A St. Patrick's Day Birthday -- #recipes and a #giveaway from Leslie Budewitz

LESLIE BUDEWITZ:  Even experienced cooks and bakers have the occasional fail, and I had one this weekend. A few years back, a quirky little cafe on the other side of the valley offered green tea cookies. Tasty and well, quirky. Alas, it closed before I'd had my fill. So when I saw a recipe, and knew we had a bag of matcha (green tea) powder, I decided to try making them. It was a slice-and-bake recipe -- easy-peasy -- and the green sounded fun for St. Patrick's Day. Alas, the dough was crumbly and wouldn't hold its shape, no matter how I rolled and chilled. I HATE throwing away food, but I also hate struggling with something that obviously does not want to behave, so out it went.

Which left me with nothing to share with you today. I like celebrating St. Patrick's Day here on the blog, because it's fun -- and it's the birthday of Erin Murphy, the main character in my Food Lovers' Village Mysteries. Erin runs the Merc, a local foods market in her family's 100+ year old grocery building in the heart of the village of Jewel Bay, Montana, a lakeside town on the road to Glacier National Park, and solves crime. She's a younger version of me in some ways -- a Montana girl who left and came home at 32, only to discover that both she and town had changed -- and it was great fun to explore that story through the eyes of a much younger woman. 

Erin is half Italian, as you can tell from her name, and comes from a close family. She comes home at her mother's request to take over the struggling Merc. A family business, mother-daughter tensions -- what could go wrong? Find out in her first venture, Death al Dente, winner of the 2013 Agatha Award for Best First Novel.

Erin's father was killed in a hit-and-run accident her senior year of high school, a case unsolved until Butter Off Dead, third in the series, when Erin finally puts together enough clues to solve the case. There are five novels in the series, plus a short story collection, Carried to the Grave and Other Stories. The collection includes a novella, "An Unholy Death," set in 1910, the year Erin's great-grandparents got married, settled in Jewel Bay, and opened the Merc. Turns out Erin's sleuthing skills may well be inherited.  (You can read the novella in the collection, in pb, ebook, and audio, or as a standalone, in pb and ebook.)  

Butter, by the way, is the title that always got the most laughs -- until To Err is Cumin, the 8th Spice Shop book, named by a reader! 

My first thought was to reprise a pair of St. Patrick's Day recipes -- Guinness Stew and Irish Soda Bread. And they are yummy, but Edith shared her version of the stew last week, so I'll just give you the link and move on! So to celebrate my girl's birthday, I'm reprising my favorite birthday cakes -- Erin and I are both March babies, after all!

Any March babies in your circle will love this Glazed Chocolate Bundt Cake. So will anyone born in January, February, April -- you get the idea.

A classic carrot cake is always cause for celebration, birthday or no. This Carrot Graham Layer Cake is a fun variation on the theme. Vintage cake plate optional.

I've been celebrating with that cake plate a LONG time!

You might prefer an angel food cake. This Angel Food Cake with Fresh Strawberries was my mother's favorite, and I hope you'll click on the link to read the sweet story of the angel who helped me recreate that treat for her last birthday. 

And to return to our theme, I offer these Guinness Brownies -- a bit of a misnomer, as it's really more of a cake than brownies. The beer cooks off, leaving a rich, deep flavor, much as adding a bit of coffee to chocolate does. 

Got a kitchen fail story to share? Two lucky readers will win a signed paperback of Death al Dente, Erin's first adventure in crime! Leave your email address to enter. US mailing addresses only, please. Winners will be chosen Friday, March 20. 

At Seattle Spice Shop, owner Pepper Reece has whipped up the perfect blend of food, friends, and flavor. But the sweet smell of success can be hazardous . . .  

Spring is in full bloom in Pike Place Market, where Pepper is celebrating lavender’s culinary uses and planning a festival she hopes will become an annual event. When her friend Lavender Liz offers to share tips for promoting the much-loved—and occasionally maligned—herb, Pepper makes a trek to the charming town of Salmon Falls. But someone has badly damaged Liz’s greenhouse, throwing a wrench in the feisty grower’s plans for expansion. Suspicions quickly focus on an employee who’s taken to the hills. 

Then Liz is found dead among her precious plants, stabbed by a pruning knife. In Salmon Falls, there’s one in every pocket. 

