The Long Quiche Goodbye Debuts July 6

Hi!

My "You be the sleuth" contest ends tonight at midnight EDT. The winner will be announced tomorrow in my newsletter. You can find the news on my website.

Congratulations to all! I'll be contacting you.

While you're there looking to see if you won, check out the Virtual Tour for my Launch Party. There will be an "Order the book" contest. {If you've already ordered it, don't despair. You can enter, too.} And I'm starting a blog tour as well as a book tour and some radio chats. Those events are all posted on the site as well. It'll be a whirlwind of activity, but I hope you'll each be able to join me for one of the events, whether online, via the radio, or in person.

If you hadn't guessed after all this furor, The Long Quiche Goodbye debuts tomorrow. The reviews have been great so far--lucky me! The book will be available not only online but in bookstores. I'm so excited!!! The others on our blog have all been published, but this is my first!

Can you remember your very first date? The sweaty palms, the double-check in the mirror to make sure you didn't have spinach in your teeth (even if you didn't eat spinach), breathing into your hand to make sure your breath was okay??? Was the outfit right? Too wrinkled? Just wrinkled enough? Well, I'm feeling all of those things and more. Yes, even about a book. I've written for a long time. This was not a lucky first book story. I'm hoping it will be a hit. So buy it and enjoy the read.

By the way, Delicious and Suspicious by Riley Adams also debuts tomorrow. We're a pair, aren't we? With food perfect for the summer!

Speaking of food...

In The Long Quiche Goodbye, as you have probably figured out by now, there is mention of cheese! And there are recipes at the end of the book. Well, one of the recipes I didn't include is the barbecue sauce that Charlotte's adorable grandfather {Pepere} makes. He loves to cook. For a potluck dinner in the book, he makes his special ribs. I'd like to share his seasoning recipe with you now.

Pepere's Barbecue Seasoning

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon parsley

1 teaspoon rosemary

1 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon orange rind

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons lemonade (do not add until ready to use)

Directions:

Mix all the seasonings until blended. {This may be stored for quite a while.}

**Do NOT add the lemonade until ready to use that day.

For Ribs:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Set your choice of meat (I use 1.5 to 2 pounds of baby back ribs, but chicken or pork chops will do) on large sheet of foil. Set on top of a long flat baking pan.

Mix the dry seasoning with the lemonade. Rub the wet seasoning on the top of the meat and wrap the foil tightly around it.

Set the baking pan in the oven for 2 hours and bake slowly.

Remove from the oven.

Then...the ribs can be grilled on the barbecue to add extra flavor, broiled to crisp up, or served hot from the foil.

The meat will pull apart with your fingers.

Enjoy! And say cheese!

"You Be The Sleuth" Contest!

This is the last day to enter!!! Track down the recipe on my website that includes eggs, Edam, and white pepper. Enter your answer by clicking on this link: CONTEST ENTRY FORM.

One of you will win a $25 gift certificate at your favorite bookstore. Two of you will win signed copies of The Long Quiche Goodbye. Three of you will win a Long Quiche Goodbye magnet. You can ask friends for help. Spread the word and share the fun. And while you're there, consider pre-ordering a book on my booksellers page.

Here is the link to my website to help get you started. Good luck!

Guest Author Mary Jane Maffini

Happy fourth of July!!!!

Please welcome our guest author Mary Jane Maffini who has a new book out: Closet Confidential!!!

Mary Jane Maffini is a lapsed librarian, a former mystery bookstore owner, a previous president of Crime Writers of Canada and a lifelong lover of mysteries.

In addition to the four Charlotte Adams books, she is the author of the Camilla MacPhee series, the Fiona Silk adventures and nearly two dozen short stories. She has won two Arthur Ellis awards for best mystery short story as well as the Crime Writers of Canada Derrick Murdoch award. She is having fun with the fifth Charlotte Adams adventure: The Busy Woman’s Guide to Murder (Berkley Prime Crime 2011) and says she’s grateful for all the tips she gets from Charlotte. Mary Jane lives and plots in Ottawa, Ontario, along with her long-suffering husband and two princessy dachshunds. Visit her at www.maryjanemaffini.com

Take it away, Mary Jane!

