Welcome to Friday Favorites, a weekly series where I share interesting articles, books, fashion finds, recipes and more.
Good Friday Favorites morning to you friends. Honestly, it doesn’t seem like a very good day. I am mourning the loss of Queen Elizabeth II as our many around the world. Although we knew this time would come it seemed as if she would always be around, her graze character, unwavering loyalty and smile will be missed.
In addition to that I am tired, I have been watching my 14 year old nephew for the last 9 days and I am worn out. The running back and forth to school, driving to track practice, football games, outings with friends, and all of the other parental duties have worn me out.
Today I hand him back safe and sound to his parents and may just spend the rest of the weekend resting and watching the coverage of Queen Elizabeth.
Ok, let’s get to the good stuff. Grab your coffee, tea, cocoa or wine and settle in for Friday Favorites!
FRIDAY FAVORITES NO. 497
Food
This week I found so many recipes it was hard to narrow down what to share with you. Easy meals that suit every taste and are not only beautiful to look at but delicious too!
I love an easy salad, Greek Chickpea salad will be on the menu this weekend.
For something with a hint of Fall try my roasted acorn and sweet potato salad.
Chicken pad thai! Yes please!
Taco Tuesday just got a whole lot more exciting, crispy carnitas tacos will be a welcome change.
Chickpea curry is a delicious meatless meal.
Move over pumpkin, Mexican Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls are going to the top of my baking list this week.
Interesting Links
How to Kill at Karaoke Even If You Can’t Sing
A timely article, The Most-Regretted (And Lowest-Paying) College Majors
Cin cin: discover the story behind Campari, Milan’s signature aperitivo
Breakfast around the world: How different places start the day
The U.S. diet is deadly. Here are 7 ideas to get Americans eating healthier
The Seed Strikes Back(Chia that Is)
Americans Are Terrible at Taking Vacations. Why Are U.S. Workers So Bad at Taking Time Off?
Sustainable Architecture: Innovative and Inspiring Building Design
The Queen’s Posthumous Transit Plans Are Surprisingly Detailed
See rare photos of Queen Elizabeth II from Nat Geo’s archives
Books
Against the unforgettable backdrop of New York near the turn of the twentieth century, from the Gilded Age world of formal balls and opera to the immigrant poverty of the Lower East Side, bestselling author Susan Vreeland again breathes life into a work of art in this extraordinary novel, which brings a woman once lost in the shadows into vivid color.
It’s 1893, and at the Chicago World’s Fair, Louis Comfort Tiffany makes his debut with a luminous exhibition of innovative stained-glass windows, which he hopes will honor his family business and earn him a place on the international artistic stage. But behind the scenes in his New York studio is the freethinking Clara Driscoll, head of his women’s division. Publicly unrecognized by Tiffany, Clara conceives of and designs nearly all of the iconic leaded-glass lamps for which he is long remembered.
Clara struggles with her desire for artistic recognition and the seemingly insurmountable challenges that she faces as a professional woman, which ultimately force her to protest against the company she has worked so hard to cultivate. She also yearns for love and companionship, and is devoted in different ways to five men, including Tiffany, who enforces to a strict policy: he does not hire married women, and any who do marry while under his employ must resign immediately. Eventually, like many women, Clara must decide what makes her happiest—the professional world of her hands or the personal world of her heart.
How to Live. What to Do: In Search of Ourselves in Life and Literature
In supple and elegant prose, and with all the expertise and insight of his dual professions, Josh Cohen explores a new way for us to understand ourselves. He helps us see what Lewis Carroll’s Alice and Harper Lee’s Scout Finch can teach us about childhood. He delineates the mysteries of education as depicted in Jane Eyre and as seen through the eyes of Sandy Stranger in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie.
He discusses the need for adolescent rebellion as embodied in John Grimes in James Baldwin’s Go Tell It on the Mountain and in Ruth in Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go. He makes clear what Goethe’s Young Werther and Sally Rooney’s Frances have—and don’t have—in common as they experience first love; how Middlemarch’s Dorothea Brooke deals with the vicissitudes of marriage. Vis-a-vis old age and death, Cohen considers what wisdom we may glean from John Ames in Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead and from Don Fabrizio in Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa’s The Leopard.
