What's In Your Pantry?

Okay, so this week we've been discussing foods in dystopian and science fiction novels. Let me just get this out there: I'm not much of a cook. Sure, spaghetti and stuff like that, but that hardly counts as "cooking."

So I thought of the YA dystopian novels I've read the past little while and what the people eat. HOW I LIVE NOW is brilliantly done, what with the way the chocolate becomes so important. But I decided on LIFE AS WE KNEW IT and THE SCORCH TRIALS.

In those two novels, food primarily comes from a can. So today, I give you a food storage recipe, one you supposedly can make with what you already have in your pantry. So if the apocalypse gets triggered tonight, tomorrow you can have Mexican casserole! Ole!

Ingredients:
1 family size package Kraft macaroni and cheese
1 can (12 3/4 oz) canned chicken
1 T. dehydrated onion flakes
1 can chili with beans
1 can tomato soup
1 T. chili powder
1 can corn
Cheddar cheese, cubed (optional--and you could use powdered cheese if you'd like.)
Fritos (optional--I mean, obviously. But who doesn't have like 50 bags of Fritos stored up??)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350º. Cook Kraft dinner according to directions in large pot. Meanwhile, heat chicken with onion flakes. Add to Kraft dinner with remaining ingredients. Heat through. Pour into casserole dish and top with fritos. Cover and bake 30 minutes.

Of course, this is assuming life in post-apocalyptic wherever-you-live still allows you to heat up your oven. Yeah, maybe you better get a cord of wood chopped and stored in the backyard, just in case.

And that concludes food week dystopian style! Hope you found at least something to set your mind at ease about the impending demise of the universe. Ha ha!

What would you eat post-apocalypse? What food do you want to try from your favorite dystopian or science fiction novel?

Spirits of the Apocalypse

This week, in honor of Thanksgiving, we're talking about food and drink--two very necessary things in any world, but especially in dystopias.  Food--as in running out or controlling the supply--is a recurrent theme in many dark visions of the future.  The denizens of dystopia may be scraping by on canned food or worse (Soylent Green anyone?), but, they usually find a good stiff drink can make that dreary future a little easier to swallow.

In the Battlestar Galactica universe, Ambrosia, a popular green liquor, is just that drink. Ellen and Saul Tighe toast with it when they’re reunited. Gaeta imbibes a little green courage to get a tattoo. Amanda Graystone and Sister Clarice share a taste for particular variety of it (on Caprica).

Ambrosia is to Galactica as Scotch is to Mad Men.

In the auction of BSG props last year, the  large Ambrosia bottle below went for over $400.  The label says that Ambrosia is  distilled in the Bliffe sector by prisoners who "are treated as well as could be expected considering the hostile planetary conditions."  In the original series, I think the Galactica liberated the prisoners--and a fair number of cases of Ambrosia--as the rag-tag fugitive fleet made it's way out of Dodge.

Since Ambrosia is green, some sci-fi aficionados think it’s absinthe or some kind wine. But the Geeky Chef  put a little more thought into his recipe for it:

Ingredients
6 oz Midori
4 oz Blue Curacao
2 oz lime juice
Ice

Geeky Chef’s recipe directions say to mix in a Margaritaville Frozen Concoction maker, but I bet you can use a blender. Or not.

Can you think of any other drinks inspired by science fiction, fantasy, or dystopian lit?Anyone have a good recipe for a Pan-galactic Gargleblaster? Or Klah? (Bonus points if you know where those are from.)  Or make one up! What drink would you be thankful to down during the days of dystopia?

(Oh, if you do try one of these, please drink responsibly. The world's not coming to an end ... yet.)

Weight Watchers Cancelled Due to Apocalypse

Ok, so let's say you find out end of the world is coming tomorrow, are you really going to keep worrying about calories? I think not. So if you really want to go out in style I suggest making  this Snickers Bar inspired Caramel, Peanut Butter, Chocolate Pie as one final glorious indulgence.

Trust me here, it only seems complicated. I made it for Halloween and it turned out great. If you I can do it so can you. And hey, if it really is the last pie you'll ever make, you might as well shoot for the moon right?

