Our 18th book was “The Four Winds” by Kristin Hannah. This is an epic story of one woman’s fight to give her family a better life. Set in Texas during the depression and in the Dust Bowl, it is a beautiful, yet sad story of a woman struggling to keep her family together and to go West during unimaginable times.
Our club finds food to prepare for our luncheons based on the foods found in the books that we read. Given that this book was sparse on food offerings, we decided to go with Comfort Food.
I have a recipe for a killer Meatloaf by Bobby Flay. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/vegetable-meatloaf-with-balsamic-glaze-recipe-2117815
We were remiss in taking photos but trust me we had a fabulous luncheon. We also had a great cocktail, (we are holding it in our photo) called The Grappa of Wrath that was taken from a book I received for Christmas.
Here is the recipe:
2 ounces Grappa
2 ounces lemon juice
2 ounces simple syrup
1 ounce grape juice
5 frozen grapes
Club soda, to fill
Pour all the liquid ingredients into a shaker with ice and shake for 5 seconds. Strain into a Collins glass over the frozen grapes, top with the soda, and prepare for a wrath of deliciousness.
We had Mac N Cheese, Creamy Corn, Yummy Beans and a Cobbler for dessert. For some reason I can’t find the recipes to the other dishes but when I do, I will come back and add them to this post.
Robyn made an Apple Crisp and added Blue berries to it.
https://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/best-apple-crisp/3715a45c-3c00-430c-bbe2-9865f9013238
The Macaroni and Cheese recipe below is from Dee Dee’s Grandma Beth.
Grandma Beth’s Macaroni and Cheese Casserole
Ingredients:
1 lb. Elbow macaroni
2-3 cups grated cheddar cheese
Milk
10-15 Saltine crackers, crunched/crumbled to a medium size
2 tbsp. butter
Directions:
- Follow cooking directions on macaroni package. Cook to done, but with a bit of ‘chew’ texture. (Not too done since this will go in the oven after assembled.)
- Layer macaroni and cheese in a buttered casserole dish. Sprinkle crunched Saltines (I put them in a baggie then roll with a rolling pin. They don’t need to be too finely crunched.)
- Cut butter into small pieces then dot them across the top of the casserole.
- Add just enough milk (or milk alternative) so there is about ½’ across the bottom of the casserole dish.
- Bake at 350 degrees until cheese is melted and bubbly.
Our next book is Educated by Tara Westover and our venue will be at a winery, what could go wrong? Looking forward to our next Books N Cooks meeting.
