Lisa says: ‘Ever since I made this extremely easy dish my mom won’t stop asking me to make it again!’

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of cooked shredded chicken
• 6-8 ounces (170-230  grams) of softened cream cheese
• 1/3 cup of sour cream
• ½ cup of salsa
• 1 ½ cup of shredded cheese (I used the Mexican mixed bag!)
• 1 ½ cup of baby spinach, no stems
• Salt and pepper
• 10 inch (25.5cm) flour tortillas
• 1-2 cups of corn oil

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl combine the shredded chicken, cream cheese, sour cream, salsa, shredded cheese, and spinach. Give it a taste. Salt and pepper if you desire.
2. On a slice of tortilla, scoop about 2-3 spoons of your chicken mixture. Roll it up and set it down, so that the opening is on the bottom, to keep it closed. If you add too much filling it may leak out while frying later, so don’t stuff it too full! No matter how tempting it might be!
3. Continue doing this until your chicken stuffing runs out.
4. In a large pot, pour about 1-2 cups of corn oil, or until there is a good layer covering the bottom of your pot. Allow it to heat up on a medium setting before putting in your chubby tacos.
5. When the oil is hot, gently place your chubby tacos into the pot with the opening at the bottom. Allow each side to brown and place on a plate with paper towels to absorb any excess oil.
6. Enjoy with your favorite beans and rice!

This is book two in a trilogy. The first book, A Corner of White, laid the foundations for this impressive work of fiction and while I didn’t enjoy the foundation process, The Cracks in the Kingdom swept me away with imagination and emotions.

*Contains spoilers*

Blurb from Goodreads:

“Time slides around the world so strangely …

It’s not easy being Princess Ko.

Her family is missing, taken to the World through cracks in the Kingdom, which were then sealed tightly behind them.

Now Princess Ko is running the Kingdom, and war is looming.

To help her find her family, she gathers a special group of teens, including Elliot Baranski of the Farms. He’s been writing secret letters to a Girl-in-the World named Madeleine Tully – and now the Kingdom needs her help.

Madeleine and Elliot must locate the missing royals, convince them of their true identities, and figure out how to unlock the dangerous cracks between the Kingdom and the World.

All before their enemies can stop them.”

There are concepts in this series that stretch my mind to the point of breaking. Luckily, thanks to Jaclyn’s ability to bring a scene to life, you can sort of make out what she’s saying before you lose interest. My favourite concept would have to be the Colours: way out there, but very imaginative.

The series is told from multiple points of view and, depending on how you relate to some characters, you may or may not be looking to skip certain chapters. I suggest you stick to them regardless, as there are important plot points within each view.

I flew through 500 or so pages in a couple of days, so the pacing is enjoyably steady. 

If you loved A Corner of White, then you’ll be over the moon for The Cracks in the Kingdom.

http://www.jaclynmoriarty.com/ 

Paperback, 544 pages

Published February 27th 2014 by Pan Macmillan Australia

ISBN 1742612873 (ISBN13: 9781742612874)

Lisa says: This is a really simple recipe, especially because you are only using one bowl for all of the mixing! This one isn’t a sweet recipe, but more fruity. Delicious!

Ingredients:

            Cake-

• 100 grams of softened butter
• 100 grams of granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• A pinch of salt
• Lemon zest
• 160 grams of all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 3 tablespoons of milk

Topping-

• A small box of strawberries
• 24 grams of Dr.Oetker’s Tortenguss (or strawberry jello)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter your round spring baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine all of your cake ingredients and mix! This may take a little bit, simply because you’re adding all the ingredients at once, but not too long.
3. Pour the batter into your spring pan and bake for about fifteen to twenty minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
4. Allow the cake to completely cool.
5. Wash and cut strawberries in half. Use a paper towel to dry. They must be really dry or else the jello will not stick.
6. Organise your strawberries neatly on the top of your cake.
7. Make your jello following the package directions.
8. Pour liquid jello over top your strawberries, making sure that not a single strawberry is sticking out. If they do, the strawberries will go bad QUICKLY.
9. Put your strawberry cake into the fridge and allow the jello to cool and stiffen.
10.  Enjoy!

At birth, Ella is cursed with the gift of obedience by a well-meaning, but foolish fairy. She is doomed to fulfil any command given to her. For the first fourteen years of her life, her mother and Mandy, the cook, manage to keep her safe from anyone who might use the curse against her. But as Ella’s fifteenth birthday approaches, her mother falls ill and dies, prompting Ella’s often-absent father to return.

