Book Club Christmas Party change of venue!

Hey ladies...

I'm following instructions from our fearless leader, Heidi Udall, who is gone to sunny California for Thanksgiving festivities with her family. She asked that I let you all know that we have changed book group for December to the 3rd Thursday and that we're going to start at 6:30 instead of 7. This is all because of wanting to accomodate Chantal the best we can and if we wait a week we will all be able to see her! We also will be having the party at my house in Spanish, so we'll be in touch by mass email to give directions and other needed info! Stay tuned...can't wait to see everyone! Best, Brenda

Recipes from November Book Club

Here are the recipes you ladies wanted!...


Candied Pecans

1 tsp cold water (I used vanilla instead... I'm sure you could replace with other extracts too for fun!)
1 egg white
1 lb. pecans or (other nut of choice)
1 c. sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt

Beat water and egg white until frothy. Mix with pecans, spread on cookie sheet
Bake 225 degrees for 1 hr. stir occasionally.


Rolls

Bread mixture:
3 c. scalded milk
1/4 lb. butter or margarine (1/2 cup)
Place butter in milk after it's scalded (this melts the butter)
8 c. flour (I used half white, half wheat, but we've done all white before too and they are yummy both ways, just depends on what you'd like... ummm, you also need a magic hand like Marcus's to really make them amazing. But I'm sure you all have that... his are better than what I made that night.)
2 beaten eggs
1 Tbs. salt

Yeast mixture:
4 Tbs. dry yeast
1/2 c. warm water
1 tsp. sugar

Mix the bread mixture and yeast mixture separately. Let yeast mixture stand and grow for a little bit. Mix together, knead 10 mins and let sit until doubled.
Roll into balls and set in pan, let sit until doubles, bake at 400 for 10 to 15 minutes.
Brush tops of baked rolls with melted butter.


You can find the soup recipe here

You can find the salad recipe here For the salad dressing, I use less oil than it calls for, so just spoon tablespoons (instead of the full measure) in at a time until you think it looks like a good balance.

For the stuffed apple dessert, I peeled and cored out the seeds of the apples but left the bottoms in tact. (a good apple-y tasting apple is the best, like Jona Gold, though I used Granny Smith this last time and that seemed to work well) I placed caramels, milk and dark chocolate chips, cinnamon, sugar, cloves, and nutmeg on the inside. I poured apple cider into the pan and over top of the apples (I actually only used store bought apple juice, but I've done apple cider before and I think the Allred Orchards cider is the best to use.) You could also use a bit of "apple crisp" or " apple cobbler" topping and stuff it in too, or your favorite candy bars, like skor and snickers! - whatever you'd like!
(I made the mistake this time of adding one more caramel too soon to the end and so it didn't have a chance to melt fast enough, then became hard and too sticky-to-your-teeth when the ice cream was added and cooled it -don't do that, if you add one more close to the middle of cooking, it will have more time to melt!)
I cooked it at 325 to 350 for about an hour and 20 minutes (check it towards the end and make sure it looks "baked" through) Frequently take a spoon and spoon the juices over top as it's cooking.

Bon Appetit! I'm glad you liked it! Now the rest of you... post your recipes too!

These are some that I recall that I'd and think we all would like...

Biscotti and a really yummy punch one summer at Britney's
Some delicious crepe toppings at Christie's (mushroom and ? sauce, some other really yummy ones)
Kara's White berry pie and soup (only heard about this, sad I missed out!)
Becky's potato rolls
Heidi had a lentil soup that was really good, and Kara had a lentil salad
Shauna's pumpkin cookies (with that glaze recipe please!), and soup recipe
Chantel's creme brulee recipe
I haven't made it to every one this year, so I'm sure there are more scrumptious ones that I'm missing!
Rebirth those delicious memories !
P.S. I just noticed Kara posted hers below! Thanks! Mmmm!

a long time coming

So, I promised these a long time ago, and here they finally are:

White Chocolate Strawberry Pie

8 oz. white chocolate, chopped (I like to just use Guittard vanilla chips)
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
½ c. powdered sugar
1 cup cream, whipped
1 small container fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 9-inch graham cracker crust

Microwave 4 oz. of the white chocolate for 1 minute. Stir, and then continue to heat and stir at 15-second intervals until the chocolate is smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the melted chocolate, then fold in the whipped cream. Spread the mixture evenly in the bottom of the pie crust. Place the berries on top.

