A Farmer's Daughter by Dawn Stoltzfus

Welcome to the warm and inviting kitchen of Dawn Stoltzfus, a young Mennonite wife and mother who was raised on a dairy farm where simple, wholesome food was a key ingredient of the good life. In A Farmer's Daughter, she opens up her recipe box, wipes away the crumbs and wrinkles from the well-loved recipes, and shares them with cooks and food-lovers everywhere. She offers us over two hundred delicious recipes that reflect the comfort foods she learned to cook from her mother, the same hearty and creative recipes she made and sold at The Farmer's Wife Market. Along with the simple, wholesome recipes for starters, main dishes, sides, and desserts, readers will find charming stories from Dawn's Mennonite upbringing, tips and tricks for easy meal planning and preparation, and ideas for serving with flair. Anyone who loves to feed their loved ones hearty, wholesome meals will treasure this cookbook.

What a great cookbook this is! Dawn offers simple, healthy and all-family loving recipes in her cookbook with splashes of life growing up in a Mennonite home and carrying on those love made meals into her own kitchen.

Some of the recipes that I tried:

Honey Corn Bread
Sante Fe Chicken Soup
Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken
Slow Cooker Lasagna

All of these were very good (and the Slow Cooker Lasagna was super easy). Below is the recipe for the Sante Fe Chicken (that we enjoyed with the Honey Corn Bread).

1 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup sweet red pepper, chopped
1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 Tbsp. salted butter or olive oil
1 (7 oz.) can diced green chiles, undrained
8 cups chicken broth
1 cup salsa
2 (15 oz.) cans cannellini (white kidney) beans, drained and rinsed
3 cups chicken, cooked and shredded
1 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. fresh cracked pepper
1/2 fresh lime

Garnish:
green onions, diced
cheddar cheese, shredded
tortilla chips

In a large stockpot, cook onion, peppers, and garlic in butter or oil until vegetables are tender. Add chiles and sauté for 2 minutes. Add chicken broth, salsa, beans and chicken. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cumin, chili powder, salt, and pepper. Right before serving, squeeze juice from lime into hot soup. Serve with garnishes. Serves 6-8

Available October 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Revell Books sent me this complimentary copy to review for them. All opinions expressed are my own.

Review of When A Heart Stops by Lynette Eason

Spunky and outgoing, nothing much bothers medical examiner Serena Hopkins--except for the thought of falling in love again. But when a serial killer is picking off her former classmates, Serena's life becomes intertwined with her old high school crush, FBI agent Dominic Allen. Is the secret she's keeping putting her next on the killer's hit list? Can she trust Dominic with the truth before it's too late?

Lynette Eason does it again. A fast paced story that keeps you flipping page after page to find out what happens. In book two of the Deadly Reunions Series, Eason continues the story of medical examiner  Serena Hopkins and the killer who is using her to find, and kill, her old high school friend.  By taking out old high school classmates one by one, time is on the clock and running out as Serena becomes the target and the race becomes deadly up until the last page.

A recommended read for those suspense-looking book lovers.

Available October 2012  at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Revell Books sent me this complimentary copy to review for them. Opinions expressed are mine. 

Review of Life With Lily by Mary Ann Kinsinger and Suzanne Woods Fisher

Today's review is brought to you by a guest blogger, Alina, who is eight years old and was the one who read Life With Lily.

For a child, every day is a thing of wonder. And for six-year-old Lily Lapp, every day is a new opportunity for blessings, laughter, family, and a touch of mischief. As she explores her world, goes to school, spends time with her family, and gets into a bit of trouble with her friends, Lily learns what it means to be Amish and what it means to grow up. From getting a new teacher to welcoming a new sibling, Lily’s life is always full of adventure.

I really liked the book. I like it because it looks like a grown up book, but it was really a kid book. Every chapter was about something different that was happening in Lily's life. The words weren't too big of words and there were a lot of describing words and that helped me picture what things looked like. I liked learning about how Amish people live and if Lily was a real person, I would like to be friends with her.

I would recommend to read this book and I can't wait until the 2nd book comes out.

Available October 2012  at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Revell books sent this complimentary book for me to review. All opinions are from my brain.