What an amazing book and read this was to share over a meal together! Circling the Sun by Paula McLain, who also wrote The Paris Wife, was about Beryl Markham, a largely forgotten author, aviator and adventurer. Here's what NPR had to say about the book . . .
Circling the Sun focused on Markham's life through her 20s; she told her story from the cockpit of her Vega Gull airplane during her record-breaking 1936 flight. Her flight into the past began with her wild-child upbringing. Born Beryl Clutterbuck, raised in British East Africa ("before Kenya was Kenya") to a neglectful mother and an accomplished racehorse-trainer father, she modeled fearlessness throughout her life. Young Beryl always ran with the boys, training up as a warrior among the Kipsigis people of Kenya. Boarding school did not suit her: "I ran away half a dozen times, once hiding in a pig hole for three days." Eventually, following in her father's footsteps, she became the youngest, as well as the only female, licensed horse trainer in Kenya. This in the world of the early 20th century, when a woman simply riding astride shocked high society.
Beautiful, smart and headstrong, the independent young firebrand in trousers bewitched every man and woman she met. Her passions proved uncurbable; Circling the Sun captured the private side of a woman who appeared preternaturally self-assured, even as her world was crashing down around her ears. Undeterred by a failed affair, a wretched divorce and looming poverty, she pressed on. She turned her fortunes around with a filly named Wise Child, a long shot she brought to greatness on the turf.
Paula McLain created a voice that was lush and intricate to evoke a character who was enviably brave and independent. Markham's self-stated challenge was overcoming the "horrible crimes [of] being a woman and daring to think I could be free." Soaring high over the Atlantic at the age of 28, she finally embraced the freedom she sought when she learned to defy gravity.
APPETIZER
Softened Brie with pumpkin jam and toasted walnuts. Served with a variety of English crackers.
MAIN COURSE
Rolladen, taken from the New York Times International Cook Book
By Craig Claiborne
3 large, thin slices of bottom round beef (each about ¼ inch thick and about 12x6)
Salt and pepper to taste
6 teaspoons of regular prepared mustard
½ to ¾ cup thinly sliced onion strips, about 2 inches long
¼ cup chopped onion
4 full strips of bacon
4 dill pickle spears
1 tablespoon paprika
2 cups beef stock
Lightly tenderize the meat slices, cut in half, so each piece is about 6x6 inches. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then spread with mustard.
Cut bacon strips in half horizontally, cut lengthwise, so bacon is ¼ inch strips.
Cut pickle spears so they about ¼ inch by 2 inches long. Arrange bacon, pickles and onion along straight edge of meat, and all pieces are parallel to each other, roll meat around filling, so that it is all encased. Using kitchen twine, tie at the top and bottom of the rolled meat so it all stays together.
Heat the butter in a skillet and add the remaining onion. Cook, stirring, until golden, then sprinkle with paprika. Cook, stirring, about 7 seconds, no longer. Add the beef rolls and turn them in the paprika mixture until well coated on all sides. Add one cup of the beef stock and cover. Cook over medium-high heat for about 30 minutes, taking care that the meat doesn’t burn or stick. Turn the meat and add ½ cup of the stock. Cover and cook 30 minutes longer, add the remaining stock and continue cooking another 15-30 minutes or until the meat is fork tender.
Serve with steamed potatoes.
Steamed potatoes
2-4 medium sized potatoes, peeled and quartered.
Place potatoes in large pot with about 1 inch of water and 1 tablespoon of cooking oil. Cover and cook over medium heat until potatoes are fork tender. Watch potatoes carefully, adding more water as needed, so that potatoes do not stick or burn.
Serve Rolladen and potatoes on large platter, serve sauce from meat in gravy boat. Enjoy!
DESSERT
Inside-Out Apple Crumbles
Servings: 4
4 small sweet apples, such as Honeycrisp or Fuji
1 tablespoon packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped walnuts1/4 cup rolled oats
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground dry ginger
1 tablespoon butter
Topping:
1 cup low-fat plain Greek yogurt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon honey
*Note from book group member: Adjust to your likes. I like to grind my own cinnamon and nutmeg for better flavor. I made the recipe for 6 apples and doubled the recipe. When tightly packing each apple, I ended up using all the ingredients. Also, better if you the apples are still warm when putting on the yogurt.
Heat the oven to 400 F.
Use a melon baller to carve out the core of each apple, but leave about 1/2 inch at the bottoms (don't scoop all the way through). The goal is to create about a 1-inch-wide cavity down the center of each apple. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, mix together the sugar, walnuts, oats, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Break apart the butter and mash it into the sugar mixture with a fork until well incorporated. Divide the mixture among the apples, spooning it in and packing it tightly into the cavity of each apple.
Arrange the apples in a baking dish, add 1 inch of water to the bottom of the dish, then cover with foil.
Bake for 25 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 20 to 25 minutes, or until a paring knife slides into the apples with no resistance. Set aside to cool slightly.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl whisk together the yogurt, vanilla and honey. Whisk in 1 teaspoon water at a time until the sauce resembles a thick whipped cream. Serve each apple with a quarter of the yogurt cream drizzled over top or on the side for dipping.
Nutrition information per serving: 240 calories; 80 calories from fat (33 percent of total calories); 9 g fat (3 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 10 mg cholesterol; 20 mg sodium; 36 g carbohydrate; 5 g fiber; 26 g sugar; 7 g protein.
Original recipe from: Melissa D'Arabian, The Associated Press | September 1, 2015 8:46 AM ET.
