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Food with Attitude: Audrey Lane Stirs the Pot and Bitchin’ Kitchen

17 Dec

Audrey Lane Stirs the Pot
by Alexis Hall
Audrey Lane Stirs the Pot is the third LGBTQ Romance novel in Hall’s Winner Bakes All Series about a British cooking competition in the vein of the Great British Baking Show (or Bake-off depending on which side of the Atlantic you are on). I enjoyed books one (Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake) and two (Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble) in the series, but was especially interested in this entry which focuses on a romance between the foul-mouthed producer Jennifer Hallet and a feisty contestant on the latest season of the show. I couldn’t wait to see the grumpy Hallet show some vulnerability and fall in love and Audrey was a charmer. I liked how the experience of Bake Off helped Audrey work through some previous feelings of inadequacy and find a place for herself where she could not only be valued, but also value herself. Each book in the series take place in different seasons so it is not necessary to read them in any particular order though this worked well as a satisfying end to the trilogy. Alexis Hall is being spotlighted on Hoopla this month, where you can checkout many of his great novels!

Bitchin’ Kitchen
Back when the Cooking Channel first spun off of Food Network they would often air original programs that were filmed in Canada. One of the quirkiest of these was Nadia G’s Bitchin’ Kitchen which was like if you merged a cooking show with a PG version of Pee Wee’s Playhouse. Besides Nadia, there are three additional over the top actors who play experts and provide information on things like spices and the health benefits of foods. Nadia whose family immigrated from Italy, grew up in Montreal so often her dishes put a twist on Italian food or work in popular French Canadian ingredients like Maple Syrup. Each episode has a theme like Recession Recipes or Childhood Favorites. One of the craziest moments was season 2’s Christmas Special which featured a goofy music video including other foodie personalities such as Andrew Zimmer, the Black Metal Chef and the Epic Meal Time Crew (Nadia is also a musician). Bitchin’ Kitchen ran for three seasons before spinning off to the travel show Bite This with Nadia G. This cult show isn’t for everyone, but if you are looking for a truly unusual, edgy cooking program then this one might be a treat.

Written by:
Aimee Harris
Information and Digital Services Manager

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Sisters Cooking Up Competition: A Catered Bake-Off and The Chicken Sisters

25 Jun

A Catered Bake-Off
by Isis Crawford
A Catered Bake-Off is the latest in Isis Crawford’s long running cozy Mystery with Recipes series. I had read a few in the series in the past and enjoyed them so was curious to give this one a peak since I’m a fan of The Great British Baking Show something that the New York based competition in the story took inspiration from. The Simmons sisters Bernie and Libby run a catering company A Little Taste of Heaven and are excited to participate in the baking competition, but from the start of the first run through in preparations for filming, disasters abound; some like a herd of goats in the tent are funny, but when a judge receives life-threatening injuries from an espresso machine, it becomes much more serious. A creepy anonymous prologue which sets the suspenseful tone for the story, lets the reader in on the fact that these aren’t just horrible accidents. The sisters must solve the mystery before the killer comes for them. The story weaves in some contemporary issues like the real estate crisis which keep it feeling current. It was easy also to jump in to the drama even not having read all of the other novels that came before this one since the novel largely focused on a group of new characters rather than a huge cast of reoccurring ones. The author adds a personal element by including 3 recipes from family and friends at the end of the story. Fans of cozy mysteries like Donna Andrews’s Meg Langslow Mysteries should enjoy this tasty treat.

The Chicken Sisters part of Hoopla’s Hallmark+ BingePass
The Chicken Sisters reminded me of the Gilmore Girls if the family/community dramedy were located in the South rather than in New England its fun quips, but at a slower pace with a southern drawl. The story is about two beloved fried chicken restaurants feuding over a generations old grudge, which was only increased by a Romeo/Juliet romance between two of the younger generations. The TV series is based on the book by K. J. Dell’Antonia. Wendy Malick and Lea Thompson are the stars at the two matriarchs, but the younger generations of children and grandchildren are also charming. When the TV show Kitchen Clash comes to their town it heats up the competition between the two restaurants and forces them to deal with the family drama that has been simmering for so long. It is definitely good that this addictive drama is part of the Hallmark+ BingePass. You can watch as much of the show and other Hallmark Chanel series and movies as you have time for over a 7 day period using just one of your Hoopla checkouts. I also recommend streaming the mystery movie series Curious Cater (based on the books by Diane Mott Davidson) , Murder, She Baked/Hannah Swenson Mysteries (based on the books by Joanne Fluke), and the Aurora Teagarden Mysteries (based on the books by Charlaine Harris).

Written by:
Aimee Harris
Information and Digital Services Manager

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