Big Little Lies

Our book club members are HUGE fans of Liane Moriarty.  She is the author of Husband's Secret and What Alice Forgot. Her newest book Big Little Lies did not disappoint. Now, we realize that these books are more of a fun read rather than intellectual giants but we believe you need balance in life and book club! These books also allow a temporary escape from day to day life and lend themselves to lively discussion.

The Appetizer 

To start Cindy served Pea Pesto Crostini with Prosciutto.  This is a recipe from Cooking Light magazine.  We love the recipes from Cooking Light because they involve the use of real food rather than processed low-fat ingredients. However, we used whole milk ricotta.

The Cocktail

The book focused on events that occurred during a school function and the catalyst for these events was a “pink fizzy drink”. We recreated this cocktail by making a strawberry simple syrup, adding one ounce of vodka and topping with sparkling wine.  The amount of syrup you use per drink varies depending on how sweet you want it. As a caution: these are dangerous!

To make the strawberry syrup bring 1 cup water and one cup cane sugar to a boil, once the sugar is dissolved add one cup strawberries and simmer for about ten minutes.  Let the mixture cool and blend in your food processor.  Chill for at least an hour before serving.

The Meal

For the meal we served a sandwich that is always a surprisingly big hit: A Rueben.  The sandwich is comprised of sliced corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Thousand Island dressing on Rye bread.  We are big corned beef enthusiasts.  In March we stock up at Whole Foods and put the extras in the freezer.  If you cannot find corned beef you can use thick sliced deli pastrami. To make the sandwich:

·      Toast the bread in the oven for a few minutes
·      Flip the bread over and place a slice of  Swiss cheese on each piece
·      Top with the sliced corned beef that was cooked according to package directions
·      Toast for a few more minutes so the cheese melts

·       Remove from oven then top with sauerkraut and Thousand Island
·      Done!

We always choose Bubbies sauerkraut and Litehouse Thousand Island, which is from an Idaho company! We served the sandwiches with kettle chips. 

Look for our 90’s Rock album out next year.

Such a good time! Really! Read this book and try the Pink Fizzy. Next up The Three Weissmanns of Westport  by Cathleen Schine.