Amanda Flower's Blog, page 10
July 2, 2021
Easiest Pasta Salad Ever #Recipe
My pasta salad recipe is easy! I mean really easy! It’s something I make all the time for quick lunches and dinners at home. My husband is a huge fan, and even though the recipe is simple, he says it’s the best pasta salad he’s ever had!
Ingredients
Box of pasta of your choice1/4 cup of Italian dressing. More to taste. I prefer to use Light Italian.2 tablespoons of balsamic dressing. One 6oz can of large black olivesOne sweet pepper. Chopped.Directions
Boil pasta as directed on box.Rinse and cool cooked pasta and put in a big bowl.Add all other ingredients to the bowl.Stir until all the pasta, peppers, and olives are coated with dressing.Refrigerate for at least thirty minutes. Overnight is best.Add a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese when serving if desired.Enjoy! (Yes! It is really that easy!)
This Week’s Featured Book!
Darby Piper is in shock. A seasoned female detective, she worked with Samantha Porter at the Two Girls Detective Agency. Now, Samantha is dead, and it doesn’t look like an accident. In fact, evidence is pointing toward Darby.
Darby had expected to inherit Samantha’s half of the agency, but Samantha had recently changed the will to leave it to Tate Porter, her nephew, who returns to town.
Tate is no private eye. He’s a world traveler and a veteran whose military past is also something of a mystery. But as he helps Darby delve into secret histories and real estate development plans, he proves to be a talented amateur sleuth. Will the agency have a future…even if Darby can solve this murder mystery in time?
This first in series cozy mystery includes a free Hallmark original recipe for Berry Trifle.
Happy reading! 
Amanda
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June 25, 2021
How to Make a Rock Garden
As construction began on our farm to build our house, something kept turning up…. Rocks! Small rocks, medium rocks, and giant rocks that even my six five, former football player husband can’t pick up. As soon as I saw all those rocks I knew that I wanted to make a rock garden. My mother had one at our house when I was growing up, and it was one of my favorite spots in our backyard. In fact when I was about nine, she gave me a corner of the rock garden as my very own garden. I could plant whatever I wanted and arrange the rocks just how I liked them. I think about that little garden often because its the one that made me fall in love with gardening. So this summer, I started a rock garden at our farm. It’s just the beginnings of it, and ultimately, I hope it will take over one whole corner of the property just like my mother’s rock garden did. Here’s what I did to make it happen. It’s actually very easy if you have the rocks.
Steps
Collect rocks of various shapes and sizes. The more unique the rocks the more interesting your garden will be.Before placing the rocks, till the area you want to plant.Add a layer of peat moss.Add a layer of top soil over the peat moss.Place the largest rocks in the area.Select plants. I was putting my rock garden in a semi-shady part of our property, so some of the plants I chose were foxglove, bleeding heart, chameleon plant, hardy geranium, and delphinium. Also the plants I chose are deer resistant since we are way out in the country.Add the remaining rocks. Move them around until you are happy with the arrangement.Add garden ornaments if desired. In my case, the theme of my rock garden is reading woodland creatures. I have found stone animals at my local craft stores and garden centers. Every time I see a stone statue like that, I snap it up!Enjoy you finished project.
Beginnings of the rock garden on the farm!
This Week’s Featured Book!
Reeling from the loss of her fiancé and flower shop, Fiona Knox is surprised to find that her newfound inheritance—her late grandfather’s magical estate—comes with a murder mystery too
Florist Fiona Knox’s life isn’t smelling so sweet these days. Her fiancé left her for their cake decorator. Then, her flower shop wilted after a chain florist opened next door. So when her godfather, Ian MacCallister, leaves her a cottage in Scotland, Fiona jumps on the next plane to Edinburgh. Ian, after all, is the one who taught her to love flowers. But when Ian’s elderly caretaker Hamish MacGregor shows her to the cottage upon her arrival, she finds the once resplendent grounds of Duncreigan in a dreadful shambles—with a dead body in the garden.
Minutes into her arrival, Fiona is already being questioned by the handsome Chief Inspector Neil Craig and getting her passport seized. But it’s Craig’s fixation on Uncle Ian’s loyal caretaker, Hamish, as a prime suspect, that really makes her worried. As Fiona strolls the town, she quickly realizes there are a whole bouquet of suspects much more likely to have killed Alastair Croft, the dead lawyer who seems to have had more enemies than friends.
