Ang Pompano: It goes without saying that Thanksgiving is all about tradition, and traditions mean a lot to Annette and me. One of our longest-standing traditions goes back to when our kids were little: me reading A Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende and Harry Devlin to them, followed by Annette making cranberry bread with their help.
The well-worn book, its pages smudged with two generations of little fingerprints, spins a mystery centered on a stolen cranberry bread recipe, and along the way, offers lessons that matter just as much today as they ever did: don’t judge people by appearances, and be generous whenever you can.
As in any good culinary mystery, there’s a recipe at the end. This time, it’s the recovered recipe for cranberry bread. Another part of the tradition has always been letting the kids choose one or two special ingredients to add. Just like the story itself, that bread has been loved by our kids—and now our grandkids. At this point, it wouldn’t feel like Thanksgiving without it.
And now, in the spirit of tradition, here’s the cranberry bread recipe from A Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende and Harry Devlin. I’ve put my own spin on it, and I can’t wait to see how the grandkids make it their own next week.
Ingredients
- 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup sugar (reduced from 1 cup)
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 ½ teaspoons grated orange peel (increased from 1 teaspoon)
- ¾ cup orange juice
- ¾ cup raisins (reduced from 1 ½ cups)
- 1 ½ cups fresh cranberries, chopped
Optional special ingredients I added:
- ¾ cup chocolate chips
- ¾ cup walnuts
Note: I left out the 1 teaspoon of salt since I use salted butter.
Directions
1. Preheat your oven to 350°F and grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan.
2. Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and baking soda in a large bowl.
3. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
4. Add the egg, grated orange peel, and orange juice. Stir just until the batter is evenly moistened.
5. Chop the cranberries then fold in the raisins, chopped cranberries, and your special ingredients (chocolate chips and walnuts).
6. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
7. Bake for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
Whether you follow the recipe exactly or let your own family add a few special touches, this cranberry bread is about more than just ingredients—it’s about tradition, creativity, and sharing a little generosity along the way. Just like the story in A Cranberry Thanksgiving, it reminds us to look beyond appearances, savor the moments with loved ones, and pass a little love from one generation to the next. Enjoy baking, and see what your own family adds to make it theirs. If you try it, let me know what you think. I’d love to hear from you.
Everyone who leaves a comment and their email address will be entered in a drawing for Crime Spell Books Snakeberry: Best New England Crime Stories 2025, edited by Christine Bagley, Susan Oleksiw, Leslie Wheeler, and me.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Ang Pompano is a mystery author, editor, publisher and blogger. He writes the Blue Palmetto Detective Agency, and the Reluctant Food Columnist series, both published by Level Best Books. In addition to his writing, Ang is a co-founder of Crime Spell Books and serves as co-editor of the Best New England Crime Stories anthology. He blogs about food on Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, Annette, an artist, and their two rescue dogs, Dexter and Alfie.
Snakeberry: Best New England Crime Stories 2025
Edited by Christine Bagley, Susan Oleksiw, Ang Pompano, and Leslie Wheeler
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Readers root for criminals in fiction—and sometimes in real life—for many reasons: fighting injustice, acting on temptation, or simply getting away with a daring act, as in Sean Harding’s The Books Job. Crime fiction often probes justice, offering no easy answers but satisfying conclusions. Women in Gabriela Stiteler’s Money Well Spent and Chris Knopf’s Submission make choices we understand, while Cheryl Malone’s ranger in As the Crows Fly confronts moral ambiguity. Beth Hogan’s Willful Blindness and Bruce Robert Coffin’s Writer’s Block mislead readers before revealing the truth.
Twists are a staple of mystery. In Laurel Hanson’s Out of the Reach, an early twist sets the stage, echoed in Bonnar Spring’s At the End of the Day. Conscience shapes characters too: Nikki Knight’s Other Voices Carry explores diverging paths in crime, while Christine Bagley’s Sakura shows morality surfacing under pressure. Some villains—like Dale Phillips’s gas jockey in Gas or Judith Carlough’s writer in Catch and Release—drive the story, leaving readers conflicted.
Historical stories offer clarity: Sarah Smith’s The Woman Who Loved Her Husband’s Teeth depicts a war bride’s determined search, Paula Messina’s Perfect celebrates teenage cleverness, and Ang Pompano’s Minnie the Air Raid Warden highlights resourcefulness. Contemporary tales show women mastering technology to their advantage, as in Leslie Wheeler’s Graham 2.0 and Kat Fast’s Virtually Yours.
Many stories leave readers both satisfied and thoughtful: Brenda Buchanan’s Cape Jewell ends with a wiser heroine, Susan Oleksiw’s The Receptionist delivers a hard lesson, Avram Lavinsky’s The Long Shot evokes 1950s New York tensions, and Moe Moeller’s The Last Stone from the House of Usher offers a modern, near-happy ending.
Across this anthology, writers share the skill to yield to complex narrators, as in Stephen D. Rogers’s Chekhov, Sartre, and the Unity of Effect. Once again, this year’s collection delivers surprises and satisfaction. Welcome to crime in 2025.
When It’s Time for Leaving by Ang Pompano
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Al DeLucia walked away from the police—and his past. But when his long-lost father leaves him a detective agency in Savannah, Al finds himself trapped between family secrets and a murder on the agency’s dock. Partnered with Maxine Brophy, a fierce detective who doesn’t trust him, Al is pulled into a deadly search through Savannah and the Okefenokee Swamp—where the truth about the case, and his father, may cost him everything.
Blood Ties and Deadly Lies by Ang Pompano
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Al DeLucia returns to Sachem Creek expecting a kayak race and a chance to confront his childhood bully, Abe Cromwell. Instead, he finds a dead lawyer, a web of deceit, and Abe claiming they’re brothers by DNA. Reluctantly joined by Maxine Brophy, his formidable partner and girlfriend, Al dives into a murder investigation that exposes land swindles, hidden maps, and buried family secrets. In a town where the past won’t stay buried, Al must face truths that could upend everything.
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