A Wedding, A Murder, and My Mama’s Rum Cake

A very warm welcome to Virginia Lowell. This is Virginia's first visit to Mystery Lovers' Kitchen. She writes the Cookie Cutter Shop Mysteries. Several of us on this blog love cookie cutters, and I know some of you do, too! We're so pleased Virginia could join us!


I’ve been thinking about cakes lately.

Of course, cookies are always the tasty treat du jour at The Gingerbread House, where Olivia Greyson and her best friend, Maddie Briggs, bake and decorate cutout cookies daily. They also sell everything from antique cookie cutters to sparkling sugar sprinkles. As if all that doesn’t keep them busy enough, Livie and Maddie are about to tackle their fourth Cookie Cutter Shop mystery in ONE DEAD COOKIE, due to land in bookstores on July 2.

However, Livie and Maddie are also preparing for a major and, they fervently hope, murder-free event. (They can hope, can’t they?) Maddie is getting married! Hence my current obsession with cakes.

Lately, I’ve been happily reminiscing about cakes I have known and loved. Aside from my own wedding cake (amaretto, with crystallized violets; need I say more?), I’d have to say that my favorite cake memory comes from my childhood. My mother made a killer rum cake. Now, everyone knows the classic rum cake recipe—you know, the one that starts with a yellow cake mix. My mother, being a cook of the 1960s, used mixes whenever possible, so she latched on to that rum cake recipe and never let go.

Over time, my mom made minor adjustments to the rum cake recipe, such as using a glaze without nuts in it. Then one day she decided to create a rum cake that would be remembered with delight and awe for decades to come. My father, sister, and I watched as Mom used a fork to poke holes in the top of the finished cake, right through the glaze. We felt a tingle of foreboding when we noticed the maniacal glint in her eyes. Mom picked up the bottle, which still held several inches of rum, and unscrewed the top. Was she planning to take a swig right out of the bottle? Nope. she upended that bottle and poured most of the remaining rum over the cake.**

This was the most popular cake my mother ever served. I was allowed only a small taste, but it was memorable. To this day, the very sight of a bottle of rum makes me smile.

**If you try this at home, I’d advise putting the cake on a large plate with sides. And maybe don’t empty the bottle, especially if there’s more than about a cup of rum left in it. That part of the experiment has been done, and it wasn’t pretty. Deliriously funny, but not pretty.

                              Mom’s Double Rum Cake

Cake:
1 package yellow cake mix
1 package vanilla instant pudding mix
4 eggs
½ cup cold water
½ cup oil
½ cup rum

Mix together the above ingredients and pour into a tube or bundt pan. Bake at 325°F for one hour. Cool in pan for ten minutes. Invert onto a serving plate (with sides). Prick tiny holes all around the top of the cake.

Glaze:
½ cup butter
¼ cup water
1 cup sugar
½ rum

Melt butter in saucepan and stir in water and sugar. Boil for 5 minutes while stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in rum. Brush glaze over top and sides of cake. Wait for glaze to absorb, then repeat until the glaze is used up.
*Mom’s minor addition: Pour or spoon additional rum over the cake and let it set a spell.

Maddie plans to serve her wedding cake at a huge engagement party, so everyone in Chatterley Heights will have a chance to sample it. I can guarantee the cake will not be rum soaked, though it promises to be creative and tasty. It might even feature cookies; you never know. Drop in at Maddie and Lucas’s engagement party to find out. But be careful. A murderer might be lurking in the crowd.






About Virginia:

Virginia Lowell lives in Minnesota with her husband and two cats. The cold winters have driven her to baking cookies, just to keep warm. She grew up in a small town inhabited by an unusual numbers of quirky people, who hardly ever murdered anyone.

One Dead Cookie, the fourth book in Virginia Lowell’s cookie cutter shop mystery series, releases July 2. The first book in the series is Cookie Dough or Die. She is currently working on the fifth book in the series, which is published by Penguin/Berkley in 2014. Find out more about Virginia on her website:   www.virginialowell.com.  You can check in with Olivia Greyson, Maddie Briggs, and other folks from Chatterley Heights at killercharacters.com on the 24th of each month.