Now it’s up to Fiona to clear Hamish’s name before it’s too late in Flowers and Foul Play, USA Today bestselling author Amanda Flower’s spellbinding first Magic Garden mystery.
Happy reading! Amanda
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Double Berry Smoothie #Recipe
This recipe is perfect for summer berry season. You can make it with frozen or fresh berries. It could not be easier!
Ingredients
one cup frozen mixed berries
1/2 cup Greek plain yogurt
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
one banana
one tablespoon of chia seeds
handful of ice cubes
Directions
Put everything together in a blender and blend!
Enjoy!
FEATURED BOOK OF THE WEEK
The Sequel to Maid of Murder
College librarian India Hayes thought the worst thing about the Stripling Founders’ Festival was her pink gingham pioneer dress until she discovered the body of a free-spirited basket weaver on the festival grounds. The basket weaver leaves behind an angry blacksmith husband, a confused adopted son, greedy siblings, a dysfunctional artists’ co-op, and a labradoodle with a two-million-dollar trust in his name. Despite the wrath of her college’s provost and protests by handsome police detective Rick Mains, India finds herself playing sleuth as well as foster-owner to the two-million-dollar dog. With her own eccentric family commenting from the sidelines and her Irish-centric landlady as volunteer sidekick, India must discover the truth before she has a permanent canine houseguest or ends up the next victim in the basket weaver’s murder.
Happy reading!
Amanda
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Maid of Murder on #KindleUnlimited
June 16th will mark my 11th anniversary of being a published author! My very first novel Maid of Murder came out on June 16, 2010. I’m not exaggerating to say it changed the course of my life. It finaled for the Agatha Award for Best First Novel, went into three printings its first year, and was the book that broke me into publishing. Eleven years later, I’m still writing and have published thirty-eight mysteries with more on the way!
To celebrate this anniversary. Maid of Murder is available for the very first time on Kindle Unlimited, which is a service through Amazon. What this means if you have Kindle Unlimited subscription, you can read the book for free!
Don’t have Kindle Unlimited? Don’t worry! The Kindle edition is available for $2.99. The book is also available in paperback!
This is just another way for me to thank you to my readers. Your support over the last decade plus of my career has been incredible! Thank you! And I hope you in enjoy the book! If you read it already, post a review. Reviews really do help!
FEATURED BOOK OF THE WEEK
AGATHA AWARD NOMINATED TITLE
In MAID OF MURDER, India Hayes, a college librarian and reluctant bridesmaid, is thrown into the role of amateur sleuth as she hunts down the person who murdered her childhood friend and framed her brother for the crime.
When bride-to-be Olivia turns up dead in the Martin College fountain and the evidence points to India’s brother Mark, India must unmask the real culprit while juggling a furious Mother of the Bride, an annoying Maid of Honor, a set of hippie-generation parents, a police detective who is showing a marked liking for her, and a provost itching to fire someone, anyone—maybe even a smart-mouthed librarian.
Amazon
Happy reading!
Amanda
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Upcoming #NewBooks From Amanda Flower
I’m getting a lot of reader emails and messages asking me what my next books are, which is awesome. I’m so thrilled that readers are ready for more of my books. Because of all the questions, I thought this would be a great time to update you on my release schedule. Through the summer and early fall, it will be fairly quiet as far as new books go from me, but then it picks up and doesn’t slow down until fall 2022. Part of the reason for the gap is I wrote fewer books in 2020. Between the pandemic and getting married, I reduced my load. However, I’m back to my normal pace in 2021. In fact this year, I’m writing seven books! As of today (6/4/21), three are completely done, one is nearly done, one is started, and two are just deadlines.
The biggest book news I have is the recent two-book deal I signed with Penguin Random House’s Berkley imprint for the Emily Dickinson Mysteries. It is my first ever historical mystery series and is set in 1850s Amherst, Massachusetts with the beloved poet Emily Dickinson as sleuth and narrated by her fictional maid Willa Noble. Publication for book one is summer 2022, official date to be announced. That will be the only new series I have starting in the next year. All others are continuations of series. I hope you enjoy them all!
