Tuesday, March 24, 2020

Cleo Coyle's Irish Whiskey Steak with Royal Tara #Giveaway News

Sadly, for the first time in 258 years, New York City's St. Patrick's Day parade was postponed. The reason, of course, was in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of that, Marc and I decided to make the best of a bad situation and celebrate St. Patrick's Day online with our readers, through our March Newsletter.

Today, we're happy to bring some of that online celebration to Mystery Lovers' Kitchen, starting with a few pictures, which I took at past parades, along with a wonderful video from last year's parade...

🍀 🍀 🍀

NYPD PIPES & DRUMS VIDEO

Though postponed this year, the St. Patrick's Day parade tradition is beloved by millions, so let's celebrate with this memory until the pipes and drums strike up again...

Click the white arrow in the window above to enjoy a stirring performance by the famous NYPD Pipes & Drums at last year's St. Patrick's Day parade. If you don't see the window, you can view the video on YouTube, by clicking here.

🍀 🍀 🍀

As for today's recipe, Marc and I are sharing a slightly adapted version of one we first published ten years ago in our 9th Coffeehouse Mystery, Roast Mortem, a story set around the time of St. Patrick’s Day—and for good reason.

Click to
learn more.

Our mystery in Roast Mortem paid tribute to New York's firefighters, the same ones who now carry 343 flags in every St. Patrick's Day parade, in memory of the 343 souls their department lost in the service of saving others in New York on September 11, 2001.

Remembering the hard times we've weathered
will help us face the challenges ahead...

In honor of all the brave spirits on the front lines today from the first responders to the doctors & nurses & medical staffs, from the supermarket clerks and delivery drivers to all the essential service workers keeping the lights on, we give you a recipe with spirit, a wonderful dish for any day, not just St. Patrick’s Day!

With much love
~ Cleo Coyle, author of
The Coffeehouse Mysteries

Cleo Coyle has a partner in

crime-writing—her husband.

Learn about their books

by clicking here and here.

A Recipe Note from Cleo

Inspired by the ingredients of Irish coffee, my husband and I married whiskey and java in this recipe for an outrageously delicious marinade.

The coffee accents the earthiness of the beef, which stands in contrast to the spirited brightness of the whiskey. The combination creates the kind of complexity that gives beautiful flavor, a finish so good you won’t need steak sauce, just a thick slice of bread to sop up every bit of those sizzling steak juices on your plate.

🍀 To download a free PDF 🍀

of this recipe that you can print,

save, or share, click here.

Click here for the free recipe PDF.

🍀 Cleo Coyle's

Irish Whiskey Steak

Makes 2 servings

Ingredients:

1/3 cup Irish whiskey (we like Jameson)

1/4 cup freshly brewed (and cooled) coffee or espresso

4 tablespoons sesame oil (or any oil you have on hand)

3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 T-bone, rib-eye, or shell steaks (2–3 pounds total)

Directions:

(1) Whisk together the whiskey, coffee, oil, Worcestershire sauce, and pepper and pour into a shallow dish or pan that is large enough to hold 2 steaks flat (single layer, no overlapping).

(2) Cover the dish, pan or container with plastic wrap, and marinated the meat for 1 hour in the refrigerator, then flip and marinate for a second hour. During the last 20 minutes, remove the steak from the refrigerator and allow the meat to reach room temperature.

(3) Sauté the steaks over medium-high heat in a heavy or cast-iron skillet or on a stovetop grill pan (that's what you see in my photos). Cook 5 minutes per side for medium-rare, or 7–8 minutes per side for medium-well. You can also broil or grill them on an outdoor gas or charcoal grill.

NOTE: If your steak is on the thick side, see "Cleo's Quick Kitchen Hack" below for a restaurant technique on finishing it...

CLEO'S QUICK KITCHEN HACK

The Steak Roll...

When your steak is on the thick side, be sure to "roll" it on its sides (as shown above) at the end of the cooking process to get a nice browning on those fatty white edges.

AND FINALLY

(4) Be sure you allow the steak to rest at least ten minutes before slicing so the juices are able to re-collect. If sliced too soon, those important juices may run out and your steak will taste dry instead of moist and juicy—the best way to eat with joy!

Click here for the free recipe PDF.

☕

With much love,

~ Cleo Coyle

New York Times bestselling author
of The Coffeehouse Mysteries &
Haunted Bookshop Mysteries

This is us >> Alice and Marc.

Together we write as Cleo Coyle.

Visit our online coffeehouse here.
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CLEO'S GIVEAWAY NEWS!

We are now running 2 fun prize package contests in our March Newsletter. The packages include a bone china IRISH BLESSING COFFEE MUGS from Royal Tara. An autographed first edition hardcover copy of our bestselling Coffeehouse Mystery Brewed Awakening, a sturdy canvas tote bag, and an autographed set of our favorite recipe cards.

HOW TO ENTER?

👇

TO SUBSCRIBE...

When you subscribe to our free newsletter, an auto-reply will send you a link to our March News, which has all the info you need on our Royal Tara prize package giveaways + you'll get bonus recipes, fun videos, and book news!

Good Luck & Have Fun!

🍀

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

How to make Maple Bacon Breakfast Muffins from Scratch or Pancake Mix by Cleo Coyle

These delicious muffins deliver the taste of a pancake breakfast in one bite: maple syrup, bacon, and fluffy buttermilk flapjacks. I'll show you how to make them two ways: (1) from scratch or (2) with a pancake mix.

Cleo Coyle’s

Maple Bacon Pancake Muffins

Cleo Coyle has a partner in

crime-writing—her husband.

Learn about their books

by clicking here and here.

