Happy Sunday! We hope our American readers enjoyed a lovely and blessed Thanksgiving. I will admit, being an Aussie, I’m intrigued by the traditional Thanksgiving recipes and photos that are everywhere on social media at this time of year. I regularly watch cooking videos on YouTube that I justify as not being a procrastination activity because I learn new skills. For example, I can now cook perfect poached eggs, and often make them for lunch with smashed avocado and feta cheese on sourdough bread.
I’ve loved seeing the different recipes and photos of Thanksgiving turkey and side dishes. My family don’t like creamy mushroom soup (or mushrooms in any form) which means I was the only person who liked my attempt at making green bean casserole many years ago. I do like sweet potato with marshmallows, and I surprised myself by liking pumpkin pie. The first time I tasted pumpkin pie, I didn’t know what to expect because we associate pumpkin as a savoury rather than a sweet dish. Are you a fan of watching cooking shows or videos? Have you eaten something unusual that you didn’t expect to like?
Specials this Week
Valerie M Bodden’s Hope Springs Books 1-3 Box Set is on sale for 99c through Monday.
Amy R. Anguish’s Candy Cane Wishes and Saltwater Dreams and Love in Any Season are on sale for 99c through Monday. Writing Home (paperback) is on sale through Monday.
Reader Gathering
Did you know Inspy Romance hosts a Christian Romance Reader Gathering group on Facebook? Deb Kastner is our host this week, so come on over… but don’t forget to answer the questions for admittance!
StoryChats @ InspyRomance
Story Chats releases an all-new episode every Friday. This week on Episode 99, Elizabeth, Valerie, and Narelle talked about CCR books set in Georgia. You won’t want to miss it!
Listen to our fun show on your favorite podcasting app, through the player on our podcast tab, or watch us on YouTube! Wherever you listen or watch, please be sure to hit subscribe so you don’t miss an episode!
Last Week on Inspy Romance
On Monday, Julie Carobini shared why she is Thankful for You
On Tuesday, Deb Kastner shared What am I Thankful For?
On Wednesday, Merrillee Whren shared Give Thanks in All Circumstances!
On Thursday, Inspy Romance was Closed for Thanksgiving
On Friday, Valerie Comer talked discussed Characters and Birth Order
On Saturday, Jan Thompson shared A Thankful Week
Next Week on Inspy Romance
Monday: Teresa Tysinger
Tuesday: Carolyn Miller
Wednesday: Jaycee Weaver
Thursday: Liwen Y Ho
Friday: Tabitha Bouldin
Saturday: Laurie Larsen
New Releases
November 2022
Trust Me With Your Heart, Cowboy (Cavanagh Cowboys 6) by Valerie Comer
Muskoka Christmas by Carolyn Miller
Within the Storm (Seasons of Faith 3) by Milla Holt
Puppy Love and Christmas Cookies (Happiness in Hallburg 3) by Merrillee Whren
December 2022
Blind Date with the Hero by Tara Grace Ericson
Roadtrip for Two (Roadtrip Romance 2) by Amy R Anguish
Refining Josie (Independence Islands 30) by Carolyn Miller
A complete list of Inspy Romance books by our authors is always available on our BOOKS tab. Find our audiobooks and our thank-you gifts for newsletter subscribers there as well!
A fun loving Aussie girl at heart, Narelle Atkins was born and raised on the beautiful northern beaches in Sydney, Australia. She has settled in Canberra with her husband and children. A lifelong romance reader, she found the perfect genre to write when she discovered inspirational romance. Narelle's contemporary stories of faith and romance are set in Australia and international locations.
Hi Narelle, I’m from the UK, and I agree, I find American thanks giving recipes fascinating! I haven’t tried any as I don’t think my kids would eat them, but I’d love to! I did try American biscuits, which are very different from biscuits in the UK, but we’re amazing, and a breakfast casserole which again wasn’t what we would call a casserole here but was so good.
I love reading about food in romance novels, it often inspires me to try recipes.