Upcoming Releases and Dates Through Spring 2022
Marriage Can Be Mischief, Amish Matchmaker Mystery #3– November 30, 2021
Verse and Vengeance, Magical Bookshop Mystery #4 (in paperback)– December 7, 2021
Crimes and Covers, Magical Bookshop Mystery #5– January 11, 2022
Put out Pasture, Farm to Table Mystery #2– February 22, 2022
Peanut Butter Panic, Amish Candy Shop #7– Spring 2022
Later in 2022
Frozen Detective, Piper and Porter Mystery #1– date TBA
Emily Dickinson Mystery #1– date TBA
Amish Matchmaker #4–date TBA
FEATURED BOOK OF THE WEEK
Although baby showers aren’t an Amish tradition, Bailey King wants to celebrate Emily Keim’s forthcoming bundle of joy. Everyone in Harvest, Ohio has gathered at the town gazebo—decked out in lemon-themed décor to add some of Emily’s favorite flavor to the festivities—including Juliet Brook, Jethro the Pig, and in a last-minute invite, Emily’s sister Esther Esh. But Esther isn’t the only surprise guest. A mysterious Amish woman confronts Emily claiming to know about her secret. Later that evening, the woman reappears—dead in Esh Family Pretzels, with a threatening letter written by Esther found on her body.
Amazon | B&N | IndieBound | BAM
Happy reading!
Amanda
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Vegetarian Enchiladas #Recipe
With summer just around the corner, I am thinking of summer flavors. I always eat more fruit and salad in the summer, but I also eat more Mexican food too. It’s definitely one of my favorites, and I never tire of it. This is a tried and true recipe that it a huge favorite in our house. It makes six enchiladas. I hope you enjoy it!
Vegetarian Enchiladas
Ingredients
1-2 tablespoons of vegetable oil1 sweet onion1 10 oz can of tomatoes and chilies1 tablespoon cumin1 tablespoon dry or fresh cilantro1 tablespoon chili powder (or to taste)1 16 oz can of vegetarian refried beans15 oz bottle of green taco sauceCheddar or cheese of choiceDirections
Preheat Oven 350 degrees FCoat the bottom of the baking dish with the green taco sauce. Be sure to save enough to coat the enchiladas.In a medium pot, add vegetable oil and onion. Heat until onions are translucent.Add cumin, chili powder, and cilantro to pot. Stir.Add refried beans to the pot. Mix thoroughly.Add canned tomatoes and chilies to the pot. Mix thoroughly. Lay tortilla on a plate and add sprinkling of cheese.Places two tablespoons of the bean mixture on top of the cheese.Fold the tortilla tightly into a pouch and lay seam down the baking dish.Repeat 7-9 times until all tortillas are in the baking dish.Coat enchiladas with the remaining green taco sauce. Take care you cover every inch.Add cheese to the top.Bake for 20-30 minutes.Enjoy!
This Week’s Featured Book!
The beloved first novel in the Magical Bookshop Mysteries!
Rushing home to sit by her ailing grandmother’s bedside, Violet Waverly is shocked to find Grandma Daisy the picture of perfect health. Violet doesn’t need to read between the lines: her grandma wants Violet back home and working in her magical store, Charming Books. It’s where the perfect book tends to fly off the shelf and pick you…
Violet has every intention to hightail it back to Chicago, but then a dead man is discovered clutching a volume of Emily Dickinson’s poems from Grandma Daisy’s shop. The victim is Benedict Raisin, who recently put Grandma Daisy in his will, making her a prime suspect. Now, with the help of a tuxedo cat named Emerson, Violet will have to find a killer to keep Grandma from getting booked for good…
Happy reading! Amanda
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Kelsey Cambridge’s Ten Tips for Hosting a Wedding at a Museum
Kelsey Cambridge is the Director of Barton Farm, a living history museum tucked away in Ohio’s Cuyahoga Valley. She has hosted many weddings on the Farm, but none like her ex-husband’s wedding to Krissie Pumpernickel. To help others who might find themselves in a similar sticky situation, she has compiled a list of helpful wedding hosting tips.
