Cleo Coyle's Cornbread with a Twist + Book and Tote #Giveaway News

On most mornings, my writer's work table
doubles as my breakfast table!

Here in New York, the beloved toasted corn muffin, slathered with butter, has been a classic morning nosh at diners and delis for decades. Maybe that's why I prefer to eat my cornbread as a breakfast food or an afternoon coffee-break cake.

I know many of you don't see it that way. For you, cornbread is strictly a dinner item, served as a savory side with ribs or chicken. You might add corn kernels or chopped jalapeños to your batter but never sugar. 

To you I say, keep an open mind... :)

☕  A Recipe Note from Cleo

Cleo Coyle has a partner in

crime-writing—her husband.

Learn about their books

by clicking here and here.

If you’re no fan of dry, grainy cornbread, this may be the recipe for you, with or without the sugar. The crumb is tender and tasty (more cake-like). The sour cream is my secret, along with my (subjectively favorite) ratio of flour to cornmeal.

I sometimes cut calories by using low fat milk and reduced fat sour cream; and I sometimes increase the fiber and nutrition by using white whole wheat flour (more on that below).

This sweet cornbread is delicious plain, slathered with butter, or even drizzled with orange blossom honey. And speaking of a slight note of citrus, that's one twist I enjoy giving to my breakfast corn bread. 

With a bounty of beautiful oranges cheering up our winter produce aisles, I like to add a little orange zest to my morning cornbread at this time of year. The light orange fragrance in the warm, sweet bread starts off my winter day just right. If you’re not a fan of oranges, leave it out. But it you are, you may enjoy it as much as I do. 

BY THE WAY...

This is a peak time for California and Florida oranges. They're a great source of vitamins and with winter taxing our systems, they’re also a good immune booster. So enjoy some oranges with your cornbread and coffee!

My note on "white whole wheat" flour…

This lighter type of whole wheat flour gives you the fiber and nutritional benefits of whole grain but with a taste and texture closer to white flour. You can substitute "white whole wheat flour" for all-purpose flour at a 1:1 ratio. While this won’t work in an angel food cake or puff pastry, you can get good results using it in cookies, muffins, brownies, quick breads, and yeast breads. Learn more from King Arthur flour by clicking here. 

☕

To download a free PDF of
this recipe that you can
print, save, or share, click here.

Click for the free recipe PDF

Cleo Coyle's
Cornbread with a Twist

Makes one 8- or 9-inch square pan of cornbread
(This recipe will also work in a 7 x 11-inch pan.)

Ingredients

1 large egg
1/2 cup milk (whole, 2%, or skim)

1/2 cup sour cream (regular or low fat)

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup canola (or vegetable) oil
1-1/2 cup all-purpose flour (for more fiber and nutrition I often use
          “white whole wheat flour,” more info on this above)

1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

(optional) 1 tablespoon orange zest (grated orange peel, no white pith)

CLEO NOTE: If you've never "zested" an orange, lemon or lime, Chef Gordon Ramsay will show you how in the video below... 

If you don't see a video below, click here to watch it.

CLEO NOTE CONTINUED... 

Although I have a boxed grater like Chef Ramsay's, I find a microplane grater/zester makes zesting citrus fruits even easier and well worth the small investment. To see the microplane tool (and/or purchase one for yourself), click here. 

To see an example of a microplane grater used in a recipe, jump to my Lime Meltaway Cookies post by clicking here or on the photo below...

Cleo Coyle's
Cornbread with a Twist

(See Ingredients above)

Directions:

One bowl mixing method: First preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit. In a mixing bowl, whisk together egg, milk, sour cream, sugar, salt, and oil. 

When the mixture is well blended and the sour cream smoothly incorporated, measure in the flour and cornmeal. Evenly sprinkle over the baking powder and soda. If using, add orange zest now. 

Switching to a spoon or spatula, mix to create a lumpy batter. Do not over-mix or you’ll develop the gluten in the flour and your cornbread will be tough instead of tender. 

Prep an 8- or 9-inch square pan by coating with 
non-stick spray (or buttering and dusting with flour). 

Pour batter into pan and 

spread into an even layer.

Bake in preheated oven
for about 25 minutes. 

When a toothpick inserted in the center 

comes out clean, remove from oven. 

Cool, cut, and... 

Eat (and read) with joy!   

~ 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. 

Friend us on Facebook here.
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Visit our online coffeehouse here. 

Just Released!

Our NEW Coffeehouse Mystery!

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👇

Click the image above for our free, illustrated guide
to the recipes found in our new Coffeehouse Mystery:
Brewed Awakening.

