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At long last, we are rolling out our FIRST new interview style episode. First up, is the owner of the local Barre3 studio, Rebekah Kauffman. Thanks for being our first guinea pig!!  Of course, now we are in the midst of a world dominated by COVID-19 quarantines, so I am not sure how we will wrangle upcoming episodes. Fingers crossed that everyone is well and taking care of themselves. A PSA If you haven’t yet, visit our website and see our recent post about why you should support indie bookstores and how to help. With our last post, we shared that we are now affiliates with The Bookshop, which is one of the ways to support indies and vote with your dollars. Our show notes for S4E3 go into more detail  about The Bookshop. You can also read all about their model here.  More of an audiobook person? Use this link and the code SHOPBOOKSTORESNOW to get 2 audiobooks for the price of 1 ($14.99) by giving Libro.FM a try. They are donating 100% of their profit to partner indie stores when you use this code. Again, a small indie company trying to give you an alternative to Amazon/Audible. Cori genuinely loves it!!! Part of all audiobook sales go to member bookstores. This link benefits Brightside. Feel free to see if your local indie benefits from either of these great companies. Chatting with Bookish Kindred Spirits Kyrie and Cori love talking books with each other. Moving into our 4th season (!?), we decided it was time to mix things up again. What better way than to reach out into our community and visit with some other folks about their reading habits and book likes and dislikes.  In each interview episode, you will also get to know our guest beyond their bookish habits. After we learn a bit more about their reading preferences, we will make some reading recommendations. What We Drank We enjoyed cups of Tranquil Peach Herbal Tea from Plum Deluxe. We all found it tasty and relaxing. Perfect for our conversation together. As Plum Deluxe Ambassadors, you can use our code BOOKSANDTEA and our link to get 10% off your first order.  Books We Talked About Burial Rites by Hannah Kent The Glass Woman by Caroline Lea I Remember You by Yrsa Sigurdardottir 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Jo Nesbo Where The Crawdad Sings by Delia Owens Long Bright River https://bookshop.org/shop/booksandteaby Liz Moore Convenience Store Woman by  Sayaka Murata Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee by Casey Cep  

So here’s the thing. We are in the midst of an awkward format transition during a pandemic while trying to manage our everyday lives. So, this one was recorded a while ago. We didn’t take a picture of what we ate and drank. Nor did we write down brands or anything… We had baked goods from our local farmer’s market. Kyrie rejected Cori’s green tea offering and had pumpkin spice chai instead. (Update: We found the photo!) Support Your Indies A really important update about our new affiliate program. Have you heard of the Bookshop? Welp, now you will. The Bookshop is being called the indie alternative to Amazon. Let’s stick it to the man! Bezos has more money than he will ever spend. You know who needs more money? Independent bookstores. Especially right now. Read all about their model here.  Tl;dr 10% of sales go into a revenue for independent bookstore members Bookstore affiliates earn a 25% commission on their sales The Bookshop does offer a small discount on their books when you buy from them You can use our link to go shopping or please use the one for Bright Side Bookshop, our local indie. https://bookshop.org/shop/booksandtea https://bookshop.org/shop/brightsidebookshop More of an audiobook person? Use this link and the code SWITCH to get 3 audiobooks for the price of 1 ($14.99) by giving Libro.FM a try. Again, a small indie company trying to give you an alternative to Amazon/Audible. Cori genuinely loves it!!! Again, part of all audiobook sales go to member bookstores. This link benefits Brightside. Feel free to see if your local indie benefits from either of these great companies. On to our new format. Now, we are just dishing once a month about books we read and enjoyed to help you pick out your next read. What We Read Where the Crawdad Sings (audio) Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan Stradal The Gown by Jennifer Robson Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate Is There Still Sex in the City by Candace Bushnell (audio) Other Books Mentioned The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse by Louise Erdrich (DNF) Chilling Effect by Valerie Valdes (DNF) Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane We mentioned this profile written up about us this past fall in Flag Live. Gotta love that 5 minutes of fame!

