Decadent Dark Chocolate, Cinnamon Chip, Flourless Brownies from Nancy Parra

Mystery Lovers Kitchen is delighted to welcome Nancy Parra back again (although our waistlines might wish she'd stop turning out these delicious chocolate recipes!).

Hi, it’s a pleasure to come to the Mystery Lover’s Kitchen again. This time I want to introduce a new book, Forever Fudge. It’s the sixth full novel in the Candy Coated Mystery Series and if you include the Christmas shorts it’s the eighth. The book is out September 25^th and will offer more recipes just like this one.

When I first started the series I was asked for only fudge recipes but as readers started asking for more I expanded. Since I have Celiac and can’t eat wheat, I developed this decadent dark chocolate, cinnamon chip, flourless brownie. I think my amateur sleuth, Allie McMurphy would approve. She is after all a fudge maker and these are pretty close to fudge.

This is the perfect Fall dessert for football games, potlucks or anytime you are craving fudgy goodness. The cinnamon chips are usually only out in the fall, so I scoop them up and store them for use year round.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do. From Allie and me to you- enjoy!

Decadent Dark Chocolate, Cinnamon Chip, Flourless Brownies

12 tablespoon butter

1 1/3 cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder

1 ¾ cup granulated sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 large eggs

3/4 cup of cinnamon chips

Preheat oven to 350 F and prepare 8-inch pan by lining it with parchment paper. I like to use a round pan for thicker brownies.

Melt butter gently. Add cocoa to melted butter and whisk. Then add sugar and salt and whisk until well combined. Add vanilla and stir until smooth.

Add eggs and stir in gently until well combined--do not over mix eggs. I switch from whisk to spatula for this part. Add cinnamon chips and gently fold.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out the top. Bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with moist crumbs and no wet batter. Unlike cake a clean toothpick means they are overdone.

Your house will smell awesome!

Cool 15 minutes and remove with liner from the pan. Set them on a rack to cool completely (if you can wait). Cut and enjoy!

I'm happy to offer a copy of Forever Fudge to one person who leaves a comment, answering the question, "What is your favorite season?" Be sure to include your email.

About the book:

When a film crew comes to Mackinac Island, the last thing fudge shop owner Allie McMurphy expects to find is a murder victim . . . 
 
SHOT ON LOCATION
 
It's Labor Day weekend, the official end of tourist season, and the beginning of a whole batch of trouble. First, the island is invaded by a TV crew filming a murder mystery pilot, and handsome Hollywood heartthrob Dirk Benjamin needs Allie’s help to prep for his role as local cop Rex Manning. Then, Allie’s bichonpoo Mal sniffs out a real murder in the alley behind the Historic McMurphy Hotel and Fudge Shop, a man shot in the head—with a note challenging amateur sleuth Allie to catch the culprit. Like it or not, the fudge maker has to square off against a crazy killer—but this time she may have bitten off more than she can chew . . .

 About Nancy:

Nancy J Parra AKA Nancy Coco AKA Nell Hampton is the author of over 25 published novels which include five mystery series: The Candy Coated Mysteries (Kensington), The Kensington Palace Mystery Series (Crooked Lane), The Wine Country Tours Mystery Series (Crooked Lane) The Oregon Coast Mystery series (Kensington),The Gluten-free Baker’s Treat Mysteries (Berkley Prime Crime), and The Perfect Proposal Mysteries (Berkley Prime Crime).  Her writing has been called witty and her protagonists plucky by reviewers around the world.  Nancy is a member of Sisters in Crime and writes for the Killer Character Blog on the 8th of every month.  Nancy loves to hear from readers. 

Find out more at:

www.nancyjjparra.com

Follow her:

T: @nancyjparra

FB: nancyjparraauthor and nancyjcoco

Insta: @nancyjparra

Kale to The Queen’s Spring Frittata

Mystery Lovers' Kitchen is excited today to welcome Nancy Parra, who gives us a peek at her new series, the Kensington Palace Chef Series.

It’s early summer, but with the farmer’s market in full mode you can still get wonderful fresh ingredients to make this frittata. Hi, I’m Nancy Parra AKA Nell Hampton with a new series out --The Kensington Palace Chef Series. As you might know I love cooking and cozy mysteries. This series is a blast because I get to visit London and learn everything I can about the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. My protagonist, Carrie Ann Cole, is an American Chef in London as she takes on the role of personal chef to the young family. This is Carrie Ann’s Kale frittata and one of the fun recipes in the first book of the series, Kale To The Queen.

Ingredients:

8 green onions

1½ cups of cooked peas, fresh or frozen

½ cup fresh spinach or kale
24 small new potatoes
2 Tbs butter
2 Tbs olive oil
2 Tbs of chopped chives, basil and parsley (fresh)
½ cup of finely grated parmesan cheese
10 eggs (large)
¾ cup of heavy whipping cream
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup feta cheese crumbled
3½ oz of thinly sliced pancetta or bacon

Directions:

Cut into quarters and cook new potatoes until tender. Wash green onions and chop. Wash spinach/kale, drain well, wilt it in a pan with a little olive oil.

