this as written, with the teeny exception that I added some mushrooms I had in the fridge. 

End result?  I would totally make this again.  This made enough for 2 of us, for 2 dinners.  Recommended.   

photo from cookinglight.com

2 (8.8-oz.) pkg. precooked jasmine rice
3 tablespoons canola oil2 cups fresh pineapple chunks (about 8 oz.)
1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1-in. pieces
1 1/4 pounds raw large shrimp, peeled and deveined
3 tablespoons lower-sodium soy sauce*
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves  (I skipped)

Step 1

Preheat oven to 450°F. Place a rimmed baking sheet in oven (do not remove pan while oven preheats).

Step 2

Place rice and oil in a bowl. Using your fingers, break apart rice and coat with oil. Carefully remove pan from oven; spread rice mixture in an even layer in center of pan. Bake in preheated oven for 5 minutes; stir. Top rice with pineapple and bell pepper; bake at 450°F for 5 minutes. Arrange shrimp over rice mixture; bake at 450°F until shrimp are done, about 6 minutes.

Step 3

Place soy sauce, sugar, and vinegar in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at high 45 seconds. Whisk until sugar dissolves. Drizzle over pan. Add black pepper; toss. Sprinkle with cilantro.

Sheet Pan Curried Tofu With Vegetables  (Ckng Lght, March 2018)  gluten free

This was the second sheet pan dish I made this past week, and my comments from above apply - a tich putzy with the staggered cooking times.  But I need to remind myself that while I'm waiting to add the next thing, I was cleaning up the kitchen, setting the table, and enjoying a glass of wine.  

I also made  this pretty much as written, omitting the cashews and pomegranate seeds - both seemed a tich unnecessary, and my store doesn't carry pomegranates right now.  I did splurge on fresh mint and I'm very glad I did - it added a flavor POP!  that really pulled the dish together.  Don't skip the fresh mint if at all possible. 

Oh, I almost forgot - The Husband doesn't like cauliflower, so I added 8oz of chopped broccoli to the dish in addition to the cauliflower.  I'm glad I did because it helped to extend the dish a bit more and we each got a veggie we liked. 

Recommended! 

1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-in. cubes
1 (14-oz.) pkg. extra-firm water-packed tofu, drained, patted dry, and cut into 1 1/2-in. cubes
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

photo from cookinglight.com

4 teaspoons red curry powder or Madras curry powder
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
Cooking spray
8 ounces fresh cauliflower florets
1/3 cup plain 2% reduced-fat Greek yogurt
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/4 cup torn fresh mint
1/4 cup chopped unsalted cashews
1/4 cup pomegranate arils

Step 1

Preheat oven to 500°F. Place a rimmed baking sheet in oven (do not remove pan while oven preheats).

Step 2

Combine potatoes, tofu, 2 tablespoons oil, curry powder, and 1 teaspoon salt in a bowl; toss to coat. Carefully remove pan from oven. Coat pan with cooking spray. Arrange potato mixture in a single layer on pan; bake at 500°F for 10 minutes, stirring once after 5 minutes. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil and cauliflower to pan; toss gently to combine. Bake at 500°F until potatoes are tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove pan from oven.

Step 3

Whisk together remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, yogurt, and juice in a small bowl. Drizzle yogurt mixture evenly over tofu mixture. Sprinkle with mint, cashews, and pomegranate arils.

Recipe Review from 3/5/2018

I just realized I never hit "publish" on this post...drat and bother!  

Uneventful week all in all.  A big snowstorm barely missed us (yay!), but we did have some very impressive sustained winds coming off the Lake.  And speaking of our Lake, the ice breaker was out mid-week doing ice breaking stuff in preparation for the shipping season re-opening.   Best sign of spring, when the first ships of the year arrive! 

The Meal Plan:
Sat (L) leftovers   (S)
Sun (L) out       (S)  Pizza
Mon (yoga) Chicken Wild Rice Soup
Tues - soup
Wed - Pork and potatoes sheet pan supper
Thurs (yoga)  leftover soup
Fri - leftover pork

Lunches - leftover Tuscan Soup, leftover Chicken wild rice soup

Chicken Wild Rice Soup (Ckng Lght, March 2018) 

I simplified this dish a bit by using shredded chicken I already had on hand in the freezer - so I completely skipped Step 1.   In doing so, this became a chop and plop recipe, where all I needed to do was chop the veggies and plop in the pot.   Once veggies are prepped, this does come together very quickly, and I had time to clean-up the counter and do dishes while everything was simmering. 

