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Thursday, February 2, 2012

Thursday Recipe - Fairy Offerings and Guava Candy

Please welcome Frances Pauli to the Far Edge of Normal. She's got a three book dark fantasy fairy series out. A Moth in Darkness, The Fly in Paradise, and Spiders from Memory. And since she's on a blog tour, she's got prizes and other goodies listed here.


Today, we discuss fairy foods. Good stuff. One lucky commenter on this post will win a package of fairy offerings from me. Frances has her own giveaways, too, so be sure to check out her main blog hop post here: www.francespauli.blogspot.com

You have an interesting mix of fairies including the sparkling little things we usually associate with Tinkerbell. What kinds of foods do they eat? Flower nectar? Fruit? Nibbles of beef from the grill of the elves?


You know, I don't see the little ones needing to eat really. They may nibble on some nectar when no one is looking, but in the books they really feed off of human emotion. The Dancers that they create provide them with a steady stream of memories and passion that seems to be their primary nutrition. Of course, you never really know with fairies. One in particular develops a serious doughnut addiction. Food, like anything for the little ones is just another game or pleasure.

My elves, on the other hand, are incredibly picky eaters. They dine on sweet fruit and succulent meats, and drink a steady supply of sticky-sweet Cuarry juice. In book three, in fact, a small group of refugees are stranded on the mundane side of the borders, and their constant whining about the food at the Embassy proves problematic.

The tiny little fairy with the doughnut obsession who ate a dozen doughnuts by itself gave me a giggle. What does a fat fairy look like? Makes you wonder a bit.

Fat fairies are my favorite. I used to do a bit of fairy graffiti in my younger, art-school years. I left scribbled fairies just about everywhere I went—don’t tell the dean. My favorites to draw were heavy, rounded fairies with tiny little wings. Not from the doughnuts though…fairies don’t get fat from sugar. I think they get fat just to try it out.

Tell me about the fairy offering - peach colored bits of pure heaven, if I remember it right. What's the inspiration for that?

Flower Kiss candy. I developed quite an addiction to it when I lived in the Seattle area. It's made in Japan, and I found a bag of it by chance during a shopping trip to Uwajimaya. The wrappers are so cute. Pastel blue, pink and yellow with various botanical images. So lovely, and inside, a hard, pale pink piece of bumpy goodness. They are really good. I mean, unbelievably good. The flavor is very delicate, and I love the name and look of the stuff almost as much as the taste. Can you tell I'm addicted? I believe that they are plum flavored. To me they just taste like the name says, like little flower kisses.

For those who want to learn more or get addicted to fairy offerings, here are a couple of links: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Flower-Kiss-Candy/354468518306?sk=wall
http://www.amazon.com/Kasugai-Flowers-Kiss-Candy-5-1oz/dp/B000B7S2QG
Or you can comment on this post for a chance to win some fairy offerings!


Ever tried guava candy, another Asian treat? Excellent stuff.

No, I haven't, but it sounds right up my alley. I learned all about guava juice in Hawaii. They start you off with it on the plane going in, almost like a prelude to paradise. "Here's some juice, now you'll understand that everything is better on the islands." It is, too.

I absolutely *love* guava nectar from Kern's. So sweet and thick and just plain delicious. If you have never had guava nectar, go find some! It's that good. The frozen guava-raspberry juice from Hawaii's Own is tasty, too, but not nearly as good as the canned nectar.

POG is worth getting too, if you’ve never tried it. Pineapple, orange, and guava all together. Mmmmm.

Since this is a recipe post, can you share a great fairy recipe with us?

I imagine sugared fruit would be a big hit among the Fey. I once read a recipe where you used orange and lemon rind and a sugary syrup to make a dainty sort of sweet snack. I've never had the patience to make them though. I can share the recipe for Sed's Substitute Cuarry Juice. He saves the day with it in Spiders from Memory, but it's ghastly sweet stuff. I'd never drink it, but to an elf with a sweet tooth, this is the closest you can get to a taste of home.

Sed's Substitute Cuarry Juice

2 c. Pomegranate Juice
2 c. Cranberry Juice
Splash of Pineapple juice (Not too much, the acidity hurts the elves' dainty mouths)
Grotesque amounts of Grenadine. (Here is where the syrupy tastes come into play. For human consumption it might be better to say "Grenadine to taste."

Mix everything together. Serve well chilled and over ice.

Sounds delicious in very small quantities. This recipe makes 4-6 servings, if I'm judging it right. 1 serving if you're an elf.

I'll have to find a recipe for candied fruit that isn't nasty and post that sometime. For now, thanks for stopping by, Frances. Good luck with the books. I can't wait to get my hands on book 3, Spiders from Memory!

For the rest of you, don't forget to leave a comment with your name and email address so I can do a random drawing for some delicious fairy offerings and guava candy! You also get entered in Frances' drawing for her books and other goodies.

Thanks so much for having a spot on the tour! I’ll be selecting one commenter here for a pdf copy of any book from my backlist, and for each tour stop you comment on you’ll get an entry into a drawing for the entire trilogy in print. So comment, and come along on the tour for more chances to win.

