Thursday Recipe - Zucchini Muffins

It's that time of year again. No not Christmas or back-to-school. Zucchini drive-by season! Lock your car windows! Hide behind closed drapes! Keep your children indoors! Monster zucchini have been seen in YOUR neighborhood!

I don't mind zucchini season. I can't grow the stuff. I know, zucchini is a weed. ANYONE can grow zucchini. Not me. Every time I plant it, it dies. I have a black thumb of death when it comes to plants. Except for one African violet that thrives on neglect and a mutant Christmas cactus. My yard is green because we let the weeds fill in the bare spots. And my kids take care of the yard, not me. My daughter plants the garden because any seed she touches will sprout and become a beautiful, healthy plant.

So I gratefully accept those baseball bat sized zucchinis and enjoy them. I've made two giant batches of these muffins in the last week. Most of them landed in the freezer for packing in lunches in two weeks, because yes, it is back-to-school season, too. These are moist and tasty, packed with vegetable goodness, low in fat, and lower in sugar than most recipes. Try them out. They're easy and good for you.

Healthy Zucchini Muffins (based loosely on a Betty Crocker recipe)

1/3 c. softened butter
1 1/3 c. brown sugar
4 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/3 c. milk or milk substitute
3 1/2 c. grated zucchini
2 c. whole wheat flour
2 1/2 c. oatmeal

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and milk. Beat until smooth and creamy. Add flour, oatmeal, and zucchini. Stir just until mixed.

Line 24-36 muffin cups with paper liners. Scoop batter into each cup, filling each one about 2/3 full. (I used an ice cream scoop - perfect size and very little mess!) Bake at 350° for 18 - 22 minutes, until muffins are set and lightly browned on the edges or until a toothpick comes out clean. They will be moist and a little bit gooey. Let cool IN THE TINS for at least 30 minutes. Remove to a rack to finish cooling.

Enjoy with cream cheese or butter or just plain.
Wrap well and freeze for up to three months.

My (tripled) batches made about 7 dozen muffins, so you should get at least 24 per batch. If you scoop them smaller, you will get up to 36.

Author Interview - Diantha Jones

Please welcome Diantha Jones to The Far Edge of Normal! She was born the day thousands of turkeys sacrificed their lives to fill millions of American bellies on November 22 which also happened to be Thanksgiving Day (Her mother says she owes her a turkey). She is a Journalism graduate who wants to be a career novelist (of books, not Facebook posts). When not writing or working, she is reading on her Nook, being hypnotized by Netflix or on a mission to procure french fries. 

The Oracle of Delphi fantasy series is her first series. She is also the author of Mythos: Stories from Olympus, a companion series, and there is another fantasy series in the works. She also writes (new) adult fantasy/paranormal romance under the name A. Star. Invasion (An Alien Romance) is her first title released under this pen name. Future releases under A. Star include, the Love & Steampunk series, the Purr, Inc. stories, and more.

Find her at http://www.diantha-jones.com/ or on Twitter or on Facebook.

Tell us about your writing - What genre do you prefer to write? What books, stories, other publications that you've written are your personal favorites? Anything new coming up?Well, I would call myself a young adult fantasy writer, but I have more adult books coming down the pipeline than YA! But for now, we'll stick with the former title. My fave so far is the Oracle of Delphi series, but I'm quickly falling in love with my upcoming New Adult series Love & Steampunk. Can't wait to share it with readers!

What about you as a person? What do you do to relax? Favorite movies or tv shows? Hobbies?I love to read, of course, and usually have several books going at one time. I also love TV and movies. So much that I have a meme that I do on my site called “Show N' Read Saturday” where I compare books to TV shows/movies!

"All writers must have cats, especially if they write fantasy or speculative fiction." Do you have a stand on this one? Any cute pictures of your kitty or other pet?People will call me insane, but this writer here HATES CATS. I don't like them at all. I actually don't have any pets, but if I did, it would be a dog. A rottweiler possibly. But a cat? Never.

If you could have dinner with any of your characters, which ones would you choose? What food would you serve?I'd probably choose a god, like Apollo or Aphrodite. Of course, I'd serve nectar and ambrosia...for them. I'd have fried chicken with potatoes and green bean casserole. Ooh! And sweet tea...I sound so fat right now.

