Irene Preston's Blog, page 9
March 5, 2015
Valentina’s Brownies with Chilies Recipe
Send to KindleFour days until the release of A Taste of You, and I brought you a tasty treat – Valentina’s brownie recipe!
Brownies with Chilies
“Did your mama help you make these?”
“Well, I started with one of her recipes,” Valentina admitted, “but I changed it. And she suggested the chocolate, but she let me make a bunch of batches one day so I could try different kinds and taste them all at once. We labeled everything and made notes.”
“What chocolate did you use?”
“Bittersweet. I kept the wrapper so I can remember the name when we go to the store.”
“And the peppers?”
“Serrano. I made some with chipotle, too. Jalapeño was too hot if it wasn’t chopped really fine, and I like the little pieces of pepper.”
“Your mother let you dice the peppers?”
“I can’t use the sharp knives unless she is with me. She has to stand with me and watch, not just be in the kitchen. Is it any good, Uncle Garrett?”
Valentina puts chopped chilies in her brownie – which is something I love. You can add chilies to almost any brownie recipe. In addition to the little kick of heat, they really enhance the chocolate flavor. I have two go-to brownie recipes. This recipe makes a rich, fudgie brownie. Like Valentina, I usually put serrano peppers in mine and I like bittersweet chocolate.
BROWNIES with CHILIES RECIPE
Ingredients:
4 ounces fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), chopped
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 medium serrano chili – chopped or minced
Preheat oven to 350°F. and butter and flour an 8-inch square baking pan.
Chop your chili and set aside. You can do a fine mince or a coarser chop to your taste. The fine mince will give a more even heat. If you wan little bursts of flavor, make the chop larger. You can also use more or less pepper to taste and experiment with different kinds of chilies.
In a heavy 1 1/2-quart saucepan melt chocolate and butter over low heat, stirring, until smooth and remove pan from heat. Cool mixture to lukewarm and whisk in sugar and vanilla. Add eggs, 1 at a time, whisking well until mixture is glossy and smooth. Stir in flour and salt until just combined then stir in chilies.
Spread batter evenly in pan and bake in middle of oven 22 to 25 minutes, or until a tester comes out with crumbs adhering to it. Cool brownies completely in pan on a rack.
NOTE: I modified this from these cappuccino brownies on Epicurious.com – the original recipe is amazingly good. It’s about 50/50 the times I use the espresso powder and the times I use the chilies. I almost never frost them, though.
Learn More About A Taste of You
Hell’s Kitchen has nothing on the flames Giancarlo and Garrett ignite at Restaurant Ransom…
Blurb | Read a Chapter | What People are Saying
February 26, 2015
Taryn Kincaid: Healthy Mock Mashed Potato Recipe
Send to KindleI’m fascinated by things that aren’t what they seem, so when Taryn Kincaid promised me a “mock” potato recipe, I was all ears.
I don’t have anything else to say…I want to get to it!
Oh, wait! Don’t forget to check out Taryn’s new book If You Can’t Stand The Heat at the bottom of the page. It’s another foodie in the Fated Desires Give Me a Taste line – and it is hot!
Oh, and if you scroll all the way to the bottom you can still enter for a $25 gift card I’m giving away soon!
Taryn
Does anyone not love mashed potatoes? They are one of my comfort foods of choice. But lately, like most people, I’ve been trying to limit the starchy carbs.
You know those people who tell you to cut out everything white? They’ve either forgotten about cauliflower or they are just plain missing out.
I am not much of a veggie person. Or at least I haven’t been in the past. But a couple of new gourmet take-out places on my block have opened my eyes. One of them makes fabulous roasted cauliflower that tastes to me as if it has a sprinkle of cinnamon. They deny that and insist it’s just tarragon and a little oil. Maybe. Whatever it is, they’ve got me eating mass quantities of cauliflower for the first time in my life.
The other place makes Mashed Cauliflower. Honestly? The first time I sampled a spoonful in the store, I thought it was mashed potatoes. I was in heaven. According to them, once again, just olive oil.
