Wednesday, May 13, 2020

Mario’s Linguine With Clam Sauce #Recipe and #Giveaway by Leslie Karst


LADIES AND GENTS, today is the first post from our newest member, Leslie Karst! Please give a warm welcome. She is a terrific writer and enthusiastic cook. I'm thrilled to be sharing Wednesdays with her.  I'll let Leslie tell you a bit about herself.  And don't miss her fabulous giveaway. ~ Daryl


WELCOME, LESLIE!


This is my first post as a new member of the Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen gang, and I want to thank all the MLK gals for inviting me to be a part of this fabulous blog. It’s an enormous honor, and I’m eager to share my love of food and cooking with all of you!

For those who don’t know me, I write the Sally Solari culinary mysteries, which take place in the beautiful beach town of Santa Cruz, California:
Sally, a fourth generation Italian American, has found herself caught between two cultures—that of her father’s traditional Italian seafood eatery, and that of the newly arrived “foodies,” whose food revolution has taken the old-generation Italian fishermen and restaurateurs completely by surprise. Throw a few dead bodies into the mix and Sally’s once peaceful life heats up like a cast iron skillet over an open flame.


For my very first recipe as an official MLKer, I thought I’d present a recipe from the first book in my series, Dying for a Taste: Linguine with Clam Sauce. This is one of the signature dishes prepared by Sally’s father, Mario, at their family restaurant out on the historic Santa Cruz fisherman’s wharf. The flat shape of the linguine (“little tongues,” in Italian) provides the perfect vehicle to soak up this luscious sauce and, served with a tossed green salad and crunchy francese bread, the dish makes for a surprisingly easy meal.



INGREDIENTS (makes 4 generous servings)

3 tablespoons olive oil
6 cloves peeled garlic, thinly sliced (¼ cup)
½ teaspoon red chili pepper flakes (optional)
8 oz. clam juice (1 bottle)
1 cup dry white wine (Mario uses Pinot Grigio)
2 pounds clams
2 tablespoons butter
1 pound dried linguine
½ cup chopped Italian (flat-leaf) parsley
salt and pepper, to taste
chili flakes for garnish (optional)


my mise en place (messo in posto?)

Any type of clams will work for this dish, but the hardshell varieties—such as Littleneck, Manila, or Cherry Stones—have a lot less grit and, if store-bought, should already be cleaned and flushed of sand. Discard any clams that have cracked shells, or which are open and won’t close within a couple minutes after being tapped on the kitchen counter.

the Manila clams I used


DIRECTIONS

Start by getting a large pot of salted water heating for the linguine.

In another large, heavy pot (big enough to hold the entire dish when it’s been made), heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat until glistening. Add the garlic and fry for a minute, stirring often so it don’t burn. When the garlic starts to brown, add the bottle of clam juice and the wine to the pot.


Let this simmer until reduced by about a third.

Robin hanging out while I heat the linguine water
and simmer the clam juice and wine

By now your water should be boiling. Dump in the linguine and cook until al dente. When the pasta is done, drain it, return it to the pot, and toss it in 1 T olive oil to keep from sticking together.

Meanwhile, turn the heat up to high under the sauce and dump the clams into the pot and cover. When they are all open (from 4 to 8 minutes, depending on the type of clams), remove them to a bowl with a slotted spoon and cover the bowl to keep them warm.


Leaving the heat on high, let the sauce boil (uncovered) until reduced by half. Add the butter and let it melt, and then turn off the heat under the pot.


Dump the cooked linguine into the sauce pot.


Stir it all up well, so all the pasta is coated with sauce. Add half the parsley, and salt and pepper to taste, and then add back the clams and any liquid that has collected in the bowl, and stir it all together:


Serve in large, shallow bowls and garnish with the rest of the chopped parsley, and chili flakes, if desired (see top photo). For a more elegant presentation you can plate up the linguini without the clams and then arrange them around the edge of the bowls. Buon appetito!



the remnants of my meal, along with
a green salad and francese bread


The daughter of a law professor and a potter, Leslie Karst learned early, during family dinner conversations, the value of both careful analysis and the arts—ideal ingredients for a mystery story. Putting this early education to good use, she now writes the Sally Solari Mysteries, a culinary series set in Santa Cruz, California which has twice been nominated for the Lefty Award for Best Humorous Mystery. An ex-lawyer like her sleuth, Leslie also has degrees in English literature and the culinary arts. She and her wife and their Jack Russell mix split their time between Santa Cruz and Hilo, Hawai‘i.

