Cinnamon and Sugar

Mocha Truffles

One of the best things about attending mystery conferences, such as Left Coast Crime, is meeting new people and discovering new authors and their books! With the myriad of panels to choose from, it is a great way to hear authors talk about not only their books but their writing practices along with upcoming works. Which is how I found TRUFFLED TO DEATH by Kathy Aarons! I’ll have to admit anything with chocolate is going to draw me!

Synopsis

Michelle Serrano and her best friend, Erica Russell, own Chocolate and Chapters (I’d love to hang out there!). They are hosting a reception celebrating the donation of Maya artifacts being given to the museum by the River family. Dr. Addison Moody (aka Dr. Smug) is the curator facilitating the donation. The reception is a success despite the tension between Dr. Moody and Erica, and the uninvited mysterious stranger who wants to view the ancient treasures from his heritage.

After the reception the artifacts are stolen on their way to the museum and Dr. Moody points his finger at Erica. To make matters worse, Dr. Moody is later found murdered with one of the missing pieces, and his assistant tries to place the blame on Erica. Michelle knows she and Erica will have to find the truth or Erica may take the fall for the crimes. International art smuggling rings, an old explorer’s diary, and a pregnant street cat combine to keep Michelle and Erica only a half a step ahead of the law and the killer!

My Review

I loved the Maya artifacts premise of TRUFFLED TO DEATH and it made me want to hunt down an historical fiction account of this ancient civilization! While the author doesn’t delve into the history, she does provide interesting bits and pieces about the artifacts themselves, which added to the authenticity of the story. Even though this is the second book in Kathy Aarons’ Chocolate Covered Mystery series, it is easily read as a stand-alone…which is good since I somehow missed the first book in the series. I’ve remedied that and now have it in my TBR pile! The characters are well developed and I enjoyed the close friendship between Michelle and Erica. Complete opposites, they compliment each other while adding a bit of humor to the story.

Of course a book called TRUFFLED TO DEATH would be incomplete it it didn’t include recipes for truffles, and Kathy doesn’t disappoint! It was difficult to choose which one to try out for this post (which means I’ll be making the other recipes for my own consumption) but in the end chose her Mocha Truffles! Deep, dark chocolate infused with espresso powder, then topped with a chocolate covered espresso bean, combine to give you an incredible jolt of flavor (and caffeine hit). It’s the perfect gift to make for the chocolate and coffee lover in your life…or for yourself! While the recipe appears to be time consuming, a lot of it is hands off chilling or coming to room temperature. The actual hands on time is manageable and once you bite into these creamy dark morsels, you’ll want to make these frequently! Thank you, Kathy, for allowing me to share your Mocha Truffle recipe!

A huge thank you to Kathy Aarons for offering a choice of either a paper copy or e-book copy to one lucky winner! Please use the Rafflecopter box located below the recipe to enter. Contest is open to to all, but paper copy is limited to U.S. residents only. Contest ends Thursday, May 5, 2016 at 11:59 pm PST. Winners will be announced on this page and on Cinnamon & Sugar’s Facebook page, as well as notified by email (so check your spam folder!)

Mocha Truffles

Yields about 60 pieces, but recipe can be halved if desired.

Ingredients

2-1/4 pounds bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped and divided
4 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
1-1/4 cups heavy whipping cream
1-1/2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
2 tablespoons Kahlúa or other coffee-flavored liqueur
60 candy coffee beans or mocha beans for decoration

Instructions

Place 12 ounces of the bittersweet chocolate and the milk chocolate in a 2-quart mixing bowl.

In a 1-quart saucepan over medium heat, bring the cream to a boil.

Remove the pan from the heat, dissolve the espresso powder in 3 tablespoons of the cream, and then blend this mixture back into the rest of the cream.

Pour the espresso cream into the bowl with the chocolate and let the mixture stand for 1 minute.

Stir together with a rubber spatula until thoroughly blended.

Stir in the Kahlúa and blend well.

Cover the truffle cream, let cool to room temperature and chill in the refrigerator overnight.

Chill the covered truffle cream for another 2 hours in the freezer.

Remove the truffle cream from the freezer and bring to cool-room temperature so that the outer coating won’t crack when they are dipped.

Melt and temper** the remaining 1-1/2 pounds of bittersweet chocolate.

With a melon baller, scoop ganache into individual balls.