I’ve since found tons of recipes with all sorts of variation on the web. I’ve pinned a few on Pinterest. One recipe calls for cream cheese and Parmesan, but to me that sort of defeats the purpose. The most basic, simple recipe is boiled cauliflower, a little pepper, a little olive oil or butter. When I posted my new discovery on Facebook, my old college roommate suggested softening the cauliflower in broth. And that would be why she’s a Phi Beta Kappa.
It’s fun to experiment. Here’s the basic recipe. Add what you want!
Mock Mashed Potato Recipe
1 medium head of cauliflower, cleaned and cut into pieces.
Boil in saucepan with enough chicken broth and/or water to cover. (I reserve some of the broth for mashing!) When very soft (at least six minutes), drain off the liquid, but don’t let the cauliflower cool down.
Place in mixing bowl. Add 1 tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil (I use an olive oil infused with garlic.) and the reserved broth.
At this point you are pretty much done. But you can also add all the stuff you’d add to your mashed potatoes: a little ground black pepper, a little garlic (try that roasted!), a little skim milk, milk or cream, depending on how calorie conscious you are.
Mash with a fork, or a potato masher if you still have one of those, or put it through a food processor.
If you like, grate in some Parmesan or gruyere, throw in a tablespoon of butter, garnish with chopped chives.
But I promise you: All you really need is the cauliflower and some olive oil!
Available Now!
If You Can’t Stand the Heat
Derek Dunne is a Cordon Bleu-trained food critic for the prestigious New York Monitor, whose scathing review of a popular Italian bistro has driven away all but the most loyal neighborhood patrons.
Lucrezia Serafina DiCicco is a clumsy business school drop-out, working as a chef and scrambling to keep her family’s restaurant afloat, after her father develops diabetes and is banned from his kitchen for his own good.
Now, with The Monitor folding, Derek is searching for his next career path and longing to get back to his first love—cooking—while Lu is desperate for an influx of cash to save the struggling restaurant…even as her father puts his foot down about non-family employees.
Derek and Lu embark on a marriage of inconvenience to save the restaurant. But can Lu ever really trust the man who nearly destroyed her family, once noted her initials spelled “LSD,” and her food was like a “bad trip?”
Or will it be their hearts on the chopping block?
Exerpt:
Each morning was harder than the last, a torture fest that tested her willpower to the max.
She’d wake to aromatic tendrils of rich, perfectly-brewed coffee tickling her nose. The sublime sizzle of bacon would whisper in her ears like a lover, the enticing smell quickening her steps before she even managed to slide her feet into her flip-flops, drawing her toward the kitchen. The fragrance of whatever else he was cooking up luring her to him before she could knot the belt of her robe.
And then there was the man himself, his loyal pooch by his side, the canine’s face buried in his food dish and emitting contented purrs more worthy of a cat. But Derek. Oh. Holy cannoli.
She remembered the “Derek” character on the TV show Grey’s Anatomy, dubbed “McDreamy” by the women on the show. Derek Dunne made that guy look like a bad clam.
Standing at the stove, barefoot and naked except for a pair of boxers, he made her mouth water more than any culinary concoction he could possibly cook up. And he was a damn imaginative and inventive chef. The way he’d been in bed.
Where to Buy:
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | ARe | iBooks | Kobo | Googleplay
About Taryn
Taryn Kincaid reads the back of cereal boxes and everything else that stands in her way. She writes HOT and sweet paranormal, historical romance and contemporary romance, sometimes spiced with a little humor or a lot of snark. She enjoys pinching and tickling words until they scream.
Coming soon…RAIN, a Beyond Fairytales story for Decadent Publishing; and HER CAPTAIN, a Tempting Signs story for Fated Desires, coming in December, 2015.
Don’t forget to visit Taryn online!
Website |Blog |Twitter | Facebook |tsu | Goodreads | Amazon | Pinterest
February 19, 2015
Lemongrass Meatball Recipe
Send to KindleHello! Look, no guest this week, it is me! With A Taste Of You releasing in a few weeks, I thought I might share with you a recipe that was the inspiration for one of Garrett’s dishes.
Garrett took a fussy bite of the meat. “The meatball is actually pretty good. Maybe a tad salty.”
“Fine. I give up. I don’t know what you have against regular food.”
“I could make a better one.”
