March makes me want to eat all things springy.
Recently we had friends over for what I called, "The Green New Meal" -- everything we ate was green (even green cupcakes for dessert!) Truly it was just an excuse to make my favorite electric green pasta. With the moody and unpredictable weather, bright spring-like foods were exactly what I needed.
What about you?
What springy new things are you into this month? Below are a few things I've been reading (and cooking lately).
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Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown
With the Paris Olympics coming this summer, this is a great book to get into the Olympic mood. I feel like everyone has either read the book or seen the movie, so not to be outdone, I decided to do both. Of course, the book is always better than the movie. The writing is gorgeous and moving, and it makes me appreciate a sport I know nothing about.
Right now I'm cooking a bunch out of this cookbook and I love how user-friendly and solid all the recipes are. My favorite recipe is "Green Angel Hair with Garlic Butter." (pictured above) This could be a fun idea for St. Patrick's Day (or at least something to go with your corn beef and cabbage). Or if you'd prefer, Smitten Kitchen also has a YouTube Channel or newsletter with snazzy cooking ideas.
Right now, there seems to be a lot of buzz (pardon the pun) around "quit-lit" or people quitting things and writing about it. I'm not going to lie, I like a good glass of Pinot Noir and find it hard to think about watching a sunset without a glass of Rose in hand. But I was curious about what it was like to give up alcohol entirely. This book is raw and real. I listened to it on audio and because it's read by the author, it gives it another shade of emotion. At times, I found it hard emotionally. But Laura points out a lot of good things - such as how virtually our entire society glamorizes drinking to the point that people are uncomfortable around you when you don't drink. A very eye-opening listen/read about alcohol.
I'm a huge fangirl of all of Dr. Greger's books - How Not to Die, How Not to Diet, and both of the cookbooks associated with these titles. So when How Not to Age came out, I was pretty jazzed. For real, Dr. Greger is a teensy bit eclectic (to put it mildly) but you've got to credit him with how well-researched everything is. This book shares all the best science-based evidence on improving longevity through nutrition. He also summarizes his books in concise video presentations or you can see all of his shorter nutrition videos by topic on his website at www.nutritionfacts.org. A great book if you want some practical ideas to boost longevity, based on research.
Check out all the titles at Cara's Favorite March Reads 2024 at Bookshop.org. I'm a huge Bookshop.org as it benefits the local independent bookstore of your choosing with each purchase.