Really, we probably need an “Under Construction” sign as we recalibrate to our new format. This was recorded in August (oops). In which we discuss slang, Cori’s poor decision to go on vacation right after the school year starts, and Kyrie’s reading slump. But, we still have reading recommendations for ya. And tea. What  We Drank We enjoyed Mint Fields tea from Republic Of Tea. We love mint tea, especially when it’s organic. It makes our tummies feel good. We also discuss how the longer we drink tea the more particular we get. You can try out Sips By by clicking through and filling out a profile AND get $5 off your first box! You will get 4 different teas customized to your preferences with over 40 cups o’ tea to enjoy. What We Read If, Then by by Kate Hope Day Pure Land by Annette McGivney Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny Never Have I Ever by Joshilyn Jackson Southern Lady Code by Helen Ellis PolDark series by Winston Graham If you want to buy your books online and support Kyrie and Cori click here to shop. Otherwise, we encourage you to visit your local independent bookstore. If you are an audio book kind of person, consider switching to Libro.FM. You get to pick a favorite independent bookstore to support! If you use this link and the code SWITCH you will get 2 additional free downloads with your first month of membership! If you like listening to us, consider visit our GoFundMe site and make a donation to support our ongoing costs and operations. We will even send you a tea as a thank you!

In this episode, Kyrie and Cori share their favorite reads of 2019. Yeah, we know…. Better late than never. If you live in Flagstaff (or visit) check out Shift’s First Saturday bake sale. The pain du chocolat is quite tasty. It was paired with a black chai tea Cori received from Sipsby. You can try out Sips By by clicking through and filling out a profile AND get $5 off your first box! You will get 4 different teas customized to your preferences with over 40 cups o’ tea to enjoy.   Cori and Kyrie reviewed their top rated books from GoodReads to come up with their lists. To follow them on GoodReads click their names Books Discussed in This Episode The World That We Knew – Alice Hoffman Save Me The Plums – Ruth Reichl The River by Peter Heller Stray City by Chelsey Johnson Rules for Visiting by Jessica Francis Kane The Wild Trees by Richard Preston Rough Magic – Laura Prior-Palmer Daisy Jones & the Six – Taylor Jenkins Reid The Woman in the Window AJ Finn Tell Me Everything by Cambria Brockman The Gown by Jennifer Robson  The American Duchess by Karen Harper Where the Crawdad Sings by Delia Owens The Way of Kings Brian Sanderson Other Books Mentioned Fall and Rise: Story of 9/11 by  Mitchell Zuckoff Saturday Night Ghost Club by Craig Davidson Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid If you want to buy your books online and support Kyrie and Cori click here to shop. Otherwise, we highly encourage you to visit your local independent bookstore. If you are an audio book kind of person, consider switching to Libro.FM. You get to pick a favorite independent bookstore to support! If you use this link and the code SWITCH you will get 2 additional free downloads with your first month of membership!

Welcome to our new format where Kyrie maybe finally has her reading juju back, and we are just reading and talking about whatever we want. And where Kyrie acknowledges Cori’s spectacular book matchmaking abilities. Wow… When I listened to this, I realized how long ago we’ve been sitting on this one! Who wants to hear about summer in the middle of winter? Per usual, we do what we want and break all the rules of good podcasting. But really, does it matter when we talk about these books if you are just here for some good reading ideas?! What We Drank  Root Beer Rooibos Chai iced tea.  It really tastes like root beer! In not a weird way. Courtesy of Potions Tea and Bakery  What We Read and Talked About Lovely War by Julie Berry Recursion by Blake Crouch Dark Matter by Blake Crouch Island of the Sea Women by Lisa See Pachinko by Min Jin Lee The Beholder by Anna Bright Never Look Back by Alison Gaylin City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert Up Next Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi Force of Nature by Jane Harper Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane I Like To Watch by Emily Nussbaum

In this episode, it is confirmed that Cori now knows that the Serial podcast is not fake. You will hear all about Cori’s new kittens, Junipurr and Sage. Generally speaking, there is animal chaos abound. What We Are Eating and Drinking Kyrie brought tasty gluten-free Cranberry Orange Oatmeal cookies. Cori provided the tea.  This podcast’s tea is from Sipsby. It’s a variation on English Breakfast, but instead is called English Afternoon by Ahmad Teas. You can try out Sips By by clicking through and filling out a profile AND get $5 off your first box! You will get 4 different teas customized to your preferences with over 40 cups o’ tea to enjoy.   What We Are Reading In wrapping up Season 3, three books are gonna be covered. Cori discusses her book picked for a cover:  The Hazelwood by Melissa Albert. Then, both celebrity book club picks are reviewed. Erotic Stories For Punjabi Widows by Balli Kaur Jaswal (Cori’s pick) was a Reese Witherspoon Hello Sunshine pick and Becoming by Michelle Obama (Kyrie’s pick) was an Oprah Winfrey Book Club pick. Listen to hear more about our opinions and who read what. What’s Up Next We are moving straight into Season 4 with a format change to shake things up. Hopefully, all our lovely book friends will be excited to hear about our changes. As always, feel free to offer up feedback. Show Us Some Love If you like our podcast, don’t forget to give us some love and support. It only takes a couple of minutes but it will help us grow our audience and make it easier for listeners like you to find us. Here’s some things you can do:    Recommend us to your reading friends Subscribe to the show Rate and review wherever you listen to podcasts  

