#ThursdayThoughts: #Holiday Romance and Recipes with @TinaGayle!

Good Morning...

It's time for another Holiday Romance and Recipe blog exchange, today with Tina Gayle who has visited us before. So without much further ado....here's Tina!

Photo by belchonock from depositphotos.com

I have a friend who wrote an awesome cookbook. I wanted to share one of her recipes and tell you a little about her book Around the World in 80 Meals: The Best of Cruise Ship Cuisine weaves gastronomic delights around an exotic seven-day dream fantasy cruise.

If you love #cruising and #cooking, check out AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 MEALS, seven menus and #recipes from the world's greatest cruise ships, by Diana Rubino. #cookbooks
On sale at Amazon: http://amzn.to/15P4vF2

Here is one of the recipes I enjoyed.

Spinach and Pear Salad with Rosemary Vinaigrette

Ingredients

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

2 tablespoons vegetable broth

1½ tablespoons minced shallots

2 teaspoons white miso – ( I left this out)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1½ teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary

4 cups baby spinach

4 teaspoons coarsely chopped toasted walnuts

2 pears, unpeeled, cored, thinly sliced

¼ cup crumbled blue cheese

Instructions

Blend vinegars, broth, shallots and miso in a blender until smooth. Mix in the herbs, and season

to taste with salt and pepper.

Toss spinach and walnuts in a large bowl and coat with dressing. Place spinach on salad plates.

Top with sliced pears and cheese.

Blend vinegars, broth, shallots and miso in a blender until smooth. Mix in the herbs, and season

to taste with salt and pepper.

Toss spinach and walnuts in a large bowl and coat with dressing. Place spinach on salad plates.

Top with sliced pears and cheese.

This was easy and tasty. I like spinach with strawberries so I knew I’d like this too.

Tina's book, Marketing Exec's Widow is on sale for .99cents for a limited time! Check it out...

Four women...
One fatal car wreck...
Everyone's lives changed...

Blurb --- "Marketing Exec’s Widow”

Jennifer Larson, having lost her husband, friends and the perfect life she’d had plan, now faces the biggest challenge of her life, moving into an unplanned future. While the rest of the Executive Wife Club is still wallowing in the past, Jen is tempted into the future by a sexy chiropractor, Hagan Chaney.

But does he really love her or is he only after her money?

Excerpt –

Why in heaven’s name did he ask her on a date?

And why did she care?

She had no plans other than a casual dinner for two.

He glanced up and a pretty-boy grin crossed his lips. The twinkle in his hazel eyes softened the square line of his jaw. “So have you decided what you want?”

Heat simmered low in her belly. Oh, yeah, answering that question the wrong way could get her into a world of trouble.

Tempted by wicked ideas, Jen blinked and stared at the menu. She’d do better if he didn’t know the wild directions of her brainwaves. “I’m not sure I can eat. I haven’t been this nervous since my first date with Craig.”

Ah, shit, I wasn’t supposed to mention him. Fire burned her cheeks and her gaze popped to Hagan’s befuddled expression.

“Craig?” Hagan lowered his menu.

“My...uh...husband. He died several months ago.” Jen’s grip tightened on the plastic folder and her heart raced into overdrive. Great, just what she needed to say to start the evening off on the right note. Mention your dead husband and kill the mood.

“Want to call the evening a bust?” she blurted out, angry at herself for failing so miserably at the dating game.

Hagan leaned forward and folded his hands above his menu. “No. I already knew.”

“What? How?” She clenched her hands together under the table. He said he moved here from Texas, having arrived a few months ago to set up his practice and to be near his dad. How could he have found out? Did someone tell him? But who?

“My dad told me. He read about your husband’s accident in the paper.”

“God, you must think I’m awful.”

“Not even in the ballpark as to what I think about you. Because I know you would never have said yes to a night out with me if you’d been happy in your marriage.”

His words hit her like a fist to the face and her head snapped backward, striking the wooden partition between the booths. Wow, how could he have guessed the truth when so many people who knew her hadn’t?

She closed her eyes and searched for an answer. For so long, she’d kept her emotions bottled inside, not allowing anyone to see the loneliness or heartache her unhappy marriage had caused. What now? 

Lie, or admit the truth?

The vinyl cushion squeaked, and a hand touched her shoulder, pulling her from her stupor. Hagan slipped in beside her, his thigh bumped hers and his arm slid along the back of the seat. In the space of a few seconds, his large athletic body blocked her escape from the confining booth.

Nerves pulsed in an agitated rhythm. She couldn’t sit still, and opened her mouth to tell him to back off, but the thin lines of concern marring his brow killed the comment.

“Hey, there’s no reason to get upset.” He cupped a hand over her shoulder and drew her close. “I’m happy you said yes.”

Jolted by his sudden nearness, she exhaled, and then fought to draw air back into her lungs. His crisp, masculine scent acted like a seductive lure, and she had to fight the urge to bury her nose in the curve of his neck.

Another sniff and her resolve weakened. She snuggled deeper into his embrace, savoring his strength, and allowed her cheek to caress the soft fabric of his sweater. Her breasts, crushed against the hard wall of his chest, grew heavy with need. Butterflies flapped wildly in her stomach. Alarms sounded, warning her to pull away.

Read the 1st chapter of any of Tina's books at www.tinagayle.net 

Marketing Exec's Widow is vailable at Amazon, Thanks for hosting me on your blog and I hope everyone has an awesome holiday season, Tina