“No. Don’t. Please, just don’t even.” Because he was sure Garrett could make a better one. Except the meatball would probably be the size of a pea. He would serve it in a spoon or some shit and call it an amuse bouche. It would be delicious. Real meatball subs everywhere would curl up and die of shame. He loved Garrett, god help him, and Garrett was a freaking genius in the kitchen, but he drove Carlo up a wall sometime with his quirks. Turning every damn thing he ate into a work of art was the best and worst of them.
(click to read the full excerpt)
Lemongrass Meatball
Well, of course Garrett doesn’t give up on his meatball and it re-appears later…in drastically altered form.
A variation of Garrett’s meatball is what I have for you today.
To be honest, meatballs are one of those things that elude me as a cook. I don’t know why, but I’m seriously horrible at them. Bones gets takeout for his meatball subs. However, I can make these. And they are yummy. And Bones loves them. (Or he loves me and lies well, you’ll have to be the judge.)
LEMONGRASS-CHICKEN MEATBALLS ON RICE VERMICELLI
If I can make these, anyone can, but there are a few special ingredients involved, like lemongrass and fish-sauce – so make sure you have those on hand. I grow my own lemongrass, but forgot last night that I would need it for this and had to go root around in the dark with a flashlight to get some. Don’t be like me. Plan ahead. Proper prep makes an easy meal. Mise en place, y’all.
Now, this recipe has three parts, the meatballs, the noodles, and the dipping sauce (not pictured)
Let’s start with the meatballs, because they need to sit for a bit
Lemongrass Chicken Meatballs
1 stalk lemongrass
1 pound ground chicken
1 1/2 tablespoons minced shallots
1 tablespoon fish sauce (nam pla or nuoc mam)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 Thai bird or serrano chile, seeded and minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Remove and discard the outer layers from the lemongrass to reveal the pale yellow inner stalk. Trim off the bulbous tip of the stalk. Using a very sharp knife, thinly slice the lemongrass into rounds until you reach the very tough upper stalk. Discard the upper stalk. Transfer the sliced lemongrass to a food processor fitted with the metal chopping blade. Pulse about 12 times, until the lemongrass is finely minced. Measure 1 1/2 tablespoons of the minced lemongrass. (The remaining lemongrass can be frozen for up to 3 months.)
Combine the minced lemongrass, ground chicken, shallots, fish sauce, cornstarch, chile, garlic, brown sugar, and salt in a large bowl and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes or up to 4 hours.
While our meatballs are in the fridge, we can prepare the rest of the dish.
Next up is the dipping sauce.
Dipping sauce
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup fish sauce (nam pla or nuoc mam)
1/4 cup distilled white or rice vinegar
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 carrot, shredded on the large holes of a box grater
2 Thai bird or serrano chiles, seeded and minced
Bring 1/2 cup water and the granulated sugar to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Pour into a bowl and let cool. Add the fish sauce, vinegar, garlic, carrot, and chiles and stir well.
Hi – It’s me! Okay, so I’m chronically late getting supper on the table and Bones came home at this point and insisted on doing the carrots because I forgot to buy carrots and the only ones on hand are those little faux baby carrots and he thinks I’ll slice my fingers off on the box cutter. Also, he is nice enough to seed and chop the bird pepper. Then, later, when we are eating supper, he looks at the dipping sauce and,
“What are those seeds?”
“I think those are from the pepper.”
“The one I seeded and chopped for you?”
“Oh. I guess I just scraped off everything on the cutting board.”
“Uh-huh.”
Anyway, the dipping sauce was still fine, so don’t worry if you go a bit off track here and there.
OH – ALSO, this makes way more dipping sauce than we seem to need, so if you want to cut something down, this is the place.
Vermicelli and scallion oil
10 ounces thin rice vermicelli
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
6 scallions, white and green parts, thinly sliced
Prepare the vermicelli according to the package directions and toss with 1 teaspoon of the vegetable oil.
Pour the remaining vegetable oil into a medium skillet. Add the garlic and cook over medium heat, stirring often, until softened but not browned, about 2 minutes. Add the scallions and cook, stirring often, until wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.
Okay, while the vermicelli is cooking you can start finishing up the meatballs.