Rum Cake photo by Kent Wang, Wikipedia Commons

Lemon Meringue Pie

by Peg Cochran

Out Now!

I’m sure there are tons of recipes out there for lemon meringue pie—each slightly different.  This one comes from my husband’s mother and is one of his favorite desserts.  I made it for him today because I’m trying to seduce him into putting a curtain rod up for me.  I’ll let you know if it works!

Lemon meringue pies are actually easier than they look—especially if you have a counter top mixer although a hand mixer would work just fine and would give your arm, or at least one arm, a workout (I suppose you could switch hands halfway through!)

Filling:

1.5 cups sugar (I used more like 1.25 cups because we like it a little tarter)

5 1/3 tablespoons corn starch (why the 1/3 I have no idea)

1.5 cups hot water

3 egg yolks, lightly beaten

Mix together the sugar and cornstarch in a pan.  Gradually stir in the hot water.  Cook over moderate heat, stirring, until mixture thickens and boils.  Boil one minute and remove from heat.

Beat a little of the hot mixture into the eggs yolks (this will keep them from scrambling)  then add to the rest of the mixture.  Return to heat, boil one minute, stirring.  Remove from heat and stir until smooth.

Blend in:

3 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons lemon juice (about one good-sized lemon)

1.5 tablespoons grated lemon peel

Pour hot filling into baked shell.  Cover with meringue (below)

3 egg whites

¼ tsp cream of tartar

6 tablespoons sugar

Beat egg whites and cream of tartar until frothy.  Gradually beat in sugar.  Beat until stiff and glossy.

Cover pie with meringue and bake 5 to 8 minutes at 400 degrees.  Cool at room temperature.

Note: I break my eggs into a small cup one at a time before adding eggs whites to mixer bowl.  You don’t want even a speck of yolk in the whites or they won’t whip.

Sugar, water and corn starch thickening nicely

Eggs whites are almost stiff

The finished product

Catch up with me on my website: www.pegcochran.com.  I sometimes post recipes there as well.  And come like me on Facebook:  www.facebook.com/pegcochran.  @pegcochran

Coming on July 2nd!  (Meg London is my pen name for the Sweet Nothings Lingerie Series.)

Irish Summer Salad

by Sheila Connolly

I'm almost done with the tales of my travels (unless you beg for more).  I am content to enjoy Italian cooking when someone else makes it, but I don't plan to change my own style (although there are a few more recipes…).

So now I'm easing my way back to the real world.  Sigh.  I may have mentioned that I bracketed my Italian journey with a couple of days in Dublin, theoretically for research, but mostly because I really like Dublin. 

On one end I stayed at the hotel I've been using since 2001—near the river, and close to Temple Bar.  But they were booked for the outgoing leg, so I tried a new place, the far side of St. Stephen's Green.  Very posh neighborhood, I must say.  I had a room that must have once been part of the servants' quarters, up on the fourth floor (and no elevator), with a tiny bathroom, but it had a view of the green. 

And it was close to my favorite cookware shop.  Yes, I planned my stay around visiting Stock, only a few blocks away.  I love that place.  I came away with a Pyrex cup with European measurements (I can never get the math right with my US cups), and some great new cookie-cutters, and a square 9" pan with removable bottom that I've been coveting for six months (the blessed thing weighs nearly three pounds, so it kind of skewed my suitcase weight).  And what's more, I had a lovely conversation with an Irish woman about my problems baking brown bread, and she recommended a cookbook by Tim Allen, who is married to Darina Allen, who runs the prestigious cooking school in Ballymaloe, which is in County Cork and which I really, really want to visit, and now I have the cookbook and I may know what I've been doing wrong… End of sentence.

