Anne of Green Gables and Food for the Soul

So, a couple of days ago, a friend (thanks, Melissa) posted a link on Facebook to a blog post about 10 books you must read to your daughter, and I was surprised to see that most of the books on the list are books that my daughter and I have read - either together or on our own. One series that was mentioned; however, was the Anne books: Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Avonlea, Anne of the Island, etc. Unfortunately, I never read the books as a girl, but I did watch the mini series and the sequel (back when they were on VHS) religiously, and actually still do re-watch them on occasion. My mom even bought the entire series (including The Continuing Story, which I hadn't even seen until I was an adult, as it wasn't released until 2000) on DVD for me a few years ago because she knows how much I LOVE the series...and because I am her favorite daughter. Hehe. J/k. ::winks at my sister, Christina::

Well, reading about the book series got me wanting to read it with Madison, so naturally, I hopped onto my trusty, little Amazon iPhone app and added the boxed set to my reading list. In doing so, I started feeling all nostalgic, and felt the sudden urge to watch the movies. As you guessed, I busted out the DVDs and had a little Anne of Green Gables movie marathon with my daughter, Madison (who also has already seen them a million times - one of the benefits of having me as a mom. haha).

Source: http://www.amazon.com/Anne-Green-Gables-Megan-Follows/dp/B00005YNTR/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1345654005&sr=1-1&keywords=anne+of+green+gables

As usual, I fell in love with the characters all over again (especially the charming Mr. Gilbert Blythe), but this time around, I found myself watching the series from a different perspective. It might be because of the fact that I have grown really fond of cooking over the last couple of years, and have really begun to find joy in branching out and trying new, fun recipes, but as I was watching the movies this time, I started looking at all of the delicious-looking food that is featured in the films and I suddenly felt my wheels turning with the idea of how incredibly awesome it would be to try and re-produce some of the recipes. Suddenly, I was on a mission. :)

"It's a well-known fact that great ladies of old believed that the culinary arts also fed the soul." -Anne Shirley

Anyway, I went online and started searching for individual recipes, such as Marilla's plum pudding and her raspberry cordial (we all remember the incident where poor Diana mistakenly drinks current wine instead of the intended, said non-alcoholic beverage. haha). I then started to remember someone briefly mentioning that there is a cookbook out there (I think it may have also been the oh-so-savvy, Melissa), so I looked it up and found that on Amazon as well (if you haven't figured it out by now, Amazon is probably my favorite online shopping site. I think my husband, Zach, is ruing the day that I discovered that incredible shopping option. Hehe). I couldn't wait for a cookbook; though, and continued looking for recipes online.

As I started to find some of these fun recipes, I found myself getting more and more excited about how much information is actually out there on the internet. I wanted to share some of my favorites from the movie with you:

Anne of Green Gables Raspberry Cordial

Plum Puffs

Marilla's Plum Pudding

There is even a recipe for the infamous sauce - you know the one:
Caramel Pudding Sauce (without the mouse)

Haha. Can I just say that I think that last part (about the mouse) is absolutely hilarious!

"I suppose in the end, it was a romantic way to perish - for a mouse." -Anne Shirley

I even found a link for 24 recipes from the Anne of Green Gables cookbook, which I am seriously anxious to try. This whole thing has me so excited. I think I need to just host an Anne of Green Gables party - simply to test and serve all of the yummy food from these recipes. Maybe it could even be a potluck so that others could get in on the fun as well. Oh snap! I think that an ingenious plan has just been born! :)

Source: twowritingteachers.wordpress.com via The Purple on Pinterest