'Grilled Cheese and Beer,' two American favorites

Here’s a fun cookbook for the Memorial Day Weekend, plus a nice gift idea for Father’s Day. Kevin VanBlarcum, a brewer at Keegan Ales in Kingston, N.Y., and James Edward “Eddie” Davis, a New York chef, have combined their talents for a cookbook honoring one of America’s finest pairings. “Grilled Cheese & Beer: Recipes for the Finer Things in Life” offers 50 grilled cheese sandwich recipes that range from the traditional — white bread, American cheese, tomato and bacon — to the unique — Pesto Chango with eggplant, pesto, mozzarella and red peppers on ciabatta. And each with a craft beer pairing. 

A sampling of the pun-y recipes and beer pairings include: Bacon Me Crazy paired with Stone Brewery’s Arrogant Bastard, The Nature Boy Ricotta Flair paired with Moosehead Lager, The Big Kahuna paired with Hell or High Watermelon, Dia de los Quesos paired with Modelo Especial, Johnny Apple Cheese paired with Angry Orchard, Muenster Mash paired with Stella Artois, Funky Bâtard paired with Unibroue La Fin du Monde, and Turkey in the Rye paired with Keegan Ales’ Mother’s Milk. There’s also a handy beer guide and reference section to cheeses. 

Book events for May 28-June 4

The Writers’ Guild of Acadiana will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Barnes & Noble Lafayette. This month’s speaker will be Curt Boudreaux, a retired school principal, Cajun humorist, speaker and author of “Never Kiss an Alligator on the Lips.”

Festival of Words presents “True Stories and Poetry” by Calletta Lewis and original works by The Baton Rouge Slam Team from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday at Chicory’s Coffee & Café, 219 E. Martin Luther King Drive in Grand Coteau. For more information, call Patrice Melnick at (337) 254-9695 or email festivalwords@gmail.com. 

Jessica B. Harris discusses and signs her memoir “My Soul Looks Back” at 6 p.m. Thursday at Garden District Book Shop of New Orleans.

The Walker Percy Weekend — with lectures, panel discussions, speakers and other writing-relating activities such as craft beer, cocktails and bourbon — will be Friday through Sunday, June 2-4, in St. Francisville. For information, visit www.walkerpercyweekend.org

It’s Family Movie Day beginning at 1 p.m. Friday at the West Ouachita Branch Library. Friday’s movie is “The Lego Movie,” appropriate for all ages. Visit www.oplib.org for more information.

Multi-published authors DiAnn Mills and Winnie Griggs present the “Second Annual Aspiring Writers Workshop” from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday at Bossier Parish Community College in Bossier City. Cost is $40 at the door. The event is hosted by the Louisiana chapter of the American Christian Fiction Writers.

Monica Mankin, Clare Martin and Sean Munro will read their poetry at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Milton H Latter Branch of the New Orleans Public Library.

Elizabeth Schexnyder, curator of the National Hansen’s Disease Programs Museum, will share the story of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, who cared for quarantined patients from 1896-2005 at what would later become the National Leprosarium at Carville, at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 4, at Lafayette’s South Regional Library.

Cheré Coen is the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country.” She writes Louisiana romances under the pen name of Cherie Claire. Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.