We’re always told “don’t judge a book by its cover.”  Welp, we are ignoring this advice and going for it. A lot of work goes into cover design and drawing people in, so what happens when we just let it happen?  Can a cover help us pick a great read or does it end up being a case of bait and switch? Let’s find out! What We are Eating and Drinking Funny story.  Kyrie and Cori got their wires crossed, and both made tea for today’s episode.  What’s even more funny? They made the EXACT same tea. In their monthly tea subscription from Potions Bakery and Tea Shop, they received a Champagne Raspberry White Tea that is supposed to be tasty as an iced tea. Listen to hear as they compare notes in their iced tea taste off. Heather is busy rebranding her store name, but it’s the same great tea and treats.  The monthly subscription is a great deal and easy way to sample some different teas. Best of all, you don’t have to live in Flagstaff to participate! She will mail out your goodies. That tasty nom nom you are drooling over is a mixed berry coffee cake, so there’s a bit of a theme going on here.  When Cori first started learning to cook, she liked to impulse buy cooking magazines from the grocery checkout. This is a Better Homes and Garden publication from 1997, and she still has a few favorite recipes she makes. This is one of them.  Added bonus – this is a low fat recipe. See below for full recipe. What We Are Reading First up is Kyrie’s pick, The Binding by Bridget Collins. Published early in 2019, this book is a bit hard to categorize, but you could say it is magical realism or fantasy.  At its heart, it’s a timeless tale of falling in love with the wrong person and an allegory about the dangers of trying to remove or repress memories of hard experiences.  Up Next We are coming to the end of Season 3 with the next episode. Make sure to listen in to hear about some exciting new format changes.  We will be wrapping up with a discussion of all our remaining books: Becoming by Michelle Obama, The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert and Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows by Balli Kaur Jaswal.  Berry Coffee Cake Recipe Notes:  The recipe calls for red raspberries, but I just used a mix of berries I needed to use up. I probably added a bit of extra flour and reduced sugar and leavening for high altitude, but I can’t remember. Cake: 1 ¼ cups AP flour ½ cup granulated sugar ½ teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon ⅛ teaspoon salt 1 beaten egg ⅔ cup buttermilk ½ teaspoon vanilla 3 Tablespoons neutral flavored oil 1 cup of fresh or frozen berries Crumble Topping 2 Tablespoons brown sugar 1 Tablespoon AP flour ¼ teaspoon cinnamon 2 teaspoon butter  Lightly grease and flour a 9 inch round baking pan. Preheat oven to 350. In large mixing bowl, stir together dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon).   In small mixing bowl, stir together wet ingredients (egg, buttermilk, oil and vanilla). Add wet ingredients to dry.  Stir until just moistened.   Pour batter into pan and sprinkle berries on top. Combine crumble topping ingredients.  Add butter last and make into coarse crumbs.  Sprinkle over top of berries. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes on rack Loosen edges from pan and remove (I used a springform pan to make this step easier).

  What we’re reading This week, Cori and Kyrie continue down the detective/murder mystery/what the hell is happening genre. The Dry follows Federal Agent Aaron Falk as he arrives in his hometown for the first time in decades to attend the funeral of his best friend, Luke. Let’s just say you really don’t understand who the hell did it until close to the end of the book. The author does an incredible job of making you suspect everyone (including Aaron Falk) throughout the entire story. A real page turner. What we are drinking and eating Kyrie and Cori are sometimes too alike when it comes to things. And since this was a relatively warm day, Kyrie and Cori both made iced tea. From the same company. In the same flavour. Creepy, right? We got our tea from the Flagstaff Tea Company, now known as Potion & Tea Bakery and it was the white champagne tea–we of course did a taste tests of each of our teams to see which one we liked better, and of course we each chose our own. Funny things happen when you hang out all the time 😉 What’s next Next episode, we change the genre game and Cori’s “genre” is Picked for the cover. Up first is Kyrie’s choice of The Binding by Bridget Collins. Until then, happy tea drinking and book reading!

