Category: The Bookish Foodie

Book Review | “Recipes and Road Stories: Life on the road with sisters Hannah & Caroline Melby” (of the duo) #HanaLena

Posted Friday, 2 October, 2015 by jorielov , , , 1 Comment

Ruminations & Impressions Book Review Banner created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Unsplash Public Domain Photographer Sergey Zolkin.

Acquired Book By: I  was contacted by Kelsey @ Book Publicity Services in regards to a non-fiction journal account of a sister duo in country music who journalled their experiences on the road whilst touring. I received a complimentary copy of “Recipes and Road Stories” direct from the publicist via Book Publicity Services in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Inspired to Read:

I love fiddles and folk music – I am a champion of bluegrass and outlaw country, and I tend to have my own mind about where I ‘fit’ inside Country music where I most likely am on the fringes rather than being on the ‘inside edge’; however, this personally suits my fancy! I love cross-over artists (Country to Pop) and I love the originality of musicians who can belt out a ballard and write the lyrics which resonate on a heart-pulse the beauty of their message.

When I first learnt about this memoir by a duo of bluegrass who were traditionally trained and who have a natural rhythm of joy surrounding them as they play, I couldn’t find a reason not to accept this book for review! I’m a foodie girl at heart, if you follow my exploits under my #TheBookishFoodie featured cookbook reviews, you’d know how seeing a fusion of home-spun stories of family life, faith-centered journalling of life experiences, and the quirky addition of recipes woven together into a memoir of a rising duo of bluegrass – truly, what isn’t to love?

Book Review | “Recipes and Road Stories: Life on the road with sisters Hannah & Caroline Melby” (of the duo) #HanaLenaRecipes and Road Stories: Life on the Road with sisters Hannah and Caroline Melby of the Duo HanaLena
by Hannah and Caroline Melby
Source: Direct from Publicist

Recipes and Road Stories: Life on the Road with sisters Hannah and Caroline Melby of the duo HanaLena blends touching and rollicking road stories with an assortment of tasty recipes, and then tops everything off with plenty of exciting photographs.

Also contributing recipes are friends they made on the road, including Rhonda Vincent, a 5-time Grammy nominee who has been called the "Queen of Bluegrass", and Clarie Lynch, who is the reigning Female Vocalist of the Year for the International Bluegrass Association.

On the road they have opened for stars such as Tim McGraw and Faith Hill and performed with Grand Ole Opry member Charlie Louvin and the "King of Bluegrass" Jimmy Martin, who was a frequent performer at the Opry before his death in 2005.

In their off-hours, the sisters focused on the business end of music, with Hannah receiving a degree in public relations from Mississippi State University and Caroline receiving a degree in music business from Belmont University in Nashville.


Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

Published by Sartoris Literary Group Inc

on 15th September, 2014

Format: Trade Paperback

Pages: 336

 Published By: Sartoris Literary Group, Inc.

Available Formats: Trade Paperback & Ebook

Interview about developing Recipes and Road Stories | The Clarion-Ledger

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

HanaLena Summer Tour via HanaLenaBand

jump in the car and ride along with the sisters! beautiful vocals overlay the footage!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Converse on Twitter via: #HanaLena

About Hannah and Caroline Melby

Hannah and Caroline Melby; HanaLena

By the time Hannah was in the 11th grade and Caroline was in the 7th grade, the Melby sisters were touring the country in bluegrass bands, with Hannah on fiddle and Caroline on mandolin. Today the sisters are front persons of a very popular Nashville-based country music touring band named HanaLena.

The sisters, who grew up in Starkville, Mississippi, performed from an early age - Hannah is now 28, Caroline is 24 - evolving from bluegrass to progressive country as they perfected their songwriting and performance skills out on the road. In 2008 they won the "Best New Act in Country Music" competition at the Colgate Country Showdown in the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville - and took home a check for a cool $100,000 presented by country music star LeAnn Rimes.

Photo Credit: Cathy Waugh

Hannah @hannahmelbyns Caroline @carolinemelby

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Posted Friday, 2 October, 2015 by jorielov in Anthology Collection of Stories, Balance of Faith whilst Living, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Publicity Services, Book Review (non-blog tour), Bookish Discussions, Bookish Films, Cookbook, Cookery, Debut Author, Debut Novel, Documentary on Topic or Subject, Indie Author, Memoir, Music Video, Non-Fiction, Short Stories or Essays, Siblings, Sisters & the Bond Between Them, The Bookish Foodie, Travel Narrative | Memoir, Travel Writing, Travelogue, Vignettes of Real Life

Blog Book Tour | “Thai Food Made Easy” by June Williamson A newfound joy of Thai cuisine is what prompted me to select this #cookbook!

