Bread & Wine: A Review

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I loved author Shauna Niequist’s Cold Tangerines and Bittersweet because reading them felt like sitting down with a girlfriend over coffee and digging into those things in life that we celebrate, those that we mourn, the lessons we’ve learned and the faith that holds it all together. In reading Shauna’s third literary gem, we’re switching from coffee to wine and shifting the conversation to the relationships that make up a life and the meals that happen along the way.

To be clear: transitioning from coffee to wine is always fine by me.

Bread & Wine: A Love Letter to Life Around the Table with Recipes explores through a collection of essays what it means to be nourished on the inside and out and how through our relationship with God, we end up nourishing those around us. They say that life is what happens while you’re making other plans and through Shauna’s incredibly relatable writing, she shares the life that happens while you’re sitting around your table. While filled with some seriously delicious recipes, this is not a cookbook. The recipes act as place markers almost- the food made meaningful by the experience surrounding it. And the experiences surrounding the food are beautiful opportunities to celebrate the way God teaches and feeds us as we, in turn, teach and feed, figuratively and otherwise, those around us.

Bread & Wine feels very full circle to me. With Cold Tangerines, I shamelessly said “Me too!” to Shauna’s quest for celebrating the joy in everyday life. By Bittersweet, I needed the voice that gently reminded me that there are two side of the joy coin and I could sit with the side that hurt without having to pretty anything up; that God’s grace was more present than ever. Bread & Wine opened me up to the possibility that simply showing up and starting where I am is exactly what God created me for and how I will best serve my community, around my table and otherwise.

So, cheers and bon appetit- Bread & Wine is sure to fill you up, in more ways than one.

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Summering: Grilled Pizza

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Last night was a night for friendship, a night for food, a night to hang on to every last ounce of summer left- a little summer soiree, if you will.

I got the idea to do make-your-own-grilled-pizza from Hollywood Housewife and she was spot on!

I could NOT be more pleased with how well this turned out.  Everyone chose their own toppings (the spread included artichokes, sundried tomatoes, pepper, onion, chicken sausage, arugula, basil, mushrooms and mozzarella), we took the elevator down to the sundeck, threw them on the grill and drank wine until they were done.

How To: Grab a piece of naan (FYI: naan from Whole Foods is round and perfect for little pizza crusts AND comes in whole wheat and garlic flavor), brush on a coat of EVOO, top with whatever you want and put it on the grill for around 8 minutes or until everything melts.

It was great because everyone got to eat what they wanted and an interactive component to a dinner party was a fun way to mix it up/make things less formal.  Perfect for our girls night.

Oh and the Strawberry Summer Cake didn’t hurt either:

Summer…please don’t end.

(Big thanks to Shauna for turning me on to both HHW and Smitten Kitchen– you are an amazing resource for entertaining!)