Book Review AND GIVEAWAY - The Berry Bible, By Janie Hibler

I recently received a copy of The Berry Bible, By Janie Hibler.
The contents are:

Acknowledgments
Introduction
Good Health and Berries
The A-to-Z Berry Encyclopedia
Berry Basics
Coolers, Cocktails, Smoothies and Other Drinks
Breads
Soups and Salads
Main Courses
Sauces
Putting Berries By
Ice Creams, Sorbets, and Other Frozen Treats
Pies, Tarts, Cobblers and Such
Cakes
Pastries, Puddings and other Sweet Treats
Websites
Selected Bibliography
Index

You must know me by now...I headed straight for the "Putting Berries By" chapter to see if I could find some new canning recipes. The 2 recipes that caught my eye were Bumbleberry Jam and Aunt Jeanie's Blackberry Syrup. I can't wait to try the Blackberry Syrup. Blackberries are just about my favorite berry.

Aunt Jeanie's Blackberry Syrup
1/4 Cup Fresh Lemon Juice (from about 2 lemons)
2 to 2 1/2 Pints (4 to 5 Cups) Fresh Blackberries rinsed and drained, or Frozen Blackberries, thawed with juice, pureed and seeded to make 3 cups of seedless puree.
One 1.75 Ounce box Powdered Pectin
4 1/2 Cups Sugar
1 Tsp Unsalted Butter
1 1/2 Tsp Baking Soda

Have washed and hot five 8 ounce canning jars. Prepare the lids according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Pour the Lemon Juice and Blackberry Puree into a large, nonreactive pan. Add the Pectin and mix thoroughly. Put the pan over high heat and bring to a full roiling boil, stirring constantly. Stir in the Sugar, mix well, and bring once again to a full roiling boil. Add the Butter and Baking Soda, stirring constantly. Immediately fill the jars using a wide-mouth funnel and attach the lids. Process in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes.

The book has 175 berry recipes, along with detailed descriptions of every type of berry on earth. The only fault I find with the book is the lack of photographs. I'm one cook who loves to see what the finished product looks like and I'd definitely like to have seen photographs of each type of berry.

About the Author:

Janie Hibler, author and food writer, grew up in Arcata, California, a small coastal town 90 miles south of the Oregon border in the heart of the redwoods. In this lovely rural region in northern California, picking berries, hunting, fishing, clamming, and raising your own livestock are a way of life. She grew up in a family of good cooks who always sought out the freshest ingredients for their table.

While educated in the sciences she eventually hung up her lab coat and began a career in the culinary field.

She is a founding member and past president of the International Association of Culinary Professionals (4,000 members in 39 countries) and the Portland Culinary Alliance (100 members in Oregon and southern Washington). She happily lives in Portland, Oregon and divides her time between the city and her log cabin nestled in the foothills of the Washington Cascades.

The Berry Bible, By Janie Hibler is currently available at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com, Borders.com and your local bookstore.

I'll be giving away 1 free copy of The Berry Bible to one of my commenters!

To enter:

1. Leave a comment letting me know your favorite berry. (This is required.) Please be sure to leave your email address in your comment so I have a way of contacting you if you won so I can get your mailing address to give to the publisher.

2. For an extra entry, become a Follower of Lola's Diner, and leave me a comment letting me know you became a follower. If you are already a follower, leave a comment letting me know.

That's it! Winners will be announced August 15th.

Good luck!

Lola's Diner Disclaimer: I was given this book to review. This review is 100% my opinion and has not been edited or reviewed by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this product review.

Lola's Diner ©2008-2010

World's Dumbest Way to Spend A Saturday Evening...

Spend it watching 6 back to back episodes of The Smoking Gun Presents: World's Dumbest Partiers.

Yeah, it was pretty dumb. Plenty of head injuries, falling down the stairs, passed out drunk put on a raft and set afloat in the lake.

And I mean both the decision to watch the shows and the shows themselves.

We were just chillaxin, nothing really on television, so we switched over to Tru-Tv. If you're going to watch any of The Smoking Gun's World's Dumbest shows (which they have a boatload of), may I suggest a drinking game? Yeah, drink any time someone does something stupid. I think it would make the show more interesting and perhaps you'd end up with your own submission for World's Dumbest Partiers.

Yeah...that's the ticket.

But alas, we didn't think of the drinking game until the last episode aired. It definitely would have made it more fun.

Lola's Diner ©2008-2010

Sunday Stealing

1. Introduce yourself. Hi. I am Lola. "L" "o" "l" "a". Lola. My site is named Lola's Diner. Get it?

5. Did you ever get into a bar and drink before you were 21? Yes. 18. The drinking age in Wisconsin at the time was 18.

6. What countries have you been to? USA. USA. USA.

7. Do you watch MTV anymore? I don't have Cable TV or Satellite, so I can't.

8. What do you think about Oprah? She’s full of it.

10. You need a new pair of jeans: what store do you go to first? Old Navy online.

11. Did you ever watch The O.C.? No, I’m over 16 years old.

12. What kind of car do you drive? Honda Pilot.

13. Honestly, is that car insured? Hell yes!

14. Do you like sushi? LOVE IT!

15. Have you ever been to Tiffany & Co. or Saks 5th Ave? Nope, why, should I?

16. Did your parents spoil you growing up? Hell to the no! My parents grew up during the depression. If they couldn't pay cash, they didn't buy it.

17. Do you like roller coasters? Hell to the no!

18. What magazine(s) do you buy regularly or subscribe to? The New Yorker, Curve, The Advocate.

19. Do you remember the old WB show “Popular”? No, I’m over 20.

20. When you go out do you prefer to go to a dance club or to a bar? The only gay bar choice near us is a dance club. It's too bad that when they re-opened they didn't update their record collection.

21. What do you think about gay marriage? Thank you for asking! Gay couples deserve the sames rights and privileges as straight couples.

22. Who do you think will be the next president? I'm hoping it's not Sarah Palin. Just because she can see Russia from her house. Hoping it will still be Obama so that he has more time to implement his plans.

23. Are you registered to vote? Hell I better be! I'm an election judge.

24. Do you own an iPad? Nope.

25. Is your bathroom filled with beauty stuff? Like toilet paper and deodorant?

Lola's Diner ©2008-2010