Anyway, I had two nights in Dublin this month, thus two dinners, and they represented the extremes of Irish cooking.  The first night, after leaving Italy, all I wanted was a soft chair and a quiet place to sit and eat.  But Dublin was enjoying a string of incredibly nice weather so everyone was out and most places were full.  I ended up in a veddy posh (and expensive) hotel restaurant where the food looked like it came straight from Iron Chef.  I mean, the appetizer (cold-smoked hake) came in a glass bowl filled with smoke.  And for the main course, somebody whittled all the veggies down to miniatures about an inch tall.  I was beginning to feel like Alice through the looking glass.  It all tasted good, I will admit.

Can you see the smoke? (on the left)

The second night fell at the other end of the spectrum.  I went to a pub recommended by the hotel manager, and it kind of captured the worst of Irish cooking: I had a chicken breast stuffed with mashed potatoes and smoked salmon.  Now, I like all of these in their own right, but they just weren't working together.  Oh, and it was topped with gloppy white sauce with no particular flavor at all.  Not a great meal (but at least it was cheaper than the first one!).

But that got me thinking…  This past weekend I happened to be in Goshen CT, where they have an outstanding smokehouse store, Nodine's.  I came back with a bag full of smoked goodies, including smoked salmon.  And I happen to have a spare chicken breast all cooked and ready in the fridge.  So what if I deconstruct that bad Irish meal and get it right?  And make it a summer dish?  We've been having a heat wave, so how about a chicken and smoked salmon salad? And I'll call it Irish Salad, in honor of the source.

Irish Summer Salad

Smoked salmon

Cooked chicken breast

New potatoes (the waxy kind)

Greens of your choice

(Those of you who are fond of raw onions may add some chopped onion—red onions would be pretty)

Vinaigrette with chopped shallots (see, I fit the onion flavor in)

Capers

Shred or dice the salmon and chicken.

Make a simple vinaigrette.  Yes, you can buy it if you insist, but it really is easy:  olive oil or vegetable oil, vinegar and/or lemon juice, a dash of mustard, salt and pepper, and some chopped shallots.  Let it sit for a little while so the flavors come together and the shallots soften. I usually use the cruet I inherited from my mother, which conveniently has the lines for vinegar and oil marked on it.

Wash and dice your potatoes.  Since it was hot, I cooked

mine in the microwave with a little water.  It took all of five minutes on high, and I didn't have to boil anything.  (Don't let them overcook!) Drain them, then while still warm, toss them with some of the vinaigrette and let them marinate in that for a while.

Wash and dry your favorite summer greens—whatever's fresh from the garden.  Add the meats and the potatoes, then add the vinaigrette and toss lightly.  Sprinkle with capers.

The recipe reminds me of a salade niçoise, the kind made in southern France around Nice.  Maybe this is Dubliner Salad.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

LUCY BURDETTE: Don't you love it when you can (sort of) make two meals at once, for 2/3 the work? Deadline panic plus guests for the weekend = need something easy! 

So I roasted a chicken with a couple of sweet potatoes and steamed broccoli on the side for John and me one night, and made chicken tortilla soup for the visitors the next. This can be even easier if you buy a chicken already roasted or have cleverly frozen some leftovers!

 
CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP

INGREDIENTS

4-5 corn tortillas
1/2 roasted chicken, shredded
1 box chicken broth
1 16 oz can diced tomatoes with green chilis
1 16 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn
1 bay leaf
2 tsp ground cumin
1 onion, chopped, or 1 bunch scallions
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro or to taste
1/2 lime

Cut the tortillas into strips and place them on a baking pan. Pour a little olive oil over and mix so most of the strips have been oiled. Bake in a 350 oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until beginning to brown. Set these aside.

In a large pot, saute onions, scallions and cumin in 2 Tbsp olive oil. Add the broth and tomatoes and bay leaf and simmer for ten minutes. Then add the chicken and corn and black beans and simmer until the corn is tender. (You can do ahead up to this point and put the soup away for the next day.)

When the soup is hot, squeeze in the lime and stir in the cilantro. Serve garnished with crispy tortilla strips and a dollop of sour cream, if desired. Ole!

