Our October/November Selection: Cinnamon and Gunpowder

Ahoy Shipmates!  And welcome aboard!  Are you ready for a rollicking good read?  Pirates, danger and wild women, oh yeah!  Our Cook the Books Club selection for October/November is Cinnamon and Gunpowder by Eli Brown.  A tale of piracy on the high seas, with kidnapping, doses of danger, and a chef's unique creativity, in extremis, while aboard, serving under the Jolly Roger.  After reading a review of this book last year, it immediately hit me what a good pick it would be for our Cook the Books Club, which reading it only confirmed.  I truly enjoyed Brown's novel!  Just imagine the challenges faced by Chef Wedgwood, cooking under such difficult conditions, and coming up with truly creative meals.

From the Publishers: 

"A gripping adventure, a seaborne romance, and a twist on the tale of Scheherazade—with the best food ever served aboard a pirate’s ship
The year is 1819, and the renowned chef Owen Wedgwood has been kidnapped by the ruthless pirate Mad Hannah Mabbot. He will be spared, she tells him, as long as he puts exquisite food in front of her every Sunday without fail.
To appease the red-haired captain, Wedgwood gets cracking with the meager supplies on board. His first triumph at sea is actual bread, made from a sourdough starter that he leavens in a tin under his shirt throughout a roaring battle, as men are cutlassed all around him. Soon he’s making tea-smoked eel and brewing pineapple-banana cider.
But Mabbot—who exerts a curious draw on the chef—is under siege. Hunted by a deadly privateer and plagued by a saboteur hidden on her ship, she pushes her crew past exhaustion in her search for the notorious Brass Fox. As Wedgwood begins to sense a method to Mabbot’s madness, he must rely on the bizarre crewmembers he once feared: Mr. Apples, the fearsome giant who loves to knit; Feng and Bai, martial arts masters sworn to defend their captain; and Joshua, the deaf cabin boy who becomes the son Wedgwood never had.

Cinnamon and Gunpowder is a swashbuckling epicure’s adventure simmered over a surprisingly touching love story—with a dash of the strangest, most delightful cookbook never written. Eli Brown has crafted a uniquely entertaining novel full of adventure: the Scheherazade story turned on its head, at sea, with food."

Yes indeed, and enough food to tempt and inspire us all. I do hope you'll have fun with this one. The deadline is November 30th.  Cook the Books is always open to everyone, so just pick up this latest selection, read it, and let yourself get inspired to create a dish.  Next, post your creation by the deadline, and comment below with your link Or, email me with it: claudiarileyatyahoo.com

For more information and guidelines, click here. 

Bon Voyage,

Claudia