Where book clubs find discussion and delicious recipes for favorite books!

Chorizo and Ricotta Stuffed Summer Squash

*If you are new here, WELCOME! For this post, I provide you with a delicious recipe for Chorizo and Ricotta Stuffed Summer Squash!

If you’ve never had stuffed summer squash, I am glad you are here! This recipe is absolutely delicious, pretty easy to make, and a great summer dish.

While stuffed squash of many varieties have become popular over the last few years, this recipe, which combined chorizo, ricotta, and parmesan for the stuffing is so rich and tasty.

If you’re stopping by here while searching for recipes, you may not know that the recipes here are all inspired by books! This particular recipe was created after reading Elizabeth is Missing.

In the novel, an elderly woman with dementia tries to solve both a current and a decades-old disappearance.

If you love reading, check out more about this great book HERE!

While this recipe calls for summer squash, if you are making this in the fall or winter and struggling to find the pictured variety of squash, try acorn, zucchini, or even spaghetti squash for a twist.

This dish was light, but also filling. And the unique flavors combine to create a warm and comforting dish that’s absolutely delectable.

Elizabeth is Missing Book Club Discussion Questions

*If you are new here, WELCOME! For Elizabeth is Missing, I provide your book club with a brief summary and discussion questions in that order!

If you haven’t checked out the previous post in the series where I share my thoughts on Elizabeth is Missing and a fun activity idea for your book club, check out that post HERE.

You can also check out the second post in the series where I share several great food ideas for your book club based on the book HERE.

In this post, I’ll review the premise of Elizabeth is Missing and share book club discussion questions that are sure to get your book club talking!

Looking for your next great read? Check out these similar books…

Here’s a brief summary of Elizabeth is Missing:

In present day England, Maud is slowly losing her memory and her independence, but she won’t let it stop her from finding out exactly where her best friend, Elizabeth, has gone. Certain that Elizabeth is in grave danger, she resolves to find her despite the fact that no one–not her daughter or son, not the police, nor Elizabeth’s son–will listen to her.

Armed with notes to jog her memory, Maud delves deeper into the mystery of Elizabeth’s whereabouts, but the clues seem to lead her further and further into the past, to the disappearance of her sister, Sukey, shortly after WWII.

As Maud’s memories from over fifty years before come back with renewed clarity, Sukey’s disappearance and Elizabeth’s intersect in unexpected ways.

Elizabeth is Missing Book Club Discussion Questions:

*WARNING: May contain spoilers!

As Maud slips further and further into her Alzheimer’s disease, what did you learn about the illness? Was reading her side of things illuminating to you? How?
What did you think about Helen? Did you sympathize with her or were you frustrated as Maud often felt? If you’ve ever been a caregiver how did you relate to Helen’s struggles?
At the end of the book, Maud comes to a conclusion about what happened to Sukey based on what they unearth. Do you agree with her conjecture or do you think something else happened?
Why do you think Frank pursued Maud after Sukey’s disappearance? Why do you think Maud played along for the most part? If Frank was a killer, why did he stay so close, showing up often near his victim’s house?
What did you think about Douglas? Did you think he was just an innocent lodger with a crush or something more?
Do you believe the Mad Woman was actually “mad”? Why or why not? Society’s opinions have changed for the better for people struggling with mental illnesses. Why do you think people, especially after the horrific losses of WWII, still struggled to understand how grief might play apart in a person’s mental state?
Discuss the “unreliable narrator” in Maud. Did you enjoy reading a mystery from this unique character? Why or why not? What are other similar mystery books with unique narrators that you’ve read and enjoyed?
Maud knows and is frustrated when those around her patronize her even if she doesn’t fully understand why. Did this convict you of your own interactions with elderly people in your life? How did it help you see those struggling with end-of-life difficulties with more compassion?
While we finally learn the truth about Elizabeth’s whereabouts, Maud’s confusion continues. Elizabeth’s disappearance is mostly a vehicle through which Maud begins to relive Sukey’s disappearance. Discuss Maud’s confusion and the author’s use of the past and the present to intersect the two stories. Did you want to know more about Elizabeth?
Elizabeth is Missing has been adapted to film. Have you watched it? What did you think about the film verses the book? Have you ready any other novels where a character is struggling with Alzheimer’s that you would like to share with the group?

