Celebrating the new year with applesauce cake!

I'm waiting for my friends so we can go out to dinner. NYE is usually pretty mellow only because I've already spent a good deal of my new years out with humanity and sometimes, it's best to avoid certain crowds if you know what I mean.

I do have a bar down the street so if we decide to be adventurous we can walk to the bar for a shot or whatever.

I decided one of the things I'm going to do this year is keep track of all the things I'm baking and cooking and making. Also, I want to write about them so that I can learn and make things better. I have been missing a lot of the reflective moments when creating things so hopefully, blogging about things will help me improve.

This is a spiced applesauce cake with cream cheese frosting. I'm not sure if Gourmet magazine online is even still available but that's where I got the recipe. The cake is really nice and moist. I couldn't find unsweetened applesauce so that might have factored into why when I attempted to transfer it it was a little crumbly. It also called for toasted walnuts but I passed on that. It is kind of like a carrot cake with the cream cheese frosting. I also added nutmeg because I had some in the pantry. It was really easy to make too. Also it says it serves 6 but it's more like 20! So, here is the recipe for you if you want to try it.

Spiced Applesauce Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
Active Time: 20 minutes Start to Finish: 3 1/2 hours including cooling

For Cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup walnuts (optional) toasted, cooled & chopped

FOR FROSTING
5 oz. cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/4 teaspon pure vanilla extract
1 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

• Preheat over to 350 degrees F with rack in middle. Butter and 8- or 9-inch square cake pan.

MAKE CAKE:

• Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices
• Beat butter, brown sugar, and vanilla with an electric mixer at high speed until pale and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. (I did this a little too quickly and had some butter sugar splatter so don't rush the process like me :)) Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in applesauce. At low speed, mix in flour mixture until just combined, then stir in walnuts (if using).
• Spread batter evenly in pan and bake until golden brown and a wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Run a knife around edge of cake to loosen, then invert onto a plate. Reinvert cake onto a rack to cool completely. (I should have lined the pan with parchment paper and prepared the pan better. I prefer using butter instead of the cooking spray. Next time I will have to do that)

MAKE FROSTING:

• Beat cream cheese, butter, and vanilla with an electric mixer at high speed until fluffy. Sift confectioners sugar and cinnamon over cream cheese mixture, then beat at medium speed until incorporated.
• Spread frosting over top of cooled cake

Recipe by Andrea Albin

Happy New Year!!! 2010!!!

Thanks to Damienimages for the above photo!

Happy New Year to you and yours! I hope everyone has an amazing 2010 filled with goodness and happiness!!!

Book Drops: Nonfiction Mondays "Emily Post's Table Manners for Kids" (rated 4 stars)

Emily Post's Table Manners for Kids

by Cindy Post Senning

It's Nonfiction Mondays! For the round up, please visit SimplyScience Blog, who is hosting this week. Also, I cannot put my nonfiction mondays label because I'm dog sitting and I don't think it's appropriate to download stuff on other people's computers. But I'll use the computer...

Anyway, this week I'm featuring, Emily Post's Table Manners for Kids. I never was formally trained proper table manners as a kid, there are some things that just seem common sense but as a kid, I grew up using a spoon and fork to eat or learning to eat with my hands. For the longest time, I thought that was normal, well, it was normal in the Philippines and other Filipino households I hung out in. So, it was interesting reading this book on table manners.

It was a very informative and entertaining read that is geared towards 5th grade to middle schoolers and contains equally amusing illustrations. One of tips is how to properly pierce a cherry tomato and the illustration shows someone who’s bit into a tomato and accidentally squirts the person seated next to him. As an adult, I still learned some things, like how to properly eat soup in public. I honestly had no idea that you scoop away from yourself. Also, who can keep straight the proper location of all those utensils, cups, salad plates, etc. Well, now I can because the Posts’ lay it out very nicely and easily. Definitely a great book for children and adults!

See more about Emily Post's Table Manners for Kids

Book Drops: What I Read This Year 2009

I was just looking at the New Yorker's The Book Bench and am inspired by their post "What We Read This Year." The different contributors posted their favorites..I'm just going to post what I read. It's always nice to look back isn't it? Here it goes:

• Jan - Transforming Classroom Grading - this book actually did just that. I'm not formally trained as a teacher so I had no idea how to grade or how to create a grade book and this was an excellent resource for me; Bryson, Bill. The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid. so funny!

Feb - nothing.