Place a truffle center into the tempered chocolate, coating it completely. With a dipper or fork, remove the center from the chocolate, carefully shake off the excess chocolate, and place the truffle on the wax paper.

After dipping 4 truffles, center a candy coffee bean on top of each truffle before the chocolate sets.

Tips

**To temper chocolate click on this link and read how to do it: Chocoley.com

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Chelsea Buns

When I saw that H.Y. Hanna was getting ready to release TWO DOWN, BUN TO GO, her third book in the Oxford Tearoom Mystery series, I was very excited and contacted her to find out when it would be available for pre-order. If you recall, I shared my review and the recipe for her Traditional English Scones from her book, A SCONE TO DIE FOR, this past February and wanted to make sure I didn’t miss out on her new release. Much to my delight, the author asked if I would be willing to try out her recipe for Chelsea Buns before the book went to print! I had never even heard of Chelsea Buns, but read up on them (thank you Google!) and hauled out the flour and sugar. According to H.Y. Hanna, Chelsea Buns were first created in the 18th century at Bun House in Chelsea, London, and the delicious buns were a favourite with the Hanoverian royal family. They have a distinctive square spiral shape and are made with a rich yeast dough, flavoured with mixed spices or cinnamon and lemon zest. Inside the swirls, the bun contains a mixture of brown sugar, butter and dried fruit such as currants, raisins, cranberries and sultanans. An iconic product in British baking, Chelsea buns are a bit similar to the more well-known cinnamon roll.

Synopsis

In TWO DOWN, BUN TO GO, Gemma Rose, owner of the Little Stables Tearoom near Oxford, receives a frantic phone call from her friend, Seth Browning, at 2:00 a.m. He begs her to sneak into Wadsworth College and retrieve a note he left for Professor Barrow, and oh, by the way, make sure the police don’t find out. Gemma does as asked, narrowly escaping being questioned by the police who are gathered in force. She is then shocked to learn that Professor Barrow had been brutally murdered just a couple hours earlier. Seth is arrested for the murder after violently arguing with the man over providing support for a homeless charity which Professor Barrow was completely against helping. Since Seth’s note could be construed as incriminating, Gemma destroys it, knowing Seth could not be the killer.

Gemma begs her almost-boyfriend, CID Devlin O’Connor, to do whatever it takes to prove Seth’s innocence. Devlin blows up, upset that she would suggest he bend the rules for her, and tells her to stay out of the investigation. But that’s not going to happen so she starts asking questions around the village, digging into the past, and finds that Professor Barrow was a very unpleasant man. There are numerous people who aren’t sorry to see him dead, including his own brother and sister. When another victim is found, Gemma must step up her investigation and keep the Old Biddies out of trouble. Can she find the culprit before they strike again? Can she repair her relationship with Devlin or will Dr. Lincoln Green steal her heart?

My Review

Just as my taste testers oohed and aahed over the Chelsea Buns, I was equally charmed by TWO DOWN, BUN TO GO! The story starts out at a fast pace from page one and doesn’t let up, keeping you wondering what is going to happen next and guessing who the culprit is. The core group of characters are well developed with cameo appearances by others providing humor. I love the addition of the four “Old Biddies” who lighten each scene they steal from Gemma. The various subplots lend themselves to getting to know Gemma better along with her relationships with the people surrounding her. And I can’t forget to mention Muesli, her adorable tabby cat who creates her own chaos for Gemma!

The author inserts fascinating insight into what Oxford University actually is (it’s not just one specific college, but a collection of nearly 40!) without detracting from the story and also provides a Glossary of terms used in Oxford at the back of the book. Her description of Gemma’s traditional English village makes you feel like you’re actually there, and oh my, the yummy treats coming out of Little Stables Tearoom makes my mouth water! Be sure to read through the Glossary of British Terms — it is quite entertaining reading all by itself! H.Y. Hanna also tackles the sticky issue of homelessness, weaving it effortlessly into the plot, with kindness and sensitivity, and hopefully giving the reader pause for consideration. I look forward to the next installment in the Oxford Tearoom Mystery series!

Thank you, H.Y. Hanna, for providing such charming entertainment through your book and for allowing me to share your Chelsea Buns! They are simply delectable!

A huge thank you to H.Y. Hanna for providing one lucky winner a choice of a signed copy or an e-book copy of TWO DOWN, BUN TO GO! Please use the Rafflecopter box located below the recipe to enter. Contest ends Wednesday, May 4, 2016 at 11:59 pm PST. Winners will be announced on this page and on Cinnamon & Sugar’s Facebook page, as well as notified by email (so check your spam folder!)