A cool and easy way to celebrate!

There’s so much to celebrate today and this week. And I’m not sure how you feel but on these hot humid days, I don’t want to be stuck in front of that oven baking those celebration desserts. But what to do when there’s a need to celebrate? Or it’s your turn to bring dessert to a family gathering? Or friends arrive in town with little notice? Help! It’s too hot to cook and it’s too humid to shop. That’s when you need Ice Cream Torte — my favorite cheater’s summer cake —in your freezer. This dessert started off life being known as Luscious Mocha Ice Cream Torte, but now, it’s always a big surprise. It depends on what ice cream I have in my freezer and what liqueurs are hanging around the house. This cake is always requested at every family birthday party or shower in the summer. For my mother-in-law’s eightieth birthday, four tortes with twenty candles each were paraded out to the outdoor dinner area as night fell. Spectacular, but easy. Of course, you’ll have to have cones or sundaes for the small fry, but that can be delegated.

Keep in mind when you read the lengthy list of instructions, this is very easy to make and the amount of hands-on time is probably about as long it takes to read the recipe.

Components:

Cookie crumb base

Your favorite combo of ice

cream (at least two flavors – preferably with a color contrast)

Whipped cream ‘icing’

Dollop of booze

Crust:

If you don’t mind the oven on for ten minutes:

Mix 1 ½ cups chocolate cookie crumbs

6 tbsp butter, melted in microwave

3 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp liqueur – chocolate, coffee flavor or whatever you love – or have on hand!

Can’t stand the heat? Just make your favorite unbaked cookie crumb crust.

Filling:

1 ½ quarts ( in total) of your two favorite compatible ice cream flavors.

Naturally, you could get away with more or less. For Canada Day, I used Dutch chocolate and French vanilla with chocolate brickles. It’s wonderful with coffee ice cream and cappucino duet too. But you’re the cheater. You choose!

4 tablespoons liqueur – chocolate, coffee-flavored. You can use rum, whiskey or bourbon if you want. It’s best if you use a different flavor from the crust, but again, go with what you have.

Topping:

½ cup chilled whipping cream

1 tsp espresso powder or 2 tsps. Cocoa powder. Or both. Why not? If these don’t go with your ice cream flavors, find something that does.

1 tbsp powdered sugar

Crust: Preheat oven to 350 if you dare. Mix cookie crumbs., sugar, melted butter and liqueur. Press into bottom of spring loaded pan. Bake for 8 – 10 minutes. Chill.

Filling: soften darker of the two ice creams while crust is cooking. Add 2 tablespoons of liqueur. Spread over chilled crust and freeze for at least one hour. Go read a mystery.

Soften second ice cream container and blend in remaining 2 tablespoons of liqueur. Spread over first. Chill one hour. Back to your book.

Whip cream with cocoa or espresso powder (or whatever flavor you’ve chosen) Toss in a bit more liqueur if you’re not driving.

Smooth over top of ice cream like icing. You can omit this step and put whipped cream and fruit on top if you prefer. Sprinkle with chocolate shavings or your favorite cake toppers. I used dark chocolate covered espresso beans in the latest version.

Wrap well and freeze at least two hours or overnight. You can relax now! This cake keeps well in the freezer, but someone will almost certainly hunt it down and eat it before long.

When ready to serve, remove from the springform pan and transfer to a cake plate. It can be tricky to get the crust off the bottom and you may need a sharp knife for that. At night, we often serve this with sparklers, but again there are no rules, except to keep it frozen. The only thing you really need is two kinds of ice cream.