Using your wet hands rinsed under cold water, shape the meat mixture into 12 equal meatballs.
It’s me! First of all, that wet hand thing is important, otherwise that shit is just going to stick to your hands and make a big sloppy mess. Second, I actually make these into about 20-24 meatballs rather the 12 mentioned in the original recipe. This makes them closer to bite-size and, more importantly, makes them way easier to cook evenly.
More me! Now, the original recipe says to grill the meatballs. I’m sure that way is wonderful, but it’s 30 degrees outside, Bones is already home and hungry, and I don’t grill. I pan-cook these suckers. Just put a little oil in a non-stick skillet, hot it up, and cook the meatballs until they are done. (Way easier at the smaller size, I promise).
Assemble
Pour the dipping sauce into 4 ramekins. Divide the rice vermicelli among 4 deep bowls. Top each with meatballs and equal amounts of the scallion oil. Serve with the dipping sauce.
NOTE ON THE PICTURE: That cute little meatball is a nod to Garrett’s amuse bouche. That is my actual meatball (at 1/2 size the original recipe). I’m sure Garrett’s would be even smaller, perfectly round, and uniformly seared on the outside. Presentation is not my strong suit, so we’ll have to use our imaginations for that bit. This recipe makes a supper for 3-4 people (or however many in your family it takes to eat a pound of chicken and a bunch of rice noodles).
Also, please be aware I shamelessly stole this recipe from Epicurious.com, if you want the proper instructions. They reprinted it from the original in I Love Meatballs by Rick Rodgers (and they actually got permissions).
I think these would also go great in a nice lemon-grass soup broth. If anyone wants to try that, let me know how it turns out!
February 12, 2015
N.N. Light: Tips for a Romantic Steak Dinner
Send to KindleBones and I have had many wonderful meals out, but some of our most romantic dinners have been enjoyed at home. Valentine’s Day is tomorrow. If you’ve decided to stay in, N.N. Light is here with some tips for turning out a perfect, restaurant quality steak dinner.
Don’t forget to scroll down and check out her book, Princess of the Light. I’m thrilled to feature this book because a portion of the proceeds go directly to food banks in order to feed the hungry and help those in need.
If you make it all the way to the bottom of the page, you can enter my $25 Amazon gift card give-away.
Enjoy!
N.N Light:
“Sharing food with another human being is an intimate act that should not be indulged in lightly.” ―M.F.K. Fisher
Food and romance go hand-in-hand. I have had a love affair with food ever since I could remember and in my opinion, there is nothing more romantic than sharing a delectable meal with someone. Whether it is the triple A Angus steak or a roasted chicken breast, eating together is an intimate experience.
I am the luckiest woman on the planet because my husband is a retired chef and he loves to cook for me. He creates the most amazing food for me, better than any restaurant. I remember last year, he made the most amazing porterhouse steak dinner for Valentine’s Day. Here is a picture of the steak:
I sat down with him and asked him to give a few pointers for cooking a romantic porterhouse steak dinner. As he tells me, it’s not about getting the most expensive products but getting quality products and making them sing. Here are his tips:
For this steak dinner, I wanted to bring out the flavor so the first thing I did was bring the steaks to room temperature. This can take up to an hour. It’s very important for the meat to not be cold when it hits the sizzling dry pan. I seasoned each side of the porterhouse steak with Hawaiian sea salt (you can use regular sea salt or kosher salt) and cracked black pepper. You don’t want to over season or you will lose the amazing flavor of the meat.
I then pre-heated a stainless steel dry pan until it was hot, 5-20 minutes depending on your stove top. To test if it is hot enough, wet your finger and flick a droplet of water in the pan. If it sizzles and steam appears, it is ready. Place the steak in the pan and sear each side. You will know when it is time to flip when the meat releases itself from the pan. Be patient. After searing, place pan in a 350 degrees oven and set the timer for approximately 30-35 minutes, depending on how you want your steak. Because the steaks were almost two inches thick and we like our steaks medium, I cooked them for 35 minutes.
You have some time before the steaks are done so this is the perfect time to create an appetizer, pour drinks and look after your side dishes. It’s all about timing. I had already pre-cut the broccoli, mushrooms and orange bell peppers. I tossed them in my finest extra virgin olive oil and white balsamic vinegar. I seasoned them lightly before sautéing them in a pan.
