The Ingredients of Love (31 page)

1 banana, sliced (Aurélie uses 4 bananas)

1 cup chopped onions (Aurélie recommends that you use twice the quantity of onions, so that it's juicier)

3 cloves of garlic, chopped

3 teaspoons curry powder (Aurélie recommends Indian curry powder and also suggests you taste to see if 3 teaspoons are enough)

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

¼ cup grated coconut (and another dishful served at the table)

¼ cup flour

2 cups lamb stock (or water)

1 bouquet garni

½ tablespoon coarse sea salt

1 pound basmati rice, cooked

1 large tomato, sliced

¼ cup parsley (flat-leaf, preferably in a bunch)

mango chutney, allspice, fruit and vegetable relishes

Gently brown the lamb in sunflower oil for about 5 minutes and add the sliced apple and sliced banana. Then add the chopped onion and the garlic. Cook for a further 5 minutes, then stir in the curry powder, the paprika, and the grated coconut.

Stir well and then sprinkle with the flour. Cover with lamb stock or water. Add the bouquet garni and the salt, then cook on a low flame for an hour to 90 minutes until the meat is almost completely cooked. (It can also be broiled in a casserole in the oven for two to three hours at low temperature [350°F/180°C], in which case the flesh gets really tender and there is no need to puree.)

Remove the meat from the liquid and puree the sauce. (It is not necessary to puree the sauce if you like to be able to taste small pieces of the ingredients.)

Serve with the rice, sliced tomato, and parsley. Accompany with little dishes of mango chutney, allspice, and relishes.

 

Discussion Questions

1. Aurélie is convinced that Robert Miller's book,
The Smiles of Women
, saved her life. Is there a book you have read at a certain point in your life that you felt similarly about? What was it, and how did it help you in that moment?

2. For Aurélie, there is no such thing as coincidence. What happens in the book that could be considered a coincidence, and where are the protagonists helping things along? Generally, do you believe everything happens for a reason?

3. Are there points in the book at which André could or should have come clean about his deception to Aurélie and his colleagues? Would this have changed the overall outcome?

4. Talk about the author's use of color in the book (the coat, the dress, eyes, etc.).

5. What are your favorite dishes to cook (or eat) for a special, romantic occasion, and do you believe certain ingredients or recipes have power beyond nutrition? Will you be making any of the recipes in the book with that in mind?

6. Have you ever developed a crush on someone before or without actually meeting them? What was it about them that attracted you? Their looks? Their talents? Their achievements?

7. Discuss Aurélie's grip on reality (or lack thereof) and what it is about her that makes people respond to her the way they do.

8. If you were to cast the movie of
The Ingredients of Love
, who would be your choices for the protagonists and minor characters?

9. Would you agree to play a role the way Sam does for a few nights? How would you have prepared for the potentially awkward situation in his place?

10. How do you pick books in a bookstore? Do you rely on recommendations from the bookseller, the way Aurélie does, or are you drawn to a beautiful cover?

11. Paris plays a very large part in
The Ingredients of Love
. Discuss how the setting is used to enhance the story, and talk about other cities you might have visited that have a similar or equally memorable atmosphere.

12. What do you think the ingredients of love are? Are they pretty basic and always the same, or do they vary from couple to couple?

 

For more reading group suggestions,

visit
www.readinggroupgold.com
.

 

About the Author

Nicolas Barreau was born in Paris, the son of a French father and a German mother. He studied romance languages and literature at the Sorbonne and worked in a bookshop on the Rive Gauche in Paris. He is also the author of
One Evening in Paris, The Woman of My Dreams,
and
You'll Find Me at the End of the World.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously.

THE INGREDIENTS OF LOVE.
Copyright © 2010 by Nicolas Barreau. English translation copyright © 2012 by Bill McCann. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin's Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.

www.stmartins.com

Cover design by Christina Krutz

Cover photographs: woman © Ayal Ardon/Trevillion Images; Eiffel Tower © Christopher Steer/iStockphoto

ISBN 978-1-250-00670-7 (trade paperback)

ISBN 9781250020888 (e-book)

First U.S. Edition: January 2013