Happy Friday, friends! It’s the end of another great week and – almost – the end of January already. How did that happen? It seems like the holidays flew by and the start of the year has done the same. Between setting and starting New Year’s goals and launching head first into those January healthy habits (hellooooo, Whole30!), the month really has raced past. I know that a lot of people have been following Lane’s progress with Whole30 and it’s been really great to watch her absolutely kill it with her preparation, dedication, and super awesome meals. As her 30 days are almost up, I wanted to let you know about a couple of other, longer term, mini-projects that we’ll be working on this year at With Two Spoons that you might want to follow along with! This week’s Good Food Reads is all about our 2019 With Two Spoons Projects. Read on for all the details…
Part of the original inspiration for this blog was a little project I have done for myself a few times in the past that I named The 52 Weeks Project. Basically, I challenged myself to make a new recipe once a week for an entire year. The “rules” for the project were really simple. Choose a recipe from anywhere – cookbooks, magazines, Pinterest, wherever! – and give it a try. It could be dinner, a dessert, or even something as simple as a smoothie. After I made the recipe, I put a copy of it in a simple binder above my fridge. I took notes on what I did or didn’t like about the recipe, what my family thought of it, and whether or not I’d make it again. At the end of the year, I had a full binder of recipes, including about 15 that have become family favorites! I’ve done the project twice now and really enjoyed it both times.
Not all of the recipes have been winners, and some have even been epic fails (!), but there have always been plenty more good ones than bad and that has been 100 percent worth it. This year, I’ve changed up how I’m tracking my recipes. In addition to a binder, I’ve also got a google spreadsheet set up with recipe names, reviews, and notes. So far, it’s been great to have an online record of the project! If you’re interested, I’d be happy to share a blank copy of my tracking sheet. Just shoot me an email at withtwospoons@gmail.com and I’ll send it your way! If you want to follow along with us and the 52 Weeks Project, you can search the #52weeksproject hashtag on Instagram. And be sure to follow our Insta Stories as we will feature the recipes weekly!
In addition to being cookbook addicts, Lane and I are both huge readers. We love all kinds of books and love to talk about what we’ve been reading, what we loved, and what we didn’t! Lane organizes and runs a few different book clubs (she’s amazing) and we both love to track our books on Goodreads (#booknerds). We thought it might be fun to share what we’ve been reading with our With Two Spoons friends, too! We’ve shared books we’ve loved and been looking forward to as part of our Friday Fives before, but over the next year, we’ll be regularly sharing what we’ve read and our thoughts on those books both here on the blog and our Instagram as part of what we’re calling With Two Spoons Reads.
Similar to the 52 Weeks Project, I have a google spreadsheet I use to track my books, ratings, and TBR list. The year is young, but I’ve already added my first four books! I started out the year with Warlight, by Michael Ondaatje. If you’re not familiar with Ondaatje by name, he is the genius writer behind The English Patient. His newest book is set during and after WWII in Great Britain and is a wonderful mix of mystery, a coming of age story, and war history. I didn’t know much about the book before diving in and it sucked me in right from the beginning. Ondaatje has an amazing way with words. His books almost always begin with a killer first sentence and this book was no exception. He writes, “In 1945, our parents went away and left us with two men who may have been criminals.” If you’re a fan of great writing, wonderful storytelling and war history, this book should absolutely be on your TBR list.
Yesterday, I finished a totally different, but also totally great book that I am guessing will be in movie theaters soon. By Josie Silver, it’s a sweet little novel called “One Day in December.” Following the lives of the two main characters over ten years, the book is a perfect, lighthearted read for a vacation or just a cozy weekend curled up on the couch. There is actually pretty great character development and while the plot is somewhat predictable at times, it is no way formulaic. I really enjoyed it and think you might too! Find it here.
If you’re a fellow book lover and want to follow along with our With Two Spoons Reads project, be sure to head to Instagram and follow the hashtag #withtwospoonsreads. Just like the 52 Weeks Project, we will also be posting reviews and snapshots of what we’re reading on our Instagram stories and sometimes on Facebook so be sure to check them out!
As always, we would love to know what YOU are loving, reading, and cooking these days. Send us a DM, comment below, or hit us up on social media! We can’t wait to hear from you.
x Holly + Lane
[…] my #52weeksproject to push me to try new recipes and I’ve absolutely loved it (find more info here). This year, I’m going to change it up a little. Here’s what I’m […]