Post Possibilities

Post Possibilities

• notyourmomma 15 years ago
  The Painted House by John Grisham had fantastic descriptions of food, made me hungry every time I read it. I'm probably not on the right page with this . . . .
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  Lying Awake by Mark Salzman (Vintage, 2001) tells the story of a nun, Sister John of the Cross, who discovers that her rapturous personal encounters with God, which have inspired the mystical poems that have made her world famous, are actually the product of mild seizures caused by a small tumor in one of the temporal lobes of her brain. When Sister John discovers that her intense personal experience with God is a symptom of temporal lobe epilepsy, she questions the validity of her faith and anguishes about having the surgery that would cure her.
  
  Salzman, who anguished over this novel insists the book is not about the validity of religious belief. Rather, it's about the validity of faith itself — the act of believing that certain activities and convictions have value even though we can't prove that they do. Sister John wonders if her faith in God will survive if her ecstatic visions are "cured" by brain surgery.
  
  Sister John yearns for God's presence, so an ideal accompaniment to a discussion of her plight might be the type of Sicilian macaroon known as "Nun's Sighs." Made with egg whites, these cookies are so airy and light they may try to ascend into heaven on their own. Serve them to your guests with tea or a devilishly delightful liqueur such as Frangelico or Amaretto, or perfectly brewed espresso.
  
  If you don't have faith in your baking skills, then perhaps you should substitute a delicious commercial macaroon, preferably from a local bakery.
  
  
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  Audrey Hepburn's Neck by Alan Brown, members ate Japanese foods mentioned in the book, including sushi, yakitori (skewered chicken), edamame (soybeans in the pod), red bean paste buns, gyoza dumplings (with pork and cabbage filling), green tea tiramisu and, of course, sake.
  
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  A Painted House by John Grisham, which is set on a farm in Arkansas in 1952, McCormick and another member, Nancy Savage, served Southern cuisine including black-eyed pea cakes, turnip greens, cheese grits, sweet potato casserole, corn bread, chocolate foolers (fold-overs) and chess pie (a custard pie that takes cornmeal instead of flour).
  
  "We're both from Arkansas, so we used the recipes we grew up with," McCormick says. "We can't remember serving any meat, so we must have done 'poor Southern.' They were the original vegetarians."
  
  
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  Our Founding Mothers by Cokie Roberts, McCormick and her husband turned to The Williamsburg Cookbook for inspiration, creating a menu that included cheddar cheese and olive balls, meat patties in crust, Virginia ham biscuits, sweet potato muffins and Williamsburg pecan bars.
  
  "I love Colonial Williamsburg," McCormick says. "My husband and I have visited there several times, and this gave me an excuse to cook some of my favorite foods from there."
  
  All the meals included one other essential ingredient: wine.
  
  "We always have an unlimited supply of wine," McCormick says. "My husband calls us a wine club that reads books."
  
  
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  When the group read The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom, a novel whose main character was a maintenance man at Ruby Point Amusement Park, they had cotton candy, corn dogs, popcorn and other amusement park food.
  
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  a Middle Eastern dish like baba ghanouj to go with The Kite Runner, perhaps, or an African peanut stew to go with China Achebe's classic, Things Fall Apart.
  
  Whatever the combo, the goal will always be the same: to enhance the discussion of the book with food worth talking about.
  
  
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  Authenticity by Deirdre Madden (Graywolf Press, 2005) is set in Dublin, so one book club's members prepared Irish food, including beef stew with stout, Irish soda bread, smoked salmon appetizers and a layered chocolate cake explicitly described in the novel. Instead of wine they drank Smithwick's Ale, Guinness Stout, Irish coffee and tea
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  Where God Was Born by Bruce Feiler (Amazon Remainders Account, 2005) is an exploration of the land where Christianity, Islam and Judaism originated, so members ordered Mideastern fare including falafel with tahini sauce, hummus, pita and baklava, from Byblos Cafe at 2832 S MacDill Ave. in Tampa.
  
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  A Place Called Canterbury (Viking, 2008), a memoir about the experiences of the author's aging mother in Canterbury Towers, a retirement community in Tampa, was written by Spring's brother, former St. Petersburg Times and New York Times reporter Dudley Clendinen. So when members of the Inquiring Minds read it, they nibbled on hors d'oeuvres mentioned in the book. Each member received a "glamour bib," also described in the book
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  Like Water For Chocolate by Laura Esquivel (Anchor, 1995) is subtitled ''A Novel in Monthly Installments with Recipes, Romances, and Home Remedies.'' Cathy Louis, the member who prepared the meal, consulted other cookbooks as well as a friend from Mexico to fill out recipes provided in the book for chicken mole, guacamole, a traditional Mexican cinnamon cookie and, of course, hot chocolate made with water rather than milk. "I tried to come as close as I could to authentic recipes," Louis says. She also decorated the table with Mexican candlesticks and pottery.
  
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  Waiting for Snow in Havana by Carlos Eire (Free Press, 2006) was paired by the Inquiring Minds with chicken and yellow rice and Cuban bread. The hostess, Tamarah Balbontin, made place cards containing an old picture of her parents, who were from Cuba.
  
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• notyourmomma 15 years ago said:
  Shark Dialogues by Kiana Davenport (Plume, 1995) is set in Hawaii, so members of the Inquiring Minds Book Club had scallops with snow peas, cocktails containing rum and pineapple, balsamic rice with raisins and nuts, and ice cream with toasted coconut and pineapple. "Each member was presented with a fresh orchid lei," recalled Melissa Spring, the founder of the club.
  
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