a platter of figs and other tales

get out the spring stack of library books!  here is a range from cooking to downsizing you might find interesting.  (not including my eye-candy stack of french decorating coffee table books, ahh...)  the recipe book "a platter of figs & other recipes" especially caught my eye.  the white space therein shows off chef david tallis' favorites from chez panisse which in turn inspired me to microplane ginger, roast garlic in truffle oil and soak plums in blackberry wine.  three words:  a-maz-ing.  also in non-fiction "life below stairs:  true lives of edwardian servants" by alison maloney.  we are, thanks to OPB, fascinated with servants.  (let us not overlook, dear readers, those who serve us in the 21st century every day! service in and of itself is worth taking a modern look at).  after reading about the conditions they worked under, i put the book down and exhuded a "thank goodness i'm not a servant!" not realizing that, in the Christian sense, i absolutely AM a servant, but that's another subject altogether...had i lived during that time period, given my professional life, i most likely would have fallen into the "governess" category anyway.  at any rate, in other news last night i finished tammy strobel's "you can buy happiness (and it's cheap)" about how she and her husband downsized (or "smart-sized" as she prefers to say) their lives. beneficial ideas for sure.  i feel good about my simple life thus far for my current stage and lifestyle, although i'm sure i could always do more.  questions like, "could i really go car-free?" came to mind.  her blog can be found at http://rowdykittens.com/blog/.  "13 rue, Therese" by elena mauli shapiro awaits...happy spring vacation reading to you!