March - How Not To Be Popular; Txting; Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

April - Life is So Good; Wintergirls; Swallow Me Whole

May - The Reformed Vampire Support Group; The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson)

Summer Break (wow..I thought I read some stuff in the summer but obviously not...:( )

Nov - Them

Dec - The Wordy Shipmates; Leviathan; Christo & Jeanne-Claude; Amphigorey; Amphigorey II; Hansel & Gretel; Edgar Allen Poe's Tales of Death & Dementia; Emily Post's Table Manners for Kids; Sticks & Stones

Hum, I swore I read a lot more than this but I guess I didn't...But overall, that's a pretty good list. I thought I had better do this now while I still have time. What have you read? Any notable books you want to share?

ADDENDUM: Ok, I DID read a lot more but it some of the books weren't listed in my all consuming list but my reviews are there so I don't know what that's about. Here's more!

The Espressologist ; The Film Club ; The Summer I Turned Pretty ; The Word Snoop ; The Private Patient ; The Knife of Never Letting Go ; Alligator Bayou ; Burn My Heart ; Poppy and Ereth ; Inkspell ; The Rock & The River ; Out of Our Minds ; After The Moment ; Christian the Lion ; the YggYssey ; Simon Bloom - the Octopus Effect ; Tales of the Beedle the Barb ; Food Matters ; Living Dead Girl ; Emily the Strange - the Lost Days ; The Forest of Hands and Teeth ; Scat ; The Year We Disappeared ; Perfect Chemistry ; Here Comes Everybody ; Graceling ; Catching Fire ; Hunger Games ; Fire ; My Year of Meats ; Confessions of a Serial Kisser ; Janes in Love ; Comic Book Century ; Absolutely Maybe ; The Lost Art of Walking ; Inkheart ; Would You Swap Your Dad for 2 Goldfish

57 BOOKS! Whoo-hoooo!!!!

Book Drops: Graphic Novel Fridays

I am a little late in writing this post because it is the last day before winter break and there are a ton of things to finish up before leaving the library for 2 weeks.

1) need to put the plants in plastic tubs filled with water so they won't die. I used to take them home but that is just too much work.

2) the Library Queen ordered lunch in so you know, i had to be sociable and partake..I just HAD too!

3) there are a lot more cookies and treats that i need to eat so ..yeah, I had to partake in that as well

4) Oh, I also had to drive off campus and pick up the lunch that i had to eat

5) there are books that need to be covered, shelved, and read...

6) I also had to wipe down all counters and surfaces because the kids are super snotty and I AM NOT getting sick before I leave for vacation.

7) Sent 2 of my friends home because 1 was sick and the other is so stubborn he'll stay here and suffer and bleed all over the place before going home...

so here I go:
This week I am featuring Hansel and Gretel: the graphic novel retold by Donald Lemke and Sticks and Stones by Peter Kruper.

I have not read Hansel and Gretel since elementary school so it was great rereading this classic fairy tale. The illustrations are very gothic and from the cover you can tell that the characters have very giant eyes like Margaret Keane paintings but also a bit like some of the characters in Miyazaki's Spirited Away. It was a great retelling and the library binding edition contains a book discussion questions, writing prompts and also a page for an internet site to visit. I am not sure if a little kid would particularly enjoy this version because the images are so dark and it is a frightening tale but it would be fun to use as a read-aloud book.

Book 2 was Sticks and Stones. Peter Kruper is also a political cartoonist some of his works appears in Time and also the Nation. This graphic novel contains absolutely no words but words were not necessary to convey the story. There is commentary on the affects of industry, war, rebellion, power, greed, etc. It was very powerful. There are mixed reviews on this work but I found it very thought provoking and I loved Kruper's illustrations.

School Appropriate Or Stifling a Kid's Self Expression

As a teacher/librarian, one of our roles is to guide our students into choosing appropriate ways of expressing themselves in the class & school setting. But when does guiding them lead to stifling their own creativity?

My first reaction was to ask the question, "Well, if you have to ask?" then maybe what you want to do/say/write/draw is not appropriate for a class assignment.

One of my student's has an assignment where they write a surreal poem. His initial expression was to write that this student's addiction to gum was analogous to an addiction to crack. Then his second choice was an addiction to cigarettes. I told him that probably was not the best analogy. Then he did something about a dog & a bone.

Still, I'm not sure I was very comfortable steering him away from his initial response only because I do feel like I'm "forcing" him to conform and poetry is more expression that convention. Not sure if it was right or wrong but a dog & bone is probably more appropriate than crack & cigarettes...