What We Are Reading Cori asked that we go down the genre rabbit hole that is police and detective procedurals.  Really, it’s just a subgenre of the suspense and mystery genre. After several failed attempts, Kyrie landed on Are You Sleeping by Kathleen Barber as her book of choice. Of all ironies, it features a true crime podcast and podcaster who is on the hunt to discover the truth.   What We Are Eating and Drinking Cori’s been watching a lot of the British Baking Show, which inspired her to make a chocolate layer cake from scratch.  She used her Pie in the Sky high altitude baking cookbook. This was paired with a lovely standby, our own Books and Tea Black Tea blend from Plum Deluxe.  With its hints of vanilla and cinnamon, it was a perfect match. As Plum Deluxe Ambassadors, you can use our code BOOKSANDTEA and our link to get 10% off your first order.  If you want some of our special blend, visit our GoFundMe site and make a donation to support our ongoing costs and operations. What We Are Reading Next Cori picked The Dry by Jane Harper.  Set in a small Australian town that hasn’t had rain in two years, this quietly suspenseful mystery will suck you dry with its descriptions of heat and complex multi-layered story lines.

Today, we discuss Cori’s historical fiction pick, To The Bright Edge of the World by Eowyn Ivey.  In part, picked to continue reading stuff already on the shelf, Cori was drawn to this beautiful hardcover edition she found on sale while visiting the Tattered Cover Bookstore in Denver, CO.  It also was an opportunity to continue her Alaska reading obsession. What We Are Drinking and Eating Kyrie brought hot from the oven chocolate chip cookies to snack on.  They lasted for all of about one minute. Today’s cup of tea is brought to you by Sipsby.  You can try out Sips By by clicking through and filling out a profile and AND get $5 off your first box!  You will get 4 different teas customized to your preferences with over 40 cups o’ tea to enjoy.  Instead of showing the cup of tea, we shared the unique packaging of white2tea’s Mini Redhead’s pressed cakes. Isn’t the packing gorgeous? It is a sun dried large leaf black tea from Yunnan, China. What We Are Reading Now Kyrie and Cori had very different opinions about this one (shocking!).  Set at the end of 19th century, the book follows the experiences of a newly married couple. While Colonel Allen Forrester leaves to literally go where no man has gone before in the wilds of Alaska, Sophie is left behind to navigate the world and politics of the Vancouver, Washington military barracks as an officer’s wife.  Although in very different elements, both are challenged by their environments and ultimately changed by their individual experiences. Pieced together in a fascinating way with journals, letters, and illustrations, it is a unique read. What We Are Reading Next Next up is a new genre.  Cori has directed us to find books that fall into the police procedural/detective category.  First up is Kyrie’s pick, Are You Sleeping by Kathleen Barber.  

This week we’re exploring the world of historical fiction where we are transported to the most infamous of the German concentration camps of World War II. But before we dive into that, we’re doing our usual tea drinking and food noshing! What We’re Eating and Drinking This week, we’re drinking Harney & Sons Organic Assam tea from the Sipsby subscription:  A classic black tea. You can try out Sips By by clicking through and filling out a profile and AND get $5 off your first box!  You will get 4 different teas customized to your preferences with over 40 cups o’ tea to enjoy. Cori was feeling a bit conflicted about eating as we read and talk about life in concentration camps, where food was minimal.  However, Robert made some delicious blueberry scones with some lemon curd on the side. What We’re Reading Alright, so the book. The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris is fiction, but based on interviews that were conducted with Holocaust survivor and Auschwitz-Birkenau tattooist Ludwig (Lale) Sokolov. His captors realize he speaks 12 languages and so they decide to make him the tattooist, even though we’re pretty sure he doesn’t actually talk to any of the prisoners he is tattooing… ANYWAY, Lale is imprisoned for more than two and a half years and witnesses horrific atrocities and barbarism—but also incredible acts of bravery and compassion. Risking his own life, he uses his privileged position to exchange jewels and money from murdered Jews for food to keep his fellow prisoners alive. This is also a love story–Gita, prisoner 34902, gets her number tattooed on her arm by Lale and from the moment he saw her, he has vowed to stay alive to marry her when they get out. Even after Auschwitz is liberated, things are challenging for these star crossed lovers.  You will have to read for yourself to see how things turn out. Coming up Next Time Next up, the exploration of historical fiction continues with Cori’s pick To the Bright Edge of the World by Eowyn Ivey.

