Friday, January 31, 2025

Cheesy, Spicy Black Bean Bake #recipe from Molly MacRae

Get ready to fall in love—this recipe is easy, fast, adaptable, delicious, and full of protein. You can tone down the spiciness by leaving out the jalapeño and chipotles, or zip it up by adding more or hotter peppers or as many dashes of hot sauce as you can take. Use your favorite melting cheese or a combination of cheeses.

Serve it with your choice of rice, tortillas, tortilla chips, olives, and/or pickled jalapeño slices. Have a green salad on the side for a complete meal that is guaranteed to warm you through and through.

Cheesy, Spicy Black Bean Bake

Adapted from Ali Slagle in The New York Times

Yield: 4 Servings (next time I’ll make either half again as much or double the recipe)

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped

1/2 jalapeño, chopped

5-6 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced

1/4 cup tomato paste

3 tablespoons chipotles in adobo sauce

1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 (14-ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup boiling water

Kosher salt and black pepper

1 1/2 cups grated cheese (Manchego, Cheddar, Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack – your choice)

Directions

Heat oven to 475 degrees F.

In a 10-inch ovenproof skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Fry the onion until turning golden around the edges. Add jalapeno and garlic and fry until the garlic is lightly golden, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomato paste, chipotles in adobo sauce, paprika, red pepper flakes, and cumin (be careful of splattering), and fry for 30 seconds, reducing heat as needed to prevent the garlic from burning.

Add the beans, water, and generous pinches of salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top. Bake until the cheese melts, 5 to 10 minutes. If the top isn’t as brown as you’d like, put the skillet under the broiler for 1 or 2 minutes.

Serve immediately.

Coming in June 2025!

There’ll be Shell to Pay

Haunted Shell Shop book 2

When she’s not selling seashells by the North Carolina seashore from her shell shop, Maureen Nash is a crime-solving sleuth with a ghost pirate for a supernatural sidekick . . .

Maureen is still getting used to life on Ocracoke Island, learning how to play the “shell game” of her business—and ghost whispering with the spirit of Emrys Lloyd, the eighteenth-century Welsh pirate who haunts her shop, The Moon Shell. The spectral buccaneer has unburied a treasure hidden in the shop’s attic that turns out to be antique shell art stolen from Maureen’s late husband’s family years ago.

Victor “Shelly” Sullivan and his wife Lenrose visit the shop and specifically inquire about these rare items. Not only is it suspicious that this shell collector should arrive around the time Maureen found the art, but Emrys insists that Sullivan’s wife is an imposter because Lenrose is dead. A woman’s corpse the police have been unable to identify was discovered by the Fig Ladies, a group who formed an online fig appreciation society. They’re meeting on Ocracoke for the first time in person and count Lenrose among their number, so the woman can’t possibly be dead.

But Lenrose’s behavior doesn’t quite match the person the Fig Ladies interacted with online. Now, Maureen and Emrys—with assistance from the Fig Ladies—must prove the real Lenrose is dead and unmask her mysterious pretender before a desperate murderer strikes again . . .

The Boston Globe says Molly MacRae writes “murder with a dose of drollery.” She’s the author of the award-winning, national bestselling Haunted Yarn Shop Mysteries and the Highland Bookshop Mysteries. As Margaret Welch, she writes books for Annie’s Fiction. Her short stories have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine and she’s a winner of the Sherwood Anderson Award for Short Fiction. Visit Molly on Facebook and Pinterest and connect with her on Instagram or Bluesky.

Thursday, January 30, 2025

Chicken Marsala from Christine Falcone #bookgiveaway

LUCY BURDETTE: I’m delighted to introduce my good pal Christine Falcone, who is visiting today with news of her third book, plus a divine recipe for chicken Marsala, and a giveaway. Welcome Chris!

CHRISTINE FALCONE: Melanie Bass, the main character in my latest book, Cutting Remarks, is not above using food as a bribe. Well, not really a bribe, more like a distraction, or peace offering. Her good friend Lynn is being accused of murdering her future mother-in – law, and Melanie is determined to find the real killer and clear Lynn’s name. As she gets closer to the truth, she hatches a plan that could put her right in the killer’s sights. In order to soften the blow when she confesses to her boyfriend what she plans to do, she prepares a dinner of what she feels is her specialty: Shrimp Scampi. My own recipe for Shrimp Scampi is pretty basic: Shrimp sautéed in butter, lots of garlic, a bit of White Wine, and parsley. I chose instead to include my recipe for Chicken Marsala. This is also one of Melanie’s favorites, and honest confession – I thought I had her prepare this for Justin until I reread my own work and realized she made scampi instead! I chose to still go with the Marsala recipe today.