People say to me in amazement: ‘You made this? Wow!’ I look suitably modest. And isn’t that the kind of sweet deception we want when we’ve been working so hard in the kitchen on a hot summer day?

I’m happy to say, I have an Ice Cream Torte ready to mark the arrival of Closet Confidential, the fourth Charlotte Adams mystery, which hits the shelves on July 6^th along with Avery’s Long Quiche Goodbye and Riley’s Delicious and Suspicious. Who wouldn’t celebrate being in such good company?

Enjoy!!!

By the way, Avery's "You be the Sleuth" contest ends in 24 hours, at the end of July 5th. The winner will be announced July 6th, so get hopping. Enter before it's too late.

Avery’s first book in A Cheese Shop Mystery series, The Long Quiche Goodbye, debuts July 6. To celebrate its release, Avery is running a contest from June 9 to July 6! [Not really true since the 6th is the announcement day. It ends July 5. Silly, Avery.] Anyway, you be the sleuth! Track down the recipe on Avery's website that includes eggs, Edam, and white pepper. Enter your answer by clicking on this link: CONTEST ENTRY FORM.

One of you will win a $25 gift certificate at your favorite bookstore. Two of you will win signed copies of The Long Quiche Goodbye. Three of you will win a Long Quiche Goodbye magnet. You can ask friends for help. Spread the word and share the fun. And while you're there, consider pre-ordering a book on Avery's booksellers page.

Here is the link to Avery’s website to help get you started.

***

Thank you, Mary Jane, for being our guest. What a great recipe! Can't wait to try it!

~Avery

(P.S. Yes, I am silly. The dates of the contest have me befuddled. I can't imagine how the rest of the readers feel! Forgive my befuddled-ness.)

No Work Elegant Dessert

Once upon a time, I used to rent a beach house every summer with a big group of friends. What fun! Most of the time we ate out, but our beach of choice was Sandbridge, on the Virginia coast. Sandbridge has no condos, hotels, or high-rises. There's one restaurant/bar and one tiny store for essentials. Virginia Beach is about a twenty minute drive for those craving a boardwalk, bands, pier, restaurants, stores, and nightlife.





Sometimes, though, you just want to kick back and watch the sun set while you sip a frosty drink. July 4th is that kind of day. It's more fun to stay at the rental house and grill, especially if you're located so that you can see the fireworks! So that made me think about vacation house kitchens and the fact that they're often not very well equipped. Of course, it's vacation, so a store bought blueberry pie and ice cream might just do the trick. But when I saw these cute little pre-baked fillo dough cups in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, I thought they'd make a very elegant and almost effortless dessert.



I made a blueberry filling and a lemon filling. Quite honestly, though, you could fill the fillo shells with canned pie filling or your favorite lemon curd, which would really reduce the amount of cooking involved. How easy is that? No baking, oven, or pans required!

There are 15 little fillo cups in a package, so I made very small amounts of filling. There was just enough left over of each to lick the pan. If you only make one flavor, double the recipe.

Blueberry Filling

1 cup fresh blueberries, washed but not dried
1 tablespoon minute tapioca
1/4 cup sugar
splash of lemon juice
dash of cinnamon

Place all the ingredients in a small pot and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. At first it won't look like much is happening, but after a couple of minutes, the blueberries will turn very dark, the sugar will melt and it will all cook together. Stir constantly for about five minutes while it cooks (gentle boil). Set aside and let cool. Spoon into the fillo cups.

Lemon Filling

3 1/2 tablespoons sugar
3 1/2 tablespoons water
dash of salt

2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons cold water

1 egg yolk
2 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

Combine the sugar, water, and salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil.

Stir the cornstarch into the cold water to dissolve. Add to the sugar mixture and bring to a gentle boil, stirring constantly. It should become thick and almost clear. Remove from heat.

Whisk the egg yolk with the lemon juice. Add to the mixture in the pot and bring to a boil again, stirring constantly. Continue stirring and letting it boil gently for one minute. Remove from heat. Spoon into the fillo cups while still warm.

