we two by gillian gill

this will be a short book review, because i don't know how many of you are interested in the victorian era. if you've noticed, i'm extremely interested in british victorian lit these days. this book, we two: victoria and albert: rulers, partners, rivals is a new biography by well-known women's biographer gillian gill.

the book is very interesting and engaging. i had to read this for work because the author is coming to speak for a programming event. in the 90s, gill wrote what is now widely considered the authority on mary baker eddy and her life. so she'll be speaking on her work on eddy (which is a huge tome and i read it shortly after i got this job) and this newest book. so my department is doing a book club in preparation for her program. her other books include one on agatha christie and also florence nightingale.

despite the fact that i read it for work, i really couldn't put it down. it's fascinating to learn that all these victorian values that have seeped into today's culture (or that we hate to think of from the past) actually came from albert, not victoria. and it's amazing to read about albert's misogyny and inferiority complex that propelled him to be a kind of miser to all but his loving family.

i highly recommend it!

my afternoon with val

kilmer, that is.

yup, got to hang out this afternoon with a select group of people and talk to val. (val is what everyone else called him there, so i will refer to him as val here as well...)

i never talk about work. this is mostly because it would be a large source of misanthropy, and these days i'm trying to be a more positive person. but here is where i will talk about work, because that's how val figures in.

val kilmer is a christian scientist, NOT a scientologist like some other hollywood folks. i work for a small museum and library that seeks to educate the world about the life and writings of mary baker eddy, the founder of christian science. val has been coming to my library to do research for a new film he is producing and starring in about mark twain and mary baker eddy. mark twain kind of disliked mary baker eddy, mostly because he was jealous of her. i mean, he respected her, but also felt that she couldn't have achieved what she did in her life.

anyway, i digress...

val kilmer is playing mark twain in this movie. he is doing an evening program for my work, but instead of really giving a lecture about his movie, he is actually doing a bit from it as mark twain--all in costume, etc. the whole deal. so today after work, my boss, who is also the programming manager, needed to get some people together to see his rehearsal for tomorrow night's program. i was one of those select 15 people. val came in dressed as mark twain and did his bit, but then he just hung out with us. we got to ask questions, we chatted, we laughed, he was really great. it was cool too, because even though i am required by work to "volunteer" at this program tomorrow night, i am doubtful i will actually be able to see it. i got an intimate sneak peak instead :)

this is my second run-in with val at work, and i'm sure there will be others. he is still researching and writing the movie, and he is friends with several people i work with. now to just work on getting that bit part...

part of this is a little out-of-sync, but i hope you'll enjoy! i did--he's a rather compelling twain. oh, and everything he says in this little vignette are the real mark twain's words. this is meant to be a major hollywood production, not about christian science, or the christian science church, but about these two people. it sounds interesting, so i hope it succeeds.

mmm... i love warm, toasty breads for breakfast!

so i've made a new recipe, something i've dubbed tropical bread. and it's perfect with my mango jam!


ann's tropical bread

3/4 c sorghum flour
3/4 c brown rice flour
3/4 c blanched almond slices, toasted
1/3 c sugar
1 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1 ripe banana, mashed
1 egg
1/2 c pineapple juice
1/4 c oil
2 tsp vanilla

1. mix together dry ingredients (flours down to cinnamon). whisk together to combine thoroughly.
2. mix together wet ingredients. blend wet ingredients into dry ingredients.
3. pour into a well-greased bread pan and bake at 350 for 50 minutes (or up to an hour, depending on your oven).
4. eat!

if you are not gluten free, you can make this with 1 1/2 c regular white flour, omit the xanthan gum, and you may need to increase the pineapple juice to make a loose batter.

fresh jam!

i made jam for the first time ever last friday. and i made it in my bread maker. but before i tell you how i did it, i want to first give a brief statement on gelatin...

gelatin is NOT what you use to make jam. you use pectin.

i used gelatin...

before i was gluten free, i was strictly gelatin free as well. things have changed, my friends. and one of the main reasons is because i have found that marshmallow fruit and cereal bars are a great snack for me during the day. you see, i can no longer eat many cereals, or pretzels, or crackers, or sundry other items that i would normally snack on. so i have found that these marshmallow fruit and cereal bars are generally healthy and a good tasting snack.

now back to jam and gelatin. i was at a different store than i normally go to. i could not, for the life of me, find pectin. i know what pectin looks like--i have purchased it before. i looked in the baking aisle, i looked with the jell-o, i looked with canning supplies. i did not find pectin. so i changed a normal jam recipe for the bread maker. AND I MADE DELICIOUS JAM!!! now, i will find pectin for future jam-making ventures, but for now, i am delightfully happy :)

here it is folks:


mango bread maker jam

2 pkgs unflavored gelatin
1 cup water
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 cup sugar
1 bag frozen mango from trader joe's (24 oz.)