Posted Tuesday, 28 July, 2015 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

Cookery Delights | Savoury & Ambrosial | Cookbook reviews by the Bookish Foodie Banner created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Unsplash Public Domain Photographer Monstruo Estudio.

Acquired Book By: I am a regular tour hostess for blog tours via Cedar Fort whereupon I am thankful to have such a diverse amount of novels and non-fiction titles to choose amongst to host. I received a complimentary copy of “Thai Food Made Easy” direct from the publisher Front Table Books (imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc) in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

On my newfound joy of Thai Cuisine:

A family friend introduced us to Thai cuisine by taking us to a lovely Thai restaurant late last year, and I haven’t quite forgotten the experience, nor the cosy-comfort of eating Thai cuisine! Even the pot of tea which came with the dinner was quite a unique moment of discovery because lemongrass was combined with other ingredients to give my palate a hearty new taste! Everything about that moment in time was quite special to me because it was the joy of discovering a new cultural heritage whilst partaking in a dish by dish exploration of native foods and styles of cooking that are known as being Thai!

We allowed our family friend to make the meal selections for us, as we knew by our own merits we could have have picked such delicacies nor such favourable entrees if we were left to decipher the menu ourselves! Laughs. I am not a big seafood or fish eater, but the fish that came with our dinner was both light and satisfying. I hadn’t even heard of the name prior to that night, and therefore I cannot offer it now! It was not a fish I had ever crossed paths with previously, yet seeing it on the plate as we ate provided a new perspective for sure!

My favourite part of all were the ‘salads’ as they served as appetizers to the main courses; it ended up being a ‘several’ course meal which added to the delight! Despite what I had previously heard of Thai food being too spicy or too difficult to soak into on a first visit, I must say I found the opposite to be true! Thai food for me is light, delicate, and beyond tasty! I love how you can have a myriad of choices to choose from and depending on what you are selecting you can have an easy five course meal plated in front of you with such stirringly different spices and herbs to create their own cacophony of music which might not believe to go together but truly do!

I was curious before I tried Thai food, and now I find I want to learn more! I want to learn how to make it and I want to learn how to use the herbs and spices in such a new fashion as to have found I barely recognise them in their new varieties of use! And, what a champion moment of blissitude to find a new way to use an herb or spice!?

Blog Book Tour | “Thai Food Made Easy” by June Williamson A newfound joy of Thai cuisine is what prompted me to select this #cookbook!Thai Food Made Easy
by June Williamson
Source: Direct from Publisher

Bring home the delicious flavours of Thai food - without the take-out container.

With this full-service cookbook, you can enjoy your own Thai food at home, easily and affordably. Stop wasting money on restaurants. These recipes make it easy to create your own authentic Thai dishes any time you're craving them.

Try all these tantalizing flavours:

Chicken in Coconut Soup

Pad Thai or Mango Rice

Massaman Curry or Beef Waterfall

Take the mystery out of Thai food. Spice up your menu and bring all those fresh and exotic flavours home for friends and family to enjoy!


Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

Published by Front Table Books

on 14th July, 2015

Format: Paperback Edition

Pages: 160

Published ByFront Table Books (@FrontTableBooks),
an imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc (@CedarFortBooks)

Available Formats: Paperback, Ebook

Converse on Twitter via: #ThaiFoodMadeEasy + #ThaiFood

About June Williamson

June Williamson

June V. Williamson was born in a little northeastern town of Udorn, Thailand. When she was 7 years old, her mother met, fell in love, and married an American Air Force officer. This was the beginning of her military life of living back and forth from America to Thailand being exposed to the native Thai life for 9 years. However, those years were deliciously profound. Thai food had been infused into her by Thai street vendors and her Thai mother.

She is now back to living in another beautiful little town, but in Utah with her husband and 5 children.