Visit Leslie to learn more about her and her books:
Leslie also blogs with Chicks on the Case


AND NOW FOR THE GIVEAWAY!

To celebrate my joining the Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen blog, I’m giving away a copy of the first book in my Sally Solari series, Dying for a Taste—yes, the one with the Linguine with Clam Sauce recipe—to one lucky reader. To be entered, all you have to do is comment below and answer this question: What is your favorite food memory from your childhood? (The giveaway runs through Tues., May 19th. Please leave your email so I can contact you, should you win.)


146 comments:

  1. Welcome. I’ve read all of this series so I don’t want to win. I have enjoyed it.

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  2. Welcome to MLK, Leslie! I loved eating linguine with clams but the recipe I made used tomatoes which I can no longer eat due to allergies. Thank you for this new recipe which I can try.

    Don't enter me for the giveaway since I have read all your books.

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    1. Glad to give you a new recipe, Grace! Mangia, mangia!

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  3. Welcome to the blog, dear Leslie! I know we're going to get some delicious recipes from you. You know I love this series and all our readers will, too.

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    1. Grazie, mille, Edith! So excited to be an MLKer!

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  4. A favorite childhood memory is baking with my Mom and Grandma, which I'm starting to do with my daughter! I haven't read your series and am always looking for new series!

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    1. Yay--way to carry on the tradition, Rita! That's fab!

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  5. I’ll definitely be making your linguine with clam sauce! My favorite memory is baking cakes, pies, and dinner meals with my grams. She did it all from memory and always tasted the same ��

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    1. Email is booksnpugs (at) gmail (dot) com

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    2. That's a special memory, Cherisse. And nothing like a grandma's baking!

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    3. When my parents divorced and I met my stepmom. I loved her right away. Though I loved my mom, she didn't cook and we ate mostly frozen meals every night. My step mom COOKED and showed me how to cook also. I still make all my childhood favorites from her

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  6. My favorite food memory from my childhood is coming home from church to find Sunday Dinner spread out on the dining room table. My father often stayed home to cook dinner, and he was a better cook than my mother!
    Lisacobblestone(at)aol(dot)com

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    1. Sunday Dinner plays a part in my books, as well--Sally's nonna makes Sunday gravy for the family each week.

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  7. What a delectable recipe. My favorite memory about food is helping my grandmother who lived with us and learning from her. I could not be an expert baker as she was but hoped one day to replicate her treats. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. Can anyone ever be as expert a baker as their grandma? Or is it merely that nothing can ever match our memories? So glad you have those with her!

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  8. When I was young my mother used to make the most simple,healthy and tasty meals. I enjoyed them for the love and care she lavished upon these memorable dishes. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  9. I remember my mom and dad making homemade meatballs. And they were tasty.
    Jess
    maceoindo at yahoo dot com

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  10. So many of them, but I loved watching my granny make from scratch biscuits, which she did most every day. I loved them more than sweets.
    browninggloria(at(hotmail(dot(com)

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    1. Nothing like homemade biscuits straight out of the oven! (With butter and honey--be still my heart!)

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  11. Welcome to the Kitchen, Leslie! We are THRILLED to have you cooking with us!

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  12. Welcome, Leslie! A favorite food memory? One is Dad making shapes in the skillet with pancake batter. I remember a ship's wheel in particular. Another is going out to eat at a Mexican restaurant. I didn't care for Tex-Mex at that young age but loved a platter of chili con queso that I would always order as my meal.
    patdupuy@yahoo.com

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    1. Okay, now you've made me really hungry, Pat! That ship's wheel sounds amazing--what a fun idea!