Melt butter and olive oil in a large (8 inch) oven proof frying pan. Cook the onions until soft. (If you don't have an oven-proof pan, cook the onions on the stove, then mix the ingredients in a baking pan, like this Pyrex one.) Remove the pan from heat and add the peas, wilted spinach/kale and potatoes. Sprinkle with herbs and parmesan cheese.

Whisk together the eggs and cream, and add salt and pepper. (I use ½ tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper.) Pour into pan over vegetables. Crumbled the feta over the top. Add pancetta in small twists.

Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes until set and golden brown.

Serve immediately. Also makes great leftovers served cold.

About Nancy:

Nancy J Parra AKA Nell Hampton is the author of over 25 published novels which include five mystery series: The Candy Coated Mysteries (Kensington), The Kensington Palace Mystery Series (Crooked Lane), The Wine Country Tours Mystery Series (Crooked Lane), The Gluten-free Baker’s Treat Mysteries (Berkley Prime Crime), and The Perfect Proposal Mysteries (Berkley Prime Crime).  Her writing has been called witty and her protagonists plucky by reviewers around the world.  Nancy is a member of Sisters in Crime and Mystery Writers of America. 

Nancy is offering a large-print copy of Kale to the Queen to one lucky winner. Just answer her question "What is your favorite British food?" in a comment below, and be sure to include your email (replace the periods with (dot) to keep things safe).

Welcome, guest author Nancy Parra!

Welcome our guest, Nancy Parra!

Best known for writing “…strong stubborn heroes and plucky heroines who aren’t afraid to go toe to toe with them,” (Shelley Mosley, Booklist Magazine), Nancy currently has 3 cozy mystery series -- 

the Gluten-free Baker's Treat Mystery Series and the Perfect Proposal Mystery Series with Berkley, and the Candy Coated Mystery Series with Kensington--a total of 15 books in print. Praise from readers and booksellers made All Fudged Up - by pen name Nancy Coco - a 2013 National Bestseller. Nancy Lives in the Midwest with her Bichonpoo, affectionately known as Little Dog on social media. Nancy loves to hear from readers. Contact her at www.nancyjparra.com 

By the way, Nancy is offering a copy of Murder Gone A-Rye today to one lucky commenter. Remember to leave your email with your comment!!

Take it away, Nancy!

* * *

It’s  July and everyone’s eating fresh and colorful with great summer greens, peppers, tomatoes, carrots, radishes, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and more at the famer’s markets and in gardens.

Toni Holmes, of the gluten-free Baker’s Treat series, loves making gluten-free berry pies and coffee cakes.  If I may, I'd like to ask Toni a couple of questions.

Toni, what is your favorite summer desert?

I love to make gluten-free sponge cake. Then I layer it in glass dishes with blue berries, blackberries and strawberries, whipped cream, cake, more berries, more cake and whipped cream on top.

Is whipped cream gluten-free?

You can make your own to ensure that it is not made in a facility that processes other foods that contain gluten. It’s simple. Buy organic whipping cream – a pint will do. Be sure and get it as cold as possible. The colder it is the faster it whips. I like to put my beaters and the bowl in the freezer for ten minutes before I make the cream to help keep it cold and light. As the cream starts to form peaks add sugar. I like organic pure cane sugar. Usually a tablespoon per cup of cream is enough. For a faster smoother sweet, you can use confectioners’ sugar – I recommend pure cane sugar. Many people who have celiac or gluten sensitivity also have a corn sensitivity so cane sugar is best.  Serve immediately.

Will you share your sponge cake recipe?

Sure - this is my Grandmother’s recipe modified to be Gluten-free.

SPONGE CAKE, Gluten-free

Ingredients:

6 large eggs, separated

½  cup sifted tapioca flour

½ cup sifted all purpose gluten-free flour

¼  teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup (200 grams) granulated white pure cane sugar (divided)

1 teaspoon gluten-free vanilla (or vanillin)

2 tablespoons water

Zest of orange (outer skin) Approximately 1 tablespoon

3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 350. You will need an ungreased ten-inch tube pan.

Separate the egg yolks from the whites. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes until they are room temperature.

In a medium bowl mix the flours, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

Place the egg yolks and 2/3 cup of sugar in a large bowl and beat until thick and light – at least three minutes. Mix in water, vanilla and orange zest. Set aside.

In clean bowl with clean cold beaters, whip the egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tarter and beat to soft peaks. Slowly add 1/3 cup of sugar until stiff peaks form.

Sift the flour mixture over the egg yolk mixture-1/3 at a time until combined. Gently fold in the egg whites until the batter is a uniform yellow color. Pour into pan.

Bake 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Remove from heat and immediately invert the cake. Allow to cool completely before removing from the pan. About 1 hour.

Slice and layer with berries and whipping cream. 

Enjoy!

So what is your favorite dessert with whipped cream??

PS  Don't miss the first in my new series, a Perfect Proposals Mystery.  Engaged in Murder debuted in June!