Tag: bookmenu

BIPOC

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

ByTheBookBites

This book is amazing and the first book to receive a five out of five rating from all our members. It is full of “foodspiration” and definitely the first book I wanted to post a menu for.

This book follows two family lines and the different journeys faced by the relatives that follow. I listened to the audiobook and loved listening to the narrator. Once I adjusted to his voice I couldn’t get enough of how soothing it was. There are some harsh realities within the book but the perspective and details made this a real page-turner.

I had never had African food before so lots of research was needed for me to understand the different types of food and what everything was. Homegoing starts in The Ivory Coast (modern day Ghana) in Western Africa and I wanted to avoid mistaking all African food as the same, and as it turned out, most of the local African restaurants near me are Ethiopian (Eastern Africa). This made us have to do some digging to find a good fit but we were able to find a few to chose from along Buford Highway and Clarkston.

What we ordered

  • Jollof Rice (smokey one-pot stew rice)
  • Plantains
  • Moi Moi (bean pudding cake)
  • Fu Fu (pounded yam)
  • Goat Peppered Soup
  • Stewed Snails

My initial reaction: it was SPICY!!! I am not exaggerating, but to be fair they did warn us. The menu contained a disclaimer “we cannot make anything less spicy”. The rice and plantains were my favorite but I would recommend spicing to taste when making this on your own. Moi Moi is a huge protein source in Nigeria and Ghana. There are many different versions and types so don’t be surprised if you get Moi Moi with a hardboiled egg inside. In Ghana it is commonly referred to as “Olele” or “Alele”. Fu Fu was a surprise top contender for me. It was best when dipped into my goat pepper soup. The best way I can describe Fu Fu was a more gelatinous mashed potato. It is pounded white yams so it arrived like a clean ball of mashed potatoes wrapped in plastic wrap.

What to have on your menu:

  • Jollof Rice
  • Plantains
  • Fu Fu
  • Moi Moi
  • Goat Pepper Soup

For the adventurous souls that decide to cook these yourself here are some recipes:

Jollof Rice & Plantains:

Fu Fu:

Goat Pepper Soup:

Moi Moi:

Happy Reading and eating!!!

P.S. We won’t hold it against you if you order take-out to ensure a good and authentic Ghanian spread.

Introduction

Hello Hello!!

ByTheBookBites

I figured an introductory post was in order to christen the new site!

My name is Emily (she/her/hers) and I, like many others in the COVID era, joined a book club in 2020! A long-time friend had the idea because we were all big readers while growing up but realized with our busy schedules we weren’t reading as much as we liked… So a book club seemed like a fun way to stay in touch and fill our time.

Why do this?

  • Because some of us live in different cities and the COVID Zoom rush allowed us to connect face-to-face anytime!
  • Because it helped some of the non-readers stay focused on a goal to start reading more
  • Because why not start a book club after you have watched The Office 9 times, and everything else on Netflix, and everything on Hulu….

Eventually some of the local friends began meeting in person to group call the NYC friends and those quarantining. At first we would partake in the usual “proud trash millennial” menu (wine and UberEats) but as the routine continued we started incorporating fancy signature drinks, and now I hope to add a few food items in order to share menus inspired by our reads.

Food is my passion and finding a way to combine a few of my favorite things seemed like a no-brainer. I hope you all enjoy these as much as I do. Happy reading and eating!!