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  • Puff Pastry Cherry Crostata.

    This cherry crostata, or galette, is free-form and rustic with all the flavors of cherry pie but with a flaky, buttery, puff pastry crust.

    Prep Time: 20 mins

    Cook Time: 25 mins

    Total Time: 45 mins

    Servings: 6

    Ingredients

    1/2 (17.3 ounce) package frozen puff pastry sheets, thawed

    1 pound cherries, pitted and halved

    2 tablespoons brown sugar

    1 tablespoon cornstarch

    1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

    1/2 teaspoon almond extract

    1/4 teaspoon salt

    1 large egg, beaten

    1 tablespoon water

    1 tablespoon turbinado sugar, or to taste

    1 tablespoon orange marmalade (optional)

    Directions

    Step 1 Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

    Step 2 On a lightly floured surface, roll a well-chilled puff pastry sheet into an approximate 11 to 12-inch round. Trim edges into a circle shape, and transfer to the lined baking sheet.

    Step 3 Stir cherries, brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, almond extract, and salt together in a bowl until cherries are well coated. Spoon cherry mixture into the center of the pastry, leaving a 2-inch border. Lift up edges of the crust, and fold around, overlapping the cherry mixture.

    Step 4 Whisk egg and water into an egg wash, brush edges of the pastry, and sprinkle with turbinado.

    Step 5 Bake in the preheated oven until cherries are tender and crust is golden brown, 23 to 30 minutes. Warm marmalade in the microwave until melted, 15 to 20 seconds, and drizzle over the cherries to glaze.

    Step 6 Allow to cool for about 15 minutes before cutting into wedges to serve.

  • Apple Walnut Canadian Butter Tarts.

    After Poutine, Canadian butter tarts are Canada’s second greatest culinary invention. This is an apple-infused twist on a traditional Canadian butter tart. These have a wonderful texture and flavor and are a perfect small dessert.

    Prep Time: 30 mins

    Cook Time: 10 mins

    Bake Time: 20 mins

    Cool Time: 10 mins

    Total Time: 1 hr 10 mins

    Servings: 12

    Ingredients

    cooking spray

    flour for dusting

    1 pound prepared pie crust

    2 cups apple juice

    ¾ cup packed brown sugar

    6 tablespoons unsalted butter

    1 large egg

    1 tablespoon whipping cream

    ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

    1 pinch salt

    ½ cup chopped walnuts

    Directions

    Step 1 Gather all ingredients. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly spray a muffin tin with cooking spray.

    Step 2 Dust a work surface with flour and roll out pie dough to a thickness of about 1/8 inch. Cut out 12 circles using a 4-inch round pastry cutter,

    Step 3 Transfer dough into lightly sprayed muffin tin. Press the dough gently into the bottom and sides. Refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

    Step 4 Add apple juice into a saucepan and simmer over medium-high heat until it has reduced to 3 or 4 tablespoons of apple syrup. Set aside.

    Step 5 Place brown sugar into a bowl and pour apple syrup on top of the sugar. Add melted butter, egg, cream, vanilla, and salt. Whisk until filling is liquid and smooth.

    Step 6 Pull pastry out of the fridge. Divide walnuts evenly on top of the bottom of the tart shells. Pour filling on top about 2/3 full. Tap the pan to smooth out filling.

    Step 7 Bake in the preheated oven until crust is cooked through and the filling is bubbly, about 20 minutes. Let cool for about 10 minutes then remove from the muffin tins and serve at room temperature.

  • Jalapeno Popper Pig Shots.

    These jalapeno popper pig shots are like edible shot glasses. The combination of salty crisp bacon, caramelized sausage, and the kick from the jalapeno is just perfect. Serve at your next football party or get-together.

    Prep Time: 15 mins

    Cook Time: 45 mins

    Cool Time: 5 mins

    Total Time: 1 hr 5 mins

    Ingredients

    1 lb smoked sausage, sliced into 24 pieces, about 3/4 -1 inch thick

    4 ounces cream cheese, softened

    1 1/2 cups sharp Cheddar cheese

    1/2 teaspoon Cajun seasoning

    2 tablespoons sour cream

    3 jalapenos, divided

    1 lb (12 slices) thick cut bacon, cut in half

    1/4 cup spicy bbq sauce

    1 tablespoon honey

    1 tablespoon brown sugar

    Directions

    Step 1 Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C)

    Step 2 Combine cream cheese, Cheddar cheese, Cajun seasoning, and sour cream in a bowl. Seed and finely chop 1 jalapeno and add to cheese mixture. Stir until well combined. Place cheese mixture into a large ziplock bag.

    Step 3 Snip the corner of the bag and pipe about 2 teaspoons of cheese mixture onto each piece of sausage. Wrap each sausage with bacon and place into mini muffin pan cups. Slice remaining jalapenos into 24 thin slices and top each “shot” with a slice.