Thanks to Martha Stewart for the recipe! My comments are in bold.

Ingredients

FOR THE CHOCOLATE CRUST
    1 box (9 ounces) chocolate wafer cookies, finely ground (2 1/3 cups)
    1 tablespoon granulated sugar
    Salt
    1 stick unsalted butter, melted
   
FOR THE CARAMEL SAUCE
    1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
    1/4 cup water
    1 cup heavy cream
    1/3 cup creme fraiche (I couldn't find Creme Fraiche and imagine most people won't either. Plain sour cream works perfectly)
    1 cup roasted salted peanuts
   
FOR THE PEANUT BUTTER MOUSSE
    8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
    1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
    Salt
    1 1/4 cups smooth peanut butter
    1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
    1 cup heavy cream
   
FOR THE CHOCOLATE GANACHE
    7 ounces semisweet chocolate (preferably 56 percent cacao), chopped
    1 cup heavy cream


Directions

    1.    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make the chocolate crust: Combine cookie crumbs, granulated sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Stir in butter. Press mixture into bottom and 2 1/2 inches up sides of 9-inch springform pan. Bake until dry and firm, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool.

    2.    Make the caramel sauce: Heat granulated sugar and water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, washing down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush to prevent sugar crystals from forming (I was not able to prevent sugar crystals from forming and it did not seem to matter)  until medium amber, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and carefully add heavy cream (mixture will bubble and steam). Return to heat, and bring to a boil, making sure caramel that seized up when cream was added melts. Transfer to a bowl, and stir in creme fraiche. Refrigerate until cool but still pourable, about 45 minutes. Fold in peanuts.

    3.    Meanwhile, make the peanut butter mousse: Beat cream cheese and confectioners' sugar with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy. Beat in 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add peanut butter and vanilla, and beat until combined. Whisk heavy cream in a separate bowl until medium-stiff peaks form. (It seems like it'd be easier to use store bought whipped cream, but I'd refrain as it would be too sweet. And besides, making your own whipped cream feels like magic!) Fold one-third of the whipped cream into peanut butter mixture. Fold in remaining whipped cream in 2 additions. (If you've never folded it's kind of like a very delicate stir. Here's a great video on how to do it.)

    4.    Assemble the tart: Pour caramel sauce into cooled chocolate crust. (Then let cool in fridge or freezer until caramel is nearly solid. I found that if the caramel is at all liquid the mousse will push it out of the way and your won't get two nice layers)  Gently spread peanut butter mousse over caramel in an even layer, making sure they don't blend together. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

    5.    Make the chocolate ganache: Place chocolate in a small heatproof bowl. Bring cream to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Pour cream over chocolate, and let stand for 1 minute. Whisk to combine. (Use immediately.)

    6.    Remove tart from refrigerator, and pour in ganache to cover surface. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. 






So there you have it. Dig in without remorse! If by some chance you make this and the apocalypse does not come the next day, fear not, this freezes very well.

Oh, and for all of you non peanut butter lovers out there, a variation that occurred to me would be to axe the peanut butter mousse entirely and substitute your favorite ice cream for that layer. Just let the ice cream thaw until it's spreadable, spread over the caramel and then freeze until it's hard enough to top with ganache.


Let me know how it goes if you all make this. Or just tell us about what you make when calories don't matter!

Jeff Hirsch

The Eleventh Plague

Coming from Scholastic, Fall 2011

Find me at jeff-hirsch.com and @jeff_hirsch

Would you like tofu with that?

In keeping with Foodie Week... I really am not going to share a vegetarian (vegan even) recipe with y'all. But, first, a little story...

I've been a vegetarian for a long time, but several years ago I went through a vegan period. I was having such fun making old recipes into vegetarian/vegan ones that I decided to do a cooking show. I partnered with our local cable TV station (BCat) and wrote, produced, edited and starred in four (or it might have been 5 - I don't remember) episodes of my own vegan cooking show. Of course, I am sure you can guess the title... Cooking with the Other Julia!  It was a local hit! lol!

