Dallas-based author Merle Rosenbloom immigrated from South Africa to the United States in the 1980's, bringing her love for entertaining and food to our city. She opened a food-basket business and later a successful catering company.  Fast forward several years, on the suggestion from a friend, she started hosting cooking classes for her newlywed friends.  Starting from Scratch: Cooking and Entertaining Made Simple  began as a simple collection of her favorite recipes bound in a book for her daughter-in-law as a bridal shower gift.  After requests for copies poured in, Merle took her cookbook to the next level.  The recently released 160 page cookbook includes 77 recipes along with a) how to stock your kitchen with the necessary tools and equipment, b) the essentials you need in your pantry so that you can make recipes on-the-fly, c) sample table settings and d) menu suggestions.  Through the years, Merle has realized that many people are overwhelmed with the cooking process and they don't know where to start.  So she has focused on making it easy for you whether you're just beginning or are returning to the kitchen after a break.

Merle is the featured author next month at Dallas' Canterbury Book Review Club.   

Here's an example of an easy-to-make appetizer featured in the cookbook, which only calls for 3 ingredients: 

What others are saying about the new thriller The Second Law : 

Rating: 5 Stars Global Energy Thriller. In L.A. Starks' newest thriller, "The Second Law," oil refining executive Lynn Dayton is confronted with a high-pressure alarm at her San Francisco-area facility. Initially thought to be a "computer glitch," Dayton and her team soon conclude the problem was caused by malware implanted in the refinery's control system...clearly sabotage. Meanwhile, another terrorist act is in progress. A giant U.S. oil tanker with a bomb hidden onboard slowly makes its way to a Gulf of Mexico offshore oil terminal. Events move quickly from San Francisco to New Orleans, Vienna, China and back to the U.S. in a compelling plot that features murder, intrigue, espionage and terrorism committed by agents acting primarily on behalf of foreign countries and their respective economic or political interests. Those who enjoy contemporary fiction based on current geo-political events ripped from today's headlines will enjoy and appreciate the technical detail, taut writing and fast-moving plot of "The Second Law." Highly recommended.

      -–Coast Guy, Amazon Reviewer

The Second Law ranked #4 on the weekly Oklahoma Bestsellers in Fiction from NewsOK!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars. Hold on for the ride of your life as you learn about the energy industry and what vulnerability we have based on our competitor's needs and long-term plans. There is a mystery, intrigue, murder, cyber-warfare, international competitive interruptions, and many more twists and turns.

      -–Pam V., Goodreads

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars. My first book by this author. I enjoyed reading it. It had a good story to it. I liked the variety of characters in it. I hope to read more books by this author.

      -–Darren Martin, NetGalley Reviewer

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars. I loved that book because it was a suspenseful action packed thriller that should be read by our public officials.

      -–Michael Petkus, NetGalley Reviewer

'The Connection: Mind your Body' is a film about how frontier research is proving that there is a direct connection between your mind and your health.

In addition, the film weaves in true stories of people adding mind-body practices to their healing toolkit.

View film trailer

Filmmaker & Journalist Shannon Harvey will conduct Q&A after the film screening.

Wednesday, October 18th 

Doors Open: 6:30 pm