Two Ingredient Joy by Cleo Coyle

A simple post with a delicious idea. Not new, of course. You may have tried it already. If not, I invite you to share my two ingredient joy.

The first ingredient is mayonnaise.

The second is...

Sriracha Chili Sauce! 

"OH NO," YOU MAY SAY.

"THAT'S TOO HOT FOR ME!

Cleo Coyle has a partner in 

crime-writing—her husband.

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I thought so, too, until I controlled the heat in recipes like this one. Using mayonnaise (or yogurt), you can create the most delightful dipping sauces for boiled or fried shrimp, french fries, and raw veggies like cauliflower, carrots, and celery sticks. 

Use a small amount of the chili sauce for a wonderful smoky flavor. Increase the chili sauce for more heat. And that's it!

Well, almost.

You can always mix the pretty pink mayo with other ingredients to create something like my recent lunch below...

CLEO'S SPICY TUNA SALAD 

WITH RICE CRACKERS

Cleo's Spicy Tuna Salad

2 Tablespoons mayonnaise

1/2 teaspoon Sriracha chili sauce

1 can of tuna, drained (5 oz.)

1 stalk of celery, finely chopped

1 Tablespoon dill relish

Directions: Mix mayo and sriracha sauce to create the spicy mayo. Combine with remaining ingredients. I eat it on rice crackers, but you may prefer it on bread or a roll. However you like it, may you...

☕

Eat (and read) with joy!

~ Cleo Coyle

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

Alice and Marc in Central Park. 

Together we write as Cleo Coyle. 

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This culinary mystery includes
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Baked Beans a la @lucyburdette #recipe

 LUCY BURDETTE: I love baked beans, any kind, even straight out of the can. My Aunt Barbara used to make some killer beans that we loved, baked with bacon and onions covering the top of the dish. Oh heaven! But of course they are loaded with sodium (and sugar probably too) and so not on my diet. But I figured I could make a batch that would be very tasty while leaving out the parts that aren’t very healthy. 

You will get to see my newest, new obsession in this recipe. It’s a vegetable based Sriracha with medium heat, no mystery ingredients. 

This is another recipe that is very flexible – take the measurements that I gave you and then taste as you make the sauce and adjust as meets your taste buds. More syrup or molasses? Or hot sauce? More or less vinegar or mustard? You be the judge.

Ingredients

Three cans low-sodium organic pinto beans (feel free to swap out for another kind of beans)
2/3 cup no salt ketchup
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons good mustard
1 tablespoon molasses
2 tsp Sriracha or to taste
One large onion, chopped

Chop the onion and sauté it in a little olive oil until soft and beginning to brown. Mix the other ingredients together (not including the beans) and taste just to see what needs to be added.

Add the sauce to the onions and simmer for a few minutes. 

Dump the cans of beans into a strainer in the sink and rinse them. Stir the beans into the sauce. You can either heat them up right on the stove or put them in the oven for half an hour while your ribs heat up! Next time I think I might add a second onion and also chop up a green pepper for a little extra zip.

Lucy Burdette writes the Key West food critic mysteries--find them wherever books are sold! Find her on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest--Instagram too...DEATH ON THE MENU will be in bookstores on August 7!

Peanut Butter Cookies with a Kick @LucyBurdette

LUCY BURDETTE:  I looovvvveee peanut butter cookies. So of course I made the roll-up recipe that Cleo gave us a month or two ago. And then I came across a recipe for peanut butter cookies made with Sriracha sauce, which is a hot and spicy sauce that comes from China. This sounded very appealing in a strange kind of way. However, the baker who made this mentioned that two of her taste-testers (who happened to be children), spit the cookies out.

You don't have to be a mystery writer to crack that case: too much hot sauce! I tried the recipe, reducing the hot sauce and increasing the vanilla extract. And I used the store-brand, all-natural, crunchy peanut butter from Publix, which is quite good.

Ingredients
    •    1 cup salted Butter (softened)
    •    1½ cups Crunchy Peanut Butter
    •    1 cup Brown Sugar (packed)
    •    2 Tbsp Sriracha hot sauce
    •    2 Eggs
    •    2 tsp Vanilla extract
    •    2¾ to 3 cups All-Purpose Flour (finished dough should be soft, but not sticky)
    •    1 teaspoon Baking Powder
    •    1½ teaspoons baking soda
    *    1/2 teaspoon salt
    •    Granulated sugar for topping



 In one bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, and mix with a fork.  

In a larger bowl, cream together the peanut butter, butter, and two kinds of sugar. On low speed, beat in the hot sauce, the vanilla, and the eggs. When the batter looks smooth, add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix with care. Your batter should be neither dry nor sticky!


Now lay out a piece of parchment paper and glob the batter into a log shape. Using the parchment paper, roll the dough into a real log, tucking the paper under the ends so nothing falls out.

At this point the logs of dough can be frozen in a ziplock bag, or else refrigerated for at least an hour and up to several days.


When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350. Unwrap the logs and cut them into disks, not too fat and not too thin. 








Place the cookie disks on a baking sheet, dip a fork into granulated sugar and press crisscross lines into the cookies.

Bake for about 8 minutes until the edges are beginning to brown.

One more thing to try: I did freeze some of my logs. When it came time to bake, instead of cutting them into wafers, I rolled them in balls, then sugar. Then I baked as directed, and once they were out of the oven, studded them with Hershey's kisses. Voila: zippy peanut butter blossoms!

Lucy Burdette is the author of the Key West food critic mysteries. MURDER WITH GANACHE will be out on February 4, but you can pre-order it now.

Follow Lucy on Facebook, or Twitter, or Pinterest! She loves it when you pin her stuff:)

Chicken Satay

And the winner is....Margaret of Illinois!
She entered my March contest and
has won an autographed copy
of CUT TO THE CORPSE, which just
came out yesterday! Thanks for playing,
Margaret!




And now let's talk chicken.
Chicken Satay to be exact.

The Hub wanted to grill up something
special the other day, so he decided
Chicken Satay would hit the spot. I,
of course, encouraged him in his endeavor
as any good wife (who enjoys a break
from the kitchen) would.


Well, I have to say the Hub is a good cook, but he out did himself
with this one. It was fantastic! The dudes even asked for THIRDS
and we have been nagging him ceaselessly to make it again. And
so I share it with you -- give it to your Hub and let him WOW you!

Chicken Satay:

Marinade Ingredients:

2 tblspns creamy peanutbutter
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup lime juice
1 tblspn Sriracha "rooster" sauce
1 tspn chopped garlic
2 tblspns curry powder (red curry powder if
you want it spicier)

Chicken Breasts (cut into fourths)

Whisk above ingredients (except the chicken) until the marinade is smooth.
Before putting the chicken into the marinade, you may want to reserve
half a cup for dipping sauce. Marinate chicken overnight. Preheat your grill
(med-high heat). Skewer the chicken and put on grill.
Baste chicken with remaining sauce. Cook five minutes per side.
Serve hot. It's excellent with a side of jasmine rice and some grilled veggies.

Enjoy!

www.jennmckinlay.com

Jenn McKinlay
SPRINKLE WITH MURDER
Available Now

aka Lucy Lawrence
CUT TO THE CORPSE
Available Now

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