Book Club Bonanza and a Yummy Chicken Recipe

It's always love to see what other Book Clubs are reading.  There seems to be ceratain books that are 'must reads' every year, and we have a couple of them on our list. Our Book Club makes the reading choices for the year each September.  We only choose books that have a 4 to 5 star rating from Amazon. I thought I'd list our choices since it's always fun to see what everyone is reading.  Most of these I haven't read yet, so I'll just review the two that we have.

Here's our list:

September:  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo  Stieg Larsson  This the first in a series that is the 'hot dot' in the publishing world these days. There's so much to this book, that I'll just say that it's an intellectual thriller with lots of violence and a compelling story, with a protagonist that rises above her social limitations.  It's very compelling novel with a call for social justice.  The Club generally liked it, and have moved on to read the rest of the series. 

October: Little Bee  Chris Cleave  This is a beautifully written story, with a compelling main character.  Most people liked the book.

November: Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann

January:  Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

February:  One Day  David Nicholls

April: Freedom, A Novel by Jonathan Frazen

May: Mountains Beyond Mountains  by Paul Farmer

June: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

We limit our club membership to the number of people who can fit around a dinning table.  The Host always serves dinner.  At our last meeting, my friend Valerie, served this wonderful chicken dish.  Don't be fooled by the simplicity of it, it had a wonderful flavor!  She served it with rice, a salad and dessert.

 Anne Shea's Chicken Thighs:

12 chicken thighs

6 whole shallots

6 cloves garlic

4 Tbsp. butter

3 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1 1/2 cup dry white wine

1 Tbsp. tomato paste (sometimes I add a bit more for color)

1 1/2 cup chicken stock

salt and pepper

Italian parsley - chopped

Trim fat and excess skin from thighs after washing and season with salt and pepper. Brown both sides in 3 Tbsp. of butter and 1 Tbsp. olive oil for total of 8 minutes. Transfer to casserole dish and place in 375 degree oven. Drain most of the oil/fat from skillet (leaving a Tbsp. and the brown bits) and add the remainder of the butter and oil and saute the minced garlic and shallots. Add vinegar, wine and stir up the bits on the bottom of the pan. Allow to cook down about 8 minutes. Whisk tomato paste and simmer 5 more minutes. Add chicken stock adding a little at a time. Mix well. Pour over chicken in the oven and cook for 35 to 45 minutes. Turn chicken halfway through. Garnish with chopped Italian parsley.