Notes of Life

Author: Shauna Sever
Publisher: Quirk Books
ISBN: 978-1-59474-572-0

Who doesn’t enjoy eating marshmallows?! Myself, I love them! I can eat them on their own, toasted or (and this is a favourite thing of mine to do) have mini-marshmallows floating on top of a delicious mug of hot chocolate (lactose-free for me!). So when I was given the opportunity to review a copy of Marshmallow Madness! by Shauna Sever, I jumped at the chance.

Before getting to the recipes, Shauna talks us through an introduction to marshmallows, including the history of marshmallow, key ingredients, tools, tips and techniques, and even how to store your marshmallows. It’s definitely worth reading this section rather than skipping it as it gives some great information and tips for when you’re actually making your marshmallows. Shauna also recommends experimenting, which I think I’ll do next time! This time I’ve tried to follow my first marshmallow recipe down the the letter.

Who knew there were so many marshmallow recipes?! This book contains dozens of different recipes for marshmallows and each of them sounds delicious in their own right. The recipes are split into sections, starting with ‘The Classics’, then ‘Fresh and Fruity’, ‘Happy Hour’ (cocktail-inspired marshmallows), ‘For the Mallow Connoisseur’ (gourmet flavours and textures), ‘Kids in a Candy Story’ (fun flavours) and ‘Fluffy, Puffy Desserts’. Along the way we’re treated to recipes for foods to compliment marshmallows, information on natural flavours, ideas for gifting marshmallows, desserts made drinkable and how to shape, layer and twist our marshmallows. There’s just so much to do with marshmallow and it’s practically all in this book!

It’s not just the descriptive titles that will have you watering at the mouth either, the photography in the book is brilliant. The photos just make you want to reach in and pull out the marshmallows, to eat them straight off the pages of the book!

The best thing about this book (apart from tasting the finished product!) is that these recipes are all simple and easy to follow. The ingredients needed are listed in sections (and colour coded), so you know exactly when you’ll need them.

I made the first (and probably the easiest) recipe in the book – Classic Vanilla Marshmallows. They were so easy to make and so tasty! In fact, you can see just how simple it is to make marshmallows as Shauna has posted the recipe for Classic Vanilla Marshmallows on her blog. So why not check it out and make your own marshmallows?!

I plan on making the Malibu Marshmallows (yes, made with Malibu coconut rum!) and the Sea Salt Caramel Swirl Marshmallows next!

As you’ve probably already guessed, I’d definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes making and baking in the kitchen. There’s so many irresistible marshmallow creations to make!

—————————-

Please note: I received this book free from Quirk Books in return for a review. However, this has in no way influenced my opinion of the book.

—————————-

WIN A COPY OF MARSHMALLOW MADNESS! BY SHAUNA SEVER

Closing Date: Saturday, 5th May 2012 – Mid-day (BST) – CLOSED!

Open to UK & International readers (as long as The Book Depository deliver to you)

To be in with a chance of winning a copy of Marshmallow Madness! by Shauna Sever all you have to do is leave a comment on the post and…

- What flavour marshmallows would you like? (Pick one you already know or think up a new flavour!)

Entries are open until mid-day (BST) on Saturday, 5th May 2012 and a winner will be picked at random.

Good luck!

Author: Kaori Tsutaya
Translator: Amy Hirschman
Publisher: Quirk Books
ISBN: 978-1-59474-525-6

I’m very much a cat person. I have two cats… or should I say I’m owned by two cats. At this very moment, one of them is using me for his bed. And when they aren’t using me for a bed, they’re using my bed (which is obviously more comfortable than the cat beds I bought them!).

Both my cats molt. Leo loves to have his long fur brushed at least once or twice a day. He’s not shy in asking to be brushed either and would be brushed all day if he could be! We’ve always thought there should be something we could do with all the fur we get out of him.

So when Quirk Books offered me the chance to review Crafting With Cat Hair, I jumped at the chance!

Crafting With Cat Hair was originally published in Japan as Nekoke Feruto No Hon in 2009, but has now been made available in English by Quirk Books.

Crafting With Cat Hair features a number of crafts such as finger puppets, book covers, tote bags, pin cushions and more. Each craft/project gives easy to follow step-by-step instructions, complete with pictures to guide you along. Between the pages, you’ll also find Q & A’s and tips, as well as information about grooming, allergies, craft care, resources etc. There’s even a section where we get to “meet the contributors”, in other words we get to meet the cats!

I thought that all the crafts in the book would be made using cat fur and was imagining just how much we would need to do these projects, but I was wrong. The finger puppets are made mainly from cat fur, but the rest of the crafts use the cat hair as a design to go on them (which is probably more sensible than my idea of things made entirely of cat hair!).

Crafting With Cat Hair is a quirky book (and not just because of it’s publisher’s name!), but it’s also informative and crafty too. Most of the crafts can be made without the use of cat fur (for those who are allergic), but if you’ve got a cat who’s shedding fur like there’s no tomorrow why not make the most of it?!

I’d definitely recommend this book for the craft-loving cat people out there. Christmas is on the horizon and this book would certainly make a fun present!

Right then, where’s that cat brush…….

Buy Crafting With Cat Hair by Kaori Tsutaya.

—————————-

Please note: I received this book free from Quirk Books in return for a review. However, this has in no way influenced my opinion of the book.

Author: Debbie Bliss
Publisher: Quadrille Publishing
ISBN: 978-1844009459

The Ultimate Book of Baby Knits is a wonderful book full of patterns and information for not just seasoned knitters but for beginners too. A section called “Knitting Basics” at the beginning of the book gives information about yarns and how to choose the appropriate one for the items you are knitting, as well as how to take care of the garments, and (for us beginners) even how to cast on, knit, purl, increase, cast off, decrease and read patterns and charts. There are even nice little illustrations with each technique shown. The first part of the book would be very useful for anyone who is looking to learn how to knit, whether it be baby clothes or something else.

The patterns include cardigans, blankets, toys, coats, vests, shorts, trousers, hats, bootees, socks, shawls and much more. There are so many to choose from! There’s pretty much anything you can think of to knit for a little one. Each pattern gives you the measurements, the materials needed, tension and what the abbreviations mean within the pattern.

The photos of the garments (and toys!) in this book are simply beautiful and you feel like you want to knit them all (and with a 16 month old niece and a nephew who’s due any day, maybe I should get started!).

The Ultimate Book of Baby Knits is the most comprehensive knitting book my mum has ever seen and she’s been knitting for over 50 years! This is a wonderful knitting book and one I’d recommend to anyone!

Due for release on 4th April 2011 – Pre-order The Ultimate Book of Baby Knits by Debbie Bliss.

—————————-

Please note: I received this book free through the Amazon Vine program. However, this has in no way influenced my opinion of the book.