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Hey there Quirk fans! Welcome to the Quirk DIY Book Club!

I’m excited to announce this exciting new feature here on the Quirk Books blog. What are we doing? Well, every month we’re going to select a book from our library of fun DIY titles, from cookbooks to craftbooks, and do two very awesome things with that title.

ONE. It’ll be featured in our new Quirk Perks promotion, which will offer up a monthly eBook for $3.99 across all digital platforms. Grab it for your Kindle, Nook, iPad, whatever!

TWO. We’ll be giving away copies of that book here, and encouraging you to join in various challenges and contests. How can you join the fun? It’s easy.

The first book in the Quirk DIY Book Club is Breakfast for Dinner by Lindsay Landis and Taylor Hackbarth. You can snag one of TEN free copies by entering the Rafflecopter below. Winners will receive a copy of the book, and will be encouraged to send in photos of their recipes, which we will post here on the Quirk blog at the end of September. You’ll also be invited to pin along with us on our Pinterest page.

Our favorite submission in September will win a mini Quirk Books cookbook library. Pick five of our books, they’re yours!

We’re encouraging fun and creativity. Feel free to show us your own take on a recipe in the book, create a Breakfast for Dinner party, or just shoot some beautiful photographs.

Go ahead and enter the Rafflecopter below to enter to win a copy. Winners will be notified via email, and will be sent a copy of the book to join in the fun. Didn’t win the giveaway? You can still pick up Breakfast for Dinner for $3.99, and play along. This includes the amazing enhanced version of the book, which you can grab in the Apple iBookstore.

Be sure to like Quirk DIY on Facebook and follow the community on Twitter (@QuirkDIY). It’s the only way you’ll learn about the cookbook club, and about our awesome new deals!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

We're psyched to announce our new Quirk Perks program!

Starting this month, we're going to be dishing out monthly deals on an array of our books, from science fiction to cookbooks, horror novels to craftbooks, all from our communties Planet Quirk and Quirk DIY.

The plan? Two eBooks a month, one in each community. You'll be able to get these eBooks through the retailer of your choice. Your Kindle, Nook, iPad, whatever! 

You'll be able to find these individual monthly deals via our Quirk Books communities, Quirk DIY and Planet Quirk, so be sure you're following them on Twitter and Facebook. 

Quirk DIY: Twitter + Facebook

Planet Quirk: Twitter + Facebook

So what's on tap for the first batch of Quirk Perks? Check it out! 

BREAKFAST FOR DINNER by Lindsay Landis and Taylor Hackbarth ($3.99): Inside Breakfast for Dinner you’ll find more than 100 classic breakfast recipes made with a twist. Enjoy hearty dishes like Bacon Fried Rice, Breakfast Ravioli, Pizza over Easy, and Cornmeal Pancakes with Beer-Braised Short Ribs—to name just a few.

This cookbook is a breakfast lover’s dream come true. Note, that this promotion also includes the incredible enhanced eBook edition of Breakfast for Dinner, available in the Apple iBookstore. 

AMAZON / BARNES & NOBLE / IBOOKSTORE / INDIEBOUND

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PRIDE & PREJUDICE & ZOMBIES by Seth Grahame-Smith and Jane Austen ($3.99): The New York Times bestselling mashup that launched a literary genre, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies features the original text of Jane Austen’s beloved novel with all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie action. 

As our story opens, a mysterious plague has fallen upon the quiet English village of Meryton-and the dead are returning to life! Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is determined to wipe out the zombie menace, but she’s soon distracted by the arrival of the haughty and arrogant Mr. Darcy.

What ensues is a delightful comedy of manners with plenty of civilized sparring between the two young lovers-and even more violent sparring on the blood-soaked battlefield as Elizabeth wages war against hordes of flesh-eating undead.

