Never lose heart! After fourteen submissions, "the Polka Dot Bag" has been published online by Epistemic Literary https://epistemiclit.com/current-issue/issue-four/a-polka-dot-bag/. It's a story about being thirteen, misunderstood and coveting a purse.
One of my correspondents is reading Montaigne's essays, one a day, to avoid doomscrolling which is a good idea. Also, recommend drawing which I started doing during InkTober on Facebook and found relaxing.
I'm searching for a PC whiz to help me unscramble my overstuffed computer.
While I have had a good run reading four new books, The Offing, Small Rain, Tell Me Everything, and Intermezzo , I have a yen to go back and read some old stuff. Here's a list of what I have been reading of late including a couple very good novels: https://www.blogger.com/blog/posts/100632570552630097
Book Tubers (people who talk books on YouTube) have instigated something called Nonfiction November so I will try to read a couple non-fictions in November although I am usually all about novels with the odd memoir thrown in. And there are plenty of options in this bulging library house. Now that the rains have started, the fire wood is steaming and we're ready to stay in with the Scrabble board.
The warm feeling of good works during these fraught days leading up the election: we went to the annual lunch at the Four Seasons today, a fund raiser for Peace Trees Vietnam https://www.peacetreesvietnam.org/ and the remarkable work they do training people to remove unexploded ordnance left over in the country from the Vietnam War fifty years ago, as well as building schools, libraries, planting trees and animal husbandry for those impacted. These bombs can still kill people after all of these years. Founded in 1995 by Danaan Parry and Jerilyn Brusseau, PeaceTrees Vietnam was the first US organization permitted to sponsor humanitarian demining efforts in Vietnam. Over the years PeaceTrees has continued to work in mine action, while broadening the scope of its support for community-led education and economic development programs. Through their growth, PeaceTrees has remained committed to honoring losses experienced on all sides of the war. https://www.peacetreesvietnam.org/about/
Since the end of the war, more than 40,000 people have been killed and more than 67,000 maimed by cluster munitions, landmines, and other explosive ordnance. In one out of every five accidents, the victim is a child.
Michael is making cheesy meat loaf for dinner tonight. I've made the NYT's Election Cookies (below)- should have doubled it. Twelve cookies may not see us through.
With a buss and a fist pump salute,
Mary Kay
Chewy Brown Butter Cookies
By Genevieve Ko
Updated Oct. 30, 2024
Johnny Miller for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Vivian Lui.
Total Time
1 hour 35 minutes, plus cooling
Prep Time
5 minutes
Cook Time
30 minutes plus 1 hour’s chilling and cooling
Rating
4(67)
Notes
Read 64 community notes
Chewy, yes, but these big cookies still have that essential crisp ring around the edge and also include crunchy bits of pecans throughout. Cooked in browned butter, the nuts take on a toasty depth and taste even richer if you start with Elliot pecans, a sweeter, fattier variety grown primarily in Georgia. It’s worth seeking out very dark maple syrup too, which is labeled as such. Intense and complex, it’s ideal for baking because it’s strong enough in taste to act as a seasoning. Even with standard pecans and other shades of syrup, these thoughtfully salted cookies come out caramelly.
Ingredients
Yield: Makes 1 dozen
8 tablespoons/114 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
1cup/112 grams chopped pecans
1¾cups/166 grams old-fashioned rolled oats
1teaspoon fine salt
¾ cup/98 grams all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup/175 grams packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
2 tablespoons/35 grams pure maple syrup, preferably very dark
Flaky or coarse salt, for sprinkling
Preparation
Step 1
Melt 2 tablespoons/28 grams butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the milk solid bits are tan and smell toasty, 3 to 5 minutes total.
Step 2
Add the pecans and stir until the milk solid bits are dark brown and the nuts smell toasty, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the oats and salt until the oats have soaked up the butter. Cool until ready to use.
Step 3
Whisk the flour and baking soda in a small bowl; set aside. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle or a large bowl and wooden spoon, beat the brown sugar and remaining 6 tablespoons/86 grams butter until the mixture looks like a mound of wet sand. Add the egg and maple syrup and beat until evenly blended in.
Step 4
Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed (or gently by hand) just until incorporated, then add the pecan-oat mixture, being sure to scrape in all the salt and bits from the pan. Mix until evenly dispersed.
Step 5
Form the dough into 12 even balls using an ice cream or large cookie scoop (or your hands). Place on a large plate (it’s OK if they’re touching) and refrigerate until firm, at least 30 minutes. The dough can be chilled, covered or in an airtight container, for up to 3 days, or frozen for up to 1 month.
Step 6
When ready to bake, heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 1 large or 2 regular baking sheets with parchment paper. Arrange the cold dough balls 3 inches apart on the prepared sheet(s) and flatten slightly if chilled for longer than an hour. Sprinkle the tops with flaky salt.
Step 7
Bake until golden brown around the edges, 15 to 18 minutes. (If baking from frozen, the cookies will need a few more minutes). Cool completely on the sheets. The cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 5 days at room temperature or up to a month in
the freezer.
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