Pepper digs in, untangling the tensions between Liz and a local restaurateur with eyes on a picturesque but neglected farm, a jealous ex-boyfriend determined to profit from Liz’s success, and a local growers’ cooperative. She’s also hot on the scent of a trail of her own, sniffing out the history of her sweet dog, Arf. 

As Pepper’s questions threaten to unearth secrets others desperately want to keep buried, danger creeps closer to her and those she loves. Can Pepper root out the killer, before someone nips her in the bud?

Available at Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Books-A-Million * Bookshop.org * and your local booksellers!

ALL GOD'S SPARROWS AND OTHER STORIES: A STAGECOACH MARY FIELDS COLLECTION, now available in in paperback and ebook 

Take a step back in time with All God's Sparrows and Other Stories: A Stagecoach Mary Fields Collection of historical short mysteries, featuring the Agatha-Award winning "All God's Sparrows" and other stories imagining the life of real-life historical figure Mary Fields, born into slavery in 1832, during the last thirty years of her life, in Montana. Out September 17, 2024 from Beyond the Page Publishing.  

“Finely researched and richly detailed, All God’s Sparrows and Other Stories is a wonderful collection. I loved learning about this fascinating woman . . . and what a character she is! Kudos to Leslie Budewitz for bringing her to life so vividly.” —Kathleen Grissom, New York Times bestselling author of Crow Mary

Available at Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Books-A-Million * Bookshop.org * and your local booksellers!

Leslie Budewitz is the author of the Spice Shop Mysteries set in Seattle's Pike Place Market, and the Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries, set in NW Montana. As Alicia Beckman, she writes moody, standalone suspense, most recently Blind Faith. She is the winner of Agatha Awards in three categories: Best Nonfiction (2011), Best First Novel (2013), and Best Short Story (2018). Her latest books are To Err is Cumin, the 8th Spice Shop Mystery and All God's Sparrows and Other Stories: A Stagecoach Mary Fields Collection, in September 2024. Watch for Lavender Lies Bleeding, the 9th Spice Shop Mystery, on July 15, 2025.

A past president of Sisters in Crime and former national board member of Mystery Writers of America, Leslie lives in northwest Montana with her husband, a musician and doctor of natural medicine. 

Swing by Leslie's website and join the mailing list for her seasonal newsletter. And join her on Facebook where she shares book news and giveaways from her writer friends, and talks about food, mysteries, and the things that inspire her.

A Community Cookbook, an Odd Recipe, and a Pretzel Salad by Ang Pompano — Plus a book givaway!

Ang Pompano: I love community cookbooks. We’ve all got them. You probably bought yours at a church fundraiser, a school bake sale, or maybe from a coworker’s kid who was raising money for a club.

I was looking through a few of them while working on a new writing project, and I realized these things don’t get nearly enough credit. We’re not talking about those glossy, $40 (or more) hardcover books with celebrity chefs on the cover. These are usually spiral bound, maybe even photocopied.

But what they lack in fancy photography, they make up for by being tried and true. These are the meals people actually cooked. If a recipe made it into the church cookbook, chances are someone served it, someone tasted it, and someone said, “You have to give me that recipe!”

It’s the personal touch that gets me. You don’t see a famous name at the top of the page; you see "Aunt Carmel," "Mrs. Robertson" who you know from down the street, or "Coach Shaw." I love the little notes, too. One might say "Great for snow days," or my favorite, "Bake until done."

These books are local history you can eat. If you find one from Key West, like the Key West Woman's Club Cookbook edited by our own Lucy Burdette, you’re getting conch fritters. Down in Texas, it’s all about the chili and brisket. And here in New England you’re guaranteed a masterclass in real-deal chowders, baked beans, as well as some delicious ethnic meals.

I pulled a few community cookbooks from the shelf and opened one at random to see what I might find. I could have chosen from sections on Meats, Fish, or Vegetables, but being me, I went straight to Desserts and found this recipe on Pretzel Salad that I had to give a try.

