Colorado Teen Literature Conference 2014 - Post Conference Committee and Author Dinner at The Corner Office

After the conference each year the committee and some of the authors go out to dinner at a restaurant that is within walking distance of the Tivoli. This year we went to The Corner Office.

As you can see, it was a very stylish place. And oh my, the food was fun, too. We ordered:

Saffron Arancini
CRISPY RISOTTO FRITTER, WILD MUSHROOM RAGOUT, SAGE + SMOKED TOMATO JAM

Shrimp Spring Roll
BLACK GARLIC AIOLI, CILANTRO + HOUSE MADE HOISIN

Cheese Plate
4 CHEESES, SPICED NUTS, FIG + LINGONBERRY JAM

Hummus + Htipiti Dip
KALAMATA OLIVES, ROASTED RED PEPPERS, FETA, CUCUMBER
+ WARM PITA

We also had fun things for dinner. We shared:

Sesame Chicken
SNOW PEAS, RED PEPPERS, SCALLIONS + JASMINE RICE

Shanghai Ramen
SLOW COOKED PORK 2 WAYS, MUSTARD GREENS, 62 DEGREE EGG + HOUSE MADE CHICHARRÓN

Brenna had:

Bibimbap
KOREAN MARINATED GRILLED STEAK, ZUCCHINI, WITH SPINACH,EGG, CARROT, HOISIN + JASMINE RICE

Everyone had interesting drinks. Ellie and I ordered virgin Mojitos. They were very yummy and I plan to find a recipe to make at home:

Even though we were totally stuffed,we still opted to have dessert. After all, they had really fun options like:

Cinnamon Sugar Shake
HOUSE MADE TOFFEE CRUNCH + AMARENA CHERRY

Cotton Candy [Bubble Gum Flavored] . . . the one, the only
LET US TAKE YOU BACK TO THE DAYS OF COUNTY FAIRS AND FLYING TRAPEEZE
ASK YOUR SERVER FOR TODAY’S FLAVOR

Even the bathrooms were fun, although these photos were from the bathroom in the Curtis Hotel, which is attached to The Corner Office.

Let's close this post with a few more shoots of the restaurant.

Here's a recipe I will try:

Lime-Mint Spritzers
via: Our Best Bites
from The Big Book of Backyard Cooking

8-10 large mint leaves
1/2 c. sugar (you can add more if necessary, especially if kids are involved)
3/4 c. fresh lime juice (about 7 small, juicy limes)
1 24-oz. bottle of sparkling water (like Perrier)

Finely chop the mint leaves. Place the chopped mint leaves in a bowl or non-reactive pitcher and press them with a pestle or the back of a spoon to release the oils. Add the sugar and press the mint leaves and sugar together with the back of a spoon. Add the lime juice and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved and no longer grainy.
If you haven’t been mixing the mint and sugar in a pitcher, transfer to a glass or plastic pitcher. Right before serving, add the sparkling water and serve immediately over ice. Garnish with lime slices and mint leaves.

This posting is really lovely - you should check it out!

2014 Colorado Teen Literature Conference

Oh my, what a busy couple of days it has been. On Thursday I helped make paper flowers for a window display - so much fun; I will write about that later. Today I want to give you a small glimpse of what the 2014 Colorado Teen Literature Conference was like. I have been part of making this conference happen for about 12 years now. Ellie also attended the conference and took wonderful photos of the all of the sessions, the speakers, etc. It was a lot of work as the the sessions were spread out throughout the building, as you can see. I love having her be part of things with me, and so do the committee members. Several of them asked me to specifically mention that they would love to have her attend the conference.


Our keynote speakers this year were A. S. King (Amy) and David
Levithan.

I created backdrop images for each of them. They were displayed on the screen behind them as they delivered their speeches.

Our conference was a big hit. We sold out in about 2 days, back in January.

It was nice to meet back up with some of the other authors I've gotten to know from past years.