I don’t watch cooking shows, mainly because they aren’t on channels I get. I do like to try new recipes, though! I like different foods! I tried a dish with tofu and did NOT like it at all!! I wasn’t sure about samosas the first time I had them, but they were great!!! One of my nieces lives in New Zealand, and she’s said that it’s hard to get some of the foods we fix for Thanksgiving there.
Hi Narelle from the Mitten State – Michigan. This German American embraces Thanksgiving – the turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, giblet mushroom stuffing (family favorite), and pumpkin pie. Our family is not fond of green bean casserole or sweet potato casserole with marshmallows. As a retiree, I enjoy watching cooking shows and I subscribe to Taste of Home magazine. I also receive weekly newsletters from Taste of Home and Betty Crocker. In my travels and while living in Chicago I have tried a variety of different dishes, especially the 3 weeks I spent in Japan and a week I spent in Switzerland. Happy First Sunday of Advent. Looking forward to December and embracing my German Christmas traditions – lighting the Advent Wreath, Advent Calendars, on December 6 St. Nikolaus Day when I put up the Christmas tree. Best wishes.
I have a funny story about eating something unexpected (not Thanksgiving related). When I was a child, my dad would make sandwiches with head cheese to take to work. (If you don’t know what head cheese is, I’ll let you look it up). I never was at all interested in trying it. Years later my husband and I were missionaries in Hong Kong. On Sundays after church we’d sometimes go to a hole in the wall restaurant nearby, and one of the appetizers was an interesting dish that I tried out and really liked. I forget when I finally realized it was head cheese! They just called it by the Chinese name and I had no clue :-)
I’m from the American Midwest, and not a great cook, but the family survived my mostly white and yellow Thanksgiving meals :) I spent this holiday at my son’s in Houston TX with a lovely, cosmopolitan group of folks: US, Aussie, Japanese, Afghani, Hispanic, and more. My daughter-in-law did a great job and my plate was very colorful with the addition of three green veggies, carrots, corn, and cranberry. We ate leftovers on Friday for lunch and then she announced that we would order out for supper, something that was “not tan.” :)
cooking shows are fun
I enjoy watching cooking shows. I also enjoy trying different ethnic foods. I make sweet potato casserole but with no marshmallows. It’s really good!
Thank you so much for sharing. God bless you.
Hi Ruthie, yes, definitely try some recipes. We discovered American food when Costco opened in Australia. I love foodie romances, too. Thanks for commenting. 😊
Hi Trudy, yes, your niece in NZ is right. Unless we have a Costco membership, it’s hard to find American food. I like tofu in stir fry’s (Asian cuisine). I love samosas and Asian food, in general. We often cook butter chicken and beef curry’s. It’s fun to try new recipes. Thanks for commenting. 😊
Hi Renate, Your Thanksgiving celebrations sound lovely. Turkey, mashed potato, and gravy are favourites in my family, too. For Christmas, we’ll often buy turkey breast to roast prior to Christmas Day. Being summer, we’ll serve cold turkey with ham, salad etc. It’s fun trying different dishes when we travel. Thanks for commenting. 😊
Hi Margaret, that’s too funny! I did look up head cheese, lol, and worked out from the photos that it’s what we call brawn. I’ve never tried it, but I know what it is from when I worked in deli during high school. I do wonder if you’d have liked it if you’d known what it was. I can psyche myself out if eating something before I eat one bite, lol. Thanks for commenting. 😊
Hi Erin, Your cosmopolitan Thanksgiving sounded fun. I do love my veggies, and I can pass on meat if the veggie dishes are good. I’m also the weird person who will snack on raw kale. I did lol about tan food. Go back 40 or 50 years, and the staple Aussie dinner was meat plus 3 veggies aka. meat plus green, yellow, and orange. Which sounds fine, except the veggies were typically boiled. It was an exciting day when my mum started steaming veggies! Thanks for commenting. 😊
Hi bn100, yes, I agree! Thanks for commenting. 😊
Hi Kathleen, My favorite way to eat sweet potato is roasted in a little bit of olive oil until they caramelise. Marshmallows aren’t usually served in savory dishes in Australia, and not including them in sweet potato casserole works for me! Thanks for commenting. 😊
Hi Debra, You’re very welcome. Blessings to you and thanks for commenting. 😊