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  13. My favorite childhood Food memory is when my family and I will go down to Galveston and get a net run of shrimp. We would then go back to our home, fry them, and invited Our friends and neighbors over for a big party.
    Kitten143 (at) Verizon (dot) net

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    1. That sounds so fun--and delicious--Christine! I visited Galveston once, years ago. I sure loved the food from East Texas--yum!

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  14. I have a number of wonderful food memories but the first that came to mind was a treat from my mother: a plate with three piles - strawberries, whipped cream and icing sugar. I was probably no older than 5 or 6 and I though I was in dessert heaven! mgshepherd2003@yahoo.ca

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    1. That does sound good--and so much fun for a little kid to get to dip the berries in the cream and sugar! Love it!

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  15. Welcome, Leslie. So great to have you here. Big hugs. Cyber ones, of course. With my mask on. LOL ~ Daryl

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    1. Thank you, Daryl/Avery! So happy to be part of the MLK family!

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  16. My favorite food memory is “helping” my mother and grandmother can vegetables from the garden. I’m just starting on this mystery series and can’t wait to read all of the books.

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    1. Thank you so much! Canning vegetables and fruit is on my list of things to do that I have not yet--thinking this might just be the year to do it, lol.

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  17. Awesome giveaway! Thanks for the chance!jlwinc.org@live.ca

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  18. My mom’s paprika chicken and rice. I can still taste it ❤️
    Butlerrich at Comcast dot net

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  19. My Gram made a frozen desert from cream cheese and cranberries and I don't know what else - she made it in muffin tins and it was so good - thanks for the contest - your series sounds wonderful - trwilliams69(at)msn(dot)com

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  20. Welcome, Leslie!
    A favorite memory is going to the outdoor market for fresh fruit and vegetables with my grandfather.
    jtcgc at yahoo dot com

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    1. Interesting how so many of our memories are of our grandparents! Outdoor markets are the best. And grandparents.

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  21. Favorite memory = Mom's beef and noodles! Always happy to find new authors to add to my list,so welcome Leslie

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    1. Thank you! And beef and noodles sounds like what I'd love to have for dinner tonight!

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  22. School forgot to include email.. philip99@comcast.net

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  23. My fav food memory was from going to visit my grandparents and going out for dinner to get bbq ribs. In my foster home I did the cooking from 9 until it was shut down and my specialty was chicken that is fried but I had so much help from my home ec teacher. I had many other chores to do such as making lunches for all the other foster kids and I remember also in 8th grade we had to get up in front of the class and do a talk. So I thought ok when I was done with making everyone a cucumber sandwich i threw the rest of the leftover in a bag and I made one for the class to watch when I was done wow this was late 60's we are talking about my english teacher asked if he could have it. Well that was my lunch but I said ok and he didn't know that I didn't eat breakfast as we weren't served that so i went on till dinner and hoped that we had dinner that night. ptclayton2 at aol.com peggy clayton p.s. love clams and love seafood lived in later years 20 min from SF till moved to Ia

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    1. That's quite a story--wow. Fried chicken is one of my favorite foods, but love cucumber sandwiches, too!

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  24. Welcome!!! I have never had Linguine w/Clam Sauce it looks delicious. Thanks for sharing.😃
    There are so many favorite food memories it is hard to choose. I just know my mother could make anything taste great and the kitchen was like a magic place for me. My mother sometimes would get so frustrated with me getting in her way she would make me sit by this closet in the kitchen. Christmas was the best time she let me help her make these Christmas Snowman Teacake Cookies every year. Just last month I searched through my mother's old recipe books for a recipe my sister wanted to make for her family. Good times and good cooking!
    Thanks for the giveaway!
    bcollin981(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. I agree--the kitchen was when I was a kid, and still is a magical place. Those Teacake Cookies sound sublime!

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  25. Loved making Samores over a fire. trichie@windstream.net

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  26. My aunt mildreds potato dumplings.

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    1. My grandmother made amazing chicken and dumplings. Yum!

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  27. When ever my mother made baked custard as we didn't get desert often. Love love love.

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    1. Love baked custard! (And anything with cream, actually, lol.)

