It’s been a while since I’ve sent a newsletter or blog post out. It’s been busy in the Buikema household. I am revising The Hobo Code and hope to have it in good shape by June. There is a contest coming up that I plan to enter in hopes of winning a grant to help with its development. So far, those who are reading it chapter by chapter for critique are becoming invested in the characters, which is a great happiness!
The Sale!
We are fast approaching Read an Ebook Week, a week that encourages readers to pick up the digital device of their choice and download a new book to read.
I’m excited to announce that all of my Ebooks, The Adventures of Charlie Chameleon (New Beginnings, School Days, and Summertime)
as well as Parenting: A Work in Progress,
will be available as part of a promotion on Smashwords to celebrate 2025 Read an Ebook Week at a sizable discount! This is a chance to get my book, along with books from many other great authors, at a discount so you can get right to reading.
If you wouldn’t mind taking part in promoting this Celebration of Ebooks and reading, please feel free to share this promo with your friends and family. Just forward this email to anyone who would love a chance to find their next favorite book and, as the name suggests, read an ebook!
I hope that you and yours are happy and well.
Thank you for your help and support!
Cheers, and Happy reading!
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About Ellen
Author, speaker, and former teacher, Ellen L. Buikema has written non-fiction for parents, and The Adventures of Charlie Chameleon chapter book series with stories encouraging the development of empathy—sprinkling humor wherever possible. Her Works in Progress are The Hobo Code, YA historical fiction and The Crystal Key, MG Magical Realism/ Sci-Fi, a glaze of time travel.
When I was very young, my parents gathered snacks for us to bring on trips—travelin’ food for the family.
These treats often consisted of sweet things to keep my brothers and me quiet in the backseat while my father drove along country roads and highways. My mother was tasked with navigating using a map or paper TripTik from the American Automobile Association—or as we called it—triple A.
On the Road
Adventure driving, without maps, frequently left us lost, which annoyed my mother to no end. She took to stashing maps of Illinois and Wisconsin in the car’s glove compartment, just in case. We three kids, sitting in the backseat of the rusty, green Chevy with a small hole in the floor, didn’t pay much attention to the road while eating our way into sugar comas.
I sat between my brothers to act as a human seatbelt, throwing my arms across them if Dad stepped on the break too quickly. Also, I served as a buffer between the two boys in case they decided to swat each other as we traveled. Being the eldest was not fun.
Shopping Solo
Eventually, deemed old enough to walk to the candy shop on Lake Street in Oak Park, Illinois, by myself, I freed my mother of at least one chore. Told that I had great taste in candy and chose a nice variety, I headed to the candy shop to purchase five pounds of mixed candies for the next trip.
Opening the old wooden door of the shop, I stepped into a wonderland filled with giant barrels of candies—a sensory delight to the eyes and nose.
Sometimes mom sent me sugar shopping too early. The candy would disappear, and I’d be sent back to buy more. I’m surprised we didn’t have more cavities.
I still bring travelin’ food with us on research trips for writing, recreational daytrips, and sometimes sad trips like a recent one for my brother-in-law’s out-of-state funeral.
Now that I’m in charge of my own health, travelin’ food has changed dramatically, because too much sugar made me antsy, cranky, and hungrier. So, after researching various cookbooks and websites, I found a recipe that would satisfy hunger and keep the taste buds happy. Travel Cookies.
The basic recipe requires three ingredients: almond butter, oats, and bananas. As I can never leave well enough alone, I’ve added a few more. These cookies have been a godsend and freeze well.
Travelin’ Cookies
theroastedroot.net
Ingredients:
Three large, very ripe bananas, mashed (ripe for sweeter cookies)
almond or other nut butter, ½ cup
rolled oats, 2 cups (quick or regular, not instant)
Optional additions:
chocolate chips, ½ cup
crispy cereal, ½ cup
raisins or dried cranberries, ½ cup
vanilla extract,1 teaspoon
Monk fruit sweetener,1 tablespoon
1 egg, beaten
A hint of sea salt (I use a pinch of Pink Himalayan salt)
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit / 176 degrees Celsius
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or lightly grease the pan.
In a mixing bowl add mashed bananas, nut butter, and rolled oats. I also add chocolate chips, real vanilla extract, a beaten egg, Monk fruit sweetener, and a bit of pink salt – for extra minerals.
Drop a glop of cookie dough onto the cookie sheet. The cookie will not spread, so make whatever size you want. Two-inch rounds work for me.
Bake for ten minutes or until the tops of the cookies are golden brown. Some of mine were a tad darker, but that still works. Larger cookies will take longer to bake, so you’ll need to experiment a bit with time.
Let the cookies cool for at least ten minutes before removing them from the baking sheet or parchment paper. I typically slide the parchment paper off the sheet right away, but that’s me.
This recipe made 18 cookies. The number of cookies will vary depending upon the size of the drop full of dough and the amount of goodies added.
NOTE:
If you freeze the cookies on a thin cutting board overnight, and then double bag them in freezer bags, they won’t stick to each other.
About Ellen
Author, speaker, and former teacher, Ellen L. Buikema has written non-fiction for parents and a series of chapter books for children with stories encouraging the development of empathy—sprinkling humor wherever possible. Her Works In Progress are The Hobo Code, YA historical fiction and Crystal Memories, YA paranormal fantasy.
