It’s called Strong Sense of Place…

… a web site and podcast dedicated to literary travel and the best books set in destinations all over the world.

Buckle up! It’s my favorite links of the week…

To celebrate its 5-year anniversary, our publishing partner has re-issued the magazine. I’m pretty sure that makes it a ‘classic,’ right?!

It’s been ages since I posted my favorite links each week, but this year, I’m bringing it back! Buckle up for some of the best stuff I read online recently.

You can find hundreds of my book reviews at Strong Sense of Place, the new reading- and travel-related project I started with my husband David. That site is the culmination of a lot of daydreams and hard work over the last two years, and I’m so excited about all we have planned for it in the coming year. (If you haven’t gotten your copy of our free 2020 Reading Atlas yet, get on it, friend!)

In this space, I thought it would be fun to share my favorite books from the last decade. A lot happened in my personal life while I read these books!

We moved from Austin, Texas to White River Junction, Vermont, and then we moved to Prague! David earned his Master’s degree in Cartooning. I had my thyroid removed (blarg) and dealt with years of yucky health problems (to have finally emerged to feel fit and healthy again… YAY!). We wrote, photographed, and published three cookbooks, as well as four specialty magazines and hundreds of recipes on this site. We also traveled to Croatia, Slovenia, Germany, Austria, Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Iceland, France, Sweden, Scotland, and England.

Through the highs of being happy and the sad troughs with too much crying, too-long plane rides and leisurely train rides, sleepless nights and relaxing afternoons, the characters and stories in these books sustained me, entertained me, showed me the world and my place in it.

In Honor of Oil

How did a fritter—made from a root vegetable originally found in South America—become the centerpiece of the Hanukkah table in the United States? The answer involves a conquistador, a French scientist, miraculous lamp oil, Catherine the Great, and a beheading by a woman named Judith. That is a lot of drama for a humble potato pancake. Let’s dig in!

Because freshly fried potato latkes are a traditional part of the Hanukkah celebration, we’ll start with a greatly simplified summary of the Hanukkah story: In 168 B.C. a Jewish temple was besieged by Syrian-Greeks and dedicated to the worship of Zeus. The Jews rose up and eventually regained control of the temple. They wanted to rededicate it to God by lighting a menorah, but found they had only enough oil to last one day. To their delight, the oil in the menorah burned for eight days. To commemorate this miracle, Hanukkah is celebrated by lighting the candles in a menorah every day for eight days—and by eating fried foods. Like potato latkes.

Now let’s get to the beheading! According to the Book of Judith—included some versions of the Bible—our heroine seduced an invading general named Holofernes with an irresistible buffet of wine and fried pancakes. As he drifted into a stupor, she lopped off his head with a sword and carried it away to terrify his troops. The Hebrews were triumphant, and Judith’s pancakes went down in history. But, according to the story, her fritters were made of cheese, so when did potatoes enter the picture?

In the sixteenth century, Spanish conquistador Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada arrived in what’s now Columbia, expecting to find gold. He discovered potatoes instead and brought them back to Europe. But the first potatoes planted in European soil were a bitter, watery failure until they became a lifeline for a French scientist named Antoine-Augustin Parmentier. Locked up in a Bavarian prison camp, Parmentier survived by eating potatoes and upon his release, he became a potato promoter—and the tubers’ popularity took root in France.

By the late eighteenth century, to stave off famine brought on by repeated crop failures, Catherine the Great of Russia ordered the planting of potatoes, and they became a staple food across eastern Europe. Rich in starch, as well as vitamin B6, potassium, copper, vitamin C, manganese, and antioxidants, potatoes nourished and nurtured the Jewish population of eastern Europe. Potato latkes—fried in oil—became a cornerstone of the Hanukkah table. By the end of the nineteenth century, immigration brought latkes to the United States, and the 1889 cookbook Aunt Babette’s Cookbook: Foreign and Domestic Recipes for the Household was one of the first to feature a recipe for potato latkes.

You don’t have to celebrate Hanukkah to enjoy these irresistibly crisp potato fritters. They’re a delicious side dish for roasted meats or burgers and taste great plain or with a topping of not-too-sweet apple sauce, like my Caramel-Apple Applesauce (paleo and Whole30 compliant). Traditional potato latkes follow a very simple formula of ingredients—shredded potatoes, onion, egg, and a binder like flour or matzo crumbs—fried in oil until they’re crisp. For our version, we’ve replaced the deep fryer with a blast of heat in the oven—and the matzo with potato starch—so the latkes are still very crisp, but paleo-friendly and easier to prepare.

This year we’re keeping things low-key — but Cranberry Waldorf Salad and Grain-Free Apple Cake are definitely on the menu. (Fun fact: My apple cake is called jablečná bábovka here in Czech Republic.)

Are you cooking this year? Joining in a potluck? Whatever your plans, here are some of my favorite Thanksgiving recipes, pulled from my cookbooks and blog archives.

You’ll notice that I didn’t cover turkey in this list. Turkey and gravy are really easy to make paleo-friendly with small modifications. The turkey and gravy recipes below link to  the New York Times archive, and there are trustworthy, delicious classics. They’re endorsed by Sam Sifton, the Times Food Editor and the author of the book Thanksgiving: How To Cook It Well. The guy literally wrote the book on this holiday, so his recommendations are top-notch.

Roast Turkey—replace the butter with ghee

Make-Ahead Gravy—replace the butter with ghee; use arrowroot instead of flour; and use bone broth for the base

Classic Pan Gravy—replace the flour with arrowroot and omit the wine

Nibbles

Enjoy a little something-something in the afternoon before your meal to take the edge off or to fuel a mad session of tabletop games.