Chelsea Buns

Ingredients

Yeast Rolls

500 grams (4 cups & 2-1/2 level tablespoons) all-purpose white flour (plus extra for dusting / kneading)
250 ml (1 cup + 1 tablespoon) milk
5 grams (1-1/2 teaspoons) instant yeast
50 grams (3-1/2 tablespoons) unsalted butter
60 grams (1/4 cup) caster sugar (or finely pulverize granulated sugar in the food processor for 1 minute)
1 egg, lightly beaten
Zest of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon mixed spice or cinnamon (depending on personal preference)
1 teaspoon salt
Vegetable oil for greasing

Filling

30 grams (2 tablespoons) butter (very softened and slightly melted)
75 grams (1/4 cup) Demerara sugar (or substitute regular brown sugar)
Dried fruit (as much or as little as you fancy):

100 grams (1/2 cup) dried sultanas (golden raisins)
100 grams (1/2 cup) dried cranberries
100 grams (1/2 cup) seedless Raisins

Glaze
(These glazes are very different from America’s version of frosting for cinnamon rolls. The Chelsea Bun glazes are light and add just a touch of sweetness and flavor to the buns. If you wish, you may double the amount of the sugar and milk version to suit your tastes, or add additional confectioners’ sugar for a thicker citrus glaze.)

2 tablespoons caster sugar
1 tablespoon milk

2 tablespoons citrus juice
90 grams (2/3 cup + 1 tablespoon) sifted confectioners’ sugar

Instructions

Yeast Rolls

Sift the flour into a large mixing bowl and combine with the sugar, salt, yeast and mixed spice or cinnamon, plus the lemon zest – mix well so that the spices and zest are evenly distributed in the flour.

Melt the butter and add the milk, warming the mixture until it is lukewarm (about 40 degrees C / 105 degrees F)

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the warm milk & butter mixture, as well as the beaten egg.

Stir and mix to combine the contents of the bowl, until it forms a wet dough and comes away from the sides of the bowl (you may need to add a little more flour).

Tip the dough out onto a well-floured clean surface and knead lightly for 5 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. Add more flour if necessary so that the dough no longer feels sticky. (You may prefer to use the dough hook on your standing mixer for 5 minutes, which is easier than kneading by hand.)

Lightly grease the mixing bowl with some vegetable oil, then return the dough to the bowl and cover with a damp tea towel. Leave it in a warm, draught-free place and allow the dough to rise, until it has doubled in size (about 60 minutes). **If the milk is not warm enough, the dough may need longer to rise – leave it until it has doubled in size.

Tip the dough back out onto the work surface and knead briefly, then roll it out into a large rectangle that’s about 20-cm x 30-cm (8-inches x 12-inches). You will have to use your fingers to stretch the dough, to coax it into a rectangular shape. Make sure the longer side is facing you.

Filling

Brush the surface of the dough with the melted butter and then scatter the Demerara sugar and dried fruit evenly across the surface.

Using your thumb, press down the edge of the long surface nearest to you, so that it “sticks” to the table – then take hold of the other end and roll the dough up towards you, into a tight cylinder. It’s important that the dough is rolled as tight as possible.

Using a sharp knife, cut the roll up into slices, each one about 4cm (1-1/2 inches) thick.

Lay the slices (cut side up) on a lightly greased baking tray, making sure that they’re about 1cm apart. This is important so that they stick together as they bake and when pulled apart, produces that characteristic “square” shape of a Chelsea bun.

Cover with a tea towel and let them rest again for about 30mins.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark six.

Bake for about 20 – 25 minutes, until the buns have risen and are golden-brown. Check at around the 15 minute mark to make sure the fruit isn’t burning – if so, cover the buns with a piece of foil.

Glaze

While the buns are baking, make the glaze by whisking the citrus juice and confectioners’ sugar together, until smooth

Heat the milk and caster sugar in a saucepan until boiling, then reduce the heat and simmer for 2 – 3 minutes.

When the buns are removed from the oven, brush immediately with the glaze, then set aside to cool on a wire rack. Once cool, tear them gently apart.

Enjoy!