Don’t forget to check out the other posts in this series for Elizabeth is Missing! You can find fun book club ideas HERE and delicious food ideas HERE.

Have you read Elizabeth is Missing? What did you think? Did it satisfy you or were you left wishing for more? What are some similar books you’ve read?

Until next time, Happy Reading!

Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. In the event of a sale, I will be awarded a small commission (at no extra cost to you or the featured book’s author). All opinions are 100% mine and every book, unless otherwise noted, is handpicked by me to be featured on the site.

Other Books that you might enjoy!

Elizabeth is Missing Book Club Food Ideas

*If you are new here, WELCOME! For Elizabeth is Missing, I provide your book club with a brief summary, food ideas, and a recipe idea in that order!

Elizabeth is Missing Book Club Questions and Recipe

If you haven’t checked out the previous post in the series where I share my thoughts on Elizabeth is Missing and a fun activity idea for your book club, check out that post HERE.

You can also check out the next post in the series where I share discussion questions for your book club based on the book HERE.

In this post, I’ll review the premise of Elizabeth is Missing and share some great food ideas for your book club based on the book.

Here’s a brief summary of Elizabeth is Missing:

As Maud’s memories from over fifty years before come back with renewed clarity, Sukey’s disappearance and Elizabeth’s intersect in unexpected ways.

Keep reading for great food ideas for your book club!

Looking for your next great read? Check out these similar books…

Elizabeth is Missing Food Ideas:

Elizabeth is Missing is a novel with so much food mentioned that it was a little hard to get everything down! I love books with lots of sensory details like smells and tastes of food. Don’t you?

Here are a few food ideas from the pages of Elizabeth is Missing:

Chapter 1 – Maud goes to the store and once again buys too many cans of peach slices
Chapter 2 – Maud and Helen eat at the Olive Grill where Maud reads the menu aloud – French onion soup, Tomato-and-mozarella salad, Garlic mushrooms, Parma ham and melon, and finally asks about Chorizo-stuffed summer squash
Chapter 3 – Maud’s father brings home hot fish and chips with vinegar for what will be the last family meal with Sukey
Chapter 6 – Maud wants some toast and a boiled egg and forgets she’s left the gas on at the stove
Chapter 9 – Maud falls ill after Sukey’s disappearance and eats thin soup with dry toast or creamed rice until she’s strong enough for a mutton chop
Chapter 9 – Maud stews apples and tries to steam open a letter from Sukey to Douglas
Chapter 17 – The mad woman’s salad that she had been gathering when she died – stripped hawthorn twigs, red nasturtium flowers, brooklime and dandelion leaves, honeysuckle, watercress and lemon balm and a squash flower
Chapter 18 – Maud, her mother, Douglas, and Frank all make blackberry jam together

In case you are new here, for almost every book I create a companion recipe in addition to listing all the food options from the pages of the novel.

For Elizabeth is Missing, I reviewed the many possibilities and finally settled on chorizo stuffed summer squash because summer squash played such a large role in the book.

Almost every character talks about summer squash in one way or another throughout the book and since chorizo-stuffed summer squash is specifically mentioned in the restaurant scene with Helen, I thought it would be a perfect choice.

Living in Texas, chorizo is easy to find at the local grocery. However if you can’t find it near you, you can substitute it for an Italian crumbled sausage.

If you’d like to make something with peaches or blackberries, check out this recipe for peaches and cream cookies and this one for cream cheese brownies with blackberry swirl!

For the complete Chorizo Stuffed Summer Squash recipe, click HERE!

More…

In addition to the full recipe, this series of posts for Elizabeth is Missing also includes ten book club questions curated just for book clubs. You can find Book Club Questions for Elizabeth is Missing by clicking HERE.

And you can find a fun activity for your book club HERE!

Have you read Elizabeth is Missing? What did you think? Did it satisfy you or were you left wishing for more? What are some similar books you’ve read?

Until next time, Happy Reading!

Other Books that you might enjoy!