Creme Fraiche Topping

1/4 cup heavy (whipping) cream
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
splash of vanilla

1/4 cup creme fraiche

Whip the cream, adding the sugar and vanilla. When it holds a soft peak, mix in the creme fraiche. Add a dollop on top of the filling of each filo cup. If you're at home, you can take the time to pipe it on, but be sure to let a little bit of the bright lemon and blueberry colors show on the sides. In the photo below, I used dollops on two and piped the others.

From everyone at Mystery Lovers' Kitchen --

have a safe and happy 4th of July!

The day are ticking down to enter Avery's
"You Be The Sleuth" Contest!

The first book in Avery Aames's A Cheese Shop Mystery series, The Long Quiche Goodbye, debuts July 6! To celebrate its release, Avery is running a contest from June 9 to July 6: You be the sleuth!

Track down the recipe on Avery's website that includes eggs, Edam, and white pepper. Enter your answer by clicking on this link: CONTEST ENTRY FORM.

One of you will win a $25 gift certificate at your favorite bookstore. Two of you will win signed copies of The Long Quiche Goodbye. Three of you will win a Long Quiche Goodbye magnet. You can ask friends for help. Spread the word and share the fun. And while you're there, consider pre-ordering a book on Avery's booksellers page. Here is the link to Avery’s website to help get you started. Good luck!

Southern Summer in a Glass—Bourbon Slush

It seems like every Thursday, I’m commenting on how hot it is. But the forecasters keep promising us a break…and then, somehow, the front stalls out.

Sometimes you want a cold drink when you’re in the middle of a heat wave. And you’ve had lemonade, and you’ve drunk sweet tea, and you’ve guzzled gallons of water.

What you want is a refreshing spiked drink. :) Just to survive the heat wave, you understand, and keep your spirits up (no pun intended.) If you’re in the South, you might want a bourbon. And a bourbon slush would be the perfect way to go. Fruity, practically frozen, and with just enough oomph to get you through your heat wave fatigue.

Bourbon Slush

2 regular teabags
1 cup hot water
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup bourbon
1-6 oz can frozen orange juice
1-12 oz can frozen lemonade
3 1/2 cups water

After steeping tea bag for 5 minutes in hot water, dissolve sugar into tea while still hot, then add bourbon, and water to the mixture. Freeze. Stir before serving.

Hope it’s nice and cool where you are…and if it’s not, that you’re finding ways to handle the heat! :)

Riley/Elizabeth
Delicious and Suspicious (July 6 2010) Riley Adams
Pretty is as Pretty Dies –Elizabeth Spann Craig
http://mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com/

And now I want to encourage you to enter the June contest here at Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen! My friend, the talented Avery Aames, has an exciting contest for us. We’re celebrating the upcoming release of The Long Quiche Goodbye and here’s how you can enter:

Avery's "You Be The Sleuth" Contest!

Avery’s first book in A Cheese Shop Mystery series, The Long Quiche Goodbye, debuts July 6. To celebrate its release, Avery is running a contest from June 9 to July 6! You be the sleuth! Track down the recipe on Avery's website that includes eggs, Edam, and white pepper. Enter your answer by clicking on this link: CONTEST ENTRY FORM.

One of you will win a $25 gift certificate at your favorite bookstore. Two of you will win signed copies of The Long Quiche Goodbye. Three of you will win a Long Quiche Goodbye magnet. You can ask friends for help. Spread the word and share the fun. And while you're there, consider pre-ordering a book on Avery's booksellers page.

Here is the link to Avery’s website to help get you started.

Good luck!

Shall we meringue?

Okay, so the dance is merengue and
the yummy food in meringue. Still, I
think we should merengue
while we meringue. Yes?
Cool, try not to sprain anything!