Melt the remaining chocolate, same as before. Drizzle over the berries. Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

Graham Cracker Crust
1 ½ c. graham cracker crumbs (1 pack + 2 sheets)
6 T. butter, melted and cooled slightly
3 T. sugar
Heat oven to 375. Combine graham cracker crumbs, butter, and sugar in a medium bowl; mix well. Press into a 9-inch pie plate and bake until lightly browned, about 12 minutes. Cool completely.


Wild Rice Soup

½ c. wild rice
1 c. instant or ½ c. regular brown rice
1 carrot
2 stalks celery
1 onion
½ c. butter
2/3 c. flour
5 c. water
8 chicken bouillon cubes
2 c. milk
¾ c. chopped ham
¼ t. white pepper
1 c. sliced almonds

Cook the rices according to the package directions. Chop vegetables into small cubes and saute in the butter until the onion is clear. Add the flour and cook a few minutes more. Meanwhile, bring the water and bouillon cubes to a boil, and heat the milk in the microwave. Add broth a little at a time to the vegetable mixture. When well blended, add the milk, pepper, and ham. Simmer 20 min., stirring frequently, until warm and thick. Add the almonds near the end of the cooking time.

That's about it. Enjoy!

Another recipe for all you foodies!

I actually promised this to Brit but I thought that you all would love it too so...here ya go! I love this site...they have great stuff!

http://www.recipezaar.com/P-F-Changs-Chicken-Lettuce-Wraps-15865

And The Winner Is...

After much consideration we voted last night on our book choices for the next 6 months. Here are the results:

January
Shadow Of The Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Hosted by Christie
Reviewed by Rebecca

February
A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute
Hosted by Traci
Reviewed by Britney

March
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Hosted by Shauna
Reviewed by Heidi

April
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
Hosted by Kara? Ruth? ??
Reviewed by Brenda

May
Papillon by Henri Charriere
Hosted by Rebecca
Reviewed by Shauna

June
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
Hosted by Brenda
Reviewed by Robyn

July
Summer break
Read your favorite book at the beach or by the pool!

Book Club Last Night

Last night we reviewed The Thirteenth Tale at Catherine's house. The general consensus was that we liked it. I think the biggest controversy was over what time period the book was set. We enjoyed some amazing food too and can't wait for the recipes to be posted! hint hint

We had a delicious soup, beautiful salad with your choice of blue cheese or feta. Catherine made the best rolls and prepared baked apples for dessert. It was a fall feast!

I really want the recipe for these candied nuts! They were soooo good and I ate far too many!

Shauna, Christie & Robyn being forced into a photo -- aren't the beautiful in their fall colors!

Everyone loves the soup!

Here is our mascot Liam -- too cute!

Glamor shots

Heidi & Rebecca laughing it up!

We missed all of you near & far that couldn't make it!

A few more ideas...

I would like to read a few classics. So, here are my choices....

Gone With the Wind

Sometimes only remembered for the epic motion picture and "Frankly ... I don't give a damn," Gone with the Wind was initially a compelling and entertaining novel. It was the sweeping story of tangled passions and the rare courage of a group of people in Atlanta during the time of Civil War that brought those cinematic scenes to life. The reason the movie became so popular was the strength of its characters--Scarlett O'Hara, Rhett Butler, and Ashley Wilkes--all created here by the deft hand of Margaret Mitchell, in this, her first novel

Wuthering Heights

Emily Brontë’s only novel, Wuthering Heights remains one of literature’s most disturbing explorations into the dark side of romantic passion. Heathcliff and Cathy believe they’re destined to love each other forever, but when cruelty and snobbery separate them, their untamed emotions literally consume them. Set amid the wild and stormy Yorkshire moors, Wuthering Heights, an unpolished and devastating epic of childhood playmates who grow into soul mates, is widely regarded as the most original tale of thwarted desire and heartbreak in the English language.