    Step 4 Stir together bbq sauce, honey, and brown sugar in a small bowl. Brush bbq mixture over pig shots and bake until the bacon gets crisp, about 45 minutes.

    Step 5 Remove from oven and let cool before serving, 5 to 10 minutes. They will crisp slightly more after baking.

  • Dreamland by Nicholas Sparks.

    Categories: Romance,

    Contemporary,

    Publication date: September 20th, 2022,

    4.5 out of 5 stars,

    5,486 ratings,

    Publisher’s summary,

    #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A twist you won’t see coming. A love story you’ll never forget. From the acclaimed author of The Notebook comes a powerful novel about risking everything for a dream—and whether it’s possible to leave the past behind.

    We don’t always get to choose our paths in life; sometimes they choose us.

    ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: PopSugar.

    After fleeing an abusive husband with her six-year-old son, Tommie, Beverly is attempting to create a new life for them in a small town off the beaten track. Despite their newfound freedom, Beverly is constantly on guard: she creates a fake backstory, wears a disguise around town, and buries herself in DIY projects to stave off anxiety. But her stress only rises when Tommie insists he’d been hearing someone walking on the roof and calling his name late at night. With money running out and danger seemingly around every corner, she makes a desperate decision that will rewrite everything she knows to be true. . . .

    Meanwhile, Colby Mills is on a heart-pounding journey of another kind. A failed musician, he now heads a small family farm in North Carolina. Seeking a rare break from his duties at home, he spontaneously takes a gig playing in a bar in St. Pete Beach, Florida, where he meets Morgan Lee—and his whole life is turned upside-down.

    The daughter of affluent Chicago doctors, Morgan has graduated from a prestigious college music program with the ambition to move to Nashville and become a star. Romantically and musically, she and Colby complete each other in a way that neither has ever known.

    In the course of a single unforgettable week, two young people will navigate the exhilarating heights and heartbreak of first love. Hundreds of miles away, Beverly will put her love for her young son to the test. And fate will draw all three people together in a web of life-altering connections . . . forcing each to wonder whether the dream of a better life can ever survive the weight of the past.

  • Legacy on Trial (Blake County Legal Thrillers 1) by Joe Cargile.

    Categories: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense,

    Legal,

    Publication date, May 1st, 2023,

    4.3 out of 5 stars,

    9 ratings,

    Publisher’s summary,

    When a small-town lawyer defends a local murder suspect, they are swept into a deadly international coverup.

    Lee Acker is horrified by the violent killing of his childhood best friend. And he is equally distraught to discover that he stands wrongly accused of the crime.

    As a whirlwind of media frenzy and a high-profile investigation descend on Lee’s ordinarily quiet Georgia town, he boldly flees to Mexico in a hunt for answers.

    But Lee barely has time to catch whispers of shady international dealings before he finds himself detained and extradited back to the United States to stand trial.

    Now, Lee’s last hope rests with the local legal community’s rising star, Maggie Reynolds, the only defense lawyer who is skilled—and determined—enough to clear his name. Caught in the crosshairs of a deadly game and armed only with the hints and rumors gleaned from Lee’s brief time in Mexico, Maggie and Lee must work against the clock to put together the pieces of an increasingly shocking puzzle.

    The picture that takes shape will turn the courtroom on its head . . . and expose a sinister conspiracy that extends far beyond this small Georgia town.

    Contains mature themes.

  • You Loved Me Once by Corrine Michaels.

    Categories: Literature & Fiction,

    Women’s Fiction,

    Contemporary,

    Publication date: June 29, 2021,

    4.6 out of 5 stars,

    12,401 ratings,

    Publisher’s summary,

    From New York Times best-selling author Corinne Michaels comes a heartbreakingly beautiful stand-alone story about letting love in.

    I’m losing myself trying to save everyone else….

    As a doctor, I walk a dangerously delicate balance of being compassionate but not overly invested. The same is true in my personal life – love is a luxury I can’t afford.

    It isn’t until Dr. Westin Grant breaks down all my walls and offers me a future, I find myself wondering if I’m brave enough to risk my heart.

    When who I was and who I’ve tried to become collide during my clinical trial, the fate of one patient changes everything.

    In a single moment, everything I’ve worked for is jeopardized. My integrity, my career, and even my relationship with Westin.

    He loved me once. I just hope he can love me always.

  • None of this is True by Lisa Jewell.

    Categories: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense,

    Women Sleuths,

    Suspense,

    Publication date: August 8, 2023,

    4.8 out of 5 stars,

    25 ratings,

    Publisher’s summary,

    From the #1 New York Times bestselling author known for her “superb pacing, twisted characters, and captivating prose” (BuzzFeed), Lisa Jewell returns with a scintillating new psychological thriller about a woman who finds herself the subject of her own popular true crime podcast.

    Celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at her local pub, popular podcaster Alix Summer crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie, it turns out, is also celebrating her forty-fifth birthday. They are, in fact, birthday twins.

    A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for her series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life.

    Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep making the podcast. Slowly she starts to realize that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it, Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life—and into her home.

    But, as quickly as she arrived, Josie disappears. Only then does Alix discover that Josie has left a terrible and terrifying legacy in her wake, and that Alix has become the subject of her own true crime podcast, with her life and her family’s lives under mortal threat.

    Who is Josie Fair? And what has she done?

  • The Guest Room by Tasha Sylva.

    Publication date: July 11th, 2023,

    2.3 out of 5 stars,

    3 ratings,

    Length: 11 hrs and 29 mins,

    Publisher’s summary,

    Downright irresistible, The Guest Room is a riveting psychological thriller debut about the secrets people hide and the lengths that one woman will take in the pursuit of truth, justice, and an overwhelming thrill.

    The mysterious disappearance of Tess’s sister Rosie leaves her grief-stricken and lonely. And when she decides to rent out her sister’s old room to guests, she develops a dangerously bad habit she can’t seem to quit. Tess’s addiction to snooping through their belongings brings an intense adrenaline rush at the possibility of being caught, as she steals forbidden glimpses into the lives of strangers. Amid a numbing pain and loss, the excitement of these invasive investigations is the only thing that makes her feel again.

    The luggage of her newest lodger, Arran, introduces a salaciously detailed diary, its secrets almost begging for Tess’s probing eyes. As she reads, she learns about Arran’s infatuation with a beautiful stranger. But the more deeply she dives into the pages, the more sinister and menacing his crush becomes.

    Drawn to danger and determined to protect this mystery woman the way she couldn’t protect Rosie, Tess begins to follow Arran. Watching from the shadows of London street corners, Tess must find the object of his attraction. Yet she can’t help but notice similarities between the woman in the diary and herself. Who is truly watching whom?

    The Guest Room is a compulsive thriller that will leave listeners wondering “Could someone be watching me?”

    A Macmillan Audio production from Henry Holt and Company.

  • Cool Runnings.

    Four Jamaican bobsledders dream of competing in the Winter Olympics, despite never having seen snow. With the help of a disgraced former champion desperate to redeem himself, the Jamaicans set out to become worthy of Olympic selection, and go all out for glory.

    · Rating: PG

    · Genre: Comedy, Drama

    · Original Language: English

    · Director: Jon Turteltaub

    · Producer: Dawn Steel

    · Writer: Lynn Siefert, Tommy Swerdlow, Michael Goldberg

    · Release Date (Theaters): Oct 1, 1993

    Runtime: 1h 37m

    Distributor: Buena Vista Pictures, Gativideo

    Production Co: Walt Disney Pictures

    Cast.

    Leon

    Derice Bannock

    Doug E. Doug

    Sanka Coffie

    Malik Yoba

    Yul Brenner

    John Candy

    Irving ‘Irv’ Blitzer

    Rawle D. Lewis

    Junior Bevil

    Raymond J. Barry

    Kurt Hemphill

    Larry Gilman

    Larry

    Peter Outerbridge

    Josef Grool

    Paul Coeur

    Roger

  • Jurassic World Dominion.

    This summer, experience the epic conclusion to the Jurassic era as two generations unite for the first time. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are joined by Oscar®-winner Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Sam Neill in Jurassic World Dominion, a bold, timely and breathtaking new adventure that spans the globe. From Jurassic World architect and director Colin Trevorrow, Dominion takes place four years after Isla Nublar has been destroyed. Dinosaurs now live–and hunt–alongside humans all over the world. This fragile balance will reshape the future and determine, once and for all, whether human beings are to remain the apex predators on a planet they now share with history’s most fearsome creatures.

    Rating: PG-13 (Language|Intense Sequences of Action|Some Violence)

    Genre: Action, Adventure

    Original Language: English

    Director: Colin Trevorrow

    Producer: Frank Marshall, Patrick Crowley

    Writer: Emily Carmichael, Colin Trevorrow

    Release Date (Theaters): Jun 10, 2022 Wide

    Runtime: 2h 27m

    Distributor: Universal Pictures

    Cast.

    Chris Pratt Owen Grady

    Bryce Dallas Howard Claire Dearing

    Laura Dern Ellie Sattler

    Jeff Goldblum Ian Malcolm

    Sam Neill Alan Grant

    DeWanda Wise Kayla Watts

    Mamoudou Athie Ramsay Cole

    BD Wong Dr. Henry Wu

    Omar Sy Barry Sembène

    Isabella Sermon Maisie Lockwood, Young Charlotte Lockwood

    Campbell Scott Lewis Dodgson Dichen

    Lachman Soyona Santos Justice Jesse Smith

    Franklin Webb Scott Haze Rainn Delacourt

    Daniella Pineda Dr. Zia Rodriguez