Slice of Pie: M.K. Wiseman’s spicy-savory Bookminder is going to be delicious!

Behold! Another pie has appeared!

~A Slice of Pie!~

A tasty sample of something fresh cooked up by an artist of my choosing.

Who are you?

M. K. Wiseman, author. I can be found at mkwisemanauthor.com!

 

What’s your thing right now? That thing. You know. That thing over there. What is that?

That would be my debut novel, a YA historical fantasy entitled The Bookminder.

 

What do you love about this thing?

It’s my first novel so there’s a lot to be excited about. The project has been near and dear my heart for just over ten years now. Like most authors, I am an avid reader, and this book just ‘fits’ neatly into that ‘what I like to read’ corner . . .

What do you hate about this thing?

. . . which is terribly intimidating. Because I fear saying such things in case people think I’m off my rocker. I mean, who am I to add a book, an honest to goodness book, to the mix. The authors whom I love are rockstars! So I hate putting myself out there. (Which is only partially the fault of the book, I suppose.)

When/how/where can people read the thing?

ARC’s for The Bookminder are out now. The novel will officially release January 9, 2016 and will be available for purchase through Amazon and Barnes&Noble. (Or via special events as they are scheduled . . . At present I have planned Goodreads giveaways.) Also, we are looking to get Bookminder into libraries.

What thing would you do if you had all the money and time in the world right now?

All the time and the money? Whew . . . Okay, bear with me on this because I actually have an answer that comes to mind immediately but it’s kinda like the “you get three wishes” workaround that people try with a genie. e.g. Probably not what this question is asking.

I would work at completely eliminating world hunger and make sure that everyone has access to clean water. We are talking all the time and money, right? But that would be what I want to do with that. If I had that kind of power and means. (Note: this is not to say I’ll just sit on my thumbs in the meantime . . .)

What’s your new favorite thing that someone else has done/made?

CloudRise. A quasi-steampunk animated short that I stumbled upon earlier this year and promised I would share the heck outta because it is just gorgeous. Click to watch!

 

Possibly the most important question… If your thing was a pie, what kind of pie would it be?

140g | 2/3 cup dark brown sugar

90g | 1/2 cup sultanas

90g | 1/2 cup raisins

90g | 1/2 cup currants

75g | 1/2 dried cranberries

75g | 1/2 cup dried cherries, chopped

2 large cooking apples, chopped into small cubes

60g | 2 oz unsalted butter, cubed

60g | 2 oz whole blanched almonds, roughly chopped

Zest and juice of 2 oranges

Zest and juice of a lemon

2 star anise

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp mixed spice

1 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cloves

2 tbsp brandy (or dark rum)

2 tbsp cherry brandy

Directions

Put all the ingredients apart from the brandy into a large bowl and mix together thoroughly. Cover the bowl with a large plate and leave overnight.

Preheat the oven to 110C  | 225F. Spread the mincemeat onto a large baking tray, cover loosely with foil and cook for about 3 hours. Cool completely. The butter, which will have melted in the oven, will solidify again and make the mincemeat look a little gross… this is how it should be! Put into a large sterilised jar (or two smaller ones). Pour in the brandy. Seal and keep in a cool dry place (no need to refrigerate). If, after a few days, the mincemeat is looking a bit dry add a bit more brandy.

Brandy butter *Optional but does taste delicious smeared over a warm mince pie!

85g | 3oz unsalted butter at room temperature

85g | 3 oz icing sugar

2-3 tbsp brandy

zest of half an orange

 

Method

Beat the butter and sugar together by hand using a wooden spoon (or use a mixer). Mix the zest and brandy in. Keep in the fridge for up to a week or pipe into little star shapes and keep in the freezer until you are ready to use.

When ready to use, thaw and bake in your favorite pie crust.

Vegetarian mincemeat filling recipe found through www.supergoldenbakes.com

(Note: Now, there’s a reason—other than sheer cheek—for my having shared my answer in this way. Amongst the ingredients list is an item that inspired the name of one of Bookminder’s main characters.)

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M.K. Wiseman is a fellow author whom I met through Xchyler Publishing. Her short story “The Clockwork Ballet” (based on Gaston Leroux’s The Phantom of the Opera) appeared in Mechanized Masterpieces: A Steampunk Anthology alongside my own short story “Lavenza, or the Modern Galatea.” She and I are both regular attendees of Teslacon in Madison, WI, and were the first two Xchyler Publishing authors to be located in the Midwest region. She’s a right smashing lady and owns a jackalope puppet! The more you know!