Twice a week on my way to work, I drive past a a fascinating crossroads just past the city limits.  In one corner is the entrance to a horse racing casino.  In another corner is a place that sells gazebos and home playgrounds, with brightly colored jungle gyms and slides on display.  On the corner next to that is a by-the-hour motel, and a Go-Go Dancer club.  And the final corner?  A big cemetery.
      I can't help but thinking that this particular intersection is somehow deeply symbolic of human existence, but I haven't yet worked out the details.  In the meantime, I want to remember the configuration as a possible setting for a story.

      This week on our podcast, Shadows on the Sound, Camela Thompson and I will discuss "Frankenstein" by Mary Shelley.  It's such an interesting read, for so many reasons!  It's very different from the classic black and white film, so don't think you can get away with watching the movie.  Apparently, it's also a favorite book of Guillermo del Toro, and if he thinks it's a good book, you definitely ought to read it.  If you've already given it a read, listen to our podcast...and then comment on this post to answer our Weekly Geeky Query: "Would you rather live a life controlled by a benevolent A.I., or be responsible for guarding and reforming a malevolent A.I.?"*

Full artistic credit: http://keithseymour.deviantart.com/art/Frankenstein-s-monster-351434949

*Yes, this is a carry-over from last week--it's such an interesting question, we want more comments!

      After a month of editing, querying, and shifting my work schedule to accommodate my employer's holiday festivities, my life is finally ready to go back to sanity normal.  That means blogging twice a week should recommence.  It also meands my regular reading list (blogs, e-comics, books, and manga) should resume.  And it means I am back in the kitchen, Baby!  And I am particularly happy to report that I start my autumn baking with a celebratory sweet.  Why celebratory?  Why, because I have two agents who requested additional materials!!!*  So I busted out this goody that I prepped last month, but never got to bake: Peach Cobbler with Sweet Corn Biscuit Topping.

That's right: individual servings.  Yum.

 And here is the original blog draft I wrote about it, too:

      Summer wanes.  I love the tastes of fall, perhaps best of any season.  And yet...and yet...it can be so hard to let go of the golden sweetness of a high sun and soft grass.  So I created this marvelous treat as a way to embrace two of my favorite summer flavors, and save them for darker, colder times.**  And by that I mean you can make them ahead, freeze them, and then bake them straight out of the freezer whenever you want.  Can you say, convenient?  You're welcome.
      For this recipe, you want peaches that are just shy of being perfectly ripe, meaning still slightly firm, but not rock hard.  For peaches, ripeness means sweetness, and we want these babies sweet!  A little vanilla accents their perfection, and for the biscuit topping we're using fresh summer corn kernels right off the cob, folded into light biscuit dough and kissed with honey.


 Feeling hungry yet?  Good, here's the recipe:

Z.D.'s Peach Cobbler with Sweet Corn Biscuit Topping
makes 4 individual cobblers

Ingredients:
Butter, for greasing
4 C peach slices, about 1/2 inch wide, from about 8 medium peaches
1 T vanilla sugar (regular white sugar is Ok)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
2 T tapioca flour
Pinch kosher salt
1 medium ear fresh corn (I like sweet yellow bi-color)
1 T honey (preferably summer harvest raw honey)
1/4 C cold milk
1/3 C AP flour
2/3 C yellow cornmeal (regular/fine grind)
1.5 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp baking soda
3 T unsalted butter, cold, cubed


Directions:
 - Grease the insides of four 1 Cup ramekins, and set aside.  In a large bowl, toss the peaches, sugar, extract, nutmeg, tapioca flour, and kosher salt until just combined.  Set aside.

The most important thing when baking with fruit is to make sure your pieces/slices are very close to the same size.  This ensures even baking!

 - Husk and clean the corn.  Using a sharp knife, cut along the cob as close as possible, removing the kernels.  Reserve kernels, discard the cob. (NOTE: you could substitute frozen corn kernals, but they will lose some of their pop in the baking process.  Go ahead and get fresh/local corn.)

 - In a small bowl, whisk together the honey and milk.  Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.  Using your fingers, quickly cut in the butter, until you have pieces ranging in size from oat flakes to sand.

 - With a fork, give a quick stir to your milk mixture, and pour it into the cornmeal mixture.  Toss with the fork just a few times, then add in the corn kernels.  Gently toss and fold with the fork just until all ingredients come together.

This will come together to make a marvelously tender dough.  Handle it minimally to ensure it stays tender through freezing and baking!

 - Divide the peaches evenly among the ramekins.  Using your hands, quickly divide the corn dough into four equal pieces.  Pat each into a round biscuit just large enough to fit inside the ramekin, top the peaches, and set aside.

I love it when food is pretty.

If you wish to bake immediately...
 - Pre-heat your oven to 400 º F.  Place the ramekins in the middle of the oven, and bake for 20 - 25 minutes, until the biscuit is golden brown and the peaches are bubbling around the edges.  Let cool a minimum of 10 minutes before serving.  Top with lightly sweetened whipped cream, or the best vanilla ice cream you can find.

If you wish to save for another day...
 - Cover each ramekin with plastic wrap, then aluminum foil.  Freeze for up to 4 months.
 - When ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 400º F. Remove the foil and plastic wrap from the frozen cobbler, and place directly into the hot oven--DO NOT THAW!  Bake for 35 - 40 minutes, until the biscuit is golden brown and the peaches are bubbling around the edges.  Let cool a minimum of 10 minutes before serving.  Top with lightly sweetened whipped cream, or the best vanilla ice cream you can find.

      Or, serve with bacon and earl grey tea for breakfast.  I'm just saying.


*I am extravagantly happy about this.  Keep track of my publishing escapades on this page of my blog.

**Or celebrating.  Did I mention I'm extravagantly happy about these two agents?!?!

      I expect the rejection emails.  I seriously do, it's part of the process.  But do they have to start rolling in before I've even finished sending out all my query letters?

Serious energy drag....

      I am officially halfway through sending out my agent queries.  And I continue to feel queasy every time I hit "send."
      The problem is that I never seem to be DONE.  Every time - every bloody time - I look at a letter, a synopsis, a chapter, you name it, I see a little something to tweak.  Change this word.  Restructure this paragraph.  Move this sentence.  Little things, but they do feel like real improvements.  It's like decorating a damn cake one sprinkle at a time.  But that means I'll NEVER be done!  So I have to force myself to just send the freaking thing before I scan it for small improvements for the seventh time.  And that means there's a part of my brain that's convinced I've made a mistake.  Hence the queasiness.
      It doesn't help that I seem to be finding the most time during my coffee breaks.  Nothing like nerves + caffeine to make my fingers feel jittery on the keyboard.  I can feel the increased likelihood of typos.  *shudder*  I'm on track to meet my goal, however, so hopefully by next weekend I'll be all done with querying and back to baking, blathering, and writing whatever comes into my head.

      The first of my 40 query letters just got sent.  The last time I did this, I experienced a headiness when I released those queries into the unknown, opening the door to so many possibilities.  This time, I just feel queasy.  I think I'll make myself a cup of cocoa, even though it's 78 degrees outside.

I make everything better.