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  28. My mother made homemade Christmas cookies in all different shapes and colors. Santa Claus, Christmas Tree, Bells, Stockings and many others. It was the best thing for me and still is.
    jlb12563@sbcglobal.net

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    1. How I loved decorating the Christmas cookies every year--and then eating them!

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  29. Every year starting in November my Mom and I would make homemade cookies, candy, fudge and cheese straws. Just pounds and pounds of it, we would give a lot of it to friends and family, teachers and co-workers. But we always had to make more oatmeal cookies than anything else because my Dad and I would constantly make them disappear.

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    1. I adore oatmeal cookies--so toothsome! (And I love that word--toothsome--too.)

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  30. CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!! Don't enter me in the contest, I've read all your books and LOVED them. Just dropped by to say hi. This looks amazing! As do all your recipes. xoxo

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  31. My grandma would always have a Thalhimers chocolate cake waiting for me when I’d visit. Because I was the youngest I’d get the end piece. That piece had the most chocolate icing. 😁
    Meljprincess at AOL . com

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  32. Looking like a great recipe. Love to read the book. Interesting.

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  33. My mother used to make southern fried chicken with biscuits and gravy. I used to ask for this for my birthday dinner.
    Then one year I realized what I really wanted was the gravy with the pan bits from frying the chicken! Need to fry the chicken, though, to properly flavor the gravy.
    libbydodd at comcast dot net

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    1. Yes, all the rest of the dinner is merely a vehicle for sopping up that luscious gravy, is what I always say.

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  34. Fried bread dough with butter and brown sugar😊my grandma made it thank you for the chance

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  35. Aha! That's what I'm missing from my recipe: the white wine.

    I miss baking in the kitchen while my mom cooked meals. We had this cookbook with an original date bar recipe that I've misplaced over the years.

    (jen@jenniferjchow.com)

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    1. Yes, the wine gives it that je ne sais quoi... (also known as "wine flavor," lol). Hope you find that cookbook!

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  36. oh my grandma's homemade chicken soup with fresh killed chicken. she would take me to the chicken market and would choose the chicken there (this was 1952). I loved to eat the feet, lol. also she made homemade noodles on a wooden board and I always got to help. I was 3 years old and never forgot those days, I can still smell the soup! thanks for the chance to win!

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    1. Fresh chicken is indeed the best. And homemade noodles are SO good!

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  37. Mom's Sunday dinner- Roast Beef,mashed potatoes, peas, gravy. And there were always leftovers for hot roast beef sandwiches later in the week. Yum. ulrich24@comcast.net

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    1. I am getting SO hungry reading all these comments! Is it Sunday yet?

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  38. My favorite food was my mom's homemade dumplings and her homemade apple dumplings

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  39. Welcome to Mystery Lovers' Kitchen! I only recently joined this wonderful group of food-loving mystery writers and have felt at home. I've read DYING FOR A TASTE and highly recommend it. Still have my copy, so don't enter me into the drawing. Happy you're here with us.

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    1. Thank you, Maya! What a swell bunch of gals this is! Great to be a part of the MLK gang!

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  40. Welcome, Leslie! My favorite childhood dinner was the great pork schnitzel my Mom used to make. My Sister makes great schnitzel too, we have it on special occasions when we're together.
    diannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. Oooo...I adore schnitzel! May have to make it sometime soon; thanks for reminding me of it!

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  41. My late Dad used to make the most delicious donuts from scratch. It was a very special treat. Nothing was better than one of those donuts fresh out of the fryer loaded with powdered sugar!! When I got older I helped him make them! I can still taste them!! Awesome!!! Blessedfllady62(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  42. My favorite food memory was tasting everything being made by my grandmother and great aunts for the annual family picnic. Baked Ham, banana croquets, pimento cheese, candied citrus peel, deviled eggs, fruit cocktail fluff, granny's red velvet cupcakes with choice of cream cheese frosting or buttercream, not to mention the bowls of fresh fruit

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  43. Wow, what a spread! Can I come next time you have a picnic?

