Ann Davis-Rowe

It’s me. I’m the April Fool.

🍴:

Mon — fesenjan, a chicken and walnut stew with pomegranate arils, kale, and red bell pepper, served over pearled couscous

Tues — Hampton came to my show, so we checked out Stock & Grain food hall and had some darn good sushi.

Wed — I had a work event and Hampton had rehearsal, so he took himself out and I tried, as I usually do when cooking for one, to recreate my favorite dish from a restaurant that no longer exists on Capitol Hill, D.C.

Thurs — our personal chef friend came home with some flanken short ribs she had marinated deliciously in an Asian-inspired sauce. We were to do glass noodles and air-fried Brussels…. But Hampton thought we had more sprouts than we actually had, so I also tossed together some tempura carrots and zucchini. We didn’t quite have enough oil for frying and my batter got a little thin, but it all tasted fantastic and the company was spot on.

Fri — orecchiette with a bacon/mushroom/truffle sauce and salad mix + the last endive we forgot about.

🥃: As you may have guessed above — I made blueberry gin! And also blueberry vodka in case Hampton’s gin aversion from his misspent youth was too strong to cook with it. It was not! But now we have both in our cabinet.

🐶: nothing new to report. All cuddly and barky as per usual.

📚: Happy pub week to SALTWATER. I loved THE CLOISTERS, so I didn’t want to have overly high hopes for Hays’ second novel but I LOVED this book. I think I even like it better. Things aren’t overly surprising regarding the truth around the mysterious death from the 1990s, and I did suspect one big “twist” from the jump — but I audibly gasped at the other. It seems obvious now, but Hays did such a great job hiding the truth in plain sight. I also really appreciated the various red herrings and the gorgeous scenery. Manipulation in the best way and scandalously fun.

Also, I had down that this was the American pub date for BREAKING THE DARK, but maybe it wasn’t? Maybe it was the paperback? At any rate, I have never read any Jessica Jones, and it’s been eons since I watched the tv show, but Lisa Jewell managed to hit all the vibes. The things I didn’t know from Jessica’s past had enough context to explain them (e.g. Madame Webb), but I do wish we got a more of the details behind the evil plot.

🎭: LA MANCHA is la bye bye. And I didn’t get that other show I mentioned — which I totally get bc I know darn well I don’t look 20, and I usually read younger than my age, so unless the perfect people showed up for me to play one or the other, I was inappropriate — so I now I get to sit back and enjoy nights alone while Hampton is at rehearsal! Ahhhh.