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Pasta with Bacon and White Wine Sauce

I have read several books in Kate Carlisle’s Bibliophile Mystery series and have loved each of them…while vowing I will finish the ones I missed! When I met up with Kate at Left Coast Crime (by this point you’re probably thinking I’m an author stalker!!!) we talked about her books and the lack of recipes included in most of them. Kate told me she had created some wine based recipes for her newest book, RIPPED FROM THE PAGES, and even though they weren’t included in the book, she was happy for me to share her Pasta with Bacon and White Wine Sauce recipe with you. You can also visit her website for more recipes that she developed with this book in mind. (You can find the Links to Authors on the right sidebar.)

RIPPED FROM THE PAGES takes book restoration expert, Brooklyn Wainwright, and her boyfriend, Derek Stone, back to Dharma, located in Sonoma wine country. They are remodeling their loft apartment in San Francisco and agree to housesit for one of Brooklyn’s parents’ neighbors for two months. Under the guidance of Guru Bob (although no one would dare call him that to his face) Dharma’s winery is finally building a wine cave tasting room and the entire town shows up to watch the giant roadheader punch through the solid rock.

The project has barely started when the machine bores through a wall instead of rock. No one knew the inner room existed and Brooklyn tags along with her brothers and Derek, to investigate. Peeking into the fractured wall, Brooklyn finds the room filled with antique treasures… and a dead body. Once the wall is opened, they examine the body and discover the man, Jean Pierre Renaud, was shot and had then been enclosed in the room for 70 years! Brooklyn looks through the man’s suitcase, searching for clues, and finds a French 1867 Jules Verne book, Journey to the Center of the Earth. Inside the book are inscriptions, written in blood, along with a map. The inscriptions were written by Jean Pierre Renaud and Guru Bob’s grandfather, Anton, when they were young boys.

Brooklyn’s pursuit into finding answers for the 70-year-old mystery takes her into the history of war-torn France and the families who suffered and escaped Nazi occupation. Guru Bob’s grandfather had been in charge of spiriting his village’s treasured heirlooms out of the country and safeguarding them until after the war. But instead of the treasures being returned, they disappeared. As word of the priceless find spreads around the country, Dharma is flooded by news reporters and tourists anxious to see the works of art…or even get their hands on them. When Guru Bob’s elderly Aunt Trudy is attacked in her home and her companion murdered, Brooklyn’s search for the culprit becomes personal.

There are so many things to love about RIPPED FROM THE PAGES! Kate does a fantastic job of setting the stage for making you feel like you’re a part of the story…and will make you want to go visit Sonoma wine country soon! You can feel the rumble of the huge machinery, choke on the dust trying to get into the room, and of course taste the delectable wines Dharma is famous for. She also effortlessly incorporates elements on how to restore a book, without detracting from the story. It was wonderful spending time in Brooklyn’s hometown with the memorable characters (I love Brooklyn’s mom, Becky!) who added to the authenticity of the story. Of course the plot will keep you on the edge of your seat and it was a complete surprise when the answers for both the 70-year-old mystery and the current day mystery were revealed.

And just as Kate is a talented author, she is also a talented recipe developer! Pasta with Bacon and White Wine Sauce, with it’s simple yet fresh ingredients, combines to make a memorable, easy to make dish. Thank you, Kate, for allowing me to share your tasty recipe!

I have an autographed hardover copy for one lucky winner! Please use the Rafflecopter box located below the recipe to enter. Contest is open to U.S. residents only and ends Monday, May 2, 2016 at 11:59 pm PST. Winners will be announced on this page and on Cinnamon & Sugar’s Facebook page, as well as notified by email (so check your spam folder!)

If you are not the winner, be aware that the Mass Market Paperback version of RIPPED FROM THE PAGES is releasing May 3rd, so be sure to pick up a copy!

Pasta with Bacon and White Wine Sauce

Ingredients

6 medium tomatoes
8 slices of bacon, chopped
6 baby portobello mushrooms, quartered
2 cups white wine
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
8 ounces dried spaghetti (gluten-free pasta is fine too)
Parmesan
Salt & Pepper

Instructions

Heat water to boiling, but don’t put the spaghetti in it yet. Instead, submerge the six tomatoes in the boiling water until their peels split, then put them in a bowl of ice water to cool them down.

After they’re cool, peel them, seed, and roughly chop.

Cook the spaghetti according to package directions.

Preheat a round pan with deep sides over medium heat. Cook bacon pieces in the pan until sizzling but still pink, stirring often.

Add the mushrooms and saute until the bacon is crispy. Set the bacon and mushrooms aside.

