“It is,” the waitress told her. “I’ll put in your order right away and I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.”
Hannah noticed that the waitress’s shoulders were shaking slightly as she hurried away and headed toward the kitchen. Hannah had no doubt that there would be laughter in the kitchen when their waitress recounted Bethie’s conversation. “Good job, Bethie!” she said, slipping her arm around her youngest niece. “You ordered just beautifully.”
“Gamma ’Cann teached me. But I forgot.”
“You did just fine anyway,” Delores told her. “Our waitress knew exactly what you wanted to order.”
“Fank you, Gamma Dee,” Bethie said, and she looked very proud of herself.
“I printed out the menu for Grandma McCann,” Tracey told them. “And she taught Bethie what to say. I thought she did very well. And that was a good save when she forgot a word, wasn’t it?”
“It was very smart,” Michelle said, and then she turned to Bethie. “What are you having for dinner, honey?”
“Hadog!” Bethie said, giving Michelle an excited smile. “I love hadogs! Mommy puts hadogs in the machine for me.”
“The microwave,” Andrea explained. “Bethie’s crazy about hot dogs this week. Last week it was mac and cheese. And before that, it was bologna sandwiches.”
As Hannah watched the interplay between Bethie and Andrea, she found herself hoping that she’d have children with Ross. It would be difficult juggling motherhood with work, but plenty of other women had done it successfully. Andrea was a case in point. She was still working and she was a good mother. Of course she had Grandma McCann to help her. Would they be able to afford a wonderful nanny like Grandma McCann? That was something she’d have to discuss with Ross. And, actually, she didn’t even know if Ross wanted children since they’d never discussed the possibility. Was it possible they’d rushed into marriage a bit too soon, without really knowing each other’s wishes and needs?
Just then their appetizers materialized on a tray carried by their waitress. As they were distributed, one by one, Hannah found that she was very relieved to have something less serious to think about.
“This quiche is wonderful,” Andrea said after she’d taken the first bite.
“So is my salad,” Michelle commented. “I love a salad with radishes. They add so much color and unique flavor.”
Delores just smiled and dipped her jumbo shrimp into Sally’s special shrimp cocktail sauce. The smile on her face was a testament to Sally’s culinary ability.
“My hamboo is bery good,” Bethie said, joining in the conversation. “I wan to eat it all up.”
Hannah sampled her first Cheesy Pepperoni Bite and nodded. Sally’s new appetizer was absolutely delicious, a wonderful combination that caused the taste buds to sit up and beg for more. Perhaps she could make them at home for her next dinner party. She knew they’d be a huge hit, and Ross was crazy about olives. She’d learned that about him on their honeymoon. Perhaps it might even be possible to make them ahead and freeze them right in their packets. Then all she’d have to do was stick them in the oven and bake them.
“What are you thinking about, Hannah?” Michelle asked, noticing Hannah’s preoccupation.
“This appetizer. I think Ross would love them and they’d be great at a dinner party. I need to get the recipe from Sally. Remind me before we leave, will you, Michelle?”
“Of course.” Michelle looked over at Bethie and then she leaned closer to Hannah. “Bethie’s counting her shoestring potatoes and putting them in piles, but she’s eating one for every pile she makes on the side of her plate. Do you think she’s too young to point out that she’ll lose count if she keeps on eating them?”
“She’s definitely too young. Remember when Mother took us to Winnie Henderson’s farm to pick strawberries?”
“Vaguely. I was pretty little, wasn’t I?”
“You were about four years old, I think. And you did exactly the same thing when you put a berry in your pail. Every time you got to ten, you ate one.”
“Did you point that out to me?”
“Oh, yes. I tried to tell you that for every group of ten, you’d have to add one strawberry if you wanted to know the total strawberries you’d picked.”
“And did I do that?”
“No. You just told me to leave you alone because you were hungry, and you loved strawberries, and you were working so hard to pick them, you deserved to eat one whenever you wanted.”
“I wasn’t interested in learning the math?”
“Not at all. And Bethie’s more than two years younger than you were at the time.”
“Lesson learned,” Michelle said. “I won’t say a word. I’ll just watch Bethie enjoy eating her shoestring potatoes.”
CHEESY PEPPERONI BITES
Hannah’s 1st Note: I tried making my own puff pastry dough once and, quite frankly, it wasn’t worth the time and effort. You can buy perfectly wonderful frozen puff pastry dough at your favorite grocery store. I usually keep a package at home in my freezer. The brand I buy contains two large sheets of pastry, individually wrapped. It’s fun to thaw a sheet, wrap leftovers inside, and bake them. I also use puff pastry packets to make fruit turnovers or to make little fruit tarts by using pieces of puff pastry to line the cups in a cupcake pan.
The Crust:
17.5-ounce package frozen puff pastry dough (I used Pepperidge Farm – it contains 2 sheets) 1 egg 1 Tablespoon water in a cup Kosher salt or sea salt to sprinkle on top (I used Morton’s Kosher salt)
The Filling:
Baby Bell cheese balls in the cute little nets (I used Baby Bell Gouda, 6 cheese balls to a package - you can also use Baby Bell Brie, or Baby Bell Cheddar if you want a variety of cheeses) ? pound thinly-sliced pepperoni (the kind you’d put on homemade pizza—or if you’d prefer, you can use any other fairly dry sausage, and cut it to fit the cheese) 6 Kalamata pitted olives (I got mine at the Whole Foods Grocery olive bar, but they also come jarred or canned in the grocery store)
Thaw the frozen puff pastry dough according to the package directions.