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  44. Favorite food memory is my mom's lasagna, hubby's greens, grandma's cucumber salad, dad's tomato salad.
    Saamm7(at)msn(dot).com

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  45. Welcome to MLK! My favorite food memories are all the years we've spent Christmas Eve day making treats for Santa (& ourselves).
    turtle6422 at gmail dot com

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  46. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  47. You might find this difficult to believe, but I really like the breaded abalone my mother prepared. I remember helping her pound the abalone with a wooden mallet. It was fun hitting that little slab. I haven't had this for over 35 years. It was a special treat when my dad was a game warden and he knew someone that dived for them. bluedawn95864 at gmail dot com

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    1. I totally believe it, Bonnie--abalone is amazing! A friend brought me one once and after getting it out of the shell (the hardest part) we pounded it, dipped it in flour, and fried it in butter. YUMMMM!!!

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  48. Welcome! My favorite childhood food memory is oyster stew. doward1952(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  49. Welcome to this wonderfully fun blog post all about cozies and food. Yumm. Thank you for sharing your recipe. My husband will love this. Oh but your book looks like it is fun. quilting lady 2 at comcast dot net

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  50. Here's one of my favorite food memories as a child. When the family had big Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners at my grandmother's house, she served giblet gravy. My Uncle Glenn and I did not like the giblets, so she had a special bowl of non- giblet gravy for us. Also, she made the very best cornbread dressing - some people call it stuffing - in the world! 50 years later, members of the family still rave about her cornbread dressing.

    Nancy
    allibrary (at) aol (dot) com

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    1. Not a big fan of giblets myself, so that sounds yummy!

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  51. Whenever I was allowed to buy a treat as a child, I would nab a box of Cracker Jack. Imagine my absolute glee when my older sister and I came across a recipe for caramel corn. I hadn't any idea it could be made at home until then. And the result of our efforts tasted worlds better than what I had been buying from the store!
    little lamb lst at yahoo dot com

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  52. Can’t wait to read this new book

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  53. Krumkake cookies shaped like a sugar cone not as sweet but oh so good with ice cream inside. My paternal grandmother was from Norway. cheetahthecat1986ATgmailDOTcom

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  54. Would love to read this series! Wonderful cover! My favorite memory is my grandmother's sugar cookies with her frosting and she'd color the frosting pink, blue, and green. It was so delicious and I thought it was just the best treat in the world.
    tami.norman@gmail.com

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    1. My grandmother made great sugar cookies, too!

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  55. My Mom always made chili verde, we ate it with tortillas. It was so good! I wish I had made her write down the recipe before she passed.
    houseofstephens6@gmail.com

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    1. ¡Me encanta chile verde! So sorry you didn't write down the recipe, but perhaps you could experiment and come up with a good one!

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  56. Hi Leslie! Welcome to the kitchen. Your recipe looks and sounds as great as the book. I have so many food memories, it's hard to pick just one. Things I recall from my early childhood in New Orleans include crawfish boils, my grandma Dot's fried chicken,Mom's spaghetti & meatballs, stuffed artichokes, potato salad and her chicken gumbo.
    lola 777_22 at hotmail dot com

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    1. Whoa, those are some mighty fine food memories! Crawfish boil...ahhhhh.

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  57. My favorite food to eat growing is spaghetti & meatballs & Fried Chicken. Love the cover of this book and its sounds like a great read. Thanks for your great generosity. lindamay4852@yahoo.com

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  58. There are so many. If I have to choose just one, I'd have to say going to little "hole in the wall" restaurants when we lived in Okinawa. We were usually the only non Asian people in the place. The first one we went to, I was 5 or 6 & my parents ordered ski (a Japanese rice wine). The waitress brought it out heated in a little pitcher on a tray with 4 little ski cups. She poured ski into each of the cups & placed one cup in front of each of us. I, of course, tried mine. It was my first time having alcohol in a restaurant & I felt positively grown up. My sister was 2 or 3 & handed hers to my dad without tasting it.

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    1. Your parents sound super cool. Will have to look for ski next time I'm at a Japanese restaurant!