I'm still a bit undecided about the celery root and green beans - the celery root really didn't contribute much flavor once the dish was finished.   With that little admission said, if I were to make this again, I might do regular celery and green beans; the green beans do add a nice splash of color to an otherwise somewhat colorless dish. 

And yeah, I think I would make this again. 

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 (8-oz.) skinless, boneless chicken breasts

8 ounces sliced fresh cremini mushrooms

1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots (about 2 large shallots)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

1/4 cup dry sherry

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

6 cups unsalted chicken stock, divided

1 cup uncooked Minnesota wild rice

1 cup chopped carrot

1 cup chopped peeled celery root

1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt

1 cup green beans, cut into 1-in. pieces (I used a partial bag of frozen green beans)

1/4 cup heavy cream

3/4 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (about 1/2 cup)

Step 1

Heat butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high until foamy. Add chicken and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on both sides, about 8 minutes. Remove from pan; let stand 5 minutes. Cut into bite-size pieces and set aside.

Step 2

Add mushrooms, shallots, and thyme to Dutch oven; cook, stirring often, until slightly browned, about 7 minutes. Add sherry; cook until reduced by about half, about 1 minute.

Step 3

Whisk together flour and 1 cup stock; stir into sherry mixture. Add remaining 5 cups stock, rice, carrot, celery root, and salt. Cover and increase heat to high; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer until vegetables are just tender, about 40 minutes. Add chicken and green beans; simmer until beans are crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Add cream and pepper.

Step 4

Ladle soup into bowls. Drizzle evenly with oil, and sprinkle with cheese.

Roasted Pork with Apples and Potatoes  (Ckng Lght, March 2018)  gluten free

First off - a meat thermometer is a must.   The recipe called for cooking to 140*, but my multi-meat thermometer recommended 175* and I'm glad I used that instead.  175* was perfectly done for my cut of meat, and that included a 10 minute rest period.

This is a hands-on dish as you add the ingredients in stages.  Pork goes in first, then the potatoes and apple, then the green beans or in my case asparagus.  I did skip the drizzle glaze at the end as I was cooking on aluminum foil and not directly on my pan for ease clean-up.  What I did do was splash everything with some cider vinegar. 

I really enjoyed this dish; a teeny bit putsy, but clean-up was a snap.  A nice melding of savory (rosemary) and sweet (apple) with the potatoes adding just the right amount of filler.  I would make this again, and I would

1 (1-lb.) pork tenderloin, trimmed
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme, divided
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary, divided
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
3/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided
1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into 2-in. wedges
1 large Braeburn apple, sliced (about 10 oz.)
6 ounces haricots verts (French green beans), trimmed   (I used asparagus)
3 tablespoons unsalted chicken stock
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Step 1

Preheat oven to 500°F. Place a rimmed baking sheet in oven (do not remove pan while oven preheats).

Step 2

Rub pork with 1 tablespoon oil, 2 1/2 teaspoons thyme, 2 1/2 teaspoons rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Remove pan from oven; add pork, and return to oven. Immediately reduce oven temperature to 450°F. Bake pork 5 minutes.

Step 3

Combine remaining 2 tablespoons oil, remaining 2 teaspoons thyme, remaining 2 teaspoons rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon salt, remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper, potatoes, and apple in a bowl; toss to coat.

Step 4

Remove pan from oven; add potato mixture to pan with pork. Bake at 450°F until a thermometer inserted in pork registers 140°F (175*), 11 to 13 minutes. Remove pork from pan; place on a cutting board. Add green beans to pan with potato mixture. Bake at 450°F until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.

Step 5

Place potato mixture on a platter. Add remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, stock, butter, and vinegar to hot pan. Scrape browned bits loose with a wooden spoon, and stir until butter is melted. Cut pork into 12 slices; arrange over vegetables. Drizzle stock mixture over pork.

Private: Dehli by James Patterson and

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" />Private">https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29959882-private-delhi">Private Delhi by James">https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3780.James_Patterson">James Patterson

My rating: 2">https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2312889282">2 of 5 stars




Jacket blurb:
Santosh Wagh quit his job as head of Private India after harrowing events in Mumbai almost got him killed. But Jack Morgan, global head of the world’s finest investigation agency, needs him back. Jack is setting up a new office in Delhi, and Santosh is the only person he can trust.


