Be a Good Cookie Baker And Help Fight Cancer.

Baking cookies is a special part of our holiday tradition .  I know it’s the same for many families.  So, while you’re making those bite-sized treats for the holiday, how about making and extra batch for a good cause.  COOKIES FOR KIDS’ CANCER bake sales have raised nearly 15 million dollars for pediatric cancer research.  They’ve also funded 100 research grants through grassroots events nationwide. http://www.cookiesforcancer.org

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Who Won a Signed Copy of THE LAST SHADOW WARRIOR? by Sam Subity?

A drum roll please…

I am pleased to announce the winner of a signed copy of the modern day viking adventure story THE LAST SHADOW WARRIOR is…

Janet Smart! Congratulations. I will be sending out the book sometime over the next week.

Thanks to Sam Subity for so graciously donating a copy of his book for the give-away. The best way to show an author how much you enjoy their books is by leaving a review on Amazon and Good Reads, and spreading the word on your socail media.

Thanks to all who entered. Have a safe and joyful holiday!

Culinary Traditions Flavor Three Upcoming Festivities: by Marilyn Ostermiller

The week before New Year’s Day features three celebrations, punctuated by feasting, that embrace religious and cultural heritages.

— Hanukkah, one of the most widely observed Jewish holidays, begins Dec.18 and ends December 25.

—  Christians celebrate Christmas Dec. 24 and 25.

— Kwanza, a cultural unity celebration for African-Americans, follows on Dec. 26 through January 1 2023.

Hanukkah, an eight-day celebration, commemorates the victory of a small group of Jewish rebels, known as the Maccabees, over the armies of Syria in 165 B.C.E. and the subsequent liberation and rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem. Modern celebrations of Hanukkah focus on family and friends, and include the lighting of the Hanukkah menorah, one candle for each night, according to reformjudaism.org

According to the legend of the Miracle of the Light, when the Maccabees entered the Temple, they found a single jar of oil, which was sufficient for only one day. The messenger who was sent to secure additional oil took eight days to complete his mission, and miraculously, the single jar of oil continued to burn until his return. The rabbis of the Talmud attributed the eight days of Hanukkah to the miracle of this single jar of oil.

Foods prepared in oil, such as potato pancakes. are traditionally served during Hanukkah.  Latkes, crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside, are often served with applesauce and sour cream. Recipes and a helpful video is available from popular cooking and lifestyle blogger ToriAvey.com at https://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/potato-latkes/

Christians celebrate Christmas to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem. The Feast of the Seven Fishes is an Italian-American Christmas Eve tradition that grew out of the practice of not eating meat on Christmas Eve. A typical menu includes clams casino, fried calamari, seafood salad, oysters shooters and pasta with clam sauce. according to www.thespruceeats.com/la-vigilia-napoletana-feast-of-seven-fishes-2019493

A newly published book,  Feast of the Seven Fishes: A Brooklyn-Italian’s Recipes Celebrating Food and Family, by Daniel Paterna, features recipes and memories handed down through three generations.        

African-Americans celebrate Kwanzaa from December 26 to January 1. Dr. Maulana Karenga, a black nationalist who became a college professor, introduced the festival in 1966 to the United States as a ritual to welcome the first harvests to the home and counter the deadly Watts riots in Los Angeles the previous year. The seven principles of the custom include unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith. On New Year’s Eve, participants celebrate with a banquet. Main dishes include African creole, Cajun catfish, jerk chicken, or Groundnut stew from West Africa, which features warm spices, sweet potatoes and peanuts. For a recipe, visit https://www.strongertogether.coop/recipes/african-groundnut-stew

Marilyn Ostermiller is a long-time journalist who delights in cooking, baking and sharing recipes.    

Gingerbread Houses Are Welcome Holiday Treats by Marilyn Ostermiller

Gingerbread houses are a treasured Christmas tradition, dating back to the early 1800s in Germany after the fairy tale, “Hansel and Gretel” was published by the Brothers Grimm. The original tale included the line, “When they came nearer they saw that the house was built of bread, and roofed with cakes, and the window was made of transparent sugar.”

It’s easy to imagine how magical that sight would be to children. It would be almost impossible not to reach out to discretely grab a corner of the roof to taste or pluck a gumdrop from the door.

Gingerbread Houses can be lots of fun to make. An online search reveals easy-to-follow video instructions

Getting together with friends for a group gingerbread house construction project can become a holiday tradition. Everyone brings their own dough, royal icing, and candy for decorating. A basic homemade gingerbread house starts with patterns for four walls and a peaked roof. Printable gingerbread house templates are available online.

