Do you ever get the urge to try something fancy? I've heard a lot about cedar plank salmon and thought I'd give it a try. It sounds fancy, but it turns out that it's not super hard to make.

Cedar Plank Salmon:

Ingredients:
1 single-use cedar plank, cut to size
1 pound salmon
2 limes
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 Tablespoon honey

Soak the plank in water for at least an hour. While it is soaking, combine the dry spices in a bowl. Rub the salmon on all sides with the spice rub, and then drizzle on the honey. Top with slices from 2 limes, and slide it all into a plastic storage bag. Refrigerate while the board is soaking, at least one hour, but overnight in the refrigerator is fine.

When the time has passed, put the wet cedar plank into the bottom of your crockpot. Remove the salmon from the bag and put it (with the lime slices) directly on the board.

Cover and cook on low for 2 hours. Check the salmon. It should flake easily with a fork. If it doesn't, cook on low for an additional 30 minutes and then check again.

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Is it Spring yet? Almost? Whew! This winter has been brutal in so many ways. We've gone through polar vortexes, icemageddon, and a bomb cyclone. Did I mention a broken furnace, water heater, and fridge? We'll be digging out for a while and what's the best thing for digging out? Something hot and delicious, of course!

Crab and Corn Soup:

Ingredients:
1 quart chicken broth (4 cups)
1 Tablespoon butter
1 cup finely chopped onion, or 1 Tablespoon dried minced onion flakes
1 (32-ounce) package of frozen corn
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 (6-ounce) can lump crabmeat, drained and picked through for any remaining shells
1 cup half and half or heavy cream (to add later)
1 avocado, sliced (to add later)

Directions:

Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Pour the broth into your crockpot and add the butter and onion. Stir in frozen corn, garlic, butter, cayenne, and the crabmeat.

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, high for 4 hours, or until the onion is cooked through and translucent.

Add half and half or cream. Stir well, and ladle into bowls or bread bowls, and garnish with avocado slices.






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Hi, all! Long time no Wordsmith Wednesday, eh? There's lots of life that's been happening, but I am so, so pleased to be back this week to tell you about a course that I just finished. As in, I finished it less than an hour ago. It was the Write a Novel course put together by Russell Nohelty of The Complete Creative.

As someone who has read a lot of novels, has proofread/edited quite a few novels, and has even helped write a couple of novels, I wasn't sure if this was the course for me, but when I was asked if I'd be willing to beta it, I couldn't find one good reason to say no. It turns out that I'm very glad that I said yes.

Russell's course is broken down into 7 modules with each module having multiple videos covering different subtopics within each one. I loved this format because it allowed me to take the course over multiple days, stopping and starting where I needed to. The videos ranged from about 5 minutes to 20 minutes. For those of us with crazy lives, this is such a fantastic way to be able to learn without feeling as if you're missing out on something.

At the end of the course, Russell provides multiple resource downloads, including an outline one that I can guarantee that I'm going to find insanely valuable as I continue to write the final book in The Tether Saga.

Now, like any true review, let's break it down...

The Good:
I love the multiple video format. Like I said above, it makes it so easy to watch whenever you can steal a few minutes from your day. On top of that, Russell breaks everything down in a clear, concise manner. Every time I had a question, he answered it in the video before I even had a chance to jot it down to ask him later about. I came away feeling as if I had really learned and to me, that's the true value in something like this.

The Bad:
Russell covers a lot of material in this course, including his entire process, editing/finding an editor, but the one thing that he didn't mention and that I think would be a valuable addition would be a segment regarding covers. Perhaps where to find covers and things of that nature.

The Summary:
I believe that Russell is launching this course at an insanely reasonable $47. For that price, you get over 2 hours of instructional video and honestly, outside of the editor module (which I didn't need since that's one of my many hats that I wear), there wasn't a single video/module that I didn't get something from. I honestly believe that this is a course that any writer can gain some valuable knowledge and insight from. My suggestion? This is a great course to get a lot of knowledge as well as a feeling for his other, more expensive courses. Go sign up now!

To check out this fantastic course, just click the words sign up now.

Edit: I just found out from Russell that this course is FREE until March 15th when the price will go up to the $47 that I mentioned earlier. Do NOT miss out on this opportunity!

More Edit: Since I wrote this, Russell has added sections on book formatting, covers, and blurbs!





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How much do you love that new logo for #CrockpotMonday ? I'm in love with it. I'm not going to lie. It's going to take a while before I'm not like oooh, look at that! But, you aren't here to hear about my awesome logo. You're here for a new recipe so here you go!

White Fish with Pesto:

Ingredients:
1 to 2 pounds of white fish (sole, halibut, etc)
Bottled pesto (or make your own!)
Shredded Parmesan cheese
Aluminum foil

Directions:

Spread out a layer of foil on the counter top. Put a piece of fish on it. Cover it with a spoonful of pesto. Sprinkle on some shredded Parmesan. Fold over the foil to create a little packet. Put the packet into your crockpot. Continue to layer in foil packets until you run out of fish.

Cover and cook on LOW for 3-4 hours. The fish is done when it is fully white and flakes nicely with a fork.

Enjoy with your favorite veggie and maybe a side of rice!





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