Coconut Chocolate Clouds - A Delish Recipe

From Daryl aka Avery

I think most of you know that a lot of the MLK authors' books feature recipes at the ends. We talk about food. We savor food.

Well, I adore cookies, don’t you? Little morsels of goodness. Or big morsels, depending…

So, in FINAL SENTENCE, the first in A Cookbook Nook Mystery series (coming out in less than 3 weeks!!), I featured cookie recipes. I’ve included what I consider one of the best Mexican wedding cookies around. (Humble, right?) I’ll share that recipe after the book releases.

For today, I tried a new recipe. I found it in a charming cookbook called Art of the Cookie.  The owner of the culinary bookshop that inspired A Cookbook Nook series, Salt and Pepper Books, recommended it to me. What a find! The cookbook has fabulous recipes and gorgeous pictures!! I can’t wait to try a black and white cookie, my husband’s favorite, when he’s off his current diet.  I can’t be mean and bake them while he’s on it, right?

In the meantime, I love a good macaroon, and this cookie caught my eye.

Please note: it is not as hard as the recipe “reads” by the directions.  In fact, it’s really easy!!  It’s just specific as to each step.

Enjoy!

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED COCONUT CLOUDS

(inspired by the Art of the Cookie by Shelly Kaldunski)

(makes about 24 cookies)

Ingredients:

3 large egg whites at room temp

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

pinch of salt

¾ cup sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

4 ½ cups shredded coconut

Chocolate Glaze:

½ cup cream

1 ½ tablespoons butter

½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325°F. Line 2 to 3 baking sheets with parchment paper and spray with nonstick spray.

In a bowl, combine the egg whites and cream of tartar. Mix on medium-high speed until the whites form a dense foam, about 1 minute. Add the salt. Beat continuously, adding the sugar, until stiff peaks form, about 3 to 4 minutes.

Using a spatula, stir in the vanilla. Then add the coconut, in batches, gently folding into the whites (do not use a blender), just until the coconut is moist.

Place rounded tablespoonsful of the dough (no more, the smaller the better), on the prepared sheets about an inch apart. They do not spread.

Bake until the edges turn lightly golden brown. About 12-14 minutes. (The cookbook suggests 19-22 but mine turned brown fast so keep an eye out!! It might have been because I cooked something earlier in the day and the oven stayed extra warm.) Let cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Next, dip the bottom of each cookie in the chocolate glaze (see below) and return to the parchment paper. Refrigerate the tray for about 10 minutes to set the chocolate.

Store cookies, in a single layer, in an airtight container at room temp for up to 4 days.

PS  I didn't dip half the batch and kept some simply as macaroons. Lightest, fluffiest macaroons I've ever had.

Glaze Directions:

In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the cream and butter to a boil. Remove from heat. Add the chocolate and salt and stir to cover the chocolate with the cream. Let it stand for about a minute. Slowly stir the mixture until it is smooth and satiny. Transfer the mixture to a small bowl and let it cool, stirring often until the glaze is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 40-45 minutes).   Tip: if the glaze gets thick, either set over simmering water and stir until it “melt” again, or add a tablespoon of milk and heat “gently” in microwave for about 15 seconds.

* * *

By the way, I’m having two contests right now. One is a launch contest. I’m giving away a $50 bookstore gift certificate plus some books on my website. Follow this link.

The other is a June Mystery Scramble contest on Facebook with three other authors: Krista Davis, Janet Bolin & Maggie Sefton. Do you like puzzles? Scrambles? You could win a $25 bookstore gift certificate or books from the authors! Go to my Facebook page or any of the authors' pages,  and click on the Scramble link!

And check back to the MLK blog next Wednesday because I’ll be giving away a few "fun" things to those who leave comments. 

SAVOR THE MYSTERY!!!

* * * * * * *

The first book in A Cookbook Nook Mystery series is coming
July 2013!! It's set in the fictional coastal town of Crystal Cove, California and features Jenna Hart, a "recovering" ad exec who returns home to help her aunt open a culinary bookshop and cafe.

FINAL SENTENCE

You can pre-order the book HERE.

You can learn more about Daryl by clicking this LINK. "Like" my page on Facebook and "follow" me on Twitter. And if you haven't done so, sign up for the mailing list so you can learn about upcoming events, releases, and contests!

