November 2012 Host: Colleen
Molokai by Alan Brennert
Summary
This story begins in the
1890s in Hawaii and chronicles the life of a woman who contracts leprosy at the
age of seven. She is sent away from her
family and is quarantined at a settlement called Kaluapapa on the island of
Molokai. Although she watches many
friends die there, her life in the leper colony becomes bearable through the
new ‘family’ and friends she makes and her strong spirit which refuses to let
the disease control her; and she is also able to eventually experience romance.
She eventually has a child but it was immediately taken from her in order to
prevent the spread of leprosy to the child, who does eventually get adopted. Her father is a sailor and sends her gifts
from all over the world. That and her
imprisonment on the island lead her to long for her own world wide travels. The characters were multifaceted (especially
the nuns who take her in) and the depth of the characters was more than likely
due to the fact that the author loosely based some of the characters in the
novel on people who had actually lived at Kauapapa and on historical research
and correspondence from the time. The
author enriches the story through descriptions of the settlement and the
history of leprosy, along with some of the history of Hawaii, which includes
the annexation and colonization of the islands by American sugar barons. This is a well written and well researched novel
and we all enjoyed it, there is something for everyone in this book.
Menu
Goat Cheese Appetizer
Hawaiian Slaw
Hawaiian Rice (from cooks.com)
Ingredients
-1 can Spam
-1 can unsweetened (or 2 cups
fresh) crushed pineapple
-2 cups long grain rice
-4 cups chicken stock
-4 tablespoons butter
-1 medium onion
-2 cloves garlic
-salt to taste
-1 tablespoon crushed red
pepper
-1 tablespoon fresh ground
black pepper
-1 teaspoon cumin
-1 teaspoon paprika
-1 teaspoon allspice
-small dash cinnamon
Directions
Cook rice in chicken stock
with butter, salt, cumin, paprika, allspice, and cinnamon. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer
until stock is absorbed. While the rice
is simmering, brown Spam, onions, garlic and pineapple in a large skillet with
a lid on high heat. Add red and black
pepper just before done (I reduced the amount of pepper by half, I thought two
tablespoons seemed like too much). Combine
rice and Spam mixture. Stir, reduce heat
and cover. Simmer for 5 more
minutes. Let cool and serve.
Kalua Pig in a Slow Cooker (from food.com – a simple way of making traditional
Hawaiian Kalua pig without having to dig a hole in your back yard)
Ingredients
-1 (6 lb) pork butt
-1 ½ tablespoons Hawaiian sea
salt
-1 tablespoon liquid smoke
flavoring
Directions
-Pierce pork all over with a
carving fork.
-Rub salt then liquid smoke
over meat.
-Place roast in a slow
cooker.
-Cover, and cook on Low for
16 to 20 hours, turning once during cooking time.
-Remove meat from slow
cooker, and shred, adding drippings as needed to moisten.
Ingredients
-1 ½ lbs boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes
Hawaiian Chicken Kabobs (from food.com)
Ingredients
-1 ½ lbs boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes
-1 (15 ¼ ounce) cans
unsweetened pineapple chunks
-1/2 cup soy sauce
-1/4 cup vegetable oil
-1 tablespoon brown sugar
-1 teaspoon garlic powder
-2 teaspoons ground ginger
-1 teaspoon dry mustard
-1/4 teaspoon fresh ground
pepper
-1 large green pepper, cut
into 1 inch pieces
-12 medium mushrooms
-18 cherry tomatoes
-hot cooked rice
Directions
-Put chicken in large shallow
dish.
-Drain pineapple, keep ½ cup
juice.
-Set pineapple aside.
-Mix juice with the next 7
ingredients in small pan.
-Bring to a boil.
-Reduce heat and simmer for 5
minutes.
-Pour over chicken.
-Cover and chill for 1 hour.
-Remove chicken from
marinade, reserve marinade.
-Alternate chicken,
pineapple, green pepper, mushrooms, and tomatoes on skewers
-Grill kabobs over hot coals
20 minutes or until chicken is done.
Dessert