In my novel, XVI, the society is vegetarian. Eating meat is illegal - mainly because there are very few animals left in the world. So... there's lots of seitan burgers, tofu fries and other vegetarian/vegan delights in the book. But, because the League's readership may not be ready for tofu cheezecake... I offer up my award-winning (non-vegan) chocolate cake recipe.

Three layer chocolate cake with chocolate icing.

cream together
1 cup (2 sticks) softened butter
1-3/4 cup sugar
1 T. vanilla

add
3 eggs - beat well

sift together
1 cup cocoa
2-1/4 cups regular flour
1 tsp baking soda
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Add to butter mixture alternately with 1-3/4 cups milk.

Divide between 3 greased/cocoa-ed (rather than floured) 9" baking pans.

Bake for 25-30 minutes in 350 degree oven.
Let cool in pans for 10 minutes
Remove from pans & continue to cool
Fill & spread with Chocolate Frosting

Chocolate Frosting
1 cup (2 sticks) softened butter
4 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
2 tsp vanilla
4 to 5 T. milk

Mix all & beat until smooth. Spread between layers and on top of cooled chocolate cake.

Enjoy!

I apologize for lack of pictures... *licks beaters* Maybe next week.

Foodie Week! Turkish Delight

Hi Leaguers! Well, next week is Thanksgiving, and we here at the League are thankful for two things: food and time off. So we're taking next week off, and this week we're celebrating our favorite food from books!

I know we're supposed to be all about dystopian and sci fi and all...but guys? Sci fi food sometimes grosses me out, and they don't eat good stuff at the end of the world. So I'm going to dip my toe in fantasy and today I'll be showing you how to make my favorite fantasy treat: Turkish Delight.

My favorite books of all time are the Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis. They influenced my life in ways I can't even describe. As such, I've always been a little jealous of this guy:

NOT because he gets tempted by the witch, betrays his whole family, MISSES PRESENTS FROM SANTA CLAUS, and is basically responsible for every bad thing in the first book--but all because he gets this:

This, my friends, is a massive amount of sugar-filled Turkish Delight.

So, first things first: I needed a recipe. I tried to make Turkish Delight once before and...it failed miserably. Y'all, I had to throw out the pan.

But...Turkish Delight is hard to make. There's ingredients from, I dunno, Turkey or something, and I don't know how to make or get Rose Water. I briefly considered dunking roses in water, but then I found this recipe from Cooks.com that uses gelatin instead of Rose Water and other exotic ingredients.

First things first: I gathered ingredients:

You'll note that I have vanilla and a candy thermometer in the pic--
I was going to try a more complicated recipe before I said, "screw that" and took the easier route.

Then I started following the recipe. I'll just go ahead here and say that if you decide to follow my footsteps and use this recipe...don't. Or at least re-translate it into easier to read directions. The ingredients list requires separating several ingredients and argh.

So: Step One--soften three packs of unflavored gelatin in some apple juice.

Unflavored gelatine apparently has no flavor...but it does kinda stink. Yuck.

Next step: boil apple juice and sugar. Things are going swimmingly at this point. I didn't take a picture of that--it's just boiling juice. While the juice and sugar boiled, I mixed lemon juice, lime juice, and cornstarch.

This is the beginning of the end. You can't tell from that innocent picture above, but guys--that cornstarch turned rock-hard with the juice. Eventually--miraculously?--it sort of liquified, but this was a sign of things to come, I fear.

Meanwhile, the gelatin was "softening." Which I guess is fancy cook speak for "turning into a crumbly smelly mess":

Next step: mix the boiling juice-sugar mixture with the "softened" gelatine and the cornstarch mess.

Can you tell what's in the pan? Somehow, once I mixed everything up...it all sort of lumpy-fied. There's chunks of gelatin and long thin slivers of cornstarch mix. I stirred as fast as I could, then upgraded to a whisk, but I never could get all those lumps out. I actually think it would have gone better if I'd softened the gelatin for a lot less time, and if I shook the cornstarch into the mix slowly (like how you make gravy) instead of dumping it in as a thick liquid.

Next, the recipe called for a 9x12 pan that had been dipped in cold water. Well, having once tried this many times before (remember the pan I had to throw away?) I decided instead to dust the pan with powdered sugar.

Then I poured the chunky-gloopy mess inside:

Can you see the chunks?