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  59. Welcome! The story that always comes up in our family is one Christmas I was maybe 3, helping my mom make cut out sugar cookies. Suddenly I said "It's snowing." Mom looks out the window- it's not snowing. What the heck? Turns back to me pushing flour off the table making it "snow" onto the floor!

    kozo8989(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  60. I remember my dad making chili. He would open up the fridge and start squirting in all different kinds of condiments like ketchup, mustard, A-1 steak sauce.. and more. I’d ask him “Why are you doing that?” and he’d reply “It gives it extra flavor.” It was soo good. The smell in the kitchen made our mouths water just waiting for the chili to be done simmering. To this day I love making chili. And eating it too, of course! Thank you for this chance to win! herndon.jessica.d@gmail.com

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    1. Your dad sounds like he cooks like I do, lol.

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  61. My fondest food memories are eating the food my Grandma cooked from the fresh veggies out her and Grandpa's garden. So yummy! I would love to read your book! almaj80(at)suddenlink(dot)net

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  62. Eating fried spam and loving it yum!!!!! connielee4040@gmail.com

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  63. Mom worked all day and came home and had to make dinner for us...gotta love the 50s. The first the that came to mind was her fried chicken. I could almost smell it cooking. She made the best fried chicken.
    lkish77123 at gmail dot com

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    1. Yes, thanks be to our '50s moms! And I sure love fried chicken.

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  64. Canning vegetables year with my grandfather ��

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    1. A great memory that. We need to bring canning back into our normal lives.

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  65. My favorite memory is of my father coming home from work and picking fresh vegetables from our family garden that we would have for dinner that night. It gave him such enjoyment to nurture the plants and share the resulting produce with us. egoehner(at)roadrunner(dot)com.

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  66. Polenta with Chicken Cacciatore and wild mushrooms. One side of my family was Piedmontese (from around Turin, Italy) so we ate differently than the rest of Italy. Also, I love Bagna Cauda.

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    1. Sally Solari's family in my series is from Liguria, not too far from the Piedmonte, so they would love your family's cooking!

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  67. My Mum made a meatloaf that was just sooo good! I have tried all my life to duplicate it but have only gotten close...never nailed it! I even watched her make it (because she didn't measure anything) but it's never quite as good. My family loves my versions but I keep trying. Mum has been gone a while now and I miss her and making meatloaf makes me little sad still but I will keep trying until I get it!

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    1. I don't think one can ever recreate the dishes their parents and grandparents made, as part of it is THEM, no? But keep trying, because by doing so, you're keeping them alive. And that meatloaf sounds delicious!

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  68. I have many my dad's meatloaf and my mom's pot roast. My favorite which is really quite simple was when my grandmother made her bologna spread for sandwiches! tWarner419@aol.com

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    1. I haven't had a bologna sandwich in years--sounds good!

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  69. Coming from an Italian family every Sunday was pasta night! My grandma would spend hours making her sauce and lasagna, stuffed shells and garlic bread. She always made different kinds of macaroni and as a kid I always looked forward to Sunday dinners!

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  70. Sunday dinner is a big deal in my protagonist Sally Solari's family--her nonna makes a big pot of Sunday gravy each week!

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  71. Welcome. One of my favorite food memories is making oatmeal walnut cookies with my Grandma. I felt very grown up wearing her apron and helping. Another is going to the ice cream parlor with my dad. It was our time alone together and I loved it.
    clugston.kathy@yahoo.com

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    1. Ahhh... Sure looking forward to being able to once again go to an ice cream parlor!

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  72. You know, it's not so much a food memory, but having all the family from Grandma down to me, all together. Thank you for entering me. catwoman-1(at)comcast(dot)net

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    1. Yes, breaking bread together with family or friends is one of the most important aspects of meals, I agree@

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  73. Had to look up what that was (can you tell I'm not from the South?)--sounds fab!

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  74. Hi Leslie! Very appreciative of you doung this giveaway. My favorite food memory from childhood is my mom always taking 3 days before christmas to make tamales. All my siblings would help her with the dough, meat and wrapping the corn husks. It was so wonderful knowing each of us helped and made the meal more delicious, especially since she only made it at Christmas!
    email:saltvevo@gmail.com

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    1. ¡Me encanta tamales! I especially love the sweet ones traditionally made a Christmas time--heaven!

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