KIM DAVIS: I'm delighted to let you be the first to see the brand new cover for Catering to the Dead, the eighth book in my Cupcake Catering Mysteries!
Keep scrolling down the page for a look... With a Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) theme, I included a recipe for Churro Cookies in the book, which I'm sharing here. The cookies are full of cinnamon and are topped by a generous amount of creamy cinnamon-flavored buttercream, and then a sprinkle of cinnamon & sugar is added on top. These soft and chewy cookies are definitely a cinnamon lover's dream!
Since Catering to the Dead will be releasing October 28, 2025, I'm giving away winner's choice of any one of my already published Cupcake Catering Mysteries. Scroll down to the bottom of the post to see the details to enter.
Churro Cookies
Ingredients
Cookies:
1 cup
unsalted butter, room temperature
1-1/2
cups granulated sugar
2
eggs, room temperature
1
teaspoon vanilla extract
2-1/2
cups all-purpose flour
2
teaspoons cornstarch
1
teaspoon baking soda
2
teaspoons cream of tartar
1
teaspoon sea salt
1
teaspoon ground cinnamon
Cinnamon Sugar:
1/2
cup granulated sugar
1-1/2
teaspoons ground cinnamon
Frosting:
1 cup
unsalted butter, room temperature
7 cups
confectioners’ sugar
1-1/2
teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons
vanilla extract
1/4
teaspoon sea salt
4 to 5
tablespoons milk or cream (I used non-dairy since that's all I had on hand)
Topping:
1/3
cup granulated sugar
1
teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
Cookies:
In the bowl of a
stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and
fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Beat in the eggs
and the vanilla.
In a medium-sized
bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, cream of tartar, and
salt.
Slowly add the
flour mixture to the butter and sugar mixture. Stir just until combined and no
white streaks remain.
Cover the bowl
with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 60 minutes or overnight.
While the dough
chills, combine the sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl.
Preheat oven to
350 degrees (F) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Remove dough from
the refrigerator. If it is too stiff, allow to sit at room temperature 20 to 30
minutes. Scoop the chilled dough into a golf-ball sized piece, roll in the
cinnamon and sugar mixture, and place on a prepared cookie sheet. Repeat with
the remaining dough, leaving at least 2 inches between the dough balls.
Bake 11 to 13
minutes, until the edges begin to turn barely golden. The center of the cookies
should remain soft. Rotate the baking sheet half way through the baking period.
Remove from oven
and cool the cookies for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire
rack to cool completely before frosting.
Topping:
Mix the granulated
sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl. Set aside until you frost the
cookies.
Frosting:
Beat the room-temperature
butter until creamy. Add in the cinnamon, vanilla extract, and salt, mixing to
combine. Stir in half the confectioners’ sugar and 2 tablespoons milk or cream,
and beat until combined. Add remaining confectioners’ sugar and 2 tablespoons
milk. Beat until light and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes.
If frosting is too
stiff, add additional milk, 1/2 teaspoon at a time, until desired consistency
is reached. You want it soft enough to easily pipe, but firm enough to hold the
star shape.
Place the frosting in a disposable piping bag fitted with an open medium-size star tip. Pipe the frosting onto the completely cooled cookies, starting in the center and spiraling to the edges.
Before the
frosting sets, dust the cinnamon and sugar mixture over the tops of the frosted
cookies.
💕 Click here for a free printable PDF of the recipe!💕
And now for the cover reveal!
Releasing October 28, 2025
When cupcake caterer Emory Martinez takes on a lavish Día de los Muertos party, she’s drawn into a twenty-year-old family tragedy. With extravagant Day of the Dead costumes, drinks flowing, desserts galore, and a celebration in full swing, not all is as joyous as it may seem. When the festivities come to a close, Emory discovers a body, and evidence points to her being the prime suspect. To clear her name, she and her octogenarian soon-to-be grandmother-in-law, Tillie, must team up with their friends to navigate a web of blackmail, betrayal, and buried secrets. Will she survive confronting a killer who will do anything to protect their freedom and hide their web of deceit, or will her catering days come to an end?
How the theme of my book came about:
Last Thanksgiving holiday I was taking my youngest granddaughter to LAX... it's never a great time to drive through Los Angeles, but holiday travel makes it even more unbearable. Sitting in near gridlock traffic, we started talking about themes for the books I still want to write in the Cupcake Catering Mysteries. We bantered about several holidays, and listed pros and cons, before she reminded me of the Día de los Muertos party her parents hosted several years ago. There were about 50 guests all decked out in costumes and elaborate makeup. I actually made the cake for the party (and my cover designer was able to use a photo of my cake to feature on the new cover!) Thankfully no murders happened at their party but it provided me with the perfect backdrop for a mystery. Here's a photo of my family dressed in their Día de los Muertos finery.
Includes recipes!
Books available at most online retailers
Amazon
* Barnes
& Noble * Kobo
* Apple
Cupcake
Catering Mysteries * Essentials of
Murder
About the Author:
Kim Davis writes the Aromatherapy Apothecary cozy mystery
series, and the award-winning Cupcake Catering cozy mystery series. She has
also written several children’s nature articles published in a variety of
magazines. For ten years she’s written the Cinnamon, Sugar, and a Little Bit of
Murder culinary cozy mystery blog, in which she features reviews of cozy
mysteries along with a recipe from the book, and photos of the prepared dish.
And now she’s a member of Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen!
Kim Davis is a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers
of America, and Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.
She lives in Southern California with her husband and
rambunctious mini Goldendoodle, Missy, who has become an inspiration for
several plotlines. When she’s not spending time with her granddaughters or
chasing Missy around, she can be found either writing on her next book, working
on blogs, or in the kitchen baking up yummy treats to share.
Click here to sign up here for Kim’s newsletter: Newsletter
Connect with Kim on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Bluesky, Bookbub,
Goodreads,
and website
And now for the giveaway:
To celebrate the cover reveal and the upcoming release of Catering to the Dead, I'm giving away winner's choice of one of the previously published books in my Cupcake Catering Mysteries. Print is limited to US residents only, and all others will receive an ebook.
Readers, have you ever participated in a
I'm fortunate to live in an area that has a variety of cultural festivities open to the public. In fact, even the local cemetery located a mile from my house has an annual Día de los Muertos celebration on November 2nd!
Comment below and include your email (yourname at
yourserver dot com) for a chance to win your choice of one of my Cupcake Catering Mysteries. (Contest ends 11:59pm on Wednesday,
October 15, 2025.
