Date Night (Not Mine) in the UV: Barnes & Noble

An endlessly dreary Saturday. I had been ill over the past few days and cranky, and needed to get out of the house in search of something pleasant to counteract all of the grayness in my head. Fat chance, I thought, surveying the even grayer afternoon outside my window. But then this happened.

After driving in the rain to a favorite farm stand and finding it closed, for the season no less, my husband and I then found ourselves wandering separately through the aisles of the local Barnes and Noble on Route 12-A. A handsome fifty-ish couple approached me. “We’re on a date night,” the woman explained. “We’re doing this thing where we have to follow the instructions from this game.”

Holding up a cookbook by Lidia Bastianich, she continued, “We have been instructed to go to a bookstore together, select a cookbook, and then have someone else choose a recipe for us to cook together tonight.” “Pick me!” I shouted in my head, but apparently I was already their chosen someone.

After determining if they had food allergies or any preferences, I opened the book. Lidia is a treasure of Italian recipes and while they waited I became a little too engrossed with the culinary possibilities. The lamb stew was perfect for the drizzly day but would take too much time. Soups looked good but not for a date night dinner. We chatted a little more while I paged through; the game they referred to had been a gift from a daughter. I learned they were newlyweds. After a few more dithery half-starts, I announced my recommendation: Scallopini Saltimbocca, Roman-Style, With Spinach—fairly quick and tasty, and like most Italian food, a bit romantic.

My final task as the Selected Recipe Arbiter was to take a photo of the two of them holding the cookbook as proof of the transaction. (While I am not certain, from their description of the game and a little research, it appears to be this, or something similar.) Off they went to shop, and then to share the kitchen.

I collected my husband and made my way to the cashier. Unexpected encounters like this pepper my life from time to time—both in the Upper Valley and beyond—and I am always grateful for them. My day became brighter, not gray at all.

Here’s Lidia’s recipe. I plan to make it myself soon.

Photo via WikiCommons, for illustrative purposes only, Credit: Fanny Schertzer, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Saltimbocca_cooked_(3).jpg

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And in case you are wondering . . . Susan B. Apel shuttered a lifelong career as a law professor to continue an interest (since kindergarten) in writing. Her freelance business, The Next Word, includes literary and feature writing; her work has appeared in a variety of lit mags and other publications including Art New England, The Woven Tale Press, The Arts Fuse, and Persimmon Tree. She connects with her neighbors through Artful, her blog about arts and culture in the Upper Valley. She’s in love with the written word.