Thrust into a new world of finishing schools, where anyone could stumble across her secret, Ella becomes determined to break the curse by any means.

Having heard great things about Gail Carson Levine, I’ve been meaning to read Ella Enchanted for years now. I was recently given a copy, which seemed as good an opportunity as any. The novel is probably aimed at a slightly younger age group than I usually read—early teens, rather than late teens—but it is every bit as enchanting as I had been promised.

I had doubts about a book that focuses on a girl who has to be physically obedient; after all, I’m not overfond of female characters being obedient when they don’t have to be. But, while Ella is cursed to obey, she has room for defiance and makes the most of it. Despite her affliction, she’s witty, playful, and exuberantly confident, which makes it a pleasure to be in her head.

The world Ella inhabits is a charming, magical adventure of a place. Inhabited by gnomes, elves, centaurs, and ogres, Ella’s journey is a colourful one. Based loosely on the Cinderella fairy-tale, Ella Enchanted is full of wicked step-sisters, balls, indifferent fathers, fairy godmothers, and the handsome prince— all with a little more depth than the original. Prince Char is especially well-characterised. Far from the empty trophy of the traditional Cinderella story, he is nuanced and feels real. His personality is not as vivacious as Ella’s, but he suits her. Their senses of humour match and both are able to switch between playful and serious with ease.

Despite Ella Enchanted being for a younger group, it touches on some moral themes that are complicated enough to keep older readers engaged. Sacrifice, love, and determination are all recurring threads that hold the story together.

Ella Enchanted – Gail Carson Levine

HarperCollins (1997)

ISBN: 9780006755487

Across the Universe pulled me in with nothing but its beautiful cover and the amazing synopsis! Who would have thought that the human race would travel for 300 years to find another planet that was habitable?!

When I read it, I loved it! Not only did the story live up to the synopsis that sucked me in, but I also couldn’t get enough of Elder and Amy together! I liked that they weren’t too mushy, but instead realistic.

I am so happy that I had A Million Suns already sitting on my bookshelf before I even finished Across the Universe, or else I would have had to run out to Walmart in the middle of the night to see if they had a copy! I finished Across the Universe at two a.m. and started reading A Million Suns that same night … morning?

Because I read them back to back, I didn’t need a summary of the first book. I was ready to get into the good stuff and that’s exactly what Beth Revis did! SHE ROCKS!

Things aren’t the same on Godspeed anymore; Eldest is gone, and it’s Elders turn to take charge and lead Godspeed as well as its inhabitants. With the decision not to use phydus in the water sources, being leader is a lot harder than Elder ever thought it would be.

But no matter how tough things get, Elder is determined not to drug his people like Eldest did. While Godspeed seemed to be on track, Elder was just informed that it isn’t. Instead, it might behind by a hundred or so years. Godspeed isn’t as simple as Elder, Amy, or anyone else who’s living on it, thought.

Besides these problems, dead bodies are being scattered throughout the ship, each with a phydus patch on their body and a note that says “Follow the Leader”. This has never happened before and Elder has no idea who is doing it. Not everyone has the ability to get their hands on phydus patches, which only leaves a few people as suspects.

Amy is dealing with her own problems as well. She may never see her parents again, especially if Godspeed is that far behind schedule. Orion has left clues behind for her, telling her that she doesn’t know about everything going on Godspeed. Unsure if she should tell Elder, Amy takes off on her own to do some searching.

Supplies are running low, people aren’t doing their jobs, bodies with patches are being found with increasing frequency, and one of Elder’s supposed friends is trying to take over and rule Godspeed. Things aren’t the same without the phydus patches that made people do and believe whatever Eldest said. But Elder isn’t giving up.

Things may seem bad, but the solution to all these problems is a lot closer than Elder or Amy thought!

With the massive amount of love I had for Across the Universe, I was worried that A Million Suns wouldn’t live up to my expectations. But now, looking back, I have no idea why I was so worried. If I had to pick between them, I wouldn’t be able to. Both books were amazing!

There wasn’t a slow moment in A Million Suns, which I found necessary as not much can happen on a ship like Godspeed. With the clues, the bodies being found, and with the one guy trying to overthrow Elder, my mind was racing! I was trying to figure out what Amy and Elder were overlooking when they were trying to figure out clues, or discover who was killing these people!

Amy has finally accepted that Elder isn’t her only option, but instead the option she has chosen. (If you’ve read the first book, you might remember when she told Elder this.) The two couldn’t be more different, or more perfect for one another!

My mind is officially mush, because it was blown so many times! The only thing I regret is not buying the third book right away! UGH! Now I have to wait!