Friendship and a Growing Bookstack!

It's been a week. This past week, tragedy in my home town.

The week before, joyful time with friends, company, and Cork Poppers. Since I already wrote about the shooting at Michigan State University, today I look back on the happier moments of the week.

Rick and I kicked off the month with a dinner with friends. Nothing fancy -- just pork tenderloin, mashed potatoes and Jan's fabulous salad. It's never the food; it's the friendship! But that salad rocks!

A few days later, my friend Suzanne came to visit from Ontario. For once, our time wasn't managed by a frenzy of holiday shopping! Instead, we had plenty of time for long talks -- and doing a belated Christmas. (Maybe I can take another tree down now!)

Usually, a significant part of our holiday gift giving includes books and Suzanne didn't disappoint! As you can see, I'll have plenty to keep me busy for the rest of winter!

Suzanne and Rick did a Sudoku race, being the maniacs they both are. We determined that Suzanne won -- Rick was faster but found out at the end he'd made an unfixable error. 

We also enjoyed going to the moving "Living" with Oscar nominee Bill Nighy. If you remember him as the burned out rocker Billy Mack in "Love Actually," you won't recognize him as the repressed 1950s manager of the Public Works department at City Hall who discovers he has six months to live -- and starts living. It's difficult to describe but you'd never imagine a film where you know the lead character will die at the end could leave one so uplifted and with much on which to ponder after. It's an exquisite treasure of a movie, made in loving homage to those films of the 1950s. Highly recommended.

Lest you should think all our viewing time was spent with thoughtful movies, we enjoyed plenty of old Groucho Marx episodes of "You Bet Your Life." Quick wit, crazy contestants. Good fun. And of course there were lots of Lizzie moments, who took it all in stride.

She didn't even notice an intruder in our yard!

 

We also hit our favorite restaurants, including a delicious Thai dinner after the movie. You cannot beat pad Thai, soup and hot tea on a cold night!

After Suzanne left I rushed to make a few things in advance for our Cork Poppers the next day at Rick's. Both of these are super party recipes because they can be made largely in advance and in the case of the sliders, cooked off right before serving.

Ham and Cheese Sliders

Take 1 package of King's Hawaiian rolls (or more -- I used most of two) and slice through the middle. I kept mine attached at the end but you could completely divide them. Place in a baking pan.

Layer sliced ham on each bun and top with cheese. I used deli ham sliced thin and shredded nacho/taco cheese but a good sharp cheddar or your favorite works just as well.

In a small bowl combine: 1 stick melted butter with three or four finely chopped green onions. (Melting together in the microwave softens the onions)

Add:  2 Tablespoons brown sugar, 2-3 Tablespoons of mustard (I used a spicy brown but yellow or Dijon would be fine); and 3 Tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce. Mix well.

Pour the liquid over the buns, cover and refrigerate 4-24 hours. Remove from the fridge a bit before baking and bake for 20 minutes at 350. Cut the buns apart for easy serving.

Slacker Lemon Meringue Tarts

Take one package of 24 slice and bake Pillsbury sugar cookies. Place each on in a mini-muffin pan. Bake as directed (but you will add more time so watch them. They called for 15-17 minutes; I was about 20 and maybe a minute overdone).

A minute or so before you take out of the oven for good, press down the center of each cookie. You could use your thumb (ouch!) but I used a melon baller. Pop in the over for another minute or so. Cookies should be browned but not burned.

Cool completely. 

Fill with a scoop of your favorite chilled lemon curd. (I used about 1 jar of Bonne Maman.)

That's it! (I recommend filling shortly before serving so the curd doesn't soften the "tart shell" too much. I did mine about an hour or two before and kept in the fridge till served.

But where's my treat? (Coming up: A Cork Popping afternoon with tunes!)

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