Three recipes from bloggers I love, three books for the weekend, and everything worth reading this week
Friday, I love you. I know a lot of people have a thing for Saturday, but Friday is mine. There is something about the feeling of it, the week unwinding, the house waiting to be set right, and two hours of cleaning that somehow feel like a gift instead of a chore. By the time I am done, the island is clear, there is a spot waiting for farmers market flowers, and the weekend is a blank slate.
I do a little maintenance too. A manicure, a pedicure, sometimes a massage if John has room on his calendar. And I finish up whatever I am working on so that Saturday morning I wake up to something clean, a clean house, a tidy to-do list, and nowhere I have to be for at least a few hours.
This week has been a good one. Yoga four days, lunch with friends and a long catchup call with another. Three hummingbirds, a beautiful foggy morning and more perfect Spring weather. Ok, let’s get to my favorites.
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Food
Three recipes this week that have been living in my head. All of them easy enough for a weeknight, all of them look good enough to make again and again.
Spring Roll Bowls with Homemade Peanut Sauce from Mary’s Whole Life — noodles, crisp cucumbers and carrots, fresh herbs, and a creamy peanut sauce that pulls everything together. All the bright flavors of a spring roll without the work of rolling wrappers.
Orecchiette with Broccoli, Garlic and Chilli from Inside the Rustic Kitchen — topped with Parmigiano and a squeeze of fresh lemon. Super easy, full of flavor, and on the table in minutes. This is exactly the kind of recipe I reach for when the week has been long and I want something good without a lot of fuss.
Mediterranean Meatball Bowls from Foodie Crush — juicy chicken meatballs with orzo, cucumber tzatziki, olives, fresh tomatoes, and lettuce. A choose-your-own-adventure meal that works with whatever you have on hand. This one is going into regular rotation.
Something Sweet
And from my own kitchen — Ina Garten Raspberry Crumble Bars. Shortbread crust, raspberry filling, crumbly topping. That combination is hard to argue with. These are the kind of thing you bring to a potluck and come home with an empty pan.
Read, Watch, Listen
Ten things from the internet this week worth your time.
10 Sticky Notes We Should All Memorize Today Before Life Gets Any Harder
The human labor that makes AI work
The dark fascist secret hidden beneath one of Europe’s largest railway stations
Why hantavirus is not like COVID, according to infectious disease experts
What to Do if You Find a Baby Bird in Your Yard
We tested five of the most popular pancake recipes, which is the best.
How wired headphones became a stylish rebellion against Big Tech
Inside the Movement to Grow More Native Seeds—and Why It Matters More Than Ever
Books on the Nightstand
Three books this week — two novels and a memoir worth reading slowly.
The Writing Circle by Corinne Demas — six writers who share more than their manuscripts. Nancy joins a group of established authors, wary, uncertain her novel is good enough for the company she’ll be keeping. Over the course of a year, marriages are tested, affairs begin, and buried secrets find their way to the surface. I love a novel about writers. The Leopardi Circle is the kind of book I disappear into on a rainy afternoon and emerge from two hours later having forgotten entirely where I am.
The Cuban Heiress by Chanel Cleeton — a 1934 luxury cruise from New York to Havana, two women with secrets, and a ship that becomes a trap. Inspired by the true story of the SS Morro Castle. Cleeton writes the kind of historical fiction that makes me want to book a trip and read everything she has ever written, in approximately that order.
The Happiest Man on Earth by Eddie Jaku — Eddie Jaku survived Kristallnacht, Buchenwald, Auschwitz, and a forced death march. At one hundred years old, he called himself the happiest man on earth. His memoir is about gratitude, friendship, kindness, and the choice to smile every day in honor of the six million who could not. I do not have better words for this one. Just read it.
Looking for more books? Everything I have recommended can be found on My Bookshop. Most are also available from Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, and on Libby from your local library.
Shopping~Outfit of the Day
Blue and white, classic. Make it a blue and white stripe and you have a perennial favorite for summer. Pair it with your favorite white pants or jeans, simple slides, a whimsical bag or a pop of color and a spritz of perfume. Voila! The perfect summer looks.
Outfit Details Below
Have a Wonderful Weekend
I hope your Friday feels exactly the way a Friday should, a little lighter, a little more relaxing than the rest of the week. Whatever is waiting for you this weekend, I hope there is something in this list that gives you something good to cook, something to look forward to reading, and at least one moment where you put down the phone and just sit for a minute.
Bill will almost certainly have a plan that involves the pool if the sun is out. I will almost certainly be in a comfortable chair with a book and one of the dachshunds pinning my feet to the cushion.
What are you reading this weekend? Tell me in the comments.
Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for Weekend Meanderings with Kim and Juliet!
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