If you could travel anywhere, on earth or off, where would you go?On Earth, definitely Australia. It's one of those bucket list things. Gotta get there before I die.

What color would you wear if you had only one choice?Black. I practically where it all the time now.

Describe your dream writing spot.A cabin in the woods. During winter. Ah, yes. Sounds amazing.

Along with her visit her and her book tour, Diantha is offering some fun prizes.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Prophecy of Solstice's End Amazon link
Prophecy of Solstice's End B&N link

Announcing...

Can I have a drumroll, please?

Book 4 in my series is now live for the Kindle!

Dace is up to her neck in new problems. Jasyn and Clark can't seem to get along and the route they're flying is like the Bermuda triangle - ships disappear without a trace. But Jasyn is certain they can handle the dangers and the payoff promises to be big.

Until they receive a distress call and trigger a five-hundred-year-old trap.

Buy it now on Kindle.

Thursday Recipe - Nacho Jalapeño Rings

I've got a great neighbor who gave me a pile of fresh jalapeño peppers from her garden. These dark green beauties are now in bottles, waiting to top piles of corn chips smothered in melted cheese. Bottling them was super easy and didn't take long at all.

A couple of tips to make life easier when working with spicy peppers: USE GLOVES. Seriously. Get some disposable food handling gloves and USE GLOVES. Then, don't touch your face with the gloves or your hands until after you discard the gloves and WASH YOUR HANDS. Even then, my skin was burning for several hours after doing the peppers. The capsaicin in the peppers is what makes them spicy and since it's oil based, it lingers. For a long time. So be careful when working with fresh hot peppers.

(This is my take on a recipe I found on food.com)

Small-Batch Pickled Jalapeños

Makes 1 pint

10-12 fresh jalapeño peppers, or about 2 c. of sliced pepper rings
Tip: If you want them milder, take the time to remove and discard the seeds
1 1/4 c. white vinegar (5% acidity if you're planning on canning these)
1/2 t. pickling salt (this is un-iodized salt, regular table salt has iodine added and it will discolor the pickles)
1 t. white sugar

Pack jalapeño slices into a clean and hot pint glass jar. (Or use 2 1/2 pint jars, or 4 half-cup jars, or an old mayonnaise jar if you aren't going to seal it).

Bring vinegar, salt, and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan. Pour carefully over the pepper rings, leaving 1/2 headspace (basically room for the filling to expand while processing, I usually fill the jar to about 1/2 inch below the rim).

If you are not canning the peppers, cover and refrigerate for up to a month. Let sit for at least 2 days before eating so they can pickle.

If you are canning, clean the rim of the jar and cover with a clean lid and ring. Process in a water bath for ten minutes at sea level, twenty minutes where I live at 5500 feet above sea level. Remove from the boiling water bath and let cool completely. Check the seal before storing.

If you want tips on how to can, this is a great site.

Adventures with Harvey

I thought I got a picture of the shredded tire, but this was the only picture on the camera.

This was one adventure I'm glad I missed. My hubby took Harvey, a couple of our boys, and a few neighbors into the nearby mountains (only a three-hour drive away!)(we have mountains in our backyard, but they weren't the right kind of mountains with the right kind of trees) to collect lodgepole pine trees that are dead so he could have lots of logs to lash into things for Boy Scouts. He wanted me to go along so I could sit in Harvey and tell people where to go and how to get there. I mean, where to meet him and where to collect the trees. I had way too many things on my plate that weekend, like driving kids here and there and washing my hair and doing laundry and generally doing anything that was not camping that weekend. Really, I had legitimate reasons to stay home. So I did.

He left on Friday morning as soon as our one son finished summer school. He was supposed to be back Saturday mid-afternoon.

He finally rolled in Saturday evening. Harvey blew a tire.

On the highway.

When he was driving fast.

It took out the drivers side mirror, dinged up the side of the car, and left tread along the side of the road.

Before Harvey, we used this setup.

They spent an hour bashing the lug nuts with an axe trying to break the rust loose so they could get the tire off and swap it with the spare. This was after they had to figure out how to jack up a old RV that weighs a lot more than a normal car, or even our old 15-passenger van.

I heard it all second hand. I am very grateful that their guardian angels were working overtime that day. No one was injured. I am grateful they made it home without needing a tow truck. (But that's why we have a AAA membership with RV coverage.)