You can follow and "like"and chat with my alter ego Avery Aames the same way:  Facebook and Twitter.

Grilled Cheese from TO BRIE OR NOT TO BRIE

From Daryl / Avery:

I just got back from Salt and Pepper Books, where a bunch of us signed a ton of books - what a great selection of cookbooks and culinary mysteries, the Malice Domestic Conference, and the Festival of Mystery held by the fabulous indie bookstore, Mystery Lovers Bookshop. They have a great online mystery book selection! Check 'em out!

I've posted pictures on my Facebook page.

Here are a few highlights...

"Victoria Abbott" aka Mary Jane with one of the goodie bags we were giving away from MLK

Lucy, Peg, former MLK'er Ellery Adams, and Sheila at Salt & Pepper Books, a fabulous culinary bookshop!!

Krista and the other nominees for the Agatha Award best novel 

Me, pal-ing around with my critique buds, Janet Bolin (often a guest on MLK; she has a new book out in June)
and Krista (who also has a new book out in June!

It was great to connect with old friends, who aren't old, just darned fun! If you want to see more, go to my Facebook page (link below).

Speaking of old friends...

One of my favorite characters in A Cheese Shop Mystery series is Delilah. She is an "old" friend of Charlotte's. [She's in her thirties...like me and my pals! LOL]  Delilah runs the Country Kitchen Diner with her father, Pops. Delilah returned to Providence after trying to make it on Broadway as a dancer.  Because she’s a go-getter, she wouldn't let her failure on Broadway lessen her love of life. Now that she’s back in town, she’s become the go-to actress or director. She’s even tried her hand at writing a play. My kind of gal. Busy and creative. On a personal note, Delilah is on a quest to make the best grilled cheese ever. She tries all sorts of ingredients.

For my second Cookbook Nook mystery, I’m channeling Delilah. Yes, I’m already writing the "second" as I prepare to publish the first in the series, FINAL SENTENCE. In the second, INHERIT THE WORD, The Cookbook Nook is hosting the town's grilled cheese challenge.  Jenna,  (the protagonist and devoted foodie),  has recently learned that there are recipes at the end of many of the culinary mysteries that she sells in the shop (like all of ours). Talk about a fun surprise. And some of them are easy! So, of course, Jenna has to try her hand at making something from one of the books.

By now, you must be realizing that these two worlds often "collide" in my creative and somewhat over-taxed brain, but it’s so much fun!

I share with you now Jenna’s remake of Delilah’s grilled cheese from TO BRIE OR NOT TO BRIE. Confused? Delilah offers this sandwich when Charlotte, Matthew, Meredith, and the twins come into the diner to discuss the floral arrangements for Matthew and Meredith’s upcoming wedding. The recipe includes bacon!

DELILAH’S GRILLED CHEESE

with GRAPES

ONIONS and BACON

(serves 2)

4 slices bread

4 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons cream cheese

4-6 oz. Doux de Montagne or Fromage d’Affinois cheese

6-8 grapes

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 slices bacon, cooked crisply and chopped

1 teaspoon pepper

dash of paprika

For each sandwich, butter two slices of bread on one side only. Spread cream cheese on the other side of the bread.

Meanwhile, grill the bacon to crisp and drain on paper towels. When cool, cut or chop into small bites.  [Delilah suggests grilling the bacon in the microwave, on paper towels. No mess. Takes about 3-4 minutes.]

Sauté the chopped onion in the sauté pan with the olive oil for 3-5 minutes until slightly browned.  Cool.

Rinse and slice the grapes into “chopped olive” sized slices.

Mix the bacon, onion and grapes together like a salsa.

Heat up flat grilling pan. Place one slice of bread, butter side down, on hot grilling surface.  Layer with Doux de Montagne or Fromage d’Affinois (or other favorite soft) cheese. Top with the grape salsa. Top with the other piece of bread (butter side up).

Grill the sandwich on low to medium for 4-5 minutes. Flip the sandwich and grill for another 4-5 minutes, until a nice golden brown and cheese oozing.

Remove from heat and serve immediately.

[This can be made on gluten-free bread. It is still amazing.]