Todd Mitchell has been one of our keynote speakers and a presenter often. I love listening to him tell about his newest book. I also really enjoy watching the joy and energy his displays when he is talking to another author about that authors work. I'll be reading one of her new novels very soon.

I also got chat with Todd Mitchell. He ran a couple of wonderful sessions, including one on Creative Non-Fiction, one of my favorite genres. I will also read his newest book.

I also had a long and wonderful chat about books, cooking and writing with Brenna Yovanoff. She has a new book about redneck witches.

I also got to meet a couple of authors I had not known before.

Rebekah Crane has two fun books and is very interesting to talk to. I can't wait to read her books.

I'm looking forward to her next book, Aspen, which comes out soon.

I also got to see Rebecacca Green Gasper in action. Her book is about teen dating abuse. I look forward to checking that out, too.

At the author and committee dinner the night before the conference I visited with Barb Wright, who wrote a book, Crow, which is about a race riot. We also talked about an upcoming event that she will take part in where she will be working with 6th graders who will be writing about the Hurricane Katrina experience.

The Quiet Arrival of Spring + Blueberry Miffins and Minestrone Soup Recipes

Ethan caught a train to California yesterday. It was a bit easier to say good-bye this time since I knew that he was anxious and excited to return to the boat. It was also a bit hard since I knew that it will likely be months before I get to see him in person again. He thinks that he might come home sometime mid summer to go on a driving, camping and adventuring trip. He hopes to have someone else to travel with him.

While we were so busy last week, spring crept quietly into our garden, a little later than usual. Before Don became ill, I was so good about looking for the first signs of the crocus (the first thing that blooms in my garden), but with Don being in the hospital, Ethan being home and all of us being on spring break, I forgot to go out to the front garden to check for the small bit of color showing up between the dry leaves that were a blanket against the cold winter days. Since I park in the garage, I don't go out front often.

The first things out in the garden are always tiny and happy; they are so easy to miss unless you are looking down as you walk or you are specifically looking for them.

I love their vibrant colors and the deep, rich shades of blue.

-----------
Blueberry Muffins
via: Allrecipes.com

Muffins:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon baking
powder
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 egg
2/3 cup milk
2 cups fresh blueberries

Topping:
1 cup white sugar
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter, cubed
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners.

For the muffins - Combineflour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Place vegetable oil into a measuring cup; add the egg and enou milk to fill the cup. Mix this with flour mixture. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups right to the top, and sprinkle with crumb topping mixture.

To Make Crumb Topping - Mix together sugar, flour, cup butter, and teaspoons cinnamon. Mix with fork, and sprinkle over muffins before baking.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done

----------
Olive Garden Copycat Minestrone Soup {Slow Cooker}(modified)
via: Cooking Classy

4 cups low-sodium vegetable stock
1 1/2 cups water
2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes
1 cup diced celery (3 stalks)
1 cup diced carrots (2 carrots)
1 cup diced yellow onion (1 small) (I use a small red onion)
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (or 1 tsp dried)
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried crushed rosemary
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 1/3 cups diced zucchini (1 small)
1 1/3 cups shell pasta*
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 (15 oz) can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz) can white navy beans or cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 (14.5 oz) can Italian green beans, drained
2 cups slightly packed chopped fresh spinach (kale works well, too)
(1 small box Grape Tomatoes)
Finely shredded Romano cheese, for serving (Parmesan works too)

Add vegetable stock, water, tomatoes, celery, carrots, onion, parsley, basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary, bay leaves and sugar to a slow cooker. Season with salt and pepper to taste and cook on low heat 6 - 8 hours or high 3 - 4 hours.
Add in zucchini, pasta*, garlic, kidney beans and white beans and cook on high heat and additional 30 - 40 minutes until pasta is tender. Stir in spinach, grape tomatoes and Italian green beans and cook several minutes until heated through.

Serve warm topped with Romano cheese.