This week, we’re continuing to explore one of Cori’s favorite genres of foodie fiction! So, let’s talk about the tea we’re drinking and the food we’re eating to go along with another food themed read. What We’re Eating and Drinking Kyrie is finishing up a month of Whole30 (crazy gal), so she made some super delish bacon-wrapped dates. This is an easy recipe to find on the interwebs.  Kyrie does have one smart trick with this classic snack: you only use half a date and half a piece of bacon. It’s the perfect combination of sweet and salty!! To go along with this scrumptious snack, Kyrie and Cori drank Sweet Chestnut Chai from our pals at Plum Deluxe. It’s a delicious tea that has essence of chestnut, vanilla, and love! As Plum Deluxe Ambassadors, you can use our code BOOKSANDTEA and our link to get 10% off your first order What We’re Reading With an accidental midwestern focus, next week we take on another foodie book mainly set in Wisconsin with Cori’s pick of Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J Ryan Stradal.  This book has a unique format in that each chapter is almost a mini short story.  At its heart, the central character is a young woman named Eva who becomes an acclaimed chef due to her extraordinary palate.  However, Eva is sometimes a secondary character who orbits in the world of each story’s main character. The other main character is the food traditions of the midwest.  It makes for a strange and intriguing narrative. Coming up Next Time Next month’s genre is a favorite of both Kyrie and Cori:  Historical Fiction. First up is Kyrie’s pick, The Tattooist of Auschwitz.  

Welcome back book friends! We’re here, eating, drinking, and reading all the best books for you to check out (and to make your mouth water). This week, we’re exploring one of Cori’s favourite genres of foodie type things! So, let’s talk about the tea we’re drinking and the food we’re eating to get this genre kicked off! What We’re Eating and Drinking This week, Cori made a family heirloom recipe! She made her momma’s delicious fruit cobbler that has been a family tradition for a very long time. It’s a simple recipe of fresh or frozen berries of choice, with a cake like topping. You can see the original recipe card in the picture along with a binder of  recipes given by Cori’s mom where it also makes an appearance. Recipe down below! To go along with the cobbler, we’re drinking tea from our girl Heather at Flagstaff Tea Co. and it’s the Pomme D’Automne Black tea. What We’re Reading Kyrie’s selection, The Recipe Box by Viola Shipman explores the family history of the Mullins, who have an apple orchard in Michigan. The main protagonist is Sam, who moved to New York because she didn’t want to stay in the family business, but then realizes that New York isn’t all that great. She heads back to her roots and learns more of her family history through baking recipes with her mom and grandma. Each part of the book has one of the author’s (or a close friend’s) family recipe, and each recipe is mentioned in the actual story. There’s love, there’s loss, there’s everything in the book. Kyrie liked it to a certain point, but found Sam annoying. Then Kyrie reflected that at the age of 22, she was probably just as annoying as she found Sam.   Cori found it to be an easy, entertaining, and probably forgettable read. What’s Up Next With an accidental midwestern focus, next week we take on another foodie book mainly set in Wisconsin with Cori’s pick of Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J Ryan Stradal. Recipe Mom’s Fruit Cobbler Serves 4 – 6 Note:  Written as found on my recipe card 2 cups of fruit of your choice (fresh is best, but frozen works too) Place in well-greased pie pan Melt ¼ cup of butter (or margarine as the recipe originally said!) Mix together: ¾ cup of milk 1 cup sugar 1 cup flour 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder Pour into melted butter and stir lightly. Pour mixture over fruit in pie pan (Don’t stir) Sprinkle ¼ – 1 cup of sugar of top of batter depending on the sweetness of the fruit. (Cori Note:  I usually skip this or do a very light sprinkle of turbinado sugar for crunch) Bake 30 – 45 minutes at 350 degrees. **Note at bottom of card indicates my mom wrote the card for me on July 4th, 2008.