I am also very grateful I wasn't there. It would have been one too many straws that week.

And two weeks later, we are now the proud owners of seven new tires. And a big ole bill. All the tires showed signs of dry rot.

Thursday Recipe - Stir-fried Beef Strips

My mom used to make these and serve them with plenty of rice and vegetables although you could stuff it into tortillas with some lettuce and sour cream for a different taste. They aren't oriental, more like regular steak in flavor. Use a more tender cut for this recipe. Round steak will probably be too tough, although my mom used it more than once. A basic sirloin steak will work just fine. Don't get too extravagant.

Stir-fried Beef Strips

2 T. oil
1 1/2 lbs. good quality sirloin steak cut into strips with the big bits of fat trimmed off
1 onion, sliced into strips
1 T. worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in a cast iron frying pan or other very heavy pan until hot. (I flick a drop or two of water into the pan. If it sizzles immediately, it's ready.) Add half the meat strips. Stir around until the meat is seared on the outside. Remove the strips, set aside. Repeat with the other half of the strips.

Add the onions to the pan along with the seared meat. Douse with worcestershire sauce. Cook, stirring often, until meat is as done as you prefer. This usually takes less than ten minutes total.

Remove the meat, add salt and pepper to taste.

Stir 1 T. cornstarch into 1 c. cold water. Add to the drippings in the pan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil and stir one minute.

Serve the meat with the gravy over rice.

Author Interview - Michelle Murrain

Please welcome Michelle Murrain to The Far Edge of Normal! Michelle Murrain is a science fiction writer who has published seven novels. Her novels are largely hard science fiction, but incorporate social, political, and spiritual topics. She lives in Northern California.

Author Website: http://murrain.net/books
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MichelleMurrain
Twitter: @pearlbear

Tell us about your writing - What genre do you prefer to write? What books, stories, other publications that you've written are your personal favorites? Anything new coming up?
I am primarily a hard science fiction writer, and enjoy writing novels that incorporate lots of social commentary, and explore all of the varied ways to live human (and not human) lives. One of my favorite novels is called “The Right Asteroid” which takes place about a hundred or so years from now, when there is asteroid mining, and colonies on Mars and other planets. It's a story of first contact, as well as of political intrigue, and personal struggle.

My other favorite novel is called “The Expedition” which is a science fiction novel set in the 19th century. Really. It's fun.

I'll be publishing a new novel, called “Friends with Wings.” It is about a woman who is stranded on a far away planet, and meets intelligent winged beings, and lives with them.

What about you as a person? What do you do to relax? Favorite movies or tv shows? Hobbies?
I mostly read to relax. Or sit by a river, or in a forest. I am a geek by nature, so I like to play with technology – building things, playing games. I don't really watch TV (I don't have one,) but I have, like many, been enthralled by “Game of Thrones.”

What organizations do you recommend for those wanting to become writers? Any advice you'd like to share about writing?
For women SF/F writers, I'd suggest Broad Universe, which is designed to promote women in SF/F. I'd also never underestimate the value of local writer's groups, whether it be for critique, or just support.

As for advice – follow what makes you happy. I've never been one to write what I thought other people wanted to read – I write what I want to write, and what I'd want to read. It might mean that I have a smaller audience, but it makes me much happier than writing what I thought the market wanted.

What writers inspired you to become an author?
There weren't any that specifically inspired me to become an author, but there are many that inspire me as an author. Ursula LeGuin, Octavia Butler, Maria Doria Russel, Sherri Tepper, and Guy Gavriel Kay all come to mind.

Great choices. If you could travel to any time in history, when would you visit?
I am fascinated by the 19th century, and if I could go disguised as a white man, I would visit. Otherwise the visit would be rather unpleasant.

I'd imagine it could be unpleasant for you. An unfortunate fact of history. If you could have dinner with any of your characters, which ones would you choose? What food would you serve?
I'd love to have dinner with the main protagonist of my novel, “The Expedition” - a human named Jam'elo who wasn't raised on Earth. I'd serve him my goat cheese lasagna.

If you could travel anywhere, on earth or off, where would you go?
Mars.

What color would you wear if you had only one choice?
Dark Blue.

Describe your dream writing spot.
Home.

Thanks so much for stopping by, Michelle. I haven't heard of your books before, but they're on my to-be-purchased list for certain now!