Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Writer's Block Quilt Block and Tea Time with Lucy Maude



Join me for tea with Lucy Maud Montgomery, best known for her beloved Anne of Green Gables series.  This year I decided to participate in the 5th annual Lucy Maud Montgomery Reading Challenge sponsored by Reading to Know.  You can check it out here.

Enjoy some tea and Coconut Macaroons with us!  The recipe comes from The Anne of Green Gables Cookbook by Kate Macdonald and illustrated by Barbara DiLella. 

Coconut Macaroons
3 room-temperature eggs
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 cup icing sugar (powdered sugar)
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1.  Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. 
2.  Cut a large paper bag into a rectangle that will just fit on a cookie sheet.
3.  Break the eggs and separate them, putting the yolks in a small bowl and the whites in a large bowl.  Beat the whites with an electric mixer until foamy.  Add the cream of tartar and beat until the egg whites are stiff and glossy but not dry. 
4.  With a rubber spatula, carefully fold the sugar, coconut, and almond extract into the egg whites.  Do not stir.
5.  Drop the batter by teaspoonfuls onto the brown-paper covered cookie sheet - about 1 inch apart.  Bake the macaroons for 20 to 25 minutes, until they look dry on top.
6.  Remove the cookie sheet from the oven.  Dampen a tea towel and lay it on the counter.  Lift the brown paper and macaroons onto the tea towel.  Let them cool completely.  Peel the macaroons off the brown paper and put them on a plate.



Reading to Know - Book ClubFor the challenge, I first read The Blue Castle, which is the only one of L. M. Montgomery's books not set on Prince Edward Island.  It's one of only two of her books written for adults as well as the first book I read of hers that wasn't an Anne book.  After reading the intro to the book, written by Collett Tracey, I didn't think I would like the book - but I really did enjoy it.  The Blue Castle is also the January selection for the Reading to Know Book Club, which I'm participating in this year.

I also read two picture book biographies about the author.  Lucy Maud Montgomery: A Writer's Life by Elizabeth MacLeod has lots of photographs as well as a timeline.  Lucy Maud Montgomery: The Author of Anne of Green Gables, written and illustrated by Alexandra Wallner, has beautiful illustrations.  They both provide insight into the author and her books and are quick reads worth reading, I think.



I reread Anne of Green Gables this fall and am currently reading the second book in the series, Anne of Avonlea.  And I'm waiting for the wonderful Anne of Green Gables video (starring Megan Follows) from the library.  I have seen it many times, but I never tire of watching it! 



Are you a kindred spirit?  Do you enjoy reading Lucy Maud Montgomery books?  Inquiring minds want to know!  Answer in the comment section below.  By commenting, you'll be entered to win a hardcover copy of Prayers for Sale by Sandra Dallas!  The more you comment, the greater your chances of winning!  If you are reading this via email, you must click on the title of my blog post to be able to comment and read the comments of others.

I'm linking up with the following posts:
Tea Cup Tuesday - http://www.marthasfavorites.com/ 
Tea Time Tuesday - http://sandimyyellowdoor.blogspot.com/
Tuesday Cuppa Tea -http://www.antiquesandteacups.info/
Friends Sharing Tea~
http://blog.bernideens.com/
Share Your Cup Thursday~
http://jannolson.blogspot.com/
Home Sweet Home~
http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/
Free Motion by the River - http://www.conniekresin.com/2014/01/linky-tuesday_21.html

You might also enjoy reading my previous blog post Ladies' Aid Quilt Block.

15 comments:

  1. Your blue tea set is very pretty! Living here on PEI, one is able to pick up the Anne books everywhere. I have read them all many times but I have not read The Blue Castle. I must look for it. They have a museum out at Green Gables in Cavendish where you can visit and see many artifacts from Montgomery's life. It is very interesting. Have you ever visited?
    I have visited Green Gables many times over the years and I still love to walk the lanes where she walked. My father used to golf at Green Gables almost every weekend when I was a girl and it was such fun exploring. I don't much care for the winters here but in the summertime, there is no nicer place to be. Thank you for sharing and coming to my Anniversary Tea Party. Hope you're having a lovely week.

    Blessings,
    Sandi

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  2. Oh how wonderful that you share these books with us and your knowledge of Lucy. I also love your teaset and I do have that little cookbook. I got mine from PEI and used to sell them in my shop.
    So glad you shared at Friends Sharing Tea!

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  3. I love the china you have shared. The books are amazing. Thank you for letting me put my name in the hat. Blessings, Martha

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  4. Love Lucy Maud - and your blue and white is lovely! The lighthouse in the motif reminds me of the setting in "Anne's House of Dreams" which details Anne and Gilbert's first year of marriage and is my favorite of the Anne books. I have that little cookbook, too - and macaroons are to swoon for! Be ye blessed!
    Joy!
    Kathy

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  5. Lovely post! I have read all the Anne books, but that was many years ago. I need to re visit them : )
    Your blue and white dishes are beautiful. They look so fresh and cheery.
    Hugs,
    Terri

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  6. Our 2010 Road Scholar trip to P.E.I. and the Magdalen Islands included a tour of Green Gables. It was wonderful! http://withstringsattached.blogspot.com/2010/09/just-few-photos-from-our-trip.html

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  7. Love your Currier & Ives dishes, and the macaroon recipe is my husbands favorite tea time treat! I must admit I have never read the book, so I guess it gets added to the list! Thanks so much for sharing your wonderful post and linking to Tuesday Cuppa Tea!
    Ruth

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  8. Sending a link of this post to my daughter. We did an literary based curriculum using Anne of Green Gables one year when homeschooling. It is still a favorite. In my humble opinion the world could use a little more Anne a little less MTV but who am I to judge? Have a blessed week.

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  9. I love the Anne of Green Gables books. I need to reread them. I gave a set of them to my BFF's daughter this year. My BFF doesn't think she ever read them, so, she was going to read along.

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  10. Yes, I am a kindred spirit! I love anything Anne of Green Gables and Lucy Maud Montgomery. Just checked my book collection and I do have The Blue Castle. It has been quite a few years since I read it, so I guess it's about time to reread it.
    My most favorite trip ever was when my sister and her family took me with them to PEI, touring Green Gables and all the other LMM sights. We even stayed at Dalvay By the Sea which is the hotel shown in the opening scene of the movie. It was ALL wonderful!

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  11. I do remember reading Anne of Green Gables in high school. Enjoyed your pictures of your tea set. I have a lovely cocoa set that was my mothers. Perhaps I could use it for a tea party sometime soon.

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  12. I collect this blue set when we first got married from Standard grocery for buying groceries!! I taught Anne of Green Gables and have read several Anne books and will try some other Maud books. Thanks for introducing me to them.

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  13. LOVE L.M. Montgomery and Anne of Green Gables - I'll have to look for that book - it sounds intriguing - gorgeous post! I do appreciate you sharing with A Return to Loveliness,
    Kathy

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  14. I'm glad you had a chance to venture outside of Anne for the L.M. Montgomery Reading Challenge this year. It's easy to get stuck in a rut with reading, but the book club gives a nice opportunity to break free.

    I generally avoid reading introductions to books if they're written by someone other than the author--too often they try to do some sort of in-depth analysis that sucks the joy out of the book (better to analyze after you've read, in my humble opinion.)

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