AMAZON / BARNES & NOBLE / IBOOKSTORE / INDIEBOUND / KOBO

BREAKFAST FOR DINNER by Lindsay Landis and Taylor Hackbarth ($3.99)

AMAZON / BARNES & NOBLE / IBOOKSTORE (ENHANCED EDITION!) / INDIEBOUND

(image via flickr)

It’s funny how most of my favorite camping memories are about food. Like the time, two days into a camping trip in Big Sur, friends pulled profiteroles from deep inside their cooler like a magician pulling a rabbit from a hat. They warmed rich, creamy chocolate sauce on the fire and drizzled it over the ice-cream-filled pastry puffs. We devoured the unexpected treat around the campfire, licking every last bit of gooey, rich chocolate goodness from our fingers. Decadent, delicious, unforgettable.

If you’re so busy with life that you forgot about dinner, yet long for something homemade, then this is the perfect dish for you. Omelets are great go-to when you’re out of ideas (or ingredients!) and I discovered that leeks, especially the organic ones, are at their best (and most affordable!) in the spring season. Even better, leeks are bursting with antioxidants, minerals and vitamins. With an armful of fragrant leeks and a bundle of fresh jumbo shrimps, I knew I had a great thing going for a quick meal.

In the sizzling skillet filled with butter and olive oil, the ringlets of leeks let out a mellow, sweet onion aroma. The shrimps and bright yellow whisked eggs added a glorious gleam to the mix, and best of all, it only takes a few swift minutes to prep. Pull up a seat, pour some wine, and forget all the day’s cares with tasty slice of omelet!

Sauteed Shrimps and Leeks Jumbo Omelet

Servings: 2 to 3

½ pound fresh jumbo shrimps, washed, peeled, tails removed
1 can ginger ale, for pre-cooking shrimps
Juice from 1 lemon, save rinds, for cooking shrimps
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons butter
2 large stalks of organic leeks, well rinsed and roots trimmed (see notes) and sliced in thing ringlets (use white and pale green parts only)
½ cup slice roasted red bell pepper, drained (in jars)
6 whole large eggs
2 Tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
Good bread, for serving

1. In a small pot, over medium high heat, combine the shrimps with the ginger ale and lemon. Throw in the lemon rinds. Boil, then simmer till shrimps cook, about 8 minutes. When cooked, drain shrimps and set aside.

2. Separately, in a medium bowl, whisk the eggs with the cream till frothy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the salt and pepper. Set aside.

3. In a large non-stick skillet, over medium heat, add the butter and extra virgin olive oil. When the butter starts to sizzle, add the sliced leeks. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes till leeks soften.

4. Add the pre-boiled shrimps to the leeks in the skillet. Mix in the sliced roasted red bell peppers. Cook and stir ingredients for 1 to 2 minutes to allow flavors to mingle.

5. Pour the beaten egg mixture over the shrimp mixture. Tilt the pan around to spread the eggs completely and evenly over the bottom of the skillet. Cover, and cook the omelet for 5 minutes or till no more liquid is visible. Turn off the heat. Serve hot with a good loaf of bread.

Recipe Notes: Leeks are abundant in the spring season but are available year round. To prepare, remove the outer greens on top by hand and trim the lower roots at the end of the white parts with a knife. To clean, put the whole bundle in a bowl of water and swirl it like a brush to remove residue and grits. Pat dry with paper towels. Aside from this recipe, leeks are good raw on salads, and are sweeter and less pungent than regular onions.

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Elizabeth Quirino believes that “food brings the world together.” She loves to cook, develop recipes, photograph & write about her culinary adventures on her 2 blogs Asian in America. Outside the kitchen, Elizabeth paints watercolors, reads everything and ends every week with ballroom dancing. For great food stories find her on Facebook and follow Mango_Queen on Twitter.

Philly Cheesesteak, Photo by Mikey Il

Philadelphia may be the City of Brotherly Love, but when it comes to its signature sandwiches, the hoagie and cheesesteak, it’s more like a Civil War battleground.