Natalie Jenner’s  The Jane Austen Society Classic Victoria Sandwich This is a very classic British cake recipe from the BBC Good Food Magazine (May, 2005) which is super easy and quick to make. If you prefer, you can skip the icing filling and just spread strawberry jam between the two sponge layers. In The Jane […] Read More

Ruta Sepetys’s A Taste of Spain: Traditional Red Sangria and Tortilla de Patatas  Spain is a feast of sights, sounds, and smells. As you read The Fountains of Silence, I hope you can feel Madrid in 1957. The sunshine. The passion. The fear. The silence. Spain is also a culinary capital of the world. While working […] Read More

Mary Kay Andrews’s Hello, Summer Lemon Bars Hello, Summer is set in a small, sleepy Florida town. When people think of Florida, they think of bright, sunny skies, and delicious citrus, and these lemon bars are the perfect way to celebrate that! As a native Floridian, my lust for lemons—indeed any citrus, is, excuse the pun, deep-rooted. […] Read More

In this scene from THE HENNA ARTIST, Lakshmi, a woman who paints henna on the bodies of Jaipur’s wealthy women, is asked to meet with the Dowager Maharani for the first time. Malik, Lakshmi’s eight-year-old helper, has been told to wait outside the Maharani’s drawing room, but can’t resist sticking his head inside when the […]

“In my middle grade novel, Black Brother, Black Brother, Jamaican twins Zion and Zarra are Donte’s fencing partners and best friends. Zarra dislikes the kitchen but Zion loves cooking food with his secret ingredients—love and tons of spice! After team practice, he brings Jamaican Jerk Chicken as a ‘thank you’ to his coach and teammates. […] Read More

Visitors to Miracle Springs, North Carolina, find themselves ogling the display shelves in The Gingerbread House Bakery. They’ve heard that no one can bake a scone quite like Hester Winthrop. Her pastry is feather-light and buttery. Her flavors are fresh, vibrant, and perfectly spiced. If you’re lucky, she might make you a Comfort Scone—a scone […] Read More

Then Malabar ordered a power pack in her usual rapid-fire staccato: “A dry Manhattan. Standing up. With a twist. No ice. No fruit.” When the waiter tilted his head quizzically, Malabar exhaled her annoyance and repeated the order at exactly the same speed as she had the first time. I asked for a Taj Mahal […] Read More