The Trouble with Goats and Sheep
Part coming-of-age novel, part mystery, The Trouble with Goats and Sheep is a quirky and utterly charming debut about a community in need of absolution and two girls learning what it means to belong.
England, 1976. Mrs. Creasy is missing, and the Avenue is alive with whispers. The neighbors blame her sudden disappearance on the heat wave, but 10-year-olds Grace and Tilly aren’t convinced. As the summer shimmers endlessly on, the girls decide to take matters into their own hands. Inspired by the local vicar, they go looking for God – they believe that if they find him they might also find Mrs. Creasy and bring her home.
Spunky, spirited Grace and frail, nervous Tilly go door to door in search of clues. As the cul-de-sac starts giving up its secrets, the amateur detectives uncover much more than they could have imagined. Instead of finding their missing neighbor, they must try to make sense of what they’ve seen and heard, and a complicated history of deception begins to emerge. Everyone on the Avenue has something to hide, a reason for not fitting in. It’s only in the suffocating heat of the summer that the ability to guard these differences becomes impossible.
Along with the parched lawns and the melting pavement, the lives of all the neighbors begin to deconstruct. What the girls don’t realize is that the lies told to conceal what happened one fateful day about a decade ago are the same ones Mrs. Creasy was beginning to peel back just before she disappeared.
For fans of Jeannette Walls’ The Silver Star, this “is a gripping debut about the secrets behind every door” (Rachel Joyce, author of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry).
Preppy Kitchen creator John Kanell delivers his fan-favorite recipes and baked goods so everyone can create them at home. Organized by season so you can shop at peak freshness and embrace new traditions, the dishes featured in Preppy Kitchen are inspired by well-loved staples updated with a touch of Kanell’s signature sophistication.
Recipes include:
-Chive and Parmesan Buttermilk Biscuits
-Pecan Shortbread and Rosemary Caramel Bars
-Roasted Garlic and Olive-Stuffed Chicken Breasts
-Blackberry-Balsamic Pork Chops
-Apple Butter and Marzipan Bread
-Chorizo Beef Burgers with Queso and Avocado
-Fresh Tostadas with Green Tomato and Mango Salsa
-And many more!
John is going on a book tour so make sure to check out his blog for details to see if he is going to be in your town.
Finds
Veronica Beard fans, this classic blazer is on sale for 60% off and free shipping! I also like this plaid version and this blue and white striped shirt.
If you missed this at the “anniversary sale” you are in luck, it is on sale for $20 less than than the Nordstrom sale! This is a fabulous price for an amazing product.
Other finds that I am loving this week are, this dress, these loafers, this dress and this sweater! One more thing, this cashmere wrap!
UNTIL TOMORROW
I hope that you enjoyed Friday Favorites no. 497 and that you found something enjoyable to read or to make. I cannot wait to make the apple salad for lunch and the limoncello spritz for cocktail hour.
Have a wonderful weekend friends and don’t forget to stop by tomorrow for ”weekend meanderings” with Kim and Juliet! We will have lots to share from coast to coast.
Friday Favorites No. 514 from Delish, Modern Honey, Creme de la Crumb and More.
Friday Favorites No. 513 from The Roasted Root, Valentina’s Corner, Freutcake and More
Friday Favorites No. 510 from Savor the Best, Bev Cooks, Cravings Journal and More
Flower Finds, Hill House Vintage, Walmart Pillows and More on Weekend Meanderings
Great recipes and sad about the Queen. Pinned!
Thank you Cindy! It is so sad about the Queen, she will be missed.d
Interesting what young adults are majoring in and how much they will make or are making. I majored in journalism and it certainly isn’t making me rich!
Brenda
Brenda, I think in the day and age there are very few jobs that are worth what you pay to be educated to do them. Hope you have a wonderful weekend.
The Queen was probably the most famous person in the world. It will be a strange transition to King Charles but Queen Elizabeth will be remembered for as long as history books exist. What a legacy she leaves.
I could not agree with you more Rachel, famous and loved by so many. I will miss her smile.
She was a grand lady.