Wives and Daughters

Miss Eyre listened in silence, perplexed but determined to be obedient to the directions of the doctor, whose kindness she and her family had good cause to know. She made strong tea; she helped the young men liberally in Mr Gibson's absence, as well as in his presence, and she found the way to unloosen their tongues, whenever their master was away, by talking to them on trivial subjects in her pleasant homely way.

Here are my suggestions for your consideration...

Henri Charrière, called "Papillon," for the butterfly tattoo on his chest, was convicted in Paris in 1931 of a murder he did not commit. Sentenced to life imprisonment in the penal colony of French Guiana, he became obsessed with one goal: escape. After planning and executing a series of treacherous yet failed attempts over many years, he was eventually sent to the notorious prison, Devil's Island, a place from which no one had ever escaped . . . until Papillon. His flight to freedom remains one of the most incredible feats of human cunning, will, and endurance ever undertaken.

Charrière's astonishing autobiography, Papillon, was published in France to instant acclaim in 1968, more than twenty years after his final escape. Since then, it has become a treasured classic -- the gripping, shocking, ultimately uplifting odyssey of an innocent man who would not be defeated.

Two women competing for a man's heart. Two queens fighting to the death for dominance. The untold story of Mary, Queen of Scots. This dazzling novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author Philippa Gregory presents a new and unique view of one of history's most intriguing, romantic, and maddening heroines. Biographers often neglect the captive years of Mary, Queen of Scots, who trusted Queen Elizabeth's promise of sanctuary when she fled from rebels in Scotland and then found herself imprisoned as the "guest" of George Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury, and his indomitable wife, Bess of Hardwick.

The newly married couple welcome the doomed queen into their home, certain that serving as her hosts and jailers will bring them an advantage in the cutthroat world of the Elizabethan court. To their horror, they find that the task will bankrupt them, and as their home becomes the epicenter of intrigue and rebellion against Elizabeth, their loyalty to each other and to their sovereign comes into question. If Mary succeeds in seducing the earl into her own web of treachery and treason, or if the great spymaster William Cecil links them to the growing conspiracy to free Mary from her illegal imprisonment, they will all face the headsman.

Philippa Gregory uses new research and her passion for historical accuracy to place a well-known heroine in a completely new tale full of suspense, passion, and political intrigue. For years, readers have clamored for Gregory to tell Mary's story, and The Other Queen is the result of her determination to present a novel worthy of this extraordinary heroine.

two books i want to read

I have heard wonderful things about Chekhov short stories. It seems like this is one of the best collections. Here's a summary:

"Anton Chekhov is best known as a playwright, the author of such classics as Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, and Three Sisters, but he was also an accomplished short-story writer. The Essential Tales of Chekhov does not pretend to be a comprehensive collection of all his fiction, but it does lay claim to be the best. Reading these stories, one immediately notices how modern they feel. As Richard Ford writes in his introduction, "His meticulous anatomies of complicated human impulse and response, his view of what's funny and poignant, his clear-eyed observance of life as lived--all somehow matches our experience." Chekhov is a master of the telling detail, the acute psychological insight. In "After the Theatre" he captures perfectly the morbid, romantic imagination of a 16-year-old girl: "To be unloved and unhappy--how interesting that was." In "An Anonymous Story" he quickly limns the sum of one of his characters in a single image: "He was a man with the manners of a lizard. He did not walk, but, as it were, crept along with tiny steps, squirming and sniggering, and when he laughed he showed his teeth." We will see much more of this character, but we've already learned everything essential about him.

"No two Chekhov stories are alike, but they do share some common traits: though often somber, they are seldom despairing and even his most serious work is leavened by his trademark wit. Only 20 of the more than 220 tales that he wrote are included in this collection, but they provide an excellent introduction to those who have not yet had the pleasure of reading him. And for those who know and love Chekhov, The Essential Tales of Chekhov is a loving reminder of why."