 



Lucy (that's me!) is the author of the Key West food critic mysteries, most recently TOPPED CHEF. You can find the books online or anyplace where books are sold! Please follow me on Twitter or "like" me on Facebook for all the latest news.

Mock Chicken Cacciatore - an easy recipe!

From Daryl aka Avery

The protagonist in FINAL SENTENCE, the first in A Cookbook Nook Mystery series (coming out next week!), loves eating, loves food, and loves watching TV cooking shows. The chef of the café (part of the Cookbook Nook) advises her to watch the cooking shows to get tips. I’ve done that. I’ll turn something on and think, gee, I can make that. It took all of about 30 minutes and was a few steps. What could be so hard? Granted, most of the shows have the preparation done ahead of time, and the show doesn’t include the cooking time, it sort of flashes forward.

Anyway, I walk on a treadmill when I’m watching TV. [I’m sitting the rest of the day. I’ve got to get my exercise someho.] And I saw a show with a female chef. She was making a super simple dish. Sort of a mock chicken cacciatore. Honestly, I can’t remember which show. I can’t even remember which chef. (Bad me. I think my mind is in overdrive right now with writing book 3 of the series and PR stuff to launch this book…if only I had two heads so I could wear both hats comfortably.)

This recipe was quick! And easy. With only a few steps and a few ingredients, I memorized it and then tweaked it to suit my tastes.  If anyone knows which chef this was, please let me know so I can credit her with a "link" or tweet.

Enjoy and savor the flavors.  [PS  This kept well in glassware for a number of days.]

Mock Chicken Cacciatore

Ingredients:

6 Chicken breasts – thin ones so they’ll roll well (or thick and you’ll have to pound)

Veggies (I used 3 zucchini)

Mozzarella cheese (6 thin slices)

Fresh herbs (chopped fine) (about 6 teaspoons)

1 jar of pasta sauce (your favorite)

1 cup (8 ounces) light or regular sour cream (I used light)

Parmessan cheese, grated

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Slow cooking!

Set foil on a roasting pan.  Set out the chicken breasts on the foil.  Top with Mozzarella cheese, zucchini, and herbs.

Roll up each breast and skewer with two toothpicks to hold the breast together.

Seal the foil. Put the roasting pan in the oven. Cook chicken for 30 to 40 minutes.

In about 30 minutes, empty a jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce into a saucepan. Heat through on medium, for about 4-5 minutes.  Add the light sour cream (or regular sour cream, if you desire) to the sauce. Stir. Heat through about another 2-3 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the oven. Set a chicken piece on each plate. 

Remove the toothpicks. The chicken will hold together. Top with sauce and Parmessan cheese. Adorn with fresh herbs.

Voilá. How easy is that?? 

By the way, I’m having two contests right now. One is a launch contest. I’m giving away a $50 bookstore gift certificate plus some books on my website. Follow this link.

The other is a June Mystery Scramble contest on Facebook with three other authors: Krista Davis, Janet Bolin & Maggie Sefton. Do you like puzzles? Scrambles? You could win a $25 bookstore gift certificate or books from the authors! Go to my Facebook page or any of the authors' pages,  and click on the Scramble link!

And TODAY I'm giving away a few fun things to those who leave comments.  A copy of your choice of a Cheese Shop Mystery (written by my "other persona" Avery) plus some swag.

Do you watch TV cooking shows?

* * * * * * *

The first book in A Cookbook Nook Mystery series is coming
July 2nd!! It's set in the fictional coastal town of Crystal Cove, California and features Jenna Hart, a "recovering" ad exec who returns home to help her aunt open a culinary bookshop and cafe.

FINAL SENTENCE

You can pre-order the book HERE.

You can learn more about Daryl by clicking this LINK. "Like" my page on Facebook and "follow" me on Twitter. And if you haven't done so, sign up for the mailing list so you can learn about upcoming events, releases, and contests!

2 Ingredient Strawberry Syrup for Ice Cream, Pound Cake, Pancakes from Cleo Coyle

Got over-ripe strawberries in your fridge? 