For months, I have had meringues on the brain.
I blame Cleo and Krista. Since they
posted their recipes -- click their names
to be wowed -- I have been thinking
non stop about meringues as my work
in progress will attest.
(I'll meringue a cupcake yet!!!)

So I was chit chatting about my
meringue obsession with my boss Marijo,
and she told me about a pie her mother
makes that I simply had to try. Thankfully,
she was kind enough to share the recipe
(thanks, Marijo and Mom)!

Meringue Pie

4 egg whites
1 tsp vinegar
1 cup sugar

Make the meringue crust the day before
you need the pie. Beat egg whites and vinegar,
gradually adding the sugar. When peaks stiffly
form, put into a pie pan that is well greased
and floured. Fill it, making sure it is level.
Bake 45 min at 300 degrees. Take it out and
put it away for one day (I put mine in the
microwave since we weren't using it).

Filling:

1/2 pint heavy whipping cream
3 tbspns sugar
1 tspn vanilla

Whip the cream adding sugar and
vanilla. Fill in the meringue crust,
which should have fallen and
conformed to the pie dish.
Garnish with toasted almonds
(I used cinnamon dusted pecan chips
because that's what I had).





OMG! This was awesome!
A perfectly light and fluffy summer
dessert.


Now, I have some news.
First, the happy news:
SPRINKLE WITH MURDER
has been picked up by a publisher
in Japan. This is very exciting for me.
I can not wait to see what the
translation will look like!
And now the sad (for me) news. I will be taking the
month of July off from Mystery Lover's Kitchen,
so that I can focus on meeting several impending
deadlines. I will miss you all very much, but here's the
great news for you: Wendy Lyn Watson has graciously
agreed to fill in for me while I'm away! I am delighted.
Wendy is a fabulous writer and says she has loads of
recipes to share. Yay! Thanks, Wendy, for stepping
in as the Wednesday gal. I know you'll have a lovely
time in the kitchen!

Happy eating and reading, everyone. I'll see you in a month!!!
Jenn

And finally, do not forget that the much anticipated releases of
LONG QUICHE GOODBYE and DELICIOUS AND SUSPICIOUS
are coming out NEXT WEEK!!! Yippee! And if you haven't picked
up GRACE UNDER PRESSURE, do so now. It's fabulous!

Oh, and the clock is ticking if you want to enter Avery's contest:

Avery Aames is celebrating the upcoming release of The Long Quiche Goodbye.

Avery's "You Be The Sleuth" Contest!

Avery’s first book in A Cheese Shop Mystery series, The Long Quiche Goodbye, debuts July 6. To celebrate its release, Avery is running a contest from June 9 to July 6! You be the sleuth! Track down the recipe on Avery's website that includes eggs, Edam, and white pepper. Enter your answer by clicking on this link: CONTEST ENTRY FORM.

One of you will win a $25 gift certificate at your favorite bookstore. Two of you will win signed copies of The Long Quiche Goodbye. Three of you will win a Long Quiche Goodbye magnet. You can ask friends for help. Spread the word and share the fun. And while you're there, consider pre-ordering a book on Avery's booksellers page.

Here is the link to Avery’s website to help get you started.

There, now I'm done...really!

Mac and Cheese, plus...

Our eldest daughter is home for a while and decided to treat us to one of her favorite comfort foods yesterday. She got this recipe from some very good friends and has tweaked it a bit to make it her own. While I took care of the main entree and one other side, she made this, and told me she was happy to have me share her recipe with all of you.

The original recipe called for standard macaroni noodles and no vegetables, but that's where your creativity comes in. My daughter made this the way she likes it best. She said that last time she made it she tried adding cooked broccoli, but she thought it changed the flavor and the texture was off. After tasting this yesterday (yum!) I'm thinking of other items to add too. This is definitely one of those you can make your own.

Now, I realize it's summer and we don't usually want to turn our ovens on, but around here we've been battling storm after storm, and we needed some comfort food. So we just cranked the air a little bit higher for a short while yesterday. And everything worked out just fine.