Notes:
* If I know that this will be saved, or froze, and eaten later, I will omit the pasta and add it in as it is reheating. You can also trade out the pasta for tortellini.
** Sometimes I use a bag of frozen stew veggies instead of fresh one, especially if I need to save time.)
-------

Here are today's fun videos:

This Weekend - Leather, Cake, Coconut and a Family Dinner + Recipes (and a Funky Music Video that Ethan Likes)

If you had stopped by our house this weekend, you might have found that you could detect the smell of chocolate in the air, even outside. If you entered at another time, you'd find that it our home was wrapped in the smell of warm leather and wax. Our house was abuzz with activity this weekend.

On Saturday I made a German Chocolate Cake from scratch, and oh my, is it every lovely. The cake itself was easy and quick to make. (I am not sure that I will ever make a chocolate cake from a box mix again - it was that delicious and easy!) The coconut and pecan frosting that goes between the layers, now that was a trick and a process. I think it took me over 2 hours to make the frosting alone. And then there is the ganache - easy and silky, but oh so sinfully rich. Interestingly, both the cake and the frosting are not very sweet, and certainly not at all like the it-is-so-sweet-that-it-hurts-my-teeth kind of sweet that you get from a grocery store German chocolate cake. Next Friday is the Colorado Teen Literature Conference Committee and Author dinner. Each year I make the keynote speaker's favorite dessert and this is what A.S. King has requested. I wanted to make sure that the recipe is great - and it is. However, it is both expensive and takes a lot of time, as well as patients, to make the cake, so I will only make it for special occasions in the future. I'm thinking about making the cake and making it into a Black Forest cake by adding cherries and whipped cream for some other function.

Ethan and I also did more leather work. We both made belts. It is pretty cool to go from a belt blank (see below) to a nice, brown, decorated belt. It was a lot of fun.

Ethan was very clever when he figured out how to use the small tools we had on hand to make an anchor.

He also made a holster for when he is using his Leatherman tools as a pair of plyers. (I will add that photo soon.)

------------------
German Chocolate Cake
via:Bobby Flay & The Food Network

For the Cake:
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pans
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups firmly packed light muscovado sugar
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups strong brewed black coffee, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Make the cake: Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Butter two 9-inch-round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a medium bowl.

Melt the 12 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the cocoa powder and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat, add the muscovado and granulated sugars and whisk until the sugar has dissolved. Add the coffee, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla extract and continue whisking until smooth and just combined. Add the dry ingredients and stir until the batter is smooth.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 40 to 45 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pans on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Invert the cakes onto the wire rack and let cool at least 1 hour before frosting.

For the Frosting:
1 3/4 cups whole milk
1 3/4 cups unsweetened coconut milk
1 cup goat's milk or additional whole milk
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Seeds scraped from 1/2 vanilla bean
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, cold
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons coconut rum (optional)
1 1/4 cups coarsely chopped pecans, toasted
1 1/4 cups sweetened shredded coconut, toasted

Make the frosting: Combine the whole milk, coconut milk and goat's milk in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over low heat. Keep warm while you prepare the caramel.

Combine the sugar and 1/4 cup water in a medium saucepan over high heat and cook without stirring until a deep amber color, 8 to 10 minutes. Slowly and carefully whisk in the warm milk mixture and continue whisking until smooth. Add the vanilla seeds and corn syrup. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until the sauce is reduced by half and the consistency of a caramel sauce, about 55 minutes.

Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter, vanilla extract, salt and rum (if using). Transfer the sauce to a medium bowl and stir in the pecans and shredded coconut. Let the frosting cool to room temperature, stirring it occasionally, before frosting the cake.

To assemble the cake, slice each cake in half horizontally. Place 1 cake layer on a cake round and spread one-third of the frosting evenly over the top. Repeat to make 3 layers, then top with the remaining cake layer, top-side up.