19 comments:

  1. LOLOL! I don't even know where to start! What a fun blogs post! Okay, I'm goggling over a Japanese candy that is sweet! How sweet is it? When my son was there, he'd make sugar cookies and people would tell him they were too sweet. Congrats and my, you are a MACHINE girl! Three books???? Congrats x3!!!!!

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  2. Oh This is delicate sweet, but definitely sweet. The flower kiss, that is. I haven't tried the guava. I think taste is hard to translate. I had a Japanese exchange student who insisted her tiny little plum snacks were sour, but they had been soaked in brine for at least a century, I swear. Almost died of salt poisoning. Blech. I can still taste it.

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  3. Hi Frances! Great kick off day. What a fun post today. See you tomorrow on my blog!

    (Hi Jaleta!)

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  4. I've sllways thought there was a corelation between the Cullen vampires sparkling and the faeries in the areas that the Cullen's live in. LOL

    Love the faeries, your books sound great. Thanks for the heads up.
    Michelle

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  5. Yes! So glad to be able to get my hands on that last book--been waiting since the end of book two.

    sted1354@gmail.com

    Thinking about fat fairies,
    Voss

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  6. I haven't read the series yet, but it is on top of my list of Books to Read this year! Very cool giveaway!

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  7. I love fat fairies, Voss!
    Oh yes, Michelle, I recently read said vampire book, and I couldn't help but think that there was a connection to the Fey there. Since I'm not a huge vampire fan, my thinking went: how cool would this have been if she'd used fairies?
    But I am so biased. ;)
    The Leanan Sidhe actual were vampiric in their own way, and I wonder if she didn't mean to make that correlation on purpose.
    Food for thought, anyway. Thanks so much for commenting everyone!

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  8. Thanks for commenting, everyone. You are all entered in the giveaway.

    *eyes candy bags* Much as I love candy, my body doesn't anymore. I need to give it away. How about everyone share the link and get us more entries? I'll close the contest next Monday evening and choose winners then. I'm bumping it up to three lucky winners of fairy offerings AND guava candy!

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  9. Everything sounds so delicious, Jaleta and Frances! I might have to try that recipe. ;)

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  10. OK I have got to get at least one of the books; I'm convinced. And, I wonder if the fairie that is addicted to donuts knows where to get gluten free ones.

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  11. I need to pick up a bottle of grenadine and try it out. My kids love weird drinks.

    Jed, I've found some frozen GF doughnuts that my daughter swears are totally delicious. I didn't try one since they cost about $1 a piece. But on the up side, the candies I'm giving away are GF.

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  12. I love finding new books through blog posts. It gives readers an opportunity to get a feel for the mind behind the stories, and that makes for an enriched reading experience :)

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  13. oh wow this is so cool i had no idea you had so much knowledge on this fascinating stuff. :) when i was a kid i loved to read and learn about faires and magic and all that really cool stuff what am i saying i still love it!!!! well great blog and now i know what to talk about next time we are all together and i would love to read one of your books:) have a nice night ttyl Lindsey

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  14. Thank you everyone for stopping and commenting! I will draw for the free e-book tonight at eleven and try to post the winner before bed. ;) Everyone feel free to keep chatting too, because that Candy winner has until Monday to be selected.
    Also, follow along to the next tour stop tomorrow. Every day you post a comment will add another chance to win the whole trilogy in print.
    http://francespauli.blogspot.com for links to each day's stop.
    THANK JALETA! What a fun day.
    :)

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  15. It's always fun to have you here, Frances. Thanks for sharing your great books!

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  16. Such a fun post. Can't wait for the book.

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  17. Okay everyone. I drew a random number and Nobel M Standing is our e-book winner for the day. :D
    Congratulations and thanks to everyone!
    Tomorrow's stop is at Kaye Manro's blog, and the links to all the stops are on my blog. Everyone here has one entry into the Grand Prize drawing. Comment elsewhere to up your chances and win more e-books.
    Today's winner: give me a contact email, or email me at author@francespauli.com
    and let me know which book you'd like and where to send it.
    You can browse the backlist here: http://francespauli.com/works.htm
    and pick any title (minus the anthologies)

    ~Frances

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  18. Our daily winner is Noble M Standing. Congratulations. Email me at author@francespauli.com with your selection of e-book, and I'll send it to you asap. You can browse the backlist at http://francespauli.com/works.htm

    Everyone who posted here has one entry into the main drawing as well. If you follow along on the tour, you can up your chances of winning the trilogy in print.

    Tour schedule is on my blog:
    http://francespauli.blogspot.com

    Thanks so much for a great kick-off.

    ~Frances

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  19. Since I'm so generous, I've picked THREE winners. Each will get a selection of fairy offerings and guava candy. Please email me (jaletaclegg@gmail.com) your mailing address.

    Drum roll, please....

    Kaye Monroe
    Voss Foster
    Roz M

    You have won!

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Keep it clean, keep it nice.