Technical Problems Update Hey book friends!  We have heard that the recent quality of our episodes is not up to par.  It seems a setting got changed on our microphone without us noticing. Our bad!  So listen hard, even though it sounds like Kyrie is in the other room. With our ambitious winter recording schedule, there will be two more episodes like this.  However now that we know, we are fixing in all our upcoming recordings. So sorry and thanks for your understanding and patience. On To the Show Welcome back to episode 4 where we continue our mythical magical journey into mythology, fairy tales and folklore! This week, Cori’s picked The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden. But before we dive into the book, let’s talk about what we’re drinking and eating! What We’re Drinking and Snacking On This week we’re drinking Kyrie’s new favourite: Harney and Sons Victorian London Fog, which is a delicious Earl Grey with lavender and hints of vanilla. It’s pretty black, so black even that Cori needed to add cream to her tea as well! To go along with the tea, Kyrie did some research on Russian sweet treats and came up with an Apple Shalotka recipe from the trusted Smitten Kitchen food blog. This cake is mostly made up of apples, sugar, and eggs. It’s gooey on the inside and has a meringue like crust on the outside. Not overly sweet, it’s the perfect little Russian cake to go along with our book! What We’re Reading and Talking About Alright, enough about the deliciousness we’re torturing you with, and onto the book itself! The  Bear and the Nightingale follows Vasilisa, a young girl with her family on the edge of the 14th century Russian wilderness where she enjoys curling up around a fire with her family and listening to her nurse’s fairy tales about little creatures. One fairytale, in particular, is of interest to Vasilisa, and that’s the tale about Frost,the blue-eyed winter demon who appears in the frigid night to claim unwary souls. As the story progresses, Vasilisa’s mom dies, and when her dad comes back with a very religious new wife who is not the biggest fan of  her new stepdaughter, Vasilisa. As the new priest in town and her evil stepmother force the villagers to shun the little creature, things start to go bad–crops are failing, people are getting sick, and misfortune is taking over her entire village. Listen along to hear our opinions on the book and learn more about this fairy tale. What We Are Reading Next We are moving onto our next genre:  foodie fiction! Cori picked this genre because she loves books that involve food and/or restaurants as a character.  The real question is…. What does Kyrie think? Tune in next time to find out. We will discuss Kyrie’s pick next time, which is The Recipe Box by Viola Shipman.

This week on Books and Tea, we explore the genre of folklore, mythology, and fairytales. As a new type of genre for Kyrie, she was eager to find something that may spark her interest. Meanwhile, Cori has been a lover of this genre for most of her life, and this month’s genre is her pick. What we are drinking and eating This week, we are sipping on some delicious Moxietea’s Viking Moxie blend. Cori is so good at figuring out just the perfect tea to match the genre that we’re reading. The name says it all. It’s supposed to help with anxiety and boost energy. This was a Sipsby selection from a while back.  As usual, head over to Sips By to fill out a profile and try it out yourself AND get $5 off your first box!  You will get 4 different teas customized to your preferences with over 40 cups o’ tea to enjoy. With flavours of cinnamon, maybe some allspice, this week’s tea goes perfectly with the little sweet treat Cori made! Cori has prepared some delicious almond cookies made with almond paste. Scroll to the bottom for the recipe. The cookies are perfectly sweet and Kyrie enjoys them especially by dipping them into the tea. It softens them a bit and makes them ooey gooey. What We Are Reading Kyrie picked Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman for this genre. A lover of Neil’s YA books, Kyrie figured all of his books would be good. What Kyrie did not realize is that this would essentially be a bunch of short stories about the old Gods. Kyrie found it somewhat entertaining to get through once she figured out the key players and characters and their relations. One of the things Kyrie doesn’t like about short stories is that there isn’t time for good character development, which means you don’t really get to know the people in the stories. This was like that for the first few stories but then it all came together and was easy to navigate. What We Are Reading Next Next episode continues the exploration of the theme of folklore, mythology, and fairytales with Cori’s pick.  The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden is also set in a land  and time far, far away: old world Russia. It is a trilogy, so it could set you up with some reading for a while! Almond Ricciarelli Cookies (From Holiday Cookies cookbook by Elisabet der Nederlanden) Ingredients ½ cup powdered sugar 12 ounces almond paste 1 ¼ cups sugar ¼ teaspoon salt 2 egg whites ½ teaspoon almond extract ¾ cups almond flour Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees Line two baking sheets with parchment paper Sift powdered sugar into shallow bowl and set aside Using large holes on a grater, coarsely grate the almond paste Transfer to food processor, add sugar and process for about one minute until the paste is smooth and the sugar is evenly distributed. Add the salt, egg whites, and almond extract.  Process until well-blended. Scrape mixture into bowl and fold in almond flour until thoroughly combined. Scoop dough into ball the size of an unshelled walnut (about 1 ½ tablespoon) Roll in powdered sugar to coat evenly and place on baking sheet Lightly flatten each ball with palm of your hand Bake cookies for about 15 minutes until they start to have a little golden color Switch baking sheets racks about halfway through Let them cool on the sheets for about 5 minutes then move to wire racks Cool completely before serving.