After the gingerbread is baked, cooled and cut to order, royal icing is the edible “glue” that olds it together. Royal icing is made from softly beaten egg whites and powdered sugar. The usual proportions are 2 egg whites to 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, 1 teaspoon glycerin (to prevent the icing from setting too hard) and about a pound of powdered sugar, according to

hhttps://www.confectionperfection.co.uk/

Lots of different candies are used to decorate the houses, including peppermint sticks, licorice, and gumdrops.

Children especially like to be involved. A Plan for the Gingerbread House: A STEM Engineering Story, is a book for ages 4 through 12. The plot revolves around a Gingerbread man and woman who need a new house. A team of kids struggle to create the perfect gingerbread house for them. Darcy Pattison is the author, and John Joven, the illustrator.

As for the original inspiration for gingerbread houses, “Hansel and Gretel” books are available in versions for all ages.

Anyone who is in the vicinity of Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, N.C., through Jan. 2, 2023, can view the entries in the National Gingerbread House Competition. Whimsical and elaborate, these handmade gingerbread houses come in a variety of sizes, shapes, complexity and theme. There are rustic cabins, gumdrop-adorned castles and sugar spun landscapes. The entrants compete for more than $40,000 in prizes. Here’s the link about the winners of the 2022 competition.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/omni-grove-park-inn-announces-170800591.html?fr=yhssrp_catchall

Marilyn Ostermiller is a longtime journalist who especially enjoys writing for children.

Author Sam Subity Presents: THE LAST SHADOW WARRIOR + a Chance to Win a Signed Copy

I recently had the pleasure of meeting Sam Subity, author of the middle grade Viking saga THE LAST SHADOW WARRIOR. Our virtual paths crossed when we shared an episode of Legit KidLIt Draw Off back in October. When I told Sam I’d love to share his book on my blog, he graciously sent a signed copy that I will pass on to one lucky reader.

Here’s my review of the book:

A modern-day Viking tale in the vein of Beowulf, with some Percy Jackson and Harry Potter thrown in. And a female heroine to boot! Anyone who enjoys a good adventure, good vs evil, solving riddles, saving the world, and lots of action will find this book a winner. What’s not to like about a talking tree that loves tacos and does Elvis impressions? Plenty of heart and humor in this story that will be a hit with the middle grade crowd.

I asked Sam how the story came about:

Where did you get the inspiration to write a modern-day Viking tale with a female warrior?

I read Beowulf in college a long time ago and loved it. Then when I read Percy Jackson more recently and saw how Rick Riordan had taken old stories and spun them into new ones, I knew I wanted to do the same thing with Beowulf. Anyone familiar with Beowulf will see a lot of parallels in my story. The female warrior Abby Beckett who is my main character was inspired by my daughter who’s about the same age and is just as ferocious and fearless as Abby.

What kind of research was involved in the writing?

The research was one of the most fun parts of creating the story because I was able to dig back into Viking history and the old Norse myths looking for things I could incorporate. For example, there’s a serpent in Norse mythology that is so big it’s wrapped around the entire world. In my story, I turned it into a sea monster that lives in the school swimming pool and likes Ping-Pong. So just a little artistic license with that one!

It’s fun to imagine a lost culture residing under the streets of Minnesota. My husband is from there and has Scandinavian roots. Was that location intentional? How did you decide on your setting?

It was totally intentional. When I researched regions of the U.S. with the highest populations of Scandinavian ancestry, Minnesota was the clear winner, so it seemed like the perfect place to hide my secret society of Vikings. I guess the freezing winters in the Minneapolis area made Scandinavian immigrants to America feel right at home!

What do you want young readers to take away from this tale?

There’s a theme throughout the book of what it takes to be a hero, and by the end Abby realizes that sometimes a hero is nothing more than the person who has the courage to stand up when everyone else is too scared to do so. I’d love it if kids see that they have the potential to be a hero just as they are, even without any special powers or abilities. Also I’d love it if young readers just have a whole lot of fun reading Abby’s adventures because reading should be fun!

What are you currently working on?

My next middle grade book is a historical fantasy called VALOR WINGS set at the start of World War II. I’m thinking of it as the movie DUNKIRK but with dragons, where kids and dragons organize a rescue mission for the British troops when the Nazis invade France. Look for that in early 2024!

If you’d like a copy of this awesome book, please leave a comment on this post. One winner will be chosen at random from those who enter. USA only please.

Sam Subity loves writing stories that explore the magic and wonder of being a kid and is thrilled to share his writing with readers everywhere—both the young in age and the young at heart. When he’s not writing, you might find him running the trails of northern California where the endless, winding miles past fog and ocean inspire tales of adventure and mystery. You can find him online at http://www.samsubity.com, or on Twitter and Instagram at @sjsubity.