It is a joke in our house that my grandson, Jeffrey, will always ask, “what’s for dinner tomorrow night?” even before we lift a fork to eat the present night’s fare. Chicken Marsala always gets an “Okay! Good!” from everyone at the table. The recipe I use is one from an old Better Homes and Garden Cookbook that I tweaked a bit: shallots instead of green onions (or better still, both!) baked instead of cooked on the stovetop, and a bit more butter ( Plus, I usually have to double the recipe).

CHICKEN MARSALA:

¾ cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp crushed marjoram

4 skinless/boneless chicken breast butterflied to make 8 pieces (Or cut smaller if you prefer)

1 8 oz pkg sliced washed mushrooms

1 shallot chopped (add the greens from a bunch of green onions also if you like)

1 stick plus 2 Tbsp butter - divided

1 cup chicken broth

1 cup marsala wine (I use cooking wine and it tastes fine)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a gallon plastic freezer bag mix flour, marjoram, salt and pepper. Place chicken 2-3 pieces at a time in bag and shake to coat. Save the flour mixture for now.

Melt 4 Tbsp butter in a skillet and add shallots and mushrooms and cook until tender. Remove and set aside. Add 4 more Tbsp butter and lightly brown chicken. Remove breasts from pan and place them in baking dish ( 9x13) . Put cooked mushrooms and shallots back in the skillet, add chicken broth and marsala wine and bring a to boil. Add 2 Tbsp flour mixture and stir out lumps until liquid has thickened to a gravy texture. You may want to add more flour depending on how thick you want the gravy. (It thickens a little with baking also). Pour over chicken and bake uncovered until done – about 40-50 minutes.

We like it over pasta.

Oh, and when Melanie tells Justin what she plans to do to get information about the killer, he comes up with what he feels s is a much better plan. Whether or not his idea works….well, Cutting Remarks is out now.

What would you use as your best food bribe if you needed information? Leave a comment to be entered into the drawing for a copy of CUTTING REMARKS!

Wednesday, January 29, 2025

Lunar New Year Almond Cookies #Recipe by @LibbyKlein #Gluten-Free #LunarNewYear

Libby Klein Today is Lunar New Year. A sixteen day celebration which you know I can really get behind another holiday right after Christmas. I'm willing to celebrate just about anything. In the Chinese culture, 2025 is the year of the snake. 😐 Apparently the snake represents wisdom and transformation, and an opportunity to grow and change. That last part tracks because the last time I saw a snake in my yard I thought we'd have to change addresses.

One thing you'll see in many a celebration of Lunar New Year is Chinese Almond Cookies. Almond cookies represent good fortune as they're supposed to look like coins. We used to get these wonderful almond cookies at the Dragon House in Wildwood, NJ when I was growing up. I had no idea they were for a special holiday. I played around with a couple recipes to make my own Chinese Almond Cookies, and this shortbread version was my favorite and tasted the closest to what I remembered.

Chinese Almond Cookies
Yield 15 cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup gluten free flour (or All Purpose flour)

½ cup almond meal

¼ teaspoon salt

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

½ cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 egg yolk

15-20 whole blanched almonds

Directions:

You don't need to preheat your oven yet.
In a small bowl, combine flour, almond meal, and salt. Set aside

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the almond extract and mix well. Add the egg yolk.

Add the dry ingredients until just combined.

Roll into 15 balls (a little smaller than a cake pop or golf ball) and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Flatten each ball with the palm of your hand and add a blanched almond to the center. I said 15-20 blanched almonds just in case you got to this point and had extras.

Set the cookie sheet in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Chilling will keep the cookies from spreading too thin.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

NOW take the cookie sheet out and place it in the preheated oven. Bake for 12-15 minutes until the edges are browning.
Let cool on the pan for about 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Once cool, the cookies get nice and crispy and the almond meal makes them a little crumbly which I like.

Layla Virtue, a blue-haired, 30-something recovering alcoholic and former cop is trying to reinvent herself as a musician—between AA meetings, dodging eccentric neighbors at her trailer park, and reconnecting with her mysterious dad—in this unforgettable new mystery brimming with hilarity and heart.

Layla is taking her new life one day at a time from the Lake Pinecrest Trailer Park she now calls home. Being alone is how she likes it. Simple. Uncomplicated. Though try telling that to the group of local ladies who are in relentless pursuit of Layla as their new BFF, determined to make her join them for coffee and donuts.

After her first career ended in a literal explosion, Layla’s trying to eke out a living as a rock musician. It’s not easy competing against garage bands who work for tacos and create their music on a computer, while all she has is an electric guitar and leather-ish pants. But Layla isn’t in a position to turn down any gig. Which is why she’s at an 8-year-old’s birthday party, watching as Chuckles the Clown takes a bow under the balloon animals. No one expects it will be his last . . .