When dealing with a disagreeable bride, especially if that bride is marrying your ex-husband, take deep cleansing breaths and count backwards down from ten a lot.Make sure your six-year-old son had plenty of activities to do during wedding planning so that a) he doesn’t get bored and b) he doesn’t realize how crazy the adults around him actually are.Make sure the attack chickens are stored safely in their coop.Give your theatrical father an assignment or he will always be underfoot.Make sure your gardener doesn’t have a nervous breakdown when the bride asks to remove all plants that might attract insects from the Farm.Be on the lookout for runaway sheep.Make sure your employees are not embellishing historical facts about the Farm for the entertainment value.Don’t mess with the oxen.Keep drunk Abraham Lincoln on a short leash. If a dead body turns up, don’t be alarmed but track down the killer.
This Week’s Featured Book!
Summer weddings at Barton Farm’s picturesque church were standard procedure for museum director Kelsey Cambridge―until the Cherry Foundation, which supports the museum, ordered Kelsey to host her ex-husband’s wedding on Farm grounds. Ambitious wedding planner Vianna Pine is determined to make the bride’s Civil War-themed wedding perfect. But each time Vianna’s vision threatens the integrity and safety of the Farm, Kelsey has to intervene. And when she finds Vianna’s dead body at the foot of the church steps, everyone’s plans fall apart. With both the wedding and Barton Farm at risk of being permanently shut down, Kelsey has to work hard to save her own happily ever after.
Happy reading! Amanda
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Amanda Flower Designs on #Etsy
Did you know that I have a Etsy Shop? It’s true! I have loved art and crafting since I was a little girl. I have always especially loved working with beads. Recently, I revealed my Etsy summer collection. It has fun bookmarks and beachy beaded bracelets. It’s all casual and colorful, which is pretty much my personal style. I hope you will check the shop out. Just click on the link to see more!
This Week’s Featured Book!
College librarian India Hayes thought the worst thing about the Stripling Founders’ Festival was her pink gingham pioneer dress until she discovered the body of a free-spirited basket weaver on the festival grounds. The basket weaver leaves behind an angry blacksmith husband, a confused adopted son, greedy siblings, a dysfunctional artists’ co-op, and a labradoodle with a two-million-dollar trust in his name. Despite the wrath of her college’s provost and protests by handsome police detective Rick Mains, India finds herself playing sleuth as well as foster-owner to the two-million-dollar dog. With her own eccentric family commenting from the sidelines and her Irish-centric landlady as volunteer sidekick, India must discover the truth before she has a permanent canine houseguest or ends up the next victim in the basket weaver’s murder.
Happy reading! Amanda
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How to Refinish a Dresser
Since my husband and I are building a new house on our farm, we are trying to save money anywhere we can. One way to do that is buying furniture secondhand. If you are willing to put in the time and effort you can make older pieces that have been in your family for generations shine or diamonds in the rough your might find at yard sales. Last year, I bought a waterfall chifforobe at a yard sale and just finished refinishing it this spring. Here are the steps I took with pictures! Many of the steps can bee apply to most wood furniture. Good luck with your project!
BeforeWhat you will need:
sander with sand paper (power sander is preferred)castersnew sheets of veneerwood gluewood stainnew hardwaredrillretractable knifeseveral paint brushhot water bottlescrewdriverdrop clothsMurphy oil soapold toothbrush
Steps:
Remove loose or unsalvageable veneer with a stiff putty knife. You can use a hot water bottle to loosen the glue. Leave hot water bottle on the stuck pieces for 30 minutes to an hour.Remove broken or rusted hardware. (I removed the drawer pulls and the broken casters.)Glue any loose pieces back together and hold in place with painters tape until dry.Wash inside and out with Murphy Oil Soap. I had to use and old toothbrush to get the corners.Sand every surface with the grain.If needed, drill new holes for new hardware and fill old holes with wood putty. (In my case, I could not find handles that were the right width, so I had to do this.)Following the glue instructions, glue the new veneer where it needs replacing. Clamp or press down on the veneer to hold it place or use heavy books. (In my case, books are cat litter). Let dry for 24 hours.Using the retractable knife, following the edge of the wood, trim the excess veneer from the piece. Take your time with this step.Stain the piece. At least two coats. I did three because I wanted it to be dark. Allow to dry per the can’s instructions between coats.Polyurethane the piece. Two coats. Allow to dry per the can’s instructions between coats.When completely dry, add new hardware.Add casters. (In my case, I used spackling paste and glue to add the casters. The holes were too large for my new casters and the legs had metal casings inside, so I could not drill new holes.)Enjoy your new to you piece of furniture!