To create this treat, I started with my own favorite maple muffin recipe and swapped regular milk for buttermilk to mimic the richness of old-fashioned buttermilk pancake batter.

Next I folded in caramelized bacon bits, made from a recipe that I first shared in my 9th Coffeehouse Mystery, Roast Mortem, a tribute to firefighters (with firehouse recipes).

Finally, before baking these muffins, I topped them with a sprinkling of more candied bacon bits and a light drizzle of maple syrup.

The muffin itself is a bonus recipe from A Brew to a Kill, which takes readers on a culinary odyssey through New York City after a food truck war between a “Kupcake Kween” and a coffeehouse manager turns deadly. My husband (and partner in crime writing) flipped for these muffins.

May you eat them with joy!

~ Cleo

☕

To download a PDF version

of this recipe that you can

print, save, or share, click here.

Cleo's Maple Bacon

Pancake Muffins

From Scratch Version...

Makes 6 regular-size muffins (or 12 mini muffins)

Ingredients:

For the bacon:
Caramelized bacon bits will consist of…
6 slices of bacon, smoked or maple
+ 6 teaspoons of light brown sugar

For the batter:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon light brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon Kosher salt (if using table salt, use only a pinch)
1 egg, lightly beaten with fork
2 Tablespoons canola oil
1/3 cup + 1½ teaspoons pure maple syrup (not “pancake syrup," see note)*
1/2 cup buttermilk (I use light)

*Note: “Pancake syrup” is not maple syrup. It consists of corn syrup flavored with maple extract. If you use pancake syrup instead of pure maple syrup in this recipe, be warned that your muffins will be dry. Use pure maple syrup for best results.

Directions:

Step 1 – Make caramelized bacon bits: First preheat oven to 375° F. Muffins need a very hot oven to rise properly, so give the oven a good 20 minutes of pre-heating. Meanwhile, cut 6 slices of bacon into small pieces. (Tip: I use kitchen shears.)

Sauté over medium-high heat until half-cooked—still soft and flexible with fat just beginning to change color. Drain fat. Add your 6 teaspoons of light brown sugar. (This measure is the equivalent of 2 tablespoons; you want 1 teaspoon of brown sugar for each slice of bacon.)

Stir and continue stirring over heat until bacon bits are cooked through but still flexible (do not cook until crisp and brittle). Transfer bacon bits to a plate, break up any clumps into a single layer. Set aside to cool.

Step 2 – One bowl mixing method: Combine flour, 1 Tablespoon brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk until well blended. Make a well in the center. Add fork-beaten egg, measure in canola oil, buttermilk, and 1/3 cup of the maple syrup (you will use the final 1½ teaspoons from the ingredient list later). Whisk the batter until well blended, but do not over-mix or you’ll develop the gluten in the flour and your muffins will be tough instead of tender. The batter will be loose. Fold in the bacon bits, reserving enough to sprinkle over the muffin tops before baking in the next step.

Step 3 – Sprinkle and Drizzle: Coat 6 muffin cups and top of muffin pan with non-stick spray. If using paper liners, coat the papers as well as the top of the pan. Divide batter among the 6 sprayed or lined muffin cups. Sprinkle the reserved caramelized bacon bits over the top of each cup’s batter and drizzle a small amount (¼ teaspoon, no more) of maple syrup on top of the bacon bits and batter.

Step 4 – Bake: If baking standard muffins, check them in 15 minutes for doneness. If baking mini-muffins check them in 8 minutes. Muffins may need a few more minutes than stated, depending on your oven. They’re done when a toothpick inserted comes out with no wet batter clinging to it.

NOTE: The maple syrup drizzle will cause the muffin tops to stick a bit to the pan. Simply use a butter knife to gently free it before removing muffins from cups. FYI - I use the toothpick method to remove baked muffins from their pans. Stick two toothpicks into the muffin from opposite ends and gently lift.

"Pancake Mix" Version

For fun, I included this “pancake mix” option for making the batter in this recipe. The difference between the scratch recipe and this one is mainly texture. The scratch version has a more cake-like crumb while the texture of the pancake mix version is more like a cornmeal muffin, but it’s very good too, and worth a try if you’re curious—and have some pancake mix handy in your pantry! ~ Cleo

Makes 6 regular-size muffins (or 12 mini muffins)

Ingredients:

For bacon:
Caramelized bacon bits consisting of…
6 slices of bacon, smoked or maple
+ 6 teaspoons of light brown sugar

For batter:
1-½ cup dry buttermilk flavor pancake mix (What brand? See my note below.)
1 Tablespoon light brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg, lightly beaten with fork
2 Tablespoons canola oil
1/3 cup pure maple syrup (and not “pancake syrup”)
½ cup whole milk (1% or 2% will work; but do not use skim milk)

*Note on pancake mix: Do not use Bisquick. Do not use a “just add water” mix. Use a mix that requires the addition of milk, eggs, and oil or melted butter. (I use Aunt Jemima Buttermilk flavor.) No matter what brand you choose, a buttermilk flavored mix will give you the best results.

Directions: Follow the directions in the previous recipe with this exception. In Step 2, use this batter instead: Whisk together the pancake mix, 1 Tablespoon brown sugar, baking powder, fork-beaten egg, oil, maple syrup, and milk until well blended. Do not over-mix. Fold in the caramelized bacon bits, reserving enough to decorate each muffin top before baking. The batter will be loose. (Now move to Step 3 in the "from scratch" recipe.)

☕

Eat (and read) with joy!

~ Cleo Coyle

New York Times bestselling author of

The Coffeehouse Mysteries

Yes, this is me, Cleo (aka Alice).

Friend me on facebook here.

Follow me on twitter here.

Visit my online coffeehouse here.

☕

Our NEW Coffeehouse Mystery!

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