• Originally published March 31, 2009 at midnight, updated March 31, 2009 at midnight

"Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested: that is, some books are to be read only in parts, others to be read, but not curiously, and some few to be read wholly, and with diligence and attention."

"I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read, and all the friends I want to see" John Burrough

I love to read books. I love exploring the world through another person's eyes. I do enjoy the actual life I lead, but there is still something interesting about reading what others see from their perspective. Whether a writer pens fictional or true tales they are simply giving their view of the world. I generally only have time to read at night before I go to bed. I don't know if my love of reading is some sort of hereditary tendency or just a learned behavior, but my mother was an avid reader when I was a child.

My mom, Katy, read everything. She was in many book-of-the-month clubs. Several times a month, books would arrive in the mail dressed in cardboard sleeves. Mom would lovingly open her treasures and place them on her nightstand probably anticipating the night when she could open each cover and start a new story.

She was your typical busy mom with lots of projects and hobbies and so I don't remember seeing her sitting around during the day reading, but I do think she would indulge herself with books almost every night. She would put us to bed and then retreat to her room to get lost in the white pages of different worlds. My dad liked to read also, but he seemed to prefer financial books and dental journals, neither of which seems very exciting.

Some nights my mom would let me stay up a little later than my two younger sisters and I would climb into bed next to her with my Nancy Drew novel and escape to a world of dark streets, hidden staircases and secret rooms. Nancy was my hero. She could solve every crime no matter how few clues she possessed. Her meticulous investigation would get to the bottom of every misdeed.

As I grew up, my choice of topics matured somewhat, and I began to favor biographies of famous people or books about history. In college, I had so much reading to do I rarely remember a time reading just for pleasure instead of facts.

When I was a young mother much of my reading was simply children's books read out loud. At other times, I might peruse books on how to raise above-average children. I would still try to make time to sneak in a good novel. And now the majority of my new books are cookbooks, because I love to make new creations in the kitchen, and I need to find interesting recipes for my loyal readers.

Now that my kids are mostly raised and mainly need me for the occasional bit of advice or financial contribution, I have been able to again read what I choose. Unlike my mother, I don't belong to any book-of-the-month clubs.

Instead, I prefer to get recommendations from friends or booklists and devour one or two books at a time. Several years ago a friend and I started a book club. Kathleen and I would often find ourselves talking about books we were reading or ones we had heard about. Both of us knew other avid readers and so we started the Novel Women book club.

We are a small group who meets once per month. Each of us takes a turn to select a book, fiction or non-fiction, and then each member reads it. The group then gets together for lunch and discussion of the selected work.

Sometimes the lunches are related to the novel such as the time we read, "Snow Flower" and the "Secret Fan," by Lisa See and my good friend, Janet, prepared a shrimp soup with rice noodles, and for dessert attempted a fried taro root just like "Snow Flower" would eat in the book. Other times we are less creative and just settle for sandwiches knowing our lives are busy enough and lunch is special just because we are together.

Book discussions can sometimes open dark places in people's past and cause us to work through difficult feelings we have buried. As close friends, we can talk about those things in the intimacy of that setting.

Other times, the book takes us to a place we wish we could be, giving us the feeling that all is well. Each person in our group has a life story, and because of their past, they interpret our books through their own lens.

This is the most interesting part of book club for me. Sometimes we examine the hero of the story and wonder why the character behaves the way they do. When we are discussing a novel I frequently forget it is a work of fiction and not real.

Last week, we met at Susan's home. Susan is an artist and an interior decorator. Each time I visit her, I find something new and interesting. She is very creative with color and texture and her home is a reflection of her talent. Some of her decorating has South American influence, and I share a love of that culture and color.

I stepped outside to her herb garden and noticed several mosaic stepping stones she made. I made a mental note to talk to her about the mosaic process, since that is something I have recently become interested in doing. There doesn't seem to be many forms of art that Susan cannot do, whether it is painting, fiber art or designing.

Susan had selected the "Master Butchers Singing Club," by Louise Erdrich. I would describe the book as a ballad on paper, since the novel spans a lifetime of the main character, Delphine. It is an epic about her life in the circus and her decision to move home to care for her father. Since the book has a German influence and involves singing butchers who slaughter animals and sell sausage, I thought that our menu at book club may be the same.