Welcome back listeners (and readers) to the second episode of season 3 and of 2019! Did you miss us cause we missed recording for ya! We are going to wrap up the theme of Dark of Winter with Cori’s pick, but first! What are we eating and drinking this week? What We Are Drinking and Eating This week, we’re drinking Plum Deluxe’s Tea Club Vanilla Hot Toddy Tea. Kyrie signed up for their monthly tea subscription so she (and Cori) get to try some delicious tea that is not open to the public! If you’d like to try it out, you can use our code BOOKSANDTEA and get 10% off your first order! For eating, Kyrie brought over her fool-proof Banana Bread because she was strapped for time, and well, banana bread. It’s moist (Kyrie loves that word, do you?!), banana-ey, and packed with cinnamon and cloves (Kyrie’s secret ingredients). We have a lively debate about recipe sharing that you don’t want to miss.  Recipe is below. What We Are Reading Cori’s pick was The Winters by Lisa Gabrielle.  After much deliberation, this book was picked for three reasons. First, the cover was pretty.  Second, a book with winter in the title seemed like a good idea. Third, it’s a modern re-telling of Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier.  How do you feel about modern re-tellings? Love ‘em? Hate ‘em? Comment and let us know your opinion and any favorites you might have.  It is a bit of a mystery with some twists and turns. We tried our best to not spoil any major plot points, but listeners beware. Kyrie’s Banana Bread: 3 to 4 very ripe bananas, peeled 1/3 cup melted butter 1 teaspoon baking soda Pinch of salt 1 tablespoon cinnamon Small pinch of cloves 3/4 cup sugar 1 large egg, beaten 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour 1 Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C), and butter a 4×8-inch loaf pan. 2 In a mixing bowl, mash the ripe bananas with a fork until completely smooth. Stir the melted butter into the mashed bananas. 3 Mix in the baking soda and salt. Stir in the sugar, beaten egg, and vanilla extract. Mix in the flour, cinnamon, and cloves. 4 Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. 5 Remove from oven and let cool in the pan for a few minutes. Then remove the banana bread from the pan and let cool completely before serving.

Happy 2019 listeners! We’re happy to be back with you for our third season. We hope you all had a great holiday season spent doing whatever your heart wants! We’ve changed things up again, but hey, the only constant is change! We gotta keep you on your toes, after all. What We Are Drinking and Eating But first, tea! We’re drinking Creamy Earl Grey tea from the Flagstaff Tea Company. We both joined the Tea of the Month Club Heather offers, and are absolutely loving it. And most importantly, we’re eating the most delicious Chocolate Earl Grey Pot de Creme. It’s decadent and delicious, and we want to eat this all the time. Cori followed this recipe. The only adjustment needed is that it took more than 20 minutes to bake. After consulting another recipe, they ended up being in the oven for about 55 minutes. What We Are Reading So, we’ve returned to the Dark of Winter theme, as it’s January, and it’s dark, and cold, and all we really want to do is wrap up in a blanket, drink some hot tea, and read a good book. Kyrie’s pick for this week is in a dark, dark wood by Ruth Ware. This is a psychological thriller that doesn’t actually surprise you in the theme of “who done it,” but does surprise you in the “why it was done” theme. We follow Lenora, Lee, Nora (whatever the heck she should be called), as she gets an invitation to a “hen party” (bachelorette party) of Claire, who she hasn’t seen or spoken to in a decade. First, why would you ever do that? That’s just silly! So, obviously that’s the first suspicion. It goes on from there, then someone dies (shock!), and there’s some melodramatic stuff, and then we realize why everything happened. We’re not surprised who did it, cause duuuuuh. Anyway, this was a quick read that did encompass the dark of winter theme. While Cori and Kyrie wouldn’t say it is one of their all-time favorites, if you like thrillers, this is a good one to dig into! Up Next For our next episode, we will explore Cori’s pick for a dark of winter read: The Winters by Lisa Gabrielle.

