Friday Favorites~a weekly series where we share our favorite books, decor, fashion finds, recipes, podcasts, articles and more.
FRIDAY FAVORITES NO. 600
Good morning friends! Happy Friday, it’s a 3 day weekend. The last hurrah before the “end” of summer. The kids are back at school, cooler weather is coming and soon it will be Fall.
What are your plans? A you traveling? Or staying home? We have a busy weekend of fun, and family. I am going to enjoy every minute.
It is also my 600th Friday Favorites, sometimes it is hard to believe I have been writing this blog for that long. I never get tired of sharing recipes, books, fashion, country houses and whatever else I find and like that I think you will as well.
Ok, on to this weeks Friday Favorites.
FOOD
Smash burgers, my all time favorite bbq and fast food. I am looking forward to having one of these this weekend. Which do you prefers? Thick juicy burgers or smash burgers?
Mediterranean rice salad, an easy and delicious salad that can be made with leftover rice. Perfect for a light dinner, lunch and side at your weekend barbecue.
Every gathering needs a dessert, why not try these roasted cherry streusel bars? If you don’t like cherries your can substitute blueberries, apples, peaches or whatever else you like.
Friday night cocktail, Strawberry jalapeño margarita. A refreshing way to start the weekend and end the summer.
LINKS TO READ+WATCH+LISTEN
Love this interview with Deb Perlman of Smitten Kitchen.Â
Spain Is Paying Digital Nomads Over $16,000 to Move There
Rick Steves’ Tour Guide Has Genius Tips For Eating Well On A Budget In Europe
10 Design “Facts” That Interior Decorators Say Are TOTAL LIES
A colorful house in the Cotswolds.
How ancient tech is thwarting AI cheating in the classroom
How Accurate are Fitness Trackers
The remarkable transformation of an old bakery in Fulham by antiques dealer James Jackson
How Learned Optimism can improve your life.
BOOKS
Books in my stack or that I read this week.
The Red Garden
The Red Garden introduces us to the luminous and haunting world of Blackwell, Massachusetts, capturing the unexpected turns in its history and in our own lives. From the town’s founder, a brave young woman from England who has no fear of blizzards or bears, to the young man who runs away to New York City with only his dog for company, the characters in The Red Garden are extraordinary and vivid: a young wounded Civil War soldier who is saved by a passionate neighbor, a woman who meets a fiercely human historical character, a poet who falls in love with a blind man, a mysterious traveler who comes to town in the year when summer never arrives.
At the center of everyone’s life is a mysterious garden where only red plants can grow, and where the truth can be found by those who dare to look.
Sheridan’s Nightingale: The Story of Elizabeth Linley
On a wild night in March 1772, s small vessel put out to sea from Kent heading for Dunkirk. Aboard was eighteen-year-old Eliza Linley, the finest soprano in England. She was fleeing from a rich, elderly but unwanted admirer. Guarding her was the young Richard Brinsley Sheridan, a feckless adventurer, desperately in love but too diffident to admit it. Their destination was a convent where Eliza would be safe. They did not reach it. Instead they embarked upon one of the most discussed marriages of the eighteenth century.
In the Second World War, Italy was torn apart by German armies, civil war, and the Allied invasion. In a corner of Tuscany, one woman—born in England, married to an Italian—kept a record of daily life in a country at war. Iris Origo’s powerful diary, War in Val d’Orcia, is the spare and vivid account of what happened when a peaceful farming valley became a battleground.
At great personal risk, the Origos gave food and shelter to partisans, deserters, and refugees. They took in evacuees, and as the front drew closer they faced the knowledge that the lives of thirty-two small children depended on them. Origo writes with sensitivity and generosity, and a story emerges of human acts of heroism and compassion, and the devastation that war can bring.
Beach Read
A beach bread for the summer beach weekend.
A romance writer who no longer believes in love and a literary writer stuck in a rut engage in a summer-long challenge that may just upend everything they believe about happily ever afters.
Augustus Everett is an acclaimed author of literary fiction. January Andrews writes bestselling romance. When she pens a happily ever after, he kills off his entire cast.
They’re polar opposites.
In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they’re living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer’s block.
Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. She’ll take him on field trips worthy of any rom-com montage, and he’ll take her to interview surviving members of a backwoods death cult (obviously). Everyone will finish a book and no one will fall in love. Really.
NEED MORE BOOK SUGGESTIONS?
If you have already read these books or missed something I have featured before on the blog check out My Bookshop on Amazon.Â
SHOPPING
There are lots and lots of sales this weekend. I have perused many but have not purchased anything because although there are some great deals I really do not need anything. But it is fun to look.
Both COS and JCrew are having a great dale on new arrivals including some of my favorite Fall pieces. This year wine and burgundy paired with blue and gray is going to be the basis of my outfits. Classic pieces that I already have in my closet.
OUTFIT DETAILS
THAT’S ALL FOR NOW
What are your weekend plans?Â
Tell me something that made you smile this week!
I hope you enjoyed the recipes, links and books I discovered this week on Friday Favorites. Thank you for spending part of your day with me, your time is valuable and I am grateful that you spend a little of each day with me. I hope that you have a wonderful and safe weekend.
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If you have missed a Friday Favorites post you can find them all here.
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On My Radar & Some Sales
You can see more of my favorites on LTK. If you don’t follow me I would love it if you did!
Happy 600th Elizabeth!!!
You always have such interesting links !! I really appreciate your blog. Enjoy your weekend!
Thank you! Have a wonderful weekend.
Congratulations on 600 Friday Favorites, Elizabeth!! Well done! I enjoyed this edition as always. The Strawberry Jalapeño Margaritas look fabulous and I have added The Red Garden by Alice Hoffman to my reading list! Happy September to you!
Thank you April! I hope that you are enjoying a lovely weekend.