Drain all but 2 tablespoons of the oil.

Add the white wine to the hot pan. Simmer for five minutes, then stir in the cream, sugar, and red pepper flakes.

After three minutes, add the bacon, mushrooms, tomatoes, and spaghetti. Toss to coat thoroughly.

Season with Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper to taste.

Tips

It will be easier to chop the bacon into small pieces if you freeze the bacon slices while you gather the ingredients, then chop.

Reserve a couple tablespoons of the bacon and mushroom after crisping, and use for garnish.

I like a thick sauce that really clings to the pasta. There are two tricks to thickening this mouthwatering sauce if that’s your preference: You can cook the spaghetti to 1 minute under al dente. Drain and immediately add to the sauce as called for above, but simmer together 2 – 3 minutes, until pasta reaches your desired firmness. The starch from the pasta will thicken the sauce as it absorbs. Stir in 2 – 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Alternately, mix 1 teaspoon cornstarch with 1 teaspoon cold water or wine. Stir dissolved cornstarch into the sauce just before adding the tomatoes and bacon. Allow the mixture to simmer for 1 minute then add 2 – 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese and proceed with the recipe directions.

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Cherry Cola Cupcakes

Jenn McKinlay is another one of the authors that I finally got to meet at Left Coast Crime in Phoenix and if you’ve read any of her books, you’ll know that the stories are funny…wicked funny…and Jenn is just the same in person. I was ecstatic when I found out she was releasing a new book in her Cupcake Bakery Mystery series and VANILLA BEANED did not disappoint!

Melanie “Mel” Cooper owns Fairy Tale Cupcakes Bakery with her two best friends, Angie DeLaura and Tate Harper. Angie is part of the baking team while Tate is the financial backer. Mel is happy that Tate and Angie have finally acknowledged their romantic relationship, but part of her starts feeling like a third wheel, especially when they want to franchise their bakery and she doesn’t. However, to keep the peace, she agrees to go to Las Vegas with them and meet Holly Harzmark, the gorgeous showgirl who is willing to pump cash into opening a franchise.

Tate and Angie get distracted by the siren call of the casinos and can’t make the appointment with Holly, their attorney, and the realtor showing them a storefront. Fuming, Mel is determined to deep six the franchise but after the storefront explodes, ultimately killing the realtor, she starts to form some regard for Holly. But can Mel contain her jealous insecurities, not only around the beautiful showgirl, but in being willing to share her closely guarded recipes to make the venture a success?

The next day when the group goes to view another possible storefront, just as they start to leave a car races towards them, crashing through the window. The new realtor would have been killed had Tate not pulled him out of the way, and by the time they try to grab the disguised driver, he had too far of a lead and they lost him. Realizing both incidents are more than a coincidence, Mel starts to worry that the mob is retaliating. Angie’s brother, Joe, who is also Mel’s ex-fiancé, is a county prosecutor and is in the middle of a huge trial to put one of the mobsters away for a long, long time. Could one of the mobster’s cohorts be following them? Holly admits that she’s had an unknown stalker, plus a manager who does not want her to leave the stage. Could one of those persons be out to sabotage the cupcake bakery before it even opens?

With Marty and Oz, employees from Mel’s Scottsdale bakery, trying to blend in with the 3,000 Elvis impersonators swarming Las Vegas, chuckles are bound to happen. One mishap follows another and before you know it, wedding bells are chiming and Elvis is preparing to perform a marriage ceremony. No spoilers here, but the ending left me gasping, wondering how I am ever going to survive waiting for the next installment in the Cupcake Bakery Mystery series!

VANILLA BEANED is a lighthearted caper but with plenty of plot and character development. I enjoyed getting an insider’s glimpse into the underbelly of the showgirls working at the casinos along with Las Vegas wedding chapels. Jenn did, in fact, renew her wedding vows with her husband of 15 years, at a wedding chapel in Vegas with Elvis as the officiant. I’m sure she had fun doing her research for this book! Even though Mel and the gang are in Las Vegas for this book, there’s still plenty of cupcakes galore. Jenn has graciously allowed me to share her Cherry Cola Cupcake recipe with you….moist chocolate cherry cola cupcakes are adorned with the butteriest cherry cola frosting. One bite and you’ll think you’re visiting an old-fashioned soda fountain! I have also included a short video tutorial at the bottom of the page.