Who would want to kill a clown—and why? Layla and her unshakable posse are suddenly embroiled in the seedy underbelly of the upper-class world of second wives and trust fund kids, determined to uncover what magnetic hold a pudgy, balding clown had over women who seem to have everything they could ever want. Then again, Layla knows full well that people are rarely quite what they seem—herself included . . .

Libby Klein grew up in Cape May, NJ where she attended high school in the '80s. Her
classes revolved mostly around the Culinary sciences and Drama, with one brilliant semester in Poly-Sci that may have been an accident. She loves to drink coffee, bake gluten-free goodies, collect fluffy cats, and translate sarcasm for people who are too serious. She writes from her Northern Virginia office where she serves a very naughty black smoke Persian named Sir Figaro Newton. You can keep up with her shenanigans by signing up for her Mischief and Mayhem Newsletter on her website. www.LibbyKleinBooks.com/Newsletter/

Tuesday, January 28, 2025

#LOWCARB WINTER CUSTARD with VANILLA & NUTMEG from @CleoCoyle #keto #comfortfood

From Cleo Coyle: Warm vanilla custard brings back equally warm memories of my mom's custard cups, fresh from the oven, smelling of egg and warm milk, vanilla and nutmeg. On this cold January day, I offer you this simple, cozy recipe to warm your heart. Even better...

For those of you following low-carb, low-sugar, or "keto" eating programs, this custard makes a great high-protein dessert or snack. Simply replace the confectioners' sugar with a powdered sugar substitute.

Cleo Coyle writes two
bestselling mystery

series with her husband.
To learn more, click here.

☕ A Recipe Note from Cleo

Baked egg custard is a lovely and satisfying comfort food that I've been eating ever since my mother made it for me as a child. I've baked it countless times since and am happy to share two tips I've learned along the way for producing an easy yet lovely custard with a smooth top and silky, creamy texture.

(1) Use room temperature eggs. Simply warm them quickly in a bowl of warm water from the tap. This will help loosen the albumin (protein) in the egg and make it easier for you to properly blend the custard.

(2) Bake it low and slow and do not put foil on top of the custard cups or the roasting pan (as some recipes suggest). At the end of the recipe, I'll show you a picture of what happens if you try to speed up the baking with a higher temperature or foil on top.

So here you go. Warm comfort in a cup from me to you, with a bit of nutmeg on top…

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

Click here for the free recipe PDF.

Click on the coffeehouse above
to learn about our long-running
Coffeehouse series and join us
for a warm cuppa mystery!

☕ Cleo Coyle's

Warm Winter Custard
with Vanilla and Nutmeg

Servings: 4 (in 4-ounce size ramekins or custard cups)

Ingredients:

1-1/4 cups whole milk

3 large eggs (room temperature is best)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar (or powdered sugar substitute)

Directions:

Step 1: Whisk together all ingredients. I do this in a large measuring cup because the spout makes it easy to pour in the next step.

Step 2: Pour the liquid mixture into 4 four-ounce size ramekins or custard cups, dividing evenly. Place the ramekins in a roasting pan or baking dish and create a shallow water bath by filling just enough to reach halfway up the sides of your ramekins or custard cups.

Step 3: Bake in a preheated 325° F. oven for 1 hour and 5 minutes (the time may be a little longer or shorter, depending on your oven). When is it done? You are looking for the top to set. It may still jiggle slightly, but it should be firm to a light touch and when a toothpick or skewer is inserted down into the custard at the edge of the cup, it should come out clean. Otherwise, keep baking and checking.

Remove from oven and water bath and allow to cool for one hour on a rack. Eat at once or chill by placing plastic wrap over the top of each cup. (You need the plastic on there to prevent a skin from forming.)

A few final recipe tips...

The photo above is what happens if you follow this recipe and bake the custard (uncovered) in a water bath at 325 degrees F. for 1 hour and 5 minutes. Creamy, silky, delicious custard.

The photo at right is what happens if you try to rush the process of baking by raising the oven temperature or covering the pan with foil. Do you see those unsightly pockmarks on the top of the custard? That comes from the custard boiling instead of cooking slowly. In the batch at the right, I purposely sealed aluminum foil over the roasting pan. Yes, this sped up the cooking time, but it also made the custard boil, creating this less silky result. So be sure to avoid it!

Finally, allow the custard to cool for an hour after removing from the oven. If you chill or store in the fridge, don't forget to seal plastic wrap over the top of the ramekins or custard cups to prevent a skin from forming.