CLEO JUST SENT OUT HER

NEW YEAR'S NEWSLETTER.
WITH TASTY RECIPES AND

A FUN GIVEAWAY...

TO SUBSCRIBE:

New Updated Version!

The Coffeehouse Mysteries are bestselling
works of amateur sleuth fiction set in a landmark 

Greenwich Village coffeehouse, and each of the
18 titles includes the added bonus of recipes.

Click for Cleo's Free Checklist of
Coffeehouse Books in Order

GIVEAWAY  NEWS!

Don't miss Cleo's Book & Tote
Giveaway in her New Year's
Newsletter

CLICK HERE to sign up and you'll
receive a link to Cleo's newsletter
in an auto-reply. Info on this
giveaway is in the newsletter.

CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE
TO CLEO'S NEWSLETTER AND
ENTER HER GIVEAWAY...

Good luck! ~ Cleo 

Guest Susan Shea

Join us today at Mystery Lovers' Kitchen in welcoming Susan Shea, author of a lovely series set in France, who gives us a delicious dessert recipe.

A mid-summer field of blooming rapeseed in rural Burgundy

Thank you so much for having me today!

Love & Death in Burgundy, the first in my new mystery series, was loosely inspired by the experiences of two middle-aged California friends of mine who moved with two large dogs and a cat to rural Burgundy on not much more than a whim. Their romantic dreams hit some snags (leaking roof, leaking stone walls, the mystery of the carte de sejour, the downpours that inevitably drench the sheets just hung outdoors to dry) but they persevered, slowly working their way into the life of their crossroads village. While most of the novel is complete fiction, the pear tree under which Katherine and her friends sit in the opening scene is a more productive version of the one I have sat under many times during my visits. The summer day in Burgundy I write about mirrors my experience there, quiet except for a passing tractor and the sounds of birds. Burgundy is famous as the origin of boeuf bourguignon, coq au vin, escargot, and pain d’espices, among other gourmet recipes. Pears poached in wine are served in restaurants in the region, but my recipe is one I’ve been making at home in California for many years.

Summer pears poached in Burgundy wine

Love & Death in Burgundy begins with a scene under a fruiting pear tree in the heart of agricultural France, so this recipe seemed perfect. I have made it several times with different kinds of pears and wine. I prefer the dessert chilled, and that also means you can make it ahead of time.

1 bottle of red wine  

(I chose a pinot made in Burgundy, France, because my new book is set there)

2 cups of sugar

2 cups of water

the juice of 1 orange

the zest of that orange, but save 4 lengths of peel for decoration

a pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg

4 firm pears, peeled but not cored

Make the poaching liquid by combining everything except the orange peel and the pears in a tall saucepan and bringing to a high simmer so the sugar dissolves.

When that has happened, reduce the heat, add the pears and poach, spooning liquid over the pears at least a few times. The cooking time required will depend on the type of pear and how much poaching liquid touches the pears. You don’t want them to get mushy! (To keep them looking pretty, test them for doneness near their bases.)

Gently remove the pears from the poaching liquid and either chill them or set them aside while you bring the heat up and reduce the poaching liquid to a syrup. Spoon the syrup over the peaches and decorate with a curl of orange peel. If you cool the syrup first, you can serve the pears with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or tart lemon sorbet. 

Susan will give a copy of Love & Death in Burgundy to one lucky person who comments today.

Biography: Susan C. Shea is the author of the Dani O’Rourke mysteries, set in San Francisco ("Fresh, fast-paced and great fun." - Library Journal) and a new series, set in France (“…a pleasant getaway from hard-core killers” - NYTBR). Before quitting her day job to write full time, she was a non-profit executive for more than two decades.

You can find her at www.susancshea.com and on Facebook

About the book: After three years of living in the small town of Reigny-sur-Canne, all Katherine Goff really wants is to be accepted by her neighbors into their little community. But as an American expat living in the proud region of Burgundy, that’s no easy task.

When the elderly Frenchman who lives in the village chateau is found dead at the bottom of a staircase, the town is turned into a hot bed of gossip and suspicion, and Katherine suddenly finds herself drawn deeper and deeper into the small town’s secrets. A motherless teenager, a malicious French widow, a brash music producer, and a would-be Agatha Christie are among those caught up in a storm that threatens to turn Katherine’s quiet life upside down. As more and more of the villagers' secrets are brought to light, Katherine must try to figure out who, if anyone, in the town she can trust, and which one of her neighbors just might be a killer.

"Shea launches a cozy series that richly details life in a small French village. The outlandish antics of the eccentric locals add to the humor. Suggest to fans of Rhys Bowen's early "Evan Evans" series for the humor, the characters, and the charming setting." -Library Journal