A special thank you to Berkley Publishing for providing a giveaway print copy for one lucky winner! Please use the Rafflecopter box located below the recipe to enter. Contest is open to U.S. residents only and ends Thursday, April 28, 2016 at 11:59 pm PST. Winners will be announced on this page and on Cinnamon & Sugar’s Facebook page, as well as notified by email (so check your spam folder!)

Cherry Cola Cupcakes

A Chocolate Cola Cupcake with Cherry Cola Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients

Cupcakes

Makes 12

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/3 cup Maraschino cherry juice
1 cup cola

Frosting

Makes 3 cups

1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter, softened
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon Maraschino cherry juice
4 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons cola
red food coloring (optional)
12 Maraschino cherries

Instructions

Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F).

Line muffin tin with 12 paper liners, and set aside.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa, and salt. Set aside.

In large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until well blended.

Add eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition, then stir in cherry juice.

Add flour mixture alternately with cola; beat well.

Fill cupcake liners evenly and bake 18 to 20 minutes.

Frosting

In large bowl, cream butter.

Add cherry juice.

Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides of bowl often.

Add cola and red food coloring (optional) and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy.

Frost cooled cupcakes and garnish with Maraschino cherry on top.

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Popcorn Fudge

Popcorn has long been one of my favorite crunchy snacks since I was a kid. In fact back when I was single, I had popcorn for dinner about once a week. If I was in the mood to be a bit healthier, I’d eat a piece of fruit for dessert. Nowadays popcorn is saved for snacks and since I’ve discovered SkinnyPop, it’s one that I enjoy several times a week (I really do hate popping my own and having to clean up greasy pans and lids).

So when I met Kristi Abbott at Left Coast Crime and discovered her book, KERNEL OF TRUTH, I was smitten. KERNEL OF TRUTH is the first book in Kristi’s brand new Popcorn Shop Mystery series and is set at the gourmet popcorn shop, POPS, owned by Rebecca Anderson in Grand Lake, Ohio. Rebecca has moved back to her hometown from California after ending her marriage to celebrity chef Antoine Belanger. It wasn’t very easy coming “home” to the small town seeing how she had been a screw-up in high school after her parents were killed in an accident, and now it is perceived she has screwed up her marriage since Antoine is practically worshiped by everyone. Rebecca wants to live close to her sister, Haley, her brother-in-law, Sheriff Dan Cooper, and their young son. Opening the popcorn shop is met with skepticism by quite a lot of the townspeople, but once they taste her goodies she develops regular customers. One of her best friends and source of encouragement and mentoring is elderly but feisty, Cordelia “Coco” Bittles. Coco owns Coco’s Cocoas, a chocolate shop, next door to Rebecca and the two women collaborate on recipes and even plan on going into business together.

However, Coco’s vibrant life is ended much too soon, when a suspected burglary goes wrong. Jessica, Coco’s niece, finds her aunt dead one morning when she goes to open the chocolate shop. The young woman’s screaming brings Rebecca running to the shop, where she rushes through the crime scene to see if she can help Coco. With her mentor dead, Rebecca, pushes forward to secure some of the recipes they had worked on together. However, Jessica is insistent that she is the only heir and everything belongs to her. There’s long been tension and ill-will between Rebecca and Jessica, but with the death of Coco, it increases.

The police arrest one of the town’s pan-handling, “almost” homeless man, Jasper, after finding the stolen cash and chocolates from Coco’s shop in his humble abode. The town breathes a sigh of relief until another elderly shop owner is attacked while Jasper is sitting in jail. Perplexed, Sheriff Dan has no idea who the culprit is until someone starts suggesting it could be his sister-in-law, Rebecca. Unfortunately, there is incriminating evidence pointing to her at both the crime scenes. When she’s arrested twice for entering Coco’s business and residence without Jessica’s permission, most of the town thinks she could be guilty. Rebecca is determined to find out who’s out to frame her and why they’re targeting the elderly shop owners. When her questioning gets too close to finding answers the killer sets their sight on her. Rebecca must find the truth before she becomes the next victim but in order to do so she must overcome the town’s prejudices against her, proving her innocence and proving she does belong.

KERNEL OF TRUTH starts out with a bang from the very first sentence and the action continues at a rapid pace throughout this well plotted story. There were plenty of suspects to keep me guessing while the characters were nicely developed. I loved how the author wove Rebecca’s old teenage insecurities in with her current life, trying to integrate with the small town’s population who had preconceived ideas of who she really is. What made this book really stand out though is Kristi’s cheeky wit that included several clever popcorn related similes, such as “a few old maids shy of a fully popped bowl”, that made me laugh out loud. Her humor added to the enjoyment of a well crafted cozy and I look forward to seeing what Kristi has in store for Rebecca and POP in the next installment!