1. dissolve gelatin in water in a bowl. add sugar and lemon juice.
2. dump into bread maker pan. add mango. snap into bread maker. find the JAM course and press START.
3. done, in 1 hour and 20 minutes :)

i put mine in a pretty jar that i had received fresh jam in not too long ago and put into the refrigerator. i heard that fresh bread maker jam needs to be consumed in 4 weeks or frozen. it made such a large amount that the rest is in the freezer. you should make some too! you'll love it!

the last american man by elizabeth gilbert

friends, you will truly be interested in this book. yes, this is the same woman who wrote that narcissistic piece 'o crap called eat, pray, love--but this book is good!

it's about a real man named eustace conway who has created a sanctuary for himself called turtle island. eustace in many ways took himself out of modern society, but in other ways has truly embraced it. he left his suburban home at the age of 17 to live in the woods in a teepee. he has hiked the entire appalachian trail, set the world record for riding his horse across the entire u.s., driven a buggy through the entire great plains of the u.s. and canada, and more. yet he went around to schools to teach people that they could all live like him, he has opened turtle island up for campers, etc., and whenever he has accomplished some great feat he has had the media following him. what a contradiction! and if you read it, there's a spot where he talks about his dream home, and it has walk-in closets. interesting for a man with few possessions...

but he's incredibly interesting and i think gilbert does a good job getting you close to eustace. i say only getting close to eustace because i don't think it's possible to get into his head--nor would i want to be there. but you get close, you imagine what he smells like, and if you're like me you can't imagine living like him. not because he's secluded or works hard, but because i really like a real shower everyday and i like good food--oh, and warm blankets... (he has nearly starved on so many occasions and i can just imagine how cold it was sleeping outside every day for years!)

in any case, it's a really fun and quick read, and i must say that i am fascinated by eustace conway, even though i don't think i'd really want to meet him.

harry potter exhibit

if you live in boston and you have seen the harry potter movies, you should go to the museum of science to see the exhibit. it's only in town until february 21st!

According to the website, the exhibit showcases "the extreme artistry and craftsmanship" that went into the making of the movies. it's a great show. i bought lee tickets as a little holiday gift and we went with a friend that i work with and her boyfriend. it was worth the $26 ticket price. it has costumes, wands, models of creatures in the films, sets--like ron and harry's beds in their hogwart's dormitory. it's just great. and it really makes you appreciate what has gone into these films and the talents of the people behind the scenes.

i highly recommend it, even if you're not a huge harry potter fan. i'm not, but lee is, and i thoroughly enjoyed it!

you can check out the website for the traveling exhibition in general here. it's in toronto next!

a new type of meatball (and sid relaxes...)

now that i can't eat gluten, i can no longer partake of any fake meat products. this is not really a problem for me as i rarely ate them in the past. if you don't eat meat, why would you want a fake meat product? however, i did enjoy veggie meatballs and bacon on occassion. meatballs, because tofu is just not satisfying with pasta and bacon when i wanted something smoky--because i'm not a fan of fake smoke flavoring either. bacon alternatives will have to be explored another day. but today, i can tell you about the tofu ball!

i modified this recipe from one on the post-punk kitchen site, again, my favorite vegan ladies. they were really good! i used peanut butter and co's the heat is on peanut butter and shallots rather than onion. AMAZING! but next time, i will not bother to coat in flour and pan fry. it's too labor-intensive. instead, i will coat my hands in oil and rub the balls down (yikes!!!) and bake them until they are browned and crispy-ish on the outside.

tofu balls

1 lb. extra firm tofu
1 shallot, fine diced and sauteed
3 tbsp peanut butter
3 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 cup breadcrumbs (i used a gluten free brand)
black pepper, to taste
dried basil, to taste
dried oregano, to taste

1. combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl. squish together with your hands really well!
2. roll into 1 1/2 inch balls.
if frying:
3. coat in flour of your choice--i used white rice flour. pan fry in a non-stick skillet with hot oil until browned on all sides.
or bake as i mentioned above.

and the next morning, this is what my cat sid looked like. these are too cute not to post. he was tuckered out from something! perhaps he was still digesting delicious tofu balls :) (just kidding, he did not eat them, but he would because MAN does he love peanut butter!) in any case, he has never sat like this on the couch before, so i couldn't resist taking pictures.

full sun in the face.

and with his head down.

awwww...