For all who love good eating and good reading, Recipe for a Book Club offers twelve lively months of suggested readings, featured authors, and menus and recipes to make each gathering of your book discussion group a joyous occasion.  Here is an excerpt of the book's suggestions for February. To order the book at 50% off through March 15, 2007, click here and use code RGC207.

February
Classics and Romance

"We have dined nine times at Rosing’s..."

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

This is a story about Elizabeth Bennet, her four sisters and their numerous suitors. Set in 18th century England, the reader is introduced to the manners and customs of genteel society of the day. It is at a ball that Elizabeth first encounters the proud Mr. Darcy, who neglects to ask her to dance. Her pride, offended at this rejection, causes her to initially judge him harshly and unfavorably. The story follows Mr. Darcy’s courtship of Elizabeth, but along the way we meet a rogue, a lovesick sister, society snobs and numerous other memorable characters who combine to make this a story you won’t soon forget.

Suggestion

Since you will be serving a variety of finger sandwiches, we suggest you make three to four of each type for your guests and yourself. To serve the tea sandwiches, place one of each type on individual plates for each guest and the extras on a large platter to pass around. A nice touch is to fill candy dishes with tiny heart-shape candies and splurge on some flowers.

Serves Four to Six
Champagne
A Variety of Finger Sandwiches: Olive Nut, Crab, Cucumber, and Chicken
Lemon Cake with Darjeeling Tea

Olive Nut Filling

Combine:
6 oz                  Cream cheese, softened (brick style)
1/2 cup             Mayonnaise

Add to that:
1/2 cup             Chopped pecans
1 cup                Chopped pimento stuffed green olives
Dash of pepper

Thinly sliced white bread.
Garnish:            Watercress and cherry tomato

On the day of the meeting:

Cut rectangular shaped pieces from slices of white bread. Usually two pieces per slice of bread. Spread with filling and garnish with small piece of watercress and cherry tomato half.

Our notes:

This needs to be refrigerated overnight or for several hours. We suggest Pepperidge Farm white bread, trimming off the crusts.

“Who could have imagined that we should
receive an invitation to dine there…”

“…both Kitty and Lydia looking out of a
dining-room up stairs.”

About the Authors

In the late 1980s, sisters Mary O’Hare and Rose Storey lived together and cultivated their shared love of cooking and reading. When Mary moved away, both sisters started monthly book-and-lunch clubs in their neighborhoods. These book clubs, and the books and recipes they enjoyed together, became the basis for this their first book.

Mary O’Hare, a former teacher with degrees in both education and music, has always been an avid reader. While managing the challenges of corporate moves with her husband to several major metropolitan areas she remained at home to raise five children which allowed her time to pursue, through continuing education, her love of cooking and reading. She currently resides in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Rose Storey received degrees in business and marketing, and currently works as an advertising and graphic design professional for a firm located in San Francisco, California. The book club which she formed in a northern California neighborhood served as a proving ground for the ideas and suggestions that were developed in Recipe for a Book Club. She and her husband have recently re-located to Ventura, California.