When we arrived many of us asked our hostess if we were having sausage, but were amused to find that Susan planned on serving naked tamales. I was intrigued with the idea of naked tamales, so I questioned her about the recipe. After our gathering was over, she shared her version of this delicious entrée.

The term naked refers to the fact that the tamale is not served in a husk. The masa is layered with vegetables and then baked in a water bath. This technique of baking is most often used in baking custards so they do not burn. The tamales can be served with a salad as a vegetarian entrée or as a vegetable side. Allow your imagination to take over as you build your own naked tamales.

Myra Starkey lives in Victoria. Write her in care of the Advocate, P.O. Box 1518, Victoria, TX 77901, or e-mail myra@vicad.com.

• SUSAN'S NAKED TAMALES

  Masa

  2 cups masa

  1 cups vegetable stock (bouillon)

  tsp. baking powder

  Add baking powder to dry masa. Slowly add vegetables stock until the masa forms a soft dough. Press some of the dough ...

• SHOW ALL »

SUSAN'S NAKED TAMALES

Masa

2 cups masa

1 cups vegetable stock (bouillon)

tsp. baking powder

Add baking powder to dry masa. Slowly add vegetables stock until the masa forms a soft dough. Press some of the dough into the bottom of a greased loaf pan to about inch. Set aside to begin the layers.

Onion Layer

1 large onion,chopped

1 red bell pepper,chopped

1 poblano pepper,chopped

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. sugar

Salt and pepper to taste

Saute all ingredients in olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Add sugar and caramelize the onions and peppers. Set aside for onion layer.

Spinach Layer

2 cups fresh baby spinach, chopped

cup raisons

cup chopped almonds

Queso Fresco cheese

1 tsp. olive oil

Wilt spinach, raisons and almonds in olive oil. When spinach is wilted, remove from heat. Set aside for spinach layer.

Black Bean Layer

1 - (20 oz.) can El Mexicano refried black beans or other brand

3 Tbsp. water

Queso Fresca

Cilantro, chopped for garnish

Heat refried black beans with water in sauce pan. Stir to incorporate water. Use this mixture in black bean layer.

Preheat pan to 400 degrees.

Grease bread loaf pan with vegetable spray.

Next you will layer the spinach and sprinkle a layer of queso fresco cheese. Add masa dough and press gently covering the spinach layer. Add the refried beans and spread over masa. Sprinkle with Queso Fresca and cover with masa dough. Gently press dough down over this layer. Next add the onion mixture and cover with masa dough. The masa dough is your last layer. If some of the filling is visible, do not worry, just try to cover with masa.

Cover the loaf pan with foil. Bake in 400 degree oven in a water bath. To prepare a water bath, slowly fill a Pyrex pan with water about to 1 inch. Place loaf pan in water making sure the water is low enough in Pyrex that the water will not boil over. Place dish in oven for 35 minutes. The masa will begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Remove the loaf pan from the water bath and allow to rest for about 10 minutes. Carefully invert the loaf pan onto a plate and slice. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro. Serve with purchased tomato salsa and tomatillo salsa.

Other ideas for fillings: butternut squash, grilled vegetables (chopped), oven-roasted tomatoes, Tofu.

CILANTRO-SERRANO SALAD DRESSING SERVED WITH TOMATOES, JICAMA AND AVOCADOS

cup mayonnaise

cup sour cream

2 Tbsp. olive oil

Juice of 3 limes

2 fresh serrano chilies, minced

Salt and pepper

2 large tomatoes, cut crosswise

¼ pound jicama, peeled and chopped

3 oranges, thinly sliced without pith and peeled

1 red onion, sliced thin

¾ cup cilantro, chopped

2 medium avocados

Whisk mayonnaise, sour cream, olive oil and juice of limes in a bowl.

Sprinkle with serranos, salt and pepper. Arrange the salad layers, tomatoes, jicama, oranges, onion, and top with avocado slices. Drizzle with dressing. If dressing is too thick add more lime juice.

• Print
• •
• Share
  • Share this item

    Send this to a friend

  • Grab the link

    Copy and paste the link:

  • Blog about it

    Blog about this page.

  • Close
• •
• Favorite