Still battling his demons, Santosh accepts, and it’s not long before the agency takes on a case that could make or break them. Plastic barrels containing dissolved human remains have been found in the basement of a house in an upmarket area of South Delhi. But this isn’t just any house, this property belongs to the state government.


With the crime scene in lockdown and information suppressed by the authorities, delving too deep could make Santosh a target to be eliminated.



Read as an audio book.

Premise of the book is Jack Morgan agrees to help one hand of the government in New Delhi, against the advise of Santosh who feels Private should not get mixed up in politics. Jack disagrees, wanting to establish some high level contacts. Private becomes enmeshed in a bitter political feud involving organ trafficking and pedophiles, as a serial killer is methodically picking off high level .

This book gave me a bit of mental whiplash on several items:
•Setting is New Delhi, India, but there were times when a characters actions were pure American.
•The underground market for organ harvesting and transplanting felt at odds with Maya's essay for a more egalitarian healthcare system. The reader doesn't ever find out what exactly Maya's proposal is, only that it is Best Thing Ever.
•The Nisha/Maya sub-plot came across as incredibly sexist, that Nisha was not a good mother because she worked.
•Pedophile sub-plot was weird, and I think it's only purpose was to bring Maya and the Serial Killer to an intersection of sorts.

Where I enjoyed the first installment with Santosh, I felt his character was shuttled to the side to make room for a plethora of high level bureaucrats who spent the book ranting and raving about their opponents. If not ranting and raving about their opponent, they were mixed up in the organ trafficking and methodically being picked off. I felt Private was shunted off to the side to spend their time running around waving their arms over their heads.

I'm not a squeamish person, but I found the descriptions of the murders to be just...gross. Except for the one where the killer pulled the guys heart out, which made me snigger and think of Temple of Doom.

Ultimately, this was not my favorite Private installment. There were just too many characters, weird plot twists, implausible scenes, unnecessary gore, and incongruous Indian/American character that didn't mesh. I'll still read the next one in the series, because it is, after all, Private.




View">https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/892406-kristin">View all my reviews

Recipe Review from 2/26/2018

Missed a week of reviews - was down and out with a cold after getting back from Vegas and had no energy to do anything.  Plus the Husband was off on adventures with a quick fishing trip up to Lake of the Woods.  I ate, I just don't remember what I ate. Grilled cheese probably.  Last week was better with one slow cooker dish and one quick stove-top chili.  

The Meal Plan
Sun (L) leftovers  (S) Roast Chicken
Mon (yoga/bkgrp/legion) leftovers
Tues - ??
Wed -  Hearty Bulgur Chili
Thurs (yoga) leftovers
Fri - leftovers

Slow cooked Tuscan White Bean Soup (Ckng Lght, Mar 2018)  gluten free, vegetarian option
Soup!  Soup is good for you when your sick, right? Chicken broth, hearty veggies, beans...yummy goodness in a bowl.   Except for when you don't want to eat the soup.  There was really nothing wrong with this recipe, it's simple, straight forward to assemble, flavors are bright and clean, spices maybe a tich on the bland side which also could have been my dulled taste buds from a stuffed up head.    

I did modify and omit the pancetta, I subbed spinach for the kale, and still went with chicken stock because I had that on hand in the freezer.   I did do the dried beans, so planning ahead is necessary.  You could also sub a couple 14.5oz cans of rinsed and drained beans and it would be just fine.  

1 cup dried cannellini beans
4 cups unsalted chicken stock  (or vegetable stock)
4 ounces diced pancetta (such as Boar's Head)

photo from cookinglight.com

1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (14.5-oz.) can unsalted diced tomatoes
1 (2-in.) piece Parmesan cheese rind
1 bay leaf
2 cups chopped kale  (I used spinach)
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (optional)

Step 1

Place beans in a large pot; cover with water 2 inches above beans. Soak at least 8 hours or overnight. Drain beans well; combine with stock in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over high. Transfer to a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker.

 

Step 2

Cook pancetta in a large skillet over medium-high for 5 minutes or until crispy. Remove from pan and set aside. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan over medium-high heat.  Add onion, carrot, celery, and garlic to drippings in pan; sauté 1 minute. Place veggie mixture, rosemary, and next 5 ingredients (through bay leaf) into slow cooker. Cook on low 8 hours. Discard Parmesan rind and bay leaf.

