The Christmas Jars and The Christmas Box

December 14, 2008

The newest members of Book Club - they can't be permanent members because they were only interested in the food and the socializing. They didn't seem to realize that in our Book Club, we really DO talk about the books!!

YUM!

I had to post this one too! Courtney's Christmas Tree veggie pizza!

CONGRATULATIONS to Carly and Courtney! Looks like our Book Club will be "mommies only" in a few months! We look forward to your new additions in May and are glad you finally won't be bored by all of our countless mommy stories ;)

Thanks to Carly for hosting Book Club this month. The books were both very well enjoyed and everyone seemed to really like reading Christmas books for a change of pace. The food was good as always. The gingerbread was killer, so Carly, you better post your recipe!! We were also impressed that Courtney revealed her inner Martha by making a beautiful Christmas tree veggie pizza!

Personal Reflections

• I thought the Christmas Box was sort of ho-hum. It isn't going on my bookshelf or on my list of Christmas Classics (what list of Christmas Classics?). I liked the message (spend more time with your kids because childhood is fleeting and priceless) but I agreed with Libby's thoughts that the entire book was kind of a downer. I also don't like reading about children who die young, so that could have been part of it. It was a sweet story but it never grabbed me.
  
• The first book on my list of Christmas Classics will be The Christmas Jars. I loved it! It hooked me in and didn't disappoint! Looking back on it now, it seems that it could have easily been construed as cheezy because of the way it all came together in the end, but I didn't think that at all. There really was some Christmas Magic in that book! I love that it has inspired many of us to create our own Christmas Jar tradition.

Spinach Quiche

I got my recipe from All Recipes. Here is the link:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Light-and-Fluffy-Spinach-Quiche/Detail.aspx?prop31=1

The changes I made were to use plain yogurt instead of mayonnaise, and I added some sun dried tomatoes and feta cheese.



We missed you Starr, hope your eye is feeling better!

Yay!

I'm finally on and typin with one hand...sleeping boy in the other. 2 things: I promise to share the sweet potato soup recipe. It is souper easy:) And Starr, The Namesake is one of my favorite books. The movie was satisfying too, for lovers of the book especially. That is Jumpha Lahiri right? I just heard something on NPR about her writing a new book. I'll do some research and get back here.
I'm looking forward to next weekend...hand cramping, more later. Happy Holidays!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hi! Hope you all had a wonderful holiday with lots of good eats and shared time with family and friends. I look forward to seeing each of you in a couple of weeks. I have read both books already (surprise, I am not finishing them up on the weekend of). Liked one, LOVED the other one! See you soon!

The Pleasure Was Mine

I just finished this last night. I didn't know it was going to be one of our choices this next time and really wanted to read it. I was surprised to stumble upon a stack of them at the library two weeks ago. I read it in memory of my grandmother, who had Alzheimer's Disease. So, in some ways it was hard to read, but a great book. It was a relaxing read and a good time of year for it. Hope all is well with each of you.
-Libby

Dec 14 Book Club

I sent this via email too since we are still getting used to the blog but thought it might be good to have it here as well so that we can easily remember the books we've voted on in the future.

HI Ladies! Sorry it took me a week or so to get this out! I tried to find some good books for our next list. There are 3 very different options here, let me know what you guys prefer. As Jennifer said, we are planning to meet on Dec 14. Hope you're all having a great week.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
This is actually categorized as a young adult book but I've spoken to a several adults who loved it and the reviews seem to be great.

Christmas Jars by Jason Wright
The Christmas Box by Richard Paul Evans
I thought it might be fun to find a book with a Christmas theme since we're meeting so close to Christmas. These two are pretty short (approx 120pgs each) which is why I included both, however, if everyone thinks two is too much, we can cut it to one. They are both fairly older publications so hopefully you can find them used or at the library.

The Pleasure Was Mine by Tommy Hays
This is the "One City, One Book" choice that we decided we didn't have time to do within the month the city was running the program. We could still read it ourselves if we want.

Waldorf Salad Recipe

Ingredients
1/2 cup walnuts halves
1/2 cup non-fat yogurt
2 tablespoons light mayonnaise
2 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley (I left out only b/c I didn't have any)
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 lemon, zest finely grated
Freshly ground black pepper
2 large crisp apples, such as Gala (I used one honeycrisp b/c they are my fave and one granny smith to add some tartness)
2 ribs celery (with leaves), sliced into 1/2-inch-thick pieces (leaves chopped)
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 head Boston lettuce, trimmed, washed, and dried

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degree F.
Spread the nuts on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes. Cool and break the nuts up into small pieces.
Whisk the yogurt, mayonnaise, parsley, honey, and lemon zest in a large bowl and season generously with pepper.
Halve, core, and cut the apples into 3/4-inch pieces, leaving the skin intact. Add the apples, celery and raisins to the bowl, and sprinkle with the lemon juice; then toss with the dressing. Cover and refrigerate if not serving immediately.
When ready to serve, toss walnuts into the salad. Arrange the lettuce leaves on a large platter, or divide them among 4 salad plates. Place the salad on the lettuce and serve.

Thanks for setting up the blog Jennifer, this will be a great way to chat and share recipes! I will email/blog soon about the next book club. Hope everyone is having a great week!