Pretzel Salad

From the kitchen of Karen B. in the Village Street School Cookbook, It Takes a Village

Pretzel Salad Ingredients:

• 2 cups coarsely chopped pretzels (no salt)

• 1 ½ sticks melted butter (I changed this from the original ¾ cup)

• 4 tbsp sugar (for the crust)

• 8 oz cream cheese

• 1 cup sugar (for the filling)

• 8 oz Cool Whip, (the original recipe calls for thawed but mine wasn’t frozen)

• 6 oz strawberry Jell-O

• 2 cups boiling water

• 20 oz frozen sliced strawberries

Instructions:

Prepare the Crust: Mix the chopped pretzels, melted butter, and 4 tablespoons of sugar to form a crumb crust. Gently press the mixture into a greased 13x9 baking dish. (I used a 12x8 dish) Make the mixture go up the sides a little and make sure there are no holes in the bottom or the mixture will go below the crust.)

Bake & Cool: Bake the crust for 6 minutes at 400°F. (I found it was better to set the oven at 350° F. Watch it carefully because it can burn.) Set aside to cool completely.

Prepare the Topping: Dissolve the strawberry Jell-O in 2 cups of boiling water. Add the partially thawed strawberries and allow them to finish thawing in the hot mixture.

Make the Filling: Cream together the cream cheese and 1 cup of sugar until smooth. 

Gently fold in the thawed Cool Whip. 

Pro Tip: Don’t take too long making the filling because the cold strawberries will make the Jell-O start to set.

Layer: Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over the cooled pretzel crust. 

Then pour the strawberry/Jell-O mixture carefully over the top of the cheese layer.

Pro-tip: When spreading the cream cheese layer, make sure to spread it all the way to the edges of the pan to create a "seal." This prevents the Jell-O from seeping down and making the pretzel crust soggy.

Chill: Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. 

Serve: I think you're going to like, make that love, this. If you try it, let me know if you agree.

What about you? Do you like recipes from community cookbooks, or do you prefer those from well known cooks like Julia, Lidia, or Jacques? Let me know in the comments to be entered in a drawing for Snakeberry: Best New England Crime Stories.

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 lives in Connecticut with his wife, Annette, an artist, and their two rescue dogs, Dexter and Alfie.

Just Released!

Diet of Death

by Ang Pompano

The first in the Reluctant Food Columnist series.

Buy Link

Betty Ann Green is a beloved culinary icon…who doesn’t exist. She is the brilliant, beautiful illusion created by two unlikely collaborators. Behind the façade is Quincy Lazzaro, a culinarily challenged writer whose witty, sharp prose is the public face of Betty, while those flawless, genius recipes are all thanks to his octogenarian neighbor, Mary Ticarelli.
When the arrogant diet guru, Dr. Alan Tolzer, inventor of the Westport Diet, demands a face-to-face interview, Quincy reluctantly steps in as Betty’s frontman, only for Tolzer to drop dead. The police call it natural causes, but Quincy knows better. He sees it as the investigative break he’s been waiting for.
Now, caught between a crime-solving grandma, a no-nonsense detective girlfriend, and a killer who may be one step ahead, Quincy must unravel the mystery before the killer strikes again.

When It’s Time for Leaving

by Ang Pompano

Buy Link

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

Buy Link

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.

Snakeberry: Best New England Crime Stories 2025

Edited by

Christine Bagley, Susan Oleksiw, Ang Pompano, 

and Leslie Wheeler

BUY LINK

Every year the anthology brings welcome surprises and satisfactions, and this year is no different, featuring stories by 21 of New England’s best crime writers.
Includes “Minnie the Air Raid Warden” by Ang Pompano.

Welcome Guest Lisa Q. Mathews with St. Patrick’s Day Coddle (and a sweet treat) plus a Giveaway!

Molly MacRae: Top of the morning to you! I’m pleased as a leprechaun to welcome Lisa Q. Mathews back to the kitchen today. Readers, you’re in for a treat.

Lisa: Happy-Almost-St.-Paddy’s, Everyone! A huge thank you to Molly MacRae and all the brilliant authors at Mystery Lover’s Kitchen for allowing inviting me back to share another Irish recipe with you. I’m thrilled this year to celebrate both St. Patrick’s Day (my favorite holiday!) and the publication of my second book in the Irish Bed & Breakfast Mysteries, BURIED IN SHAMROCKS.