 

Step 3

Add kale; cover and cook 1 hour. Stir in reserved pancetta and vinegar. Sprinkle with parsley, if desired.

Hearty [Bulgur] Chili  (Ckng Lght, March 2018) vegetarian, gluten free option 
This really does come together quickly and would work for a weeknight dinner.  Once the onions and garlic are chopped, everything else is a plop, then step back and let simmer.  Dishes can be washed, counters tidied, table set, and wah-la!  Dinner served.

A couple of notes - I thought I had bulger in my freezer and I did not.  I substituted pearled farro and cooked accordingly.  Very tasty!  I've never heard of the tomato brand recommended, so I did my usual canned variety.   I did cut back on the chipolte a bit, so it was more flavor than heat.  And because I don't like kidney beans, I subbed black beans.   

I  would make this again!

photo from cookinglight.com

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
5 minced garlic cloves
1/2 cup uncooked bulgur (or similar - I used farro) ** quinoa would also work.
2 tablespoons chopped canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 cups unsalted vegetable stock
1 (26.46-oz.) box finely chopped tomatoes (such as Pomì brand)

(I used 1 28oz can diced tomatoes; I have no idea what this Pomi brand is...)
1 (15-oz.) can drained unsalted kidney beans  (I used black beans)
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
6 tablespoons sour cream
6 tablespoons cilantro leaves

Step 1

Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high. Add chopped onion and minced garlic cloves; sauté 5 minutes. Add uncooked bulgur, chopped canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, and ground cumin; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add unsalted vegetable stock, 1 box finely chopped tomatoes (such as Pomì brand), 1 can drained unsalted kidney beans, and 1 1/4 tsp. kosher salt. Bring to a simmer; reduce heat to medium-low, and cook 15 minutes or until bulgur is tender.

 

Step 2

Ladle about 1 cup chili into each of 6 bowls; top each serving with 1 Tbsp. sour cream and 1 Tbsp. cilantro leaves.

 

Artemis by Andy Weir

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" />Artemishttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34928122-artemis">Artemis> by Andy">https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6540057.Andy_Weir">Andy Weir

My rating: 3">https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2279273047">3 of 5 stars



Jacket Blurb:  Jazz Bashara is a criminal.

Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent.

Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down. But pulling off the impossible is just the start of her problems, as she learns that she's stepped square into a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself—and that now, her only chance at survival lies in a gambit even riskier than the first.


Read for February book group.

Premise of the book is small-time smuggler Jazz wants to move up on the Moon and when offered an opportunity to do so, grabs at it. When the job goes sideways and pear-shaped at the same time, she finds she has to finish what she started or face deportation back to Saudi Arabia. Someplace she hasn't been since she was a toddler. With a little reluctant help from her friends and Father, Jazz sets out to save herself, and finds herself saving the Moon.

I have to admit, I went into this not knowing what to expect. I saw it was Weir's next book, that's all I needed to know. Bottom line - I was mildly entertained with some caveats: I was so-so on the main character, the plot was odd, and the science seemed "plugged in" like little bitty info dumps. There was a lot of welding, which really didn't interest me at all.

Main character - Jazz Bashara. She kinda annoyed me and from the few reviews I read, her character annoyed a great many people. A tom-boy, rough around the edges, defiant, inventive, cocky, mouthy, and yet somewhat insecure. She screws up, she fixed it.

Plot - smuggling, gangs, drug running all with the overlying threat that some cartel is about to take over the Moon.

Science - as I noted, I felt the science was a bit like those little hard candy root beer barrels thrown out at parades. I don't like root beer barrels. And the welding...oh my gosh, what was with all the welding? I never thought I would be reading about making a perfect bead in vacuum...

The secondary characters were just that, secondary. Some I would have liked to have gotten to know better, but they all stayed safely tucked back in the story, holding on to their supporting roles.

I will note one item - I liked the setting on the Moon and how the permanent habitats were set up in relation to the Landing Site, and there was this thriving tourism economy. The big inflatable hamster balls for walking on the surface were pretty cool, as was the train ride to the Landing Site. I enjoyed that aspect of the world building.

Ultimately, I enjoyed the book, it wasn't my favorite, but I would read another by Weir if he wrote it.




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