Say cheese and savor the mystery!

* * * * * * *

Daryl Wood Gerber also writes as Avery Aames, 

author of the Agatha Award-winning,

nationally bestselling CHEESE SHOP MYSTERY SERIES 

The 1st in A Cookbook Nook Mystery series is coming July 2013!!

FINAL SENTENCE.

You can pre-order the book HERE.

The 4th in A Cheese Shop Mystery series is out! 

TO BRIE OR NOT TO BRIE
You can order the book HERE. 

You can learn more about me, Daryl by clicking this LINK. "Like" my page on Facebook and "follow" me on Twitter. And if you haven't done so, sign up for the mailing list

 so you can learn about upcoming events, releases, and contests! Also, you probably know by now about my alter ego, Avery Aames. Chat with Avery on Facebook and Twitter.

SALMON CAKES

by Sheila Connolly

A few weeks ago, some of us bloggers here were lucky enough to hold a joint signing at a wonder cookbook store called Salt and Pepper Books in Occoquan, Virginia.  Talk about heaven!  An entire store filled with delightful kitchen gadgets (like I don't have enough already) AND books, including our food-themed books.  Not only that, people came to buy our books!  This is exactly what a signing should be like.

Of course I bought several things, including two Irish-themed cookbooks written by Margaret M. Johnson.  I can't tell you how excited I am about them.

Irish cooking has long had a bad rep—potatoes, watery stews, cabbage, and potatoes.  It's understandable, because for a very long time, the Irish peasants (the majority of the country) lived on potatoes, cabbage, and milk or butter.  Every day.  In fact, it is a nutritionally balanced meal, and it kept those peasants going—until the famine in the 1850s, when the potatoes died.  No potatoes meant no food, which meant people died in large numbers or left the country forever.

Sorry for that depressing bit of Irish history. What I want to say is that Irish cooking has most definitely moved beyond the potato, and there's some great stuff coming out of small restaurants and even pubs there these days.  I started leafing through one of Johnson's books, The Irish Pub Cookbook (2006), and immediately grabbed for my sticky pad so I could mark recipes.  And then wrote her a fan email. After all, my coming County Cork Mysteries are set in a small pub in Ireland (but my heroine is going to have to learn to cook!).

This was the first recipe that caught my eye, only because it was near the front of the book—there were plenty more, but I'm saving those for another day.  For us here in New England, the outdoor grilling season is a little unpredictable, so maybe this is a farewell to non-summer fare.

SALMON CAKES WITH DILL SAUCE (from The Irish Pub Cookbook, with a few small tweaks)

1 lb. salmon filets, poached until flaky (do not overcook or mash up)
2 Tblsp minced fresh chives (the only thing growing in my garden)
1 tsp minced or grated fresh ginger
1/3 cup mayonnaise
Salt and pepper to taste
2 large eggs
½ cup milk
All purpose flour for dredging
Bread crumbs for dredging

Flake the salmon into a medium bowl and stir in chives, ginger and mayonnaise.  Season with salt and pepper.

Shape the mixture into four 3" cakes (I made more because there were three of us).  In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk.  Put the flour and breadcrumbs in two shallow dishes or flat pie pans.  Dip each cake in flour, then egg wash, then bread crumbs.  Refrigerate for one hour (so they'll hold together when you cook them!).

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the oil.  Fry the salmon cakes for 3 minutes on each side, or until golden.

DILL SAUCE (optional)
1 Tblsp unsalted butter (Irish if you've got it, of course!)
1/3 cup minced shallots
1½ cups fish stock or bottled clam juice
¾ cup heavy cream
Freshly ground pepper
2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped (Fresh is best, but you may use canned.  If you do, drain the tomatoes before adding to the sauce.)
1 Tblsp minced fresh dill

In a small skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and cook the shallots until softened but not brown.  Add the fish stock or clam juice and cook for 5-8 minutes until reduced by half.  Add the cream and cook for 3-5 minutes.  Season with pepper.  Strain the sauce (if you want), then return it to the pan and stir in tomatoes and dill.

You may substitute white wine for part of the fish stock. If you do, add it before the fish stock and cook for a few minutes to let the alcohol evaporate.