By the way, this makes enough for a party!

Mac and Cheese, plus...

6 cups of rotini pasta (there are two boxes pictured here. We only used one.

1/2 red onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

7.5 cups milk

9 cups of shredded cheese (we used cheddar, mozzarella, and cheddar-jack)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook the rotini pasta according to package directions. Set aside.

Warm the milk in a deep saucepan. Stir in veggies and cook about 5 minutes. Slowly stir in all the cheese, and keep stirring until you have an even consistency.

Transfer half the cheese mixture to baking pans (we used two glass baking dishes), then add all the cooked noodles. Add the remaining cheese mixture. Stir so all noodles are evenly covered.

Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. At the end of the baking time, turn the oven heat up all the way to 500-550 and bake for an additional 5 minutes to give it a golden crust.

Cool for about 5 minutes before serving.

I'm sure this recipe can be halved, but for right now, we're all delighted to have the leftovers. My daughter says it's even better the second day.

Enjoy!

Julie

By the way, Pub Alley listed Grace Under Pressure as one of its mystery bestsellers last week!

Say Cheese for Pizza

I love pizza. Having a slice takes me back to my youth, when my mom would take us out to dinner and a movie. There was a great pizza place right next to the theater. I love melted cheese, dripping off the sides of the pizza. I love scooping the remnants of cheese and goodies off the pizza platter. I also love a flavorful pizza with zing but no sauce.

However, nowadays, I can't just waltz into a pizza parlor because I'm gluten-intolerant. Yes, there are a couple of places that offer gluten-free pizza, but really, I can't be sure. I haven't had much luck coming out of a pizza place after eating what the owners claimed to be gluten-free. Why? Flour flies everywhere.

So I make a pizza every now and then at home. I need my fix. While there are gluten-free pizza crusts that you can buy in the freezer--and the one sold in the Whole Foods freezer is really good--I love the flavor of fresh-baked bread. So this week, I bought a box of gluten-free pizza dough mix, made a fresh pizza pie, and topped it with some of my favorite things. Yum.

I made this particular pizza without the sauce and used Asiago cheese.

Asiago is similar to Parmesan and can be swapped out in most recipes. Alpine milk is what makes Asiago special. Alpine meadows have a huge variety of grass species and flowers which help create a better tasting milk.

Do you hear strains of the Sound of Music?

Can you smell the cheese? Nutty, yummy, with a crystalline crumble. Fabulous.

ASIAGO PIZZA

Ingredients:

1 10-12 inch round pizza crust

½ cup tomatoes, diced

½ cup mushrooms

½ cup green onions, diced

½ cup sun-dried tomatoes

8 slices lean salami

8 kalamta olives, halved

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon fresh rosemarry, snipped

1 tablespoon dried basil

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

½ cup Asiago, shredded

Directions:

Bake pizza crust at 450 degrees for 10 minutes.

While pizza is baking, grill mushrooms in 1 tablespoon of olive oil

Remove pizza from oven and drizzle with olive oil, balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with salt.

Arrange tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, salami, olives on the pizza.

Sprinkle with rosemary and basil

Sprinkle with Asiago cheese. (Yes, you may add more)

Bake in oven for 10 minutes until cheese melts and turns golden.

Serve immediately.

Enjoy.

By the way, The Long Quiche Goodbye is due out any day now, so I've started guest blogging. I've already blogged at Jungle Red. If you want to check out the various blogs, click this link to my event calendar. Leave a comment.

And don't forget...the contest leading up to the launch of the book is going to end next week. So enter and remember, Say Cheese!

My "You Be The Sleuth" Contest!

My first book in A Cheese Shop Mystery series, The Long Quiche Goodbye, debuts July 6. To celebrate its release, I am running a contest from June 9 to July 6! You be the sleuth! Track down the recipe on my website that includes eggs, Edam, and white pepper. Enter your answer by clicking on this link: CONTEST ENTRY FORM.