Pumpkin-Spiced Pepitas – omit sugar for Whole30

Cookup Tips: These can be made up to 10 days in advance and still taste crisp and fresh, so you can make them before the Turkey Day mania starts.

Spiced Olives – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: These can also be made up to 10 days in advance and still taste vibrant, so make a batch or two well in advance to minimize cooking stress as the big day approaches.

Chopped Chicken Livers – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: You can make this on the Monday or Tuesday before Thanksgiving, and it will taste great on Thursday. It doesn’t take much time or effort, so it’s a good weeknight recipe. You could even cook the chicken livers on a back burner while you’re making your Monday or Tuesday dinner!

Spiced Nuts – omit sugar for Whole30

Cookup Tips: Spiced nights taste great for weeks, so you can make these anytime between now and Thanksgiving and be in good shape.

Savory Paleo Granola – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: This also holds up well for weeks, so you can make this granola anytime between now and Thanksgiving.

Pear and Bacon Bites – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: These taste best when you cook the bacon and eat them right away. Gather everyone in the kitchen and play cards while you bake  the bacon, then have an assembly party.

Soups

A soup course is a nice way to get some extra veggies in on holidays—plus it helps everyone slow down and ease into dinner.

Cookup Tips: All of the soups will taste fresh for up to 5 days after cooking them, so you can make these on the weekend before Thanksgiving and reheat slowly before dinner.

Sweet Potato Soup with Bacon – Whole30 compliant

Golden Cauliflower Soup – Whole30 compliant

Roasted Carrot-Caraway Soup – Whole30 compliant

Veggie Sides

These veggies sides add bright colors and texture to your table—and it’s never a bad idea to eat more veggies.

Cumin Roasted Carrots – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: Cut the carrots a few days in advance and store them in an airtight container with a little water in the fridge to keep them crisp. Pop them into the oven about 30 minutes before your turkey is done roasting and let them finish in the oven while the turkey rests on the counter.

Lemon-Maple Kale Salad with Dates & Almonds

Cookup Tips: This tastes best within a few hours of being prepared, but you can make it Thursday morning and store in the fridge until mealtime.

Balsamic-Grilled Butternut – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: You can cut and marinate the butternut squash 1-2 days in advance, then grill (or roast it in the oven at 375F for 30 minutes) just before eating..

Coconut Almond Green Beans – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: Prep everything in advance: clean the green beans, dice the onion, make the spice blend, and store separately in the fridge. When it’s time to eat, follow the cooking instructions.

Mashed Cauliflower – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: If you use frozen cauliflower, defrost it in the fridge, starting on Tuesday. On Thanksgiving, simply heat all the ingredients over medium heat until warm, then process in the food processor or with a stick blender.

Mustard-Garlic Brussels Sprouts – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: Wash and cut the brussels sprouts in advance and store in an airtight container, then pop them into the oven about 20 minutes before your turkey is done roasting. Let the sprouts finish in the oven while the turkey rests on the counter..

Kickin’ Cranberry Sauce – Whole30 Compliant

Cookup Tips: This tastes better the longer it sits, so make it up to a week in advance—and make a double batch so you have leftovers!

Cranberry Waldorf Salad

Cookup Tips: Prep the fruit and roast the pecans on Tuesday or Wednesday and place the can of coconut milk in the fridge. Store the roasted pecans at room temp in an airtight container and put the fruit mix in the fridge. On Thursday, a few hours before dinner, make the whipped cream and fold into the fruit. Refrigerate until it’s time to eat.

Velvety Butternut Squash – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: Roast the squash and garlic a few days before Thanksgiving, then on Thursday, purée the remaining ingredients and bake the casserole during the last 15 minutes of the turkey roasting time.

Dessert

These grain-free desserts are not-too-sweet treats to help you celebrate without getting a sugar hangover and most of them can be made several days in advance.

Grain-Free Pumpkin Gingerbread Cake with Maple-Vanilla Frosting

Cookup Tips: This tastes even better after a day or two, so make it on Tuesday or Wednesday and store int the fridge. It taste great cold and at room temp.

Sweet and Salty Fudge Bombs

Cookup Tips: These hold up great, so you can make several days in advance. Store them covered in the fridge and let them come to room temperature before eating.

Old-Fashioned (Grain-Free) Apple Cake

Cookup Tips: Make this on Wednesday and cover with plastic wrap until you eat it on Thursday. If you’re making the whipped coconut cream, don’t forget to put the coconut milk in the fridge when you bake the cake.

Spiced-Nut Vanilla Coconut Cream Ice Cream

Cookup Tips: This can be made on the weekend before Thanksgiving.

Maple-Pumpkin Coconut Macaroons

Cookup Tips: These taste great for several days after making them, so they can be a weekend project or thrown together on Thursday morning—they just need to chill for an hour.

Paleo Ambrosia Salad

Cookup Tips: Prep the fruit and toast the coconut on  Wednesday and place the can of coconut milk in the fridge. Store the toasted coconut at room temp in an airtight container and put the fruit mix in the fridge. On Thursday, a few hours before dinner, make the whipped cream and fold into the fruit. Refrigerate until it’s time to eat.

Leftovers!

Leftovers are my favorite part of Thanksgiving, but when you’re tired of Thanksgiving foods, you can transform your turkey into something a little spicier.

Taj Mahal Turkey Curry – Whole30 compliant

Cookup Tips: This comes together super fast when you have cooked turkey in your fridge. Relax and enjoy.