A special thanks to Kristi for allowing me to share her Popcorn Fudge recipe from KERNEL OF TRUTH! Oh my… amazing crunchy caramel corn adorns a thick layer of creamy, rich fudge which boasts a hint of spiciness. The fudge is super easy to make and is practically fool-proof using four pantry staples. But it’s the caramel corn that elevates this candy to nirvana and next time I’ll be sure to make a double batch!

As a bonus for my readers I have an autographed copy of KERNEL OF TRUTH for one lucky winner! Please use the Rafflecopter box located below the recipe to enter. Contest is open to U.S. residents only and ends Monday, April 25, 2016 at 11:59 pm PST. Winners will be announced on this page and on Cinnamon & Sugar’s Facebook page, as well as notified by email (so check your spam folder!)

Popcorn Fudge

Ingredients

Caramel Corn

1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
4 teaspoons corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups popped corn

Fudge

1-1/4 cups sweetened condensed milk
2 cups chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne

Instructions

Caramel Corn

Preheat oven to 250 degrees (F).

Combine butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, while stirring.

Then hands off for four minutes! Serious, let it do its thing.

At the end of the four minutes, add in baking soda and vanilla, then pour the caramel sauce over the popcorn and combine well. You’ll have to use your hands, so grease ’em up and get in there.

Spread popcorn out on a baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes to an hour at 250 degrees. Check it every 15 minutes to avoid burning. The caramel corn should be light and crispy.

Once the popcorn is out of the oven, start making the fudge layer.

Fudge

Line a square pan with foil.

Combine the sweetened condensed milk and chocolate chips either in a double boiler or in the microwave. Either way, stir often.

When everything is melted and mixed together, add in salt and cayenne.

Pour into prepared pan and press caramel corn into the fudge.

Refrigerate for two hours.

Turn out onto a cutting board and cut into squares.

Tips

I used SkinnyPop packaged popcorn to speed up the recipe.

Do yourself a favor and double the recipe for the caramel corn. If you sample it before you make the fudge, there won’t be ANY left for the topping 🙂

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Cherries Jubilee

As soon as I picked up a copy of ON THIN ICING by Ellie Alexander and saw her recipe for Cherries Jubilee, I knew it was the dish I wanted to make for this blog post! I’ve made Cherries Jubilee numerous times in the past with an old recipe found in my mother’s vintage red and white checkered Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. That OLD recipe calls for using canned cherries and relies heavily on lots of cornstarch and sugar, resulting in a slightly metallic, overly sweet, gloppy ice cream topping. On the other hand, Ellie’s Cherries Jubilee uses fresh (or frozen) cherries with zesty orange citrus to brighten the flavor. With a generous pour of rum to flambé, this dessert will be the star while the ice cream plays a supporting role! Thank you, Ellie, for allowing me to share your gorgeous dessert!

I do have a funny story to share about making Cherries Jubilee (and one I always think of when I make them now!) with my then 4-year-old granddaughter, Emory. She loved to help cook with me, especially desserts, so I had her climb up on a chair and stir the canned cherries and juice into the sugar and cornstarch mixture. I had her get off the chair and stand about 5 feet away from the cooktop while I turned on the gas burner to start heating the mixture up. Something went wrong and it didn’t ignite until 10 seconds after turning it on and all of a sudden the gas went “poof” with flames climbing up the sides of the pan. Emory was far enough away that there wasn’t any danger. After I lowered the flame to low I told her she could start stirring again. She climbed back up on her chair shaking her head and muttering under her breath to no one in particular, “Scared the hell out of me!” Needless to say when it came time to flambé, she was clear on the opposite side of the room. And yes, I did explain that we don’t use language like that…after I finished laughing 🙂

ON THIN ICING is just as sweet of a read as Ellie’s delicious Cherries Jubilee! Jules works at her family’s bakery, Torte, in Ashland, Oregon, home to the world famous Shakespeare Festival. Lance, the Artistic Director for the festival, asks Jules to cater a weekend-long executive board retreat at Lake of the Woods Lodge. Jules jumps at the chance to showcase her cooking with the hopes of expanding Torte’s catering service.