Book Drops: Nonfiction Mondays - "The Frog Scientist"

This week's Nonfiction Monday host is In Need of Chocolate Blog. Check out the weekly round-up to see if there are any new books you might want to add to your collections.

This week I'm featuring The Frog Scientist, by Pamela S. Turner, which is part of the Scientists in the Field series. The featured scientist is Professor Tyrone Hayes from UC Berkeley who studies the affects of pesticides on frog populations. Filled with large color photos, Turner follows Hayes and his students as they collect samples from the field and work in the labs. She also explains the scientific process from posing a hypothesis to conducting experiements to prove or disprove that hypothesis. Another added bonus is the brief biography about Professor Hayes and the look inside his personal and professional life as well as a glimpse into the lives of his research students. The book also included wonderful color photographs of various frogs, website links, an educator's link, and a wonderful bibliography. It is geared more towards 5-7 graders and could inspire children to study the different sciences.

Book Drops: Graphic Novels Friday

Right now, I'm waiting in excitement for my family to visit. I don't really know why I'm so excited but I am. Also, I'm baking another batch of chocolate chocolate chip cookies and I have some Asian short ribs cooking in a slow cooker and I have to get my Graphic Novel Friday post in. So..here I go (by the way, the cookie I'm eating is the bomb!):

1. No Girls Allowed: Tales of Daring Women Dressed as Men for Love, Freedom and Adventure. Written by Susan Hughes and illustrated by Willow Dawson. The illustrations in this book are not the type that usually wows me but she did really well in conveying the stories that Hughes wrote about. The women featured are Hatshepsut, Mu Lan, Alfhild, Esther Brandeau, James Barry, Ellen Craft and Sarah Rosetta Wakeman. Honestly, I have only every heard/read about 2 of these women so it was a really quick introduction to women who did what they needed to to survive. The occupations include a pharaoh, soldiers, pirate, a doctor, a translator and a women who dressed like a man to escape to the Northern United States to be free. Go girls!!!! Do what you need to do to get where you want to go!!!

2. The Good Neighbors Book 1: Kin. By Holly Black and Ted Naifeh. You have a rock star boyfriend, you have the coolest friends but what if all of a sudden you just started seeing things? strange things? strange beings? And your mother just disappeared all of sudden. And your father looks like he's just given up. Some one you don't know is murdered. What would you do? Would you believe what you were seeing? This is what happens to Rue in this dark, gothic fantasy graphic novel. Rue discovers that there is more to her self and her family than she could have ever believed. The story introduces the reader to Rue's other family and they are not a friendly and loving as one would expect. They aren't even human. I can't wait to get Book 2.

Book Drops: NONFICTION MONDAYS

Picture Book of the Day started the Nonfiction Mondays feature and I thought I would join in the fun.

You can check out Rasco from RIF's blog for the Nonfiction Mondays roundup for Monday, December 7.

These books are available at the Burbank Public Library. It's the holidays and maybe you need some ideas for gifts and these two caught my eye. The first one is Do It Yourself Projects! series : Make Your Own Books. It is a great introduction to kids who are crafty. There are very simple projects and it also stresses recycling and reusing materials. 24 pages with 8 projects and a short history about books. Also filled with wonderful color images and step-by-step instructions. It also includes side boxes with great facts about felt, reed paper, etc.

The second book is from the Money Matters: A Kid's Guide to Money Series. This book is A Kid's Guide to Stock Market Investing. It is a set but we only had this one when I was wandering the shelves. Honestly, I wish my parents had this set when I was a kid and I'm only writing about 1 of the books. It is 47 pages and starts with a story about a boy who gets stocks from his grandmother. There is some history about stock exchange as well as current issues, like the foreclosure crisis. It includes a glossary of terms as well as a brief example of how to break down those stock listings in the paper. It also includes a short homework assignment where kids pick their favorite commodity and follow the stock for a month to see how well it does. It has links to websites and other books and online sources for students to use if they are interested in becoming a stockmarket investing.

Both books are engaging and are even great for teens or adults.

Star Wars Library Nerds Rejoice!

Saw a link for this on Unshelved. And how come this is now really on my library wall. It's too amazing!

clipped from www.sheldoncomics.com

Book Drops: Graphic Novel(s) Friday

I am going to attempt again to put some order to my entries...wish me luck!

Anyway, since, I am the de facto graphic novel "expert" (har har) here at the library, I thought I should starting writing little blurbs here so that I remember what I read and why I like them...