One of you will win a $25 gift certificate at your favorite bookstore. Two of you will win signed copies of The Long Quiche Goodbye. Three of you will win a Long Quiche Goodbye magnet. You can ask friends for help. Spread the word and share the fun. And while you're there, consider pre-ordering a book on my booksellers page.

Here is the link to my website to help get you started.

Our Characters Must Eat!

A very warm welcome to our guest today, Leann Sweeney. Leann writes the Cats in Trouble mysteries which have thrilled cat lovers everywhere. The Cat, The Quilt and The Corpse was the #1 bestseller on the Independent Mystery Bookseller's List when it debuted and made several top twenty lists for 2009 at bookstores across the country. Leann lives in Texas with husband Mike, her three cats, and Rosie--the smart, retrieving, golf-ball chasing, busy-busy-busy mini-labradoodle.

Our Characters Must Eat!

By Leann Sweeney

I recall listening to an editor speak at a conference more than a decade ago, well before I was published, and her saying, "Don't forget that your characters need to eat." Then, when I took a class with Elizabeth George a few years later, one of our exercises was to describe what was in the refrigerator of the character we were writing about. Yes, food is important in our books.In my first series, the Yellow Rose Mysteries, the heroine's sister is a health food devotee. And she's always trying to foist her preferences on Abby Rose. Abby prefers frozen pizza. But when I was invited to a book club meeting where the members were discussing the first Yellow Rose book, Pick Your Poison, I was confronted with just how important food was—even if it remains part of the setting. See, the book club members decided to make all the food that I'd mentioned in the book for our meeting.
I was stunned, first of all, by the amount of food. And also that I didn't remember writing about most of it. But those book lovers did. In that particular mystery, there is a funeral, and I'd forgotten how important funeral food is. Even though Abby Rose is on hiatus and I am currently writing the Cats in Trouble Series—where Jillian Hart drinks lots of sweet tea and coffee—I thought I'd share the recipe for the potato salad that appears in my first book. The book club ladies couldn't find a recipe for Dill and Sour Cream Potato Salad. One woman made one up and it wasn't half bad. But she should have called me. I know the real ingredients since I've been making this for years out of necessity. I'm allergic to eggs and there's no mayo in this one!

Dill and Sour Cream Potato Salad

4 c. diced cooked potatoes
1 c. sliced celery
3 green onions, thinly sliced
3 T. vinegar
3 T. Canola oil
¼ tsp. seasoned salt
¼ tsp. seasoned pepper
2 sprigs fresh dill, chopped, or ½ tsp dried dillweed
¾ c. sour cream—light is fine, not sure about fat-free
½ c. chopped green and red peppers
Additional sprigs of dill and tomato wedges for garnish

Combine potato, celery and green onion. Mix next 5 ingredients, pour over potatoes and toss very gently. Refrigerate several hours. Mix in sour cream and bell peppers. Garnish if desired.

This is a great summer recipe, one that can be made ahead of time and is super easy!

Have you entered the June contest at Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen?

Avery Aames is celebrating the upcoming release of The Long Quiche Goodbye.

Avery's "You Be The Sleuth" Contest!

Avery’s first book in A Cheese Shop Mystery series, The Long Quiche Goodbye, debuts July 6. To celebrate its release, Avery is running a contest from June 9 to July 6! You be the sleuth! Track down the recipe on Avery's website that includes eggs, Edam, and white pepper. Enter your answer by clicking on this link: CONTEST ENTRY FORM.

One of you will win a $25 gift certificate at your favorite bookstore. Two of you will win signed copies of The Long Quiche Goodbye. Three of you will win a Long Quiche Goodbye magnet. You can ask friends for help. Spread the word and share the fun. And while you're there, consider pre-ordering a book on Avery's booksellers page.