For the Ganache:
1 cup heavy cream
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut, toasted, for garnish
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted, for garnish
Coconut Whipped Cream, for serving

Make the ganache: Bring the cream to a simmer in a small saucepan. Put the chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl, add the hot cream and the corn syrup and let sit for 30 seconds. Gently whisk until smooth. Let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes.

Set the cake on a wire rack placed over a rimmed baking sheet. Pour the chocolate ganache over the cake, letting the excess drip down the sides. Sprinkle the top with toasted coconut and pecans. Let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes and up to 4 hours before slicing.

Slice the cake and top with a dollop of Coconut Whipped Cream.

------------------

Heavenly Hummus Wrap
via: The Pioneer Woman

1 Tablespoon Butter Or Olive Oil
1/2 whole Red Onion, Halved And Sliced
1 whole Spinach Flour Tortilla (large)
1/4 cup Hummus (homemade Or Storebought) - More If Needed
1 whole Roasted Red Pepper (jarred), Sliced
3 whole Canned Artichoke Hearts, Halved
2 cups Mixed Greens
1 Tablespoon Your Favorite Balsamic Vinaigrette (homemade Or Storebought)
1/4 cup Feta Cheese Crumbles


Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-low heat. Add the red onions and cook slowly for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and deep golden brown. Set aside and let them cool slightly.

Grill the tortilla on a grill pan over medium heat for 1 minute, just until it has grill marks on the outside. (If you don't have a grill pan, just use a skillet.) The tortilla should still be soft and pliable; just with a little bit of color! Let the tortilla cool slightly.

To assemble the wrap, spread the hummus down the middle third of the tortilla. Arrange the cooked onion slices and the sliced roasted red peppers all over the hummus. Add the artichoke heart halves.
Toss the salad greens in the balsamic dressing, then lay them on the wrap. Finally, sprinkle the crumbled feta all over the greens.

Carefully wrap up the tortilla, tucking in the ends. Slice the wrap down the middle, share with a friend, and chow down!

-------
Here's a video that Ethan is enjoying today:

Life on a Tall Ship - Life on Deck

Ethan and the crew of the Hawaiian Cheiftan spend the majority of their time on deck, regardless of the weather. There is always someone standing on guard whether they are in port, or in transit (sailing). The crew takes turn taking watch. Each day the crew is given assignments. From time to time they have emergency drills.

Ethan is often working with or on the sails. This photo is of the bosman's chair and bucket. Many sailors work barefoot so that they can use the dexterity in their toes and feet to help them stay balanced and safe.

Here is the outside of the galley (kitchen). I have great respect for the cooks on the ships. Theirs is an important, but difficult, hot and cramped job. Still, they seem to do it with pride and joy. Thank God for Rosie and the other cooks who do such a great job of feeding my boy so well.

Here you can see the butterfly windows from the outside. That doorway next to the windows is the exit where the ladders leads to. The top part slides back to make it possible to exit.

Ethan also works with the ropes a lot. He has a strong arm and can throw the ropes to the deck. Sometimes a sailor will miss the mark, while other times they will throw the rope with such vigor that he/she sails overboard, too. Ethan tells me that most of the old time sailors did not know how to swim. If they were under sail, they were as good as dead since the boats were wind powered and could not turn around fast enough to get them. Going overboard, even at port, is dangerous as you run the risk of getting pulled under the boat.

Here are a few videos that show a bit more of what life is like on the ship. The first one was done by Willow Jon, a friend of Sophie, one of the sailors. He spent a short bit of time on the boats and hanging with the crew. Ethan thought he was nice. Willow Jon needed some new boots so they went into town. After Willow Jon purchased a new pair, he set the old pair neatly by a trash can so that some other person could claim them and use them. Ethan's friend, Sophie, is in the film. She is the blonde sitting on deck with a guitar.

The next two give you an idea of what the battle sails are like. I think they are a favorite. Each ship uses real cannons, real gun powder, but only shoots out air. Each week they do a real battle with a score being kept. The sound of the air hitting the ship in different places takes on different tones. The Cheiftan usually wins.