Just as Jules and Sterling, one of Torte’s employees, arrive at the remote mountain resort it begins snowing, with a huge storm in the forecast. Their dinner prep is interrupted by the belligerent, lecherous bartender, Tony, who just so happens to like to get drunk on the job. Jules can’t understand why Mercury, the owner of the lodge, keeps Tony on the payroll, but she’s determined to do a professional job even if the bartender is “hitting” on her. Just when she thinks it can’t get any worse Carlos shows up. Carlos is her estranged husband and she left him sailing on the cruise ship they both worked for in the Mediterranean. Carlos, a sexy Spaniard, is a chef and makes himself at home in the kitchen helping out. He’s determined to work out the issues that split their marriage apart…like the fact that he never told Jules during their three year marriage that he had a son.

As the weather continues to deteriorate so does Tony who hasn’t stopped drinking. He gets into an altercation with one of the board members, and throws a wine bottle at him, ruining his expensive clothing. Then during dinner he starts a fight with Carlos, who was being protective of Jules, and it takes several of the guests and the handyman, to pull them apart. Jules would like Carlos to leave and wait for her back in Ashland so she can concentrate on her catering job, but the storm has blown in and they are stuck.

The next morning Jules is hunting for some of the supplies that Sterling packed away and she stumbles upon the body of Tony, who was stuffed into a freezer. With the storm raging, the phone lines are down, there’s no internet service, and the roads are blocked. Jules knows one of people staying at the lodge is the killer, and she needs to find out before they escape or strike again. But Tony managed to make so many people angry at him that narrowing the field of suspects is daunting. To make matters worse, she can’t count Carlos out as one of the suspects, but can her heart be objective?

ON THIN ICING was a fun read with plenty of suspects to keep me guessing until the very end. The poetic description of the cooking done by Jules and Carlos made me run to the kitchen and start baking something! I could almost taste and smell their creations. Ellie’s use of an isolated setting made the book a bit different from the others set in Ashland, but it was a nice change. She brings the scenery to life and draws you into the story. I liked that we finally got to meet Carlos and I look forward to seeing where the author takes their relationship in future books.

A special thanks to Ellie Alexander for providing an autographed copy of ON THIN ICING to one lucky winner! Please use the Rafflecopter box located below the recipe to enter. Contest is open to U.S. residents only and ends Thursday, April 21, 2016 at 11:59 pm PST. Winners will be announced on this page and on Cinnamon & Sugar’s Facebook page, as well as notified by email (so check your spam folder!)

Cherries Jubilee

Jules likes to flambé the cherries tableside for a show-stopping presentation.

Ingredients

1 pound of fresh Oregon Bing cherries (pitted and halved) or frozen if not in season
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon freshly grated orange rind
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/2 cup rum*
1 pint vanilla ice cream

Instructions

Rinse and drain whole cherries. Cut them in half and discard pits.

Add pitted cherries, orange juice, orange rind, and sugar in a sauté pan.

Sauté on low heat for five minutes or until the sugar dissolves.

Bring heat to medium and cook cherries in their juices for an additional five minutes.

To flambé using a gas stove, remove cherries from the heat and add rum.

Light the rum with a long match, being sure to swirl the pan until the flames subside.

To flambé using an electric stove, add rum to a saucepan and warm it on low for 3 minutes. Remove pan from heat, light rum with a long match, and carefully pour ignited rum over the cherries, swirling the pan until the flames subside.

Serve warm cherries over ice cream.

Tips

Be safe: have a fire extinguisher close by, just in case!

*I used silver rum but gold rum will work just fine too. Both produce small, blue flames. For a show-stopping flambé, use Bacardi 151 which has a very high alcohol content and will flame brilliantly. I only had regular rum on hand… maybe next time I’ll track down some Bacardi 151!

If using frozen cherries, don’t defrost before slicing in half since they will be easier to slice while firm. Just add a couple minutes to cooking time.

Frozen cherries may create more juice than fresh cherries. If the liquid won’t reduce and is too runny, mix 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch with 1 teaspoon cold orange juice or water. Slowly stir the mixture into the cherries BEFORE you add the rum. Simmer for 1 minute and then proceed with the rum and flambé.

If you have any leftover Cherries Jubilee, swirl it through vanilla ice cream and store in an airtight container in the freezer. The rum will keep the dessert from freezing rock hard so you can enjoy this frozen concoction when you’re ready to indulge again!

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