Here is the link to Avery’s website to help get you started.

Summertime Cherry Strudel

Do you remember Tom Sawyer whitewashing the fence? I was so impressed by Tom's cleverness. He pretended that painting the fence was a special treat and managed to talk other boys into doing it for him. Not only did they take on his horrible chore, but they paid him with boyish trinkets for the opportunity!


I may recall the scene a little bit too well, because whitewashing the fence was a regular summer chore when I was growing up. I always wished someone would come by so I could lure them into painting the fence for me. But along with that unpleasant job, there was one thing that usually only happened once every summer -- my mother made cherry strudel. Apple strudel was a regular event at our house, but cherry strudel was a special treat.

Unfortunately, making cherry strudel involves a chore that ranks up there with painting the fence -- pitting cherries. It's a messy job at best, it stains your fingers and the juice spurts everywhere. I used a handy dandy cherry pitter that cut way down on the time involved, but if you happen to have someone hanging around whom you could lure into pitting the cherries for you, I say go for it!

Now, I have to admit, this is a lazy version of cherry strudel because I used boxed filo dough. It makes a delicate strudel and cuts prep time considerably. Be sure to thaw the filo dough overnight in the refrigerator first, though. Have all the other ingredients ready so the dough won't dry out while you work. You can cover it with a damp cloth to keep it fresh, but if you work at a normal speed (don't take a call from your long-winded friend) this doesn't take too long to do.

Cherries and apples create juices when they cook, so there has to be something to bind the juices. Instead of cornstarch or tapioca, most strudel recipes call for bread crumbs. It sounds odd, but it works. This time, on my mother's suggestion, I tried something new and used graham cracker crumbs. They worked very well.

Summertime Cherry Strudel

10 sheets 12x17 filo dough
2 cups pitted and halved fresh cherries
1/4 cup sugar (I used sweet black cherries, you may need more if you use sour cherries)
1/3 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/2 lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla or brandy (optional)
6 tablespoons butter
powdered sugar

Mix the cherries, sugar, lemon and vanilla or brandy in a bowl. (If you're very lazy, you can skip this step. Watch for the ** later.)

Melt the butter and brush a little bit on a baking sheet. Preheat the oven to 350.
On an ungreased baking sheet, spread the first sheet of filo dough. Brush with butter. Lay another sheet of the filo dough on top of it and brush with butter. Repeat until you have ten sheets of filo dough.

Spoon the cherries onto the filo about an inch from the edge in a line along the long side of the filo. Sprinkle with the graham cracker crumbs. (** If you're not using vanilla or brandy, you can just lay the cherries in a line, sprinkle with sugar, sprinkle with graham cracker crumbs and squeeze the lemon over top of it all.)

Roll the cherry end slowly, brushing the top of the filo as you go. Lay it seam side down on the buttered baking sheet and add one more buttery swipe to the top. Cut small diagonal vents along the top. Bake 25 minutes, brush with butter and return to oven for another 20 minutes. Sift powdered sugar over the top to dress it up -- and serve. It's good warm and cold!

And now to celebrate the upcoming release of THE LONG QUICHE GOODBYE,
Avery is hosting our next exciting contest!

Avery's "You Be The Sleuth" Contest!

Avery’s first book in A Cheese Shop Mystery series, The Long Quiche Goodbye, debuts July 6. To celebrate its release, Avery is running a contest from June 9 to July 6! You be the sleuth! Track down the recipe on Avery's website that includes eggs, Edam, and white pepper. Enter your answer by clicking on this link: CONTEST ENTRY FORM.

One of you will win a $25 gift certificate at your favorite bookstore. Two of you will win signed copies of The Long Quiche Goodbye. Three of you will win a Long Quiche Goodbye magnet. You can ask friends for help. Spread the word and share the fun. And while you're there, consider pre-ordering a book on Avery's booksellers page.

Here is the link to Avery’s website to help get you started.