Elizabeth is Missing Book Club Ideas

*If you are new here, WELCOME! For Elizabeth is Missing, I provide your book club with a brief summary, fun activity ideas, and more!

Has someone you loved battled dementia? If so, you are not alone.

Over 5 million Americans alone have Alzheimer’s. It’s a frightening disease. One many of us don’t like to think about.

And, if you’ve been a caregiver to someone with dementia, you know that the role of caregiver is extremely difficult and often frustrating.

Perhaps you read The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks and related to Noah and Allie’s later-in-life story, but have you read any other books where the characters deal with Alzheimer’s or dementia? Other popular dementia books include Still Alice and The Things We Keep. Both good choices, but let’s talk a little about the featured book, Elizabeth is Missing.

Elizabeth is Missing is a novel about a woman, Maud, who suffers from dementia and believes her best friend, Elizabeth, is missing. The novel is structured like a mystery/suspense and Maud’s current thoughts are often garbled with past memories of the brief period when her sister, Sukey, goes missing after WWII.

Told by Maud, an unreliable narrator due to dementia, it’s a fascinating and empathy-cultivating look into what someone with memory loss endures every single day.

And, if you’ve been in the role of caregiver, you’ll also understand and appreciate Maud’s daughter Helen as she tries to navigate the tricky road of keeping Maud safe while Maud investigates the mystery.

The structure, the narrator, and the subject of this novel offer book clubs plenty to discuss.

BBC recently turned this book into a film and it looks wonderful. If you love to watch book-to-film adaptions together as a book club, this would be a great pick!

Looking for your next great read? Check out these similar books…

Here’s a brief summary of Elizabeth is Missing:

As Maud’s memories from over fifty years before come back with renewed clarity, Sukey’s disappearance and Elizabeth’s intersect in unexpected ways.

Book Club Activity Ideas for Elizabeth is Missing:

Play your own version of Rememory, by making a quick set of cards. Or consider buying the professional set to use for many years.

Make three sets of cards (each set with one card per book club member). One set should have cards for a significant person in your life (you, parent, sibling, grandparent). One set should have cards for a significant event or season. And one set should have cards for a triggering memory (like “victory,” “loss,” “family heirloom,” etc.).

Set the cards in three piles and have each member draw one card from each pile and recount a memory based on whatever the three cards together bring to mind.

Discuss how someone else who might have been present during the event you remembered may have remembered it entirely different and how memory plays such a huge role in our lives.

More…

Personally, I loved this book and it kept me thinking long after I closed the last page, which is always a plus for me (and many readers)!

If you are looking for a book that will spur discussion, touch on a wide-spread issue, and keep you turning pages, Elizabeth is Missing is a fantastic choice.

On that note, I’ve provided book club questions and a delicious recipe for Elizabeth is Missing, so if you are looking for food ideas and more, keep reading!

Click HERE for the book club questions for Elizabeth is Missing!

Click HERE for the food ideas for your book club for Elizabeth is Missing!

Have you read Elizabeth is Missing? What did you think? Did it satisfy you or were you left wishing for more? What are some similar books you’ve read?

Until next time, Happy Reading!

Other Books that you might enjoy!

Ordinary Grace Book Club Questions and Food Ideas

*If you are new here, WELCOME! For Ordinary Grace, I provide your book club with a brief summary, food ideas, and discussion questions in that order!

Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger has been floating around as a potential read for me for some time. Like many of you, my TBR list is quiet long.

After reading This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger earlier this year, I moved Ordinary Grace up that list and I’m so glad I did.

Just like This Tender Land, Ordinary Grace has a young male narrator, but Ordinary Grace differs in that it isn’t an adventure story. It’s a story about a community that fractures when tragedy strikes, but ultimately finds redemption.

It’s a coming-of-age story for Frank Drum and his younger brother, Jake, as they witness the adults in their lives respond to tragedy and try to process their own feelings.

While This Tender Land reminded me of Peace Like a River (both great books you should read if you haven’t!). Ordinary Grace reminded me of To Kill A Mockingbird. In Ordinary Grace, the narrator is male and the father figure is a preacher instead of a lawyer, but the same grappling with injustice and tragedy is present.