This week on Books and Tea Podcast, Kyrie and Cori go over their top 6 picks for 2018. For a while, we were excited thinking the final episode of 2018 was 18, but it’s not. It is Episode 19. While drinking Organic Gunpowder Green tea from Bare Leaves, Kyrie and Cori take turns discussing their favourite books of the year. What We Are Drinking The tea was a selection from one of Cori’s Sipsby boxes. This amazing and affordable monthly subscription box lets you try and rate four different teas each month. If you like variety or if you just want to learn more about different teas, this is a great option. Head over to Sipsby to fill out a profile AND get $5 off your first box! Kyrie’s picks are: Bloodleaf by Crystal Smith Belleweather by Susanna Kearsley Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik Victoria: The Queen: An Intimate Biography of the Woman Who Ruled an Empire by Julia Barid The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh Cori’s picks are: Sourdough by Robin Sloan Cork Dork: A Wine-Fueled Adventure Among the Obsessive Sommeliers, Big Bottle Hunters, and Rogue Scientists Who Taught Me to Live for Taste By Bianca Bosker Circe by Madeline Miller The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah Sadie By Courtney Summers You & Me & a Bike by Eleanor Davis Fundraising Request Visit our GoFundMe site to learn how you can support our ongoing costs and operations as we head into year two. Thank you to all that have donated so far. You rock! Coming Up Next We thank you all for a great second season and look forward to sharing more book reading and tea drinking experiences with you in 2019. We wish you all a very happy holiday and you’ll be hearing from us in 2019!

Happy Thanksgiving!  Here is a special treat for your long holiday weekend:  a new episode! This week on Books and Tea Podcast, Kyrie and Cori explore some of their favourite authors again, in order to check off another one of Modern Mrs. Darcy’s 2018 Reading Challenge. But first, tea! As you know, Plum Deluxe is a fan of ours and we’re a fan of theirs, so today we’re drinking one of their teas: Passion Blend Oolang. Kyrie reads the description in her best sultry voice. Did you know you can get a discount when you buy tea from Plum Deluxe and you use our code? Well, you should give them a try if you haven’t and use BOOKSANDTEA to get a discount! Ok, now back to books! Cori’s pick is Peachtree Road by Anne River Siddons, which she has read multiple times and takes her back to the South. With a slow start, Cori was a little worried she wasn’t going to like this book anymore, but after the first 50-100 pages, Cori got into the book’s description, story, and getting transported back in time. Kyrie’s book, In the Woods by Tana French is not the book she actually intended to share (she wanted to read “The Likeness”), and didn’t really remember  much of the book. Cori found it a bit anticlimactic and incomplete. What’s interesting about Tana, is that she only writes in the perspective of men, so all of her books are a male protagonist. Well, that’s all we have for you this week. We’ll be slowing down a little bit as Kyrie tries to get through her days at work and Cori wraps up the semester grading copious amounts of papers. We’ll try to record here and there, but we’ll be going much slower. Thanks for listening and we’ll talk to you soon.

We are technically still on a break as we figure out our crazy lives, but we couldn’t let Banned Book week be missed.  In honor of Banned Books Week, we are returning to this genre again.  However, with a twist! Both of our choices are in graphic novel version!  Hey, that also means we can double dip and cross graphic novels off the list. This week’s episode also gets us one step closer to completing the 2018 Modern Mrs. Darcy Reading Challenge.   What We Are Drinking We are drinking a tea from September’s Sipsby box.  We have talked about Sipsby sooo much on here! Have you tried it yet??  They provide you with four teas to try, a reusable muslin tea bag, and disposable bags (amounting to 45 cups of tea). This month’s box arrived while Cori was fighting off a start of the school year bug and had both an immunity blend AND a ginger blend recommended for drinking with colds and sore throats.  How on earth did they know what was needed?? Head over to Sipsby to fill out a profile AND get $5 off your first box! We tried the Lemon Yaupon from the Asheville Tea Company.  It wasn’t one of our favorites. There was not much of a lemony flavor, and the actual tea flavor was not one we were excited about. What We Are Reading Kyrie picked Howl by Allen Ginsburg.  It was a bit of a visual adventure.  Neither of us are sure we still understand this poem, but okay.  We can say we read and discussed it. That counts for something, right? Cori chose to revisit a childhood favorite, A Wrinkle In Time by Madeline L’Engle.  We discuss whether it stood the test of time reading it as an adult and what we thought about reading it as a graphic novel.  Tune in to also hear about a cool connection between Arizona and this book. Sponsor Yep, it’s still us.  Give us money and let us give you nice things in return!  Visit our GoFundMe site to learn how you can support our ongoing costs and operations as we head into year two.  Thank you to all that have donated so far. You rock! Coming Up Next We continue working toward finishing the 2018 Modern Mrs Darcy Reading Challenge by revisiting books written by favorite authors.  The publishing date is a work in progress as we figure out our lives so thanks for your patience and bearing with us! Kyrie picked In the Woods by Tana French Cori picked Peachtree Road by Anne River Siddons