Knucklehead by Jon Scieszka. - Opps. This is not really a graphic novel...But I'll just say that it is a hilarious collection of stories about Jon Scieszka's life. Who is this guy? Well, Jon Scieszka is a writer a lot of hilarious children's books, like the recently published Robot Zot and The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Fairy Tales. Knucklehead is a collection of stories from his childhood that had me laughing out loud in my tiny studio. Highly enjoyable!

Stitches by David Small. David Small is a writer and illustrator who won the Caldecott Medal in 2001 for So, You want to be President. Stitches is mentioned a lot on various book review publications and I thought I would give it a go. An honest and intense memoir of Small's childhood in Detroit. (a side note: it's kind of random that both Scieszka and Small are from Michigan) The illustrations are dark and brooding and convey the unhappiness of his youth. His mother had secrets, his father never talked, his grandmother had mental health issues. It ends on hope and is definitely worthy of any graphic novel collection.

French Milk by Lucy Knisley. For some reason, we have this under "Fiction," however, it is not a fiction book. It's actually a travelogue of the month when Lucy Knisley and her mother went to live in a Paris apartment for a month. It's a wonderful journal about her time in Paris, her obsession with French milk and also Oscar Wilde. It's funny, sad, and sweet. Great read and also made me want to live and eat my way through France. Here's a little animation video she made:

Book Drops: "Christo and Jeanne-Claude" by Jan Greenberg (Childrens) (rated 5 stars)

Christo and Jeanne Claude: Through the Gates and Beyond

by Jan Greenberg

I read about Jeanne-Claude’s passing (http://flavorwire.com/51536/rip-female-half-of-art-duo-christo-and-jeanne-claude-dies-at-74) on November 18 and had remembered that I had ordered this book for the library. It just came in so I read it and here is my little review. Rest In Peace Jeanne-Claude.

“All of our projects have this fragile quality. They will be gone tomorrow. They have total freedom. That is why they cannot stay. Because freedom is the enemy of possession and possession is equal to permanence. We have to have freedom with no strings attached.” – Christo and Jeanne-Claude

Starting with “The Gates” (Central Park, New York City, 1979-2005”) and ending with the possibility of experiencing another Christo and Jeanne-Claude work, this biography of Christo and Jeanne-Claude is a great introduction to the couple’s work and lives. It is filled with amazing color and black & white photographs, as well as, reproductions of the sketches that Christo drew of their projects. Greenberg and Jordan present a lovely overview of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s works, which include “Wall of Barrels” in Paris and “Running Fence” in California. The images of pieces featured illustrate the monumental scale of each work and also leave the reader with a sense of awe. It is a perfect way to give children a different perspective on art, nature and industry.

I am left wondering however about what will happen with the projects proposed in Colorado and the UAE. I wonder if “The Gates” will be the last…

More on their work: http://www.christojeanneclaude.net/

See more about Christo and Jeanne Claude: Through the Gates and Beyond

Book Drops: "The Espressologist" by Kristina Springer (YA) (rated 4 stars)

The Espressologist

by Kristina Springer

“Get a Little Love with Your Latte” is the tagline for this teen romance. Jane Turner has been a barista at Wired Joe’s, who keeps a little notebook filled with notes about coffee drinks and coffee drinkers. Did you ever think that your coffee choice reflects your personality? or that what you choose to drink can connect you to another coffee drinker?

“The Espressologist” is a fun sweet tale of love and a coffee shop. Reminds me of that Landon Pigg song “Coffee Shop.” Actually, I would suggest, listening to Landon Pigg while reading this book. Great fast read and probably perfect for the beach or airport layover.

See more about The Espressologist

Book Drops: "The Film Club" by David Gilmour (rated 4 stars)

The Film Club: A Memoir

by David Gilmour

I meant to write this little entry for Nonfiction Mondays but I was having a tough day yesterday. So here it goes:

“If you don’t want to go to school anymore, then you don’t have to.” These words never would have escaped my parents lips but David Gilmour spoke these exact words to his 15-year-old son, Jesse. And Jesse took his father up on the offer. What would you do if your child dropped out and you allowed it to happen? You helped it along. Would you just put faith in the fact that things would just work out? That it seems is what David Gilmour did. It was challenging. There was a rule – No Drugs! – but amid the challenges, heartaches, worry, David and Jesse were able to bond in a way a lot of people cannot with their parents. They spent time watching movies. Discussing them. Critiquing them. Hating some. Loving others. And in the end, things did turn out all right. A great little memoir filled with love for a son and the movies they watched together.

See more about The Film Club: A Memoir