On the bright side, the bits around the chunks seem to be very candy-like. My plan: eat around the chunks. Or feed the chunks to my husband and/or dog.

The recipe calls for it to be refrigerated for 12 hours, then cut, doused in powdered sugar, and eaten. I put the pan in the fridge when it was cool enough to go, but it's not quite set yet. At least, I hope it's not quite set yet. It's still pretty gooey. It's not something I could exactly cut so much as spoon.

I'm going to hide it in the fridge for awhile longer.

Maybe the husband won't notice.

I hope I don't have to throw away the pan...

So! My advice for making Turkish Delight? Just buy it!

The Backstory

So this is a dystopian/science fiction blog for young adults. We talk about writing, the genre, philosophies, books, etc. I've been reading a lot of dystopian novels lately (and for a while). Sometimes when I go to star them on Goodreads, I'll get sucked into the reviews.

And something I've seen recently is readers commenting on the lack of backstory. Yeah, you read that right. The lack of backstory. They want to know at some point how the world evolved from our present state to the storyworld that exists in the book.

I've been thinking about it a lot lately. I think it's something the author knows--they have to know--and requires careful placement in the novel so readers can find out in an authentic way. But how to do it?

Here's my loose guide:
1. Drop us into the world in the first chapter, but make sure to slip in one-sentence explanations in the narrative. I think the best way to do this is to allow the MC have an opinion on the society. Or be in a heightened emotional state about the society. That can allow the reader to get a feel for the world quickly.

2. In the next several chapters, the MC could either conform to the laws of the new world, or defy them. Either way, the author has the opportunity to establish what goes in this society and what doesn't. Along the way, the author can slip in a sentence or two about the society that contributes to the transition, but without really divulging the whole story.

3. Later, when the MC is realizing things they didn't know about their society, carefully insert how the world we know evolved into the one in the book. Not pages and pages, because the reader already knows the laws and intricacies. They've been living it for hundreds of pages. Just a taste, a few sentences or paragraphs maybe, that give more detail of the journey from now to then.

What do you think? In the dystopian/futuristic books you've read, have you been satisfied with the amount of backstory? Have you found yourself wishing you knew more about the transition from this world to the storyworld?

Behemoth

Scott Westerfeld’s BEHEMOTH saved my sanity a few weekends ago. I was stuck in traffic on I-66. Need I say more? Listening to Alan Cumming narrate a great book can make inching forward at a mile an hour almost bearable.

Even if I’d been listening to the book in my normal reading venue—the gym—I would loved BEHEMOTH as much as I did LEVIATHAN. The latter is the first book in Westerfeld’s Steampunk series. I won’t give any plot spoilers, but the setting for both books should intrigue you enough to run out and get them.

It’s the outbreak of World War I. The world, however, is alternate one. Technology and genetic engineering developed early in the Victorian era. The British and other Darwinists have based their technology (and society) on biological “machines” (aka, fabricated beasties). The Germans and the other Clankers base their technology on steam power and mechanical creatures.

This fabulous trailer for LEVIATHAN should give you a good taste for the novels:





Westerfeld alternates between the viewpoints of Dylan / Deryn —a British girl masquerading as boy so she can serve in the navy/air service—and Alec, the son of the assassinated Archduke. The pace is fast. The worlds of both Darwinist and Clanker are fascinating to say the least. And the voice—particularly of Dylan—is fresh and engaging.

I think LEVIATHAN and BEHEMOTH would appeal to both boys and girls. And adults. Barking spiders! It’s a genuinely fun series to read and/or listen to. (Did I mention the great use of language? Westerfeld invented a clean vernacular for the airmen to use.) I can’t wait for the next one.

So do you oil your war machines? Or do you feed them? (If you didn't get this, you didn't watch the trailer, did you?) What other middle grade or young adult Steampunk (or sci fi / adventure stories) have you read and loved? Do they have both strong female and male characters?

btw, have you taken a peak at the Class of 2K11's brand spanking new website? Fellow Leaguer Julia Karr and I are members, and we are kicking off our year with a big thank you to the Class of 2K10.  Drop by and enter to win a whole slew of books.