After
This Week’s Featured Book!
Years ago, I wrote the Amish Quilt Mysteries under the pen name Isabella Alan. There are five novels and one e-novella in the series. Give them a try!
Spring has arrived in Holmes County and Angie couldn’t be happier. She’s got great friends, a thriving business, and is in the perfect relationship with Sheriff James Mitchell. The only thing raining on her parade is her mother drafting her into a massive home renovation project—and using their sudden mother/daughter bonding time to comment on Angie’s ticking biological clock.
The house’s repairs and upgrades between the Amish craftsmen and their Englisch counterparts are proceeding well until a tremendous shock comes to the workers when the electrician is found dead on site. With the sheriff suspecting foul play, it falls to Angie to root a killer out of the woodwork. . . .
Happy reading! Amanda
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#NewBook Lemon Drop Dead Now Available!
Lemon Drop Dead, the 6th novel in the Amish Candy Shop Mysteries release earlier this week! I’m so excited to have this book out in the world to answer some of those questions readers have been having about the Esh Family that owns the pretzel shop next to Swissmen Sweets. I hope you enjoy it! As a special treat, I’m sharing the first few pages of the book here for you to read. Enjoy!
Lemon Drop Dead
Chapter One
The front door of Swissmen Sweets swung inward, causing the large shop window to rattle in its frame and the shelves holding jars of jelly beans, caramels, and gumdrops to shake. The noise made me jump. It was late afternoon, and I stood alone, sweeping under the three café tables at the front of the shop where customers could rest while waiting for their candy orders or visit with friends and neighbors while enjoying one of our sweet treats.
The shop would close soon. I looked forward to locking up for the night. My boyfriend, Aiden Brody, had promised me a date night that evening. They were hard to come by for us. We both had crazy work schedules. He was a deputy at the Sheriff’s Department, and I was constantly juggling my duties at Swissmen Sweets, the Amish candy shop I ran with my grandmother in Harvest, Ohio, with the responsibilities of my cable television show, Bailey’s Amish Sweets, which filmed in New York City. It was rare that neither of us had an obligation. Sadly, I had a feeling my night off was about to disappear when Aiden’s mother walked through the door.
I stepped behind the domed-glass counter. “Good afternoon, Juliet. What can I do for you?”
Juliet Brook stood on the other side of the counter beaming from ear to ear. From past experience, I took the giant smile as a bad sign.
On this mild May evening, she wore a green and blue polka-dotted blouse over black trousers and black-and-white high heels. Her blond hair was smoothed back into a French twist. Polka dots were her style statement, from her clothes to the black-and-white, polka-dotted potbellied pig she held under her arm. Jethro stared at me in bewilderment as if to ask how he had gotten there and what on earth was happening. Granted, the little bacon bundle had that expression on his pudgy face ninety percent of the time. Until recently, Juliet had toted Jethro, who was roughly the size of a toaster, just about everywhere she went.
But in the last several months since she had married Reverend Brook, the pastor of the large white church on the other side of the village square, she had been carrying Jethro around a lot less often. At least when it came to church functions where she was working in her capacity as pastor’s wife. Those times when she needed to concentrate on her church duties and could not focus on making sure Jethro wasn’t knocking over the church altar, she dropped Jethro off with her favorite pig sitter . . . me.
Now, I didn’t ask for or want the title of go-to pig sitter for Jethro or any other pig, but Juliet had got it in her head that I was the person for the job ever since I had saved the little pig from an untimely death a couple of years back. Because of that, she believed that Jethro and I had a special bond. I wasn’t nearly as convinced. So, when she waltzed into Swissmen Sweets late that afternoon, I had every reason to believe that Jethro was being pawned off on me again.
“Bailey! Bailey! Is it true? Is it true?” Juliet cried in a breathless voice.