The Buckley House, the Irish-themed B&B run by my sleuth Kate Buckley’s family in touristy Shamrock, MA, receives higher guest ratings for charm and coziness than cuisine. But Kate’s mom Eileen, a character based on my late Irish mother-in-law who raised a rowdy clan of 5 boys and 2 girls, is a pro at throwing delicious meals together in a pinch with whatever ingredients she has in the pantry. A favorite old-school Irish dish? The simple coddle: filling and tasty (especially on a windy spring day), and perfect for an easy Paddy’s Day dinner! Here’s the very versatile recipe—and a wee treat for a festive dessert!

St. Patrick’s Day Coddle

Ingredients

1 lb. sausages (I was sadly unable to procure imported Irish sausages this year)

8 oz streaky bacon

2 cups stock (ham or chicken) or water. Reserve the 2^nd cup for later. (I used 1 cup Guinness mixed with 1 cup water as my “stock.”)  

3 large potatoes (or 5 medium)

2 medium-large onions

Salt and pepper

Fresh parsley (optional)

Directions  

Serves 4-6

Prep by peeling and cutting the potatoes (in our house, this is the job of the 2 youngest children skilled enough not to cut themselves) and onions. Slice thickly, rounds preferred for easy layering.

Cut the bacon into 1” squares.

Bring half the stock to a covered boil in a medium or large saucepan. I used a skillet and added a lid, but you can also use the deeper Dutch oven, which allows for more layers.

Add the sausages (whole) and bacon. Simmer (covered) for about 5 mins. Remove the sausages and bacon to a platter and save the liquid.

Cut each sausage into 4-6 pieces on the plate.

Assemble a layer of potatoes in the skillet or saucepan of stock, followed by a layer of onions and half the sausages and bacon.

Repeat the process (until you run out of ingredients or room), finishing with a layer of potatoes. (I ran out of potatoes, so I just added a few on top).

Pour reserved stock over the layers and add salt and pepper. You can throw in some parsley (it may wilt a bit during simmering; its main job is adding a bit of color) and your preferred seasonings.

Cover and simmer gently for about an hour. (Pretty much set-it-and-forget-it, but I checked midway and gave things a stir so the potatoes on the bottom didn’t stick).

Add more seasoning to taste and serve extra-hot!

NOTE: I added the aforementioned parsley and some nice green lettuce for “green”—and also a store-bought Irish soda bread, which was surprisingly delicious (I couldn’t get my usual mix from Ireland this year). It probably helped that I popped the whole loaf of bread into the oven to toast, with a generous slathering of Kerrygold on top. Everything is better with pure Irish butter, the secret to all Irish cooking. (One of my characters even used it for the butter sculpture at the Great Shamrock Fair in BURIED IN SHAMROCKS, but please note that it melts more quickly due to its higher fat content than most American butters!) 

As also mentioned, the coddle is quite filling. You won’t always be offered a sweet dessert after a true Irish meal, unless it’s a dinner party or special occasion, but here’s a treat idea to add to your Paddy’s celebration:

Strawberries & Whipped Cream with Green Fairy Dust

Ingredients

Strawberries

1 C heavy whipping cream

2 T confectioner’s sugar

1 t vanilla

Optional: 2 T Baileys (I used Emmets, which is economical and tastes basically the same—one of my mom-in-law’s secrets)

Sprinkling of green crystal sugar

Directions

Serves about 6 

Hull and slice the desired number of strawberries. Place in individual bowls.

Whip the cream, sugar, and vanilla together for about 5 minutes, until the cream is perky. Then stir in the Baileys if you’re using it, dollop the cream over the berries in each bowl, and sprinkle the fairy dust.

NOTE 1: Sure, you can use Cool Whip instead of fresh whipped cream. (Shhh!)

NOTE 2: You may detect a few Hershey kisses in the photo (I couldn’t get Irish Cadbury Buttons this year) in honor of Kate’s cop brother Frank. He pops sweets all day long and often leaves a tell-tale trail of wrappers, which drives Kate crazy.

May the pages always rise to meet you and the spirit of St. Patrick be with you and yours year-round.

Sláinte!

🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀

Readers, what is your go-to meal or treat in a pinch?

GIVEAWAY: One signed paperback of BURIED IN SHAMROCKS with swag—and maybe a tiny leprechaun stowaway, too! NOTE: Lisa is happy to substitute Book 1 in the Irish Bed & Breakfast Mysteries, THE JIG IS UP (set during St. Patrick’s Week)—Winner’s Choice! 