This seems like it might be a little out there for you guys, but I've wanted to read this for a long time, so I thought I'd see if anyone wants to join me. Everyone I know who has read it has given it 5 stars. Here's a plot summary:

"Kurt Vonnegut's absurdist classic Slaughterhouse-Five introduces us to Billy Pilgrim, a man who becomes unstuck in time after he is abducted by aliens from the planet Tralfamadore. In a plot-scrambling display of virtuosity, we follow Pilgrim simultaneously through all phases of his life, concentrating on his (and Vonnegut's) shattering experience as an American prisoner of war who witnesses the firebombing of Dresden.

"Don't let the ease of reading fool you--Vonnegut's isn't a conventional, or simple, novel. He writes, "There are almost no characters in this story, and almost no dramatic confrontations, because most of the people in it are so sick, and so much the listless playthings of enormous forces. One of the main effects of war, after all, is that people are discouraged from being characters..." Slaughterhouse-Five (taken from the name of the building where the POWs were held) is not only Vonnegut's most powerful book, it is as important as any written since 1945. Like Catch- 22, it fashions the author's experiences in the Second World War into an eloquent and deeply funny plea against butchery in the service of authority. Slaughterhouse-Five boasts the same imagination, humanity, and gleeful appreciation of the absurd found in Vonnegut's other works, but the book's basis in rock-hard, tragic fact gives it a unique poignancy--and humor."

For some reason I couldn't upload the picture for this but here's the goodreads link for it.

Into Thin Air is a riveting first-hand account of a catastrophic expedition up Mount Everest. In March 1996, Outside magazine sent veteran journalist and seasoned climber Jon Krakauer on an expedition led by celebrated Everest guide Rob Hall. Despite the expertise of Hall and the other leaders, by the end of summit day eight people were dead. Krakauer's book is at once the story of the ill-fated adventure and an analysis of the factors leading up to its tragic end. Written within months of the events it chronicles, Into Thin Air clearly evokes the majestic Everest landscape. As the journey up the mountain progresses, Krakauer puts it in context by recalling the triumphs and perils of other Everest trips throughout history. The author's own anguish over what happened on the mountain is palpable as he leads readers to ponder timeless questions.

Okay, I just got an update from Goodreads and saw these two books on Britney's "to read list" that I'd be interested in reading as well and purpose we read them for the book club...

First one:The Forger's Spell by Edward Dolnick...

As riveting as a World War II thriller, The Forger's Spell is the true story of Johannes Vermeer and the small-time Dutch painter who dared to impersonate him centuries later. The con man's mark was Hermann Goering, one of the most reviled leaders of Nazi Germany and a fanatic collector of art.

It was an almost perfect crime. For seven years a no-account painter named Han van Meegeren managed to pass off his paintings as those of one of the most beloved and admired artists who ever lived. But, as Edward Dolnick reveals, the reason for the forger's success was not his artistic skill. Van Meegeren was a mediocre artist. His true genius lay in psychological manipulation, and he came within inches of fooling both the Nazis and the world. Instead, he landed in an Amsterdam court on trial for his life.

ARTnews called Dolnick's previous book, the Edgar Award-winning The Rescue Artist, "the best book ever written on art crime." In The Forger's Spell, the stage is bigger, the stakes are higher, and the villains are blacker.

Second one: A Room With a View by E.M. Forster (Bantam Classics)...

This Edwardian social comedy explores love and prim propriety among an eccentric cast of characters assembled in an Italian pensione and in a corner of Surrey, England.

A charming young Englishwoman, Lucy Honeychurch, faints into the arms of a fellow Britisher when she witnesses a murder in a Florentine piazza. Attracted to this man, George Emerson—who is entirely unsuitable and whose father just may be a Socialist—Lucy is soon at war with the snobbery of her class and her own conflicting desires. Back in England, she is courted by a more acceptable, if stifling, suitor and soon realizes she must make a startling decision that will decide the course of her future: she is forced to choose between convention and passion.

The enduring delight of this tale of romantic intrigue is rooted in Forster’s colorful characters, including outrageous spinsters, pompous clergymen, and outspoken patriots. Written in 1908, A Room with a View is one of E. M. Forster’s earliest and most celebrated works.