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Posted Tuesday, 28 July, 2015 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Cedar Fort Publishing & Media, Cookbook, Cookery, Indie Author, Non-Fiction, The Bookish Foodie

Book Review | “The Recipe Hacker: Comfort foods without gluten, dairy, soy, grain, or cane sugar” by Diana Keuilian #gfree #vegan

Posted Wednesday, 10 June, 2015 by jorielov , , , 2 Comments

Cookery Delights | Savoury & Ambrosial | Cookbook reviews by the Bookish Foodie Banner created by Jorie in Canva. Photo Credit: Unsplash Public Domain Photographer Monstruo Estudio.

Acquired Book By: I am a regular tour hostess for blog tours via Cedar Fort whereupon I am thankful to have such a diverse amount of novels and non-fiction titles to choose amongst to host. I received a complimentary copy of “The Recipe Hacker” direct from the publisher Front Table Books (imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc) in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

In this particular instance, I was meant to be a part of the original blog tour in January 2015, however, there was an issue with the print books being shipped. Therefore I had to opt-out of hosting the tour and simply tucked the title away to check-out later; either via purchase or borrowing a copy through my local library. Whereupon I had the happy surprise of receiving my own copy via Cedar Fort around mid-Spring. Due to a variety of reasons not worth broaching I have been delayed in getting my thoughts put together to where I could share how wicked awesome this cookbook truly is!

Why vegan and gluten-free baking appeals to me:

Most of my life I noticed that whilst eating the regular way most American families do on a weekly/yearly basis was just dandy for a short period of time, I grew up in a bit of a melting pot of diverse foods and cultural fusion options that most families might not have had in theirs as both sides of my family are equally proud of their foodie heritage. Yet, something was always a bit amiss for me whilst I was growing up because it was the fruit and veg portions that held far more appeal to me than the traditional options of getting protein into your system.

Even when it came to sweets, I was a bit abash to admit, I could live without a few things, including chocolate unless I felt I wanted something sweet. It’s my father who has the dedicated sweet tooth, and by default, Mum and I have come along for the ride, but even my Da admits that there has to be better options out there than the highly processed varieties of sweets inasmuch as options for baking that are not as harsh for our systems to digest. If I were to speculate, we all have a bit of gluten-sensitivity bordering somewhere between neutral to mild. Neutral here I define as being not an everyday vice to avoid but an ingredient that crops up when you least expect it too.

When I originally heard about The Recipe Hacker I truly loved the name of the cookbook because it felt like someone had taken their time to re-write the history on recipes and get back into the heart of wholesome cookery and bakery that was not limited by ingredients but rather was high on taste, flavour, and alternative methods on how to whip, dash, dollop, and spin your kitchen into a bit of wicked bliss! I look forward to sharing what I found inside the book that truly had my heart leap a bit of joy in realising that I had a wicked awesome go-to resource now in my personal foodie library!

Book Review | “The Recipe Hacker: Comfort foods without gluten, dairy, soy, grain, or cane sugar” by Diana Keuilian #gfree #veganThe Recipe Hacker: Comfort foods without gluten, dairy, soy, grain, or cane sugar

Break the recipe code for your favourite foods!

Free of gluten, dairy, soy, grain, and cane sugar, The Recipe Hacker is a mouth-watering collection of your favourite comfort foods with a healthy twist. Learn to use easy ingredient substitutions to transform traditional dishes into real, healthy comfort food masterpieces without sacrificing any of the flavour!

Enjoy healthier, whole-food versions of

Key Lime Pie

Crispy Orange Chicken

Banana Pancakes

Beautiful photos, dozens of recipes, and delicious flavours will keep you coming back for more. Enjoy all the comfort foods you crave and keep your body (and skinny jeans) happy at the same time!


Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

on 9th December, 2014

Format: Paperback

Pages: 200

Published ByFront Table Books (@FrontTableBooks),
an imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc (@CedarFortBooks)

Available Formats: Paperback, Ebook

Converse on Twitter via: #TheRecipeHacker, #healthyeats, #gfree, #vegan

About Diana Keuilian

Diana Keuilian is passionate about creating wholesome versions of your favorite foods. She removes the gluten, dairy, soy, grains and cane sugar from traditional comfort food recipes like cake, tacos, cookies, waffles, enchiladas and more. This hobby propelled her to start the popular blog, RealHealthyRecipes.com, where she shares hundreds of delicious recipes and mouthwatering photos. She lives in Southern California with her husband and two young children.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

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Posted Wednesday, 10 June, 2015 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Cedar Fort Publishing & Media, Content Note, Cookbook, Cookery, Fly in the Ointment, Indie Author, Non-Fiction, The Bookish Foodie