"Waste not!" I say. Turn that uber-ripe
fruit into a delectable fruit syrup.

Sweet, homemade strawberry syrup isn't only delicious drizzled over ice cream. It's also spectacular over fruit-topped French toast and waffles. You can enjoy it over a slice of pound cake, angel food cake, or warm short cakes topped with strawberry slices and whipped cream for a classic strawberry shortcake dessert.

Cleo Coyle, stretcher of
$$ dollars and pincher
of pennies, is author of The
Coffeehouse Mysteries

All things considered, this simple recipe is truly amazing: Two ingredients, a few easy steps, and you have liquid strawberry candy. 

And isn't this a much prettier end to spoiling fruit than the trash bin?


Eat (leftovers) with joy!
~ Cleo 

To download this recipe in a PDF document that you can print, save, or share, click here. 

Strawberry 

Syrup 

Ingredients:
2 pints ripe strawberries (pictured above)
1 cup sugar

Yields: 1-1/2 cups syrup

Step 1 - Prep the strawberries: Hull, wash, and lightly drain the berries but do not dry. Slice the wet berries into a bowl and toss with ½ cup of the sugar. Cover bowl loosely with a paper towel and let stand for 30 minutes to an hour, allowing liquids to accumulate at the bottom of the bowl.

Step 2 - Cook the Strawberries: Pour the entire contents of the bowl (berries and all excess liquid) into a saucepan. Bring mixture to a full boil. Turn heat down a bit and simmer for about eight to ten minutes. You want the fruit to cook down, collapse, soften and give up its liquid.

I wish the Internet had a SMELL THIS hot button option 

so I could tell you to click here and enjoy! 

The aroma of the strawberries cooking is intoxicating. 

And that incredible scent is perfectly captured 

in the taste of the finished syrup.

Step 3 - Strain the Strawberries: Place a fine mesh sieve over a bowl. Pour contents of saucepan into the sieve and catch all the delicious liquid in the bowl. Use the back of a large spoon to press and squeeze the cooked fruit. Come on, tap into your inner serial killer! (Bwa-ha-haa!)

When you’ve squeezed as much blood-red liquid as you can out of the fruit, discard the pulpy remains that are left in the sieve.

Step 4 - Heat Once More: Return the gorgeous ruby liquid in the bowl back to the saucepan. Add the remaining 1/2 cup sugar. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Turn heat down a bit to simmer and stir for 5 to 10 minutes. You are looking for the sugar to dissolve and the sauce to darken and thicken. Remove from heat and cool. Strain once more if you like.

While still warm, the finished strawberry syrup

should be pourable but thick enough to coat a spoon.

After chilling overnight, the strawberry syrup will thicken even more.
If you prefer a thinner consistency for pouring over pancakes
or ice cream, simply place a portion in a bowl and whisk in a little water
until the syrup is as thin or thick as you want it for your purposes.
(Store your finished syrup in an airtight container in the fridge.)

Serve over ice cream. Or try it over pancakes, fruit-piled french toast, or waffles. Drizzle it over pound cake, angel food, or short cakes. Include fresh strawberries and whipped cream and you’ve got a beautiful, colorful summer treat. To store, allow syrup to come to room temperature and place in an airtight container in the refrigerator and...

Eat with (summer) joy!

~ Cleo Coyle

New York Times bestselling author of

The Coffeehouse Mysteries

Yes, this is me, Cleo (aka Alice). 

Friend me on facebook here.

Follow me on twitter here. 

Visit my online coffeehouse here.

To view the
Coffeehouse Mystery
book trailer, click here.

 

The Coffeehouse Mysteries are bestselling

works of amateur sleuth fiction set in a landmark

Greenwich Village coffeehouse, and each of the

12 titles includes the added bonus of recipes. 

To learn more, click here. 

 

The Ghost and
Mrs. McClure

Book #1 of 
The Haunted Bookshop
Mysteries, which Cleo writes
under the name
Alice Kimberly
To learn more, click here.