Open to U.S. and Canadian readers. A winner will be chosen from the comments, at random, at about noon on St. Patrick's Day (3/17). Remember to leave your email address. May the luck of the Irish be with you!

Buy link BURIED IN SHAMROCKS is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audio 

🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀

About the Author:

Lisa Q. Mathews began her publishing career as an editor of Nancy Drew books. She also wrote for popular kids’ series such as Mary-Kate and Ashley and the Lizzie McGuire Mysteries. She now writes lighthearted mysteries for grownups with strong female characters and plenty of family, including the Irish Bed & Breakfast Mysteries and the Ladies Smythe & Westin. Lisa lives in New England. The “Q” in her name stands for “Quinn.”

Website/Newsletter: https://www.lisaqmathews.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LisaQMathewsAuthor

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisaqmathews/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14418623.Lisa_Q_Mathews

Blog: https://chicksonthecase.com/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Roasted Spiralized Sweet Potatoes with Walnuts and Feta #recipe from Molly MacRae

 

One of my sisters gave me a spiralizer for my birthday some years ago. It’s a lot of fun but the kind of kitchen gadget that, when shoved to the back of a cupboard, gets forgotten. That’s why I was glad to come across this recipe. Maybe I’ll find a more convenient place to store the spiralizer and use it more often.

If you don’t have a spiralizer, you can use a mandoline or V-slicer fitted with a 1/8-inch julienne attachment. Position the sweet potatoes on the mandoline vertically so the noodles are as long as possible.

These Sweet potato noodles roast fairly quickly. They’re tender without being mushy and, with the addition of feta and walnuts, they make a tasty side dish. They were excellent leftover for lunch the next day, too. When I make them again, I might add a bit of cumin or coriander (or both) along with the salt and pepper. I’ll also see how the noodles roast in the air fryer.

Sweet potatoes are good and so good for you!

 

Roasted Spiralized Sweet Potatoes

Adapted from The Complete Diabetes Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen

Serves 6

 

Ingredients

2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Salt and pepper

1/4 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped coarse

1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled

2 tablespoons fresh parsley

 

Directions

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position. Heat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Spiralize the peeled sweet potatoes into 1/8-inch noodles, then cut the noodles into 12-inch lengths (I missed a few when I was lopping them into 12-inch lengths and ended up with some longer than my arm.) The spiralizer leaves behind a small cylinder of whatever vegetable you're spiralizing. I chopped those cores and added them to the noodles.

Toss the noodles with 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Spread on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast until the noodles are just tender, 12-15 minutes, stirring once halfway through roasting.

Season the noodles with more pepper to taste. Sprinkle walnuts, feta, and parsley over the top, then drizzle with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil.

 

💗 click here for a free, printable pdf of this recipe 💗

 

Now available for pre-order – All Shell Breaks Loose

book 3 in the Haunted Shell Shop Mysteries!

 

On North Carolina’s Ocracoke Island, Maureen Nash sells exquisite seashells to locals and tourists—with Bonny the shop cat and the ghost of a Welsh pirate for company. And when needed, she steps in to help the police solve a murder . . .

Dr. Irving Allred is boasting around town that he’s about to get his hands on an authentic haunted sword. But minutes after Maureen hears the story, a woman walks into the Moon Shell, sword in hand. She found it while walking her bulldog on the beach—and its blade is stained with what looks like blood. Looks like it’s time to call the sheriff’s department.

Allred is furious that his prize is now in police custody—and even more agitated that an unknown buyer was trying to outbid him. He’s convinced the sword will lead him straight to the ghosts he’s been hunting. He’s not the only one on the Outer Banks who’s been searching for spirits, though. An odd visitor also showed up at Maureen’s shop claiming the ability to sense them . . . though somehow she didn’t seem to notice Maureen’s spectral friend hanging about.

When a man who’d been camping nearby is found cut down along the shore, Maureen starts providing some unofficial assistance to Captain Rob Tate by digging into the island’s maritime history. But it’s not the only mystery she’s facing—because the shop’s resident ghost is seeing ghosts himself . . .

Happy reading! 

 

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.