I placed the stack of receipts I was checking against my accounts on the counter. “Is what true, Juliet?”
“Emily!” she cried.
“What about Emily?”
“Oh, for goodness’ sake, Bailey, you know what I mean. Emily is having a baby! A baby! Can you believe it! It’s a miracle. I love babies so much.” She gave me a quick glance. “You know I have great dreams of being a grandmother. Can you imagine me as a grandma? I would be the very best.” She held Jethro up above the counter so that I had a better view of his face. “Think of how well I treat Jethro.”
I wasn’t sure how I felt about Juliet comparing a future grandchild to her comfort pig.
When Jethro grunted, she lowered the pig. “Jethro is a good support to me as I wait for that happy day, if it ever comes.” She stared at me from under her lashes.
It took all my willpower not to grunt back in frustration. Over the last several years, Juliet had made it no secret that she would love to see her only child, Aiden, settled down with a wife and family. Because I was Aiden’s girlfriend, I was certain that she saw me as part of the holdup.
Juliet seemed to ignore the fact that Aiden and I weren’t married, and we had only been officially dating for a year and a half. I thought our relationship was moving along nicely. Juliet begged to differ and, despite the lack of proposal or ring, considered us engaged. She had great and outspoken hopes for a summer wedding this year, but seeing how it was May and we weren’t yet engaged, those hopes would go unfulfilled.
Both Aiden and I wanted to get married, and we’d been talking about it privately with more and more frequency, but our schedules made it difficult to even fathom a wedding. I just didn’t know how I would plan a wedding with all of my other responsibilities for Swissmen Sweets’ expanding business and Bailey’s Amish Sweets. The show had me flying to New York to do promotion or filming every three months. And my calendar wasn’t the only problem. Aiden worked long hours as a sheriff’s deputy. As the second in command to a grumpy and disengaged sheriff, he had to shoulder much of the workload and administrative duties required to keep the department running smoothly.
A little part of me—okay, a giant part—wanted to elope, but I knew Juliet would never forgive us if we did that. Aiden was her only son and her golden boy. She wanted to be there for the wedding. I was pretty sure she wanted Jethro to walk me down the aisle, too.
“Yes, I know Emily’s expecting,” I said. “The baby is due next month. It’s not been a secret. Everyone at Swissmen Sweets is so happy for her.”
Emily Keim was one of my shop assistants. She was a young Amish wife who’d married Christmas tree farmer Daniel Keim a year ago. The young couple was expecting their first child in July. Actually, it would be Daniel’s first child, but not Emily’s. I was certain Juliet knew nothing about Emily’s history as a mother, and I planned to keep it that way.
“I can’t believe I’m just hearing about the baby. I know I’ve been very caught up in the church. You would not believe all the responsibilities I have as the pastor’s wife, but I’m determined to be the very best and make Reverend Brook proud.”
I smiled. There was something endearing and old-fashioned about the fact that Juliet still called her husband Reverend Brook even though they were married. “No one would doubt for a second that you weren’t the perfect pastor’s wife.”
She blushed, and then asked, “What are you going to do about Emily’s baby?”
“What am I going to do about it?” I asked. As far as I knew, there was nothing I could or should do about Emily’s baby.
“Aren’t you going to have a baby shower? She needs a baby shower! You have to host a baby shower.”
I held up my hand to stop her. I thought if she said “baby shower” one more time, my head might explode.
Copyright 2021 Amanda Flower. All rights reserved.
Order the Book to Keep Reading!
FEATURED BOOK OF THE WEEK
Although baby showers aren’t an Amish tradition, Bailey King wants to celebrate Emily Keim’s forthcoming bundle of joy. Everyone in Harvest, Ohio has gathered at the town gazebo—decked out in lemon-themed décor to add some of Emily’s favorite flavor to the festivities—including Juliet Brook, Jethro the Pig, and in a last-minute invite, Emily’s sister Esther Esh. But Esther isn’t the only surprise guest. A mysterious Amish woman confronts Emily claiming to know about her secret. Later that evening, the woman reappears—dead in Esh Family Pretzels, with a threatening letter written by Esther found on her body.
Amazon | B&N | IndieBound | BAM
Happy reading!
Amanda
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