Plating is a very important part of creating an unforgettable meal and you want your special guest to have his/her mouth water even before taking a bite. I use large white plates for aesthetic reasons. Food looks better on a blank canvas. Place the steak in the center (you’ll see in the picture that the steak was as big as the plate), placing the blue cheese butter on top in order to melt it properly. Arrange the side dish (orange peppers, mushrooms and broccoli) around the steak like a wreath. If any juice or oil spills on the lip of the plate, take a paper towel and wipe it clean.
The most important pointer I can offer is to be organized. Take out all your ingredients, seasonings, and pans ahead of time. Write down the steps and schedule each task so everything is ready at the same time and nothing gets cold. Finally, enjoy yourself. Cooking for another is the most romantic thing in the world and all your hand work will pay off when they taste your food.
A portion of proceeds benefit food banks.
Princess of the Light
Gabriel, the Archangel and Messenger of God – yeah that Gabriel, visited Mary Miller. He told her, as the key she is destined to spread the Light and vanquish the Darkness. Her first assignment is to restore the soul of the Walking Man. Sounds simple enough until she’s thrown in the face of evil, and then Joe Deacons enters her heart. This battle just got a lot more complicated. She must complete her mission without losing all she loves.
Excerpt:
After Catalina left, Joe and I looked at each other. We were both starving and wanted to dig in but I think we both wanted to appear polite so…
“Wow that looks amazing!” I said all the while inhaling the smells. I grabbed a piece of warm bread, dipped it in the aromatic olive oil and placed a piece of Monterey Jack cheese on top. I leaned forward and placed it on Joe’s plate.
“There you go.” Then, made myself the same combo leaned back a little and surveyed my good work. “Should we taste it?”
Joe raised his eyebrows in agreement.
It tasted as good as it smelled.
Joe handed me the next slice of bread with whipped butter, Gruyere cheese, and a green olive on top. “So… You were telling me more about yourself, Mary?”
“Stop that,” I giggled, then looked down at my wine glass and saw that I had drained my wine. Maybe I should stop that.
“Can I freshen up your wine?” Why not? I nodded and Joe refilled my glass then topped his own.
Joe intertwined his fingers with mine. My breath caught in my throat. I watched as Joe took the piece of bread in his other hand and set it on my plate. He still had my other hand in his, our fingers intertwined. I bit my lip hard and a small moan escaped my lips when I tasted the bread.
Where to Buy Princess of the Light:
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Smashwords | Createspace
About N. N. LightN. N. Light was born in Minnesota, lived in Southern California only to move to chilly Ontario, Canada to marry her beloved husband MR N. She is blissfully happy and loves all things chocolate, books, music, movies, art, sports and baking. She has been telling stories since the age of five and her mantra is to spread the Light. Most of the time you can find her on Twitter or getting new ideas on how to spread the Light on Pinterest. She is a proud member of ASMSG, Independent Author Network and Marketing for Romance Writers.
Part of the proceeds of Princess of the Light will go directly to food banks in order to feed the hungry and help those in need. With only 7,500 books sold, N. N. Light will be able to set up a monthly endowment for the local food bank
Make sure to visit N.N. online:
PrincessOfTheLight.com |Blog |Goodreads | Twitter |Pinterest |Facebook | LinkedIn | Google | Triberr | Amazon | Independent Author Network | | iAuthor
February 5, 2015
1st Friday Food Fight + Giveaway
Send to Kindle
CHECK OUT THE FOODIE FUN IN THE COMMENTS!
Want to play?
Just go to the comments and share any of the following:
Foodie excerpt from your book (300 words or less, please!) – don’t forget a buy-link!
Teaser and link to your food-theme blog post
Title and Buy-Link to your Cookbook or other food-theme book
Help share the love with this ready-made tweet (or create your own)
FOOD FIGHT!! Come play with your food or ours! http://bit.ly/_foodfight #foodiefriday Plus a #giveaway
Don’t forget to check out the tasty tidbits your fellow food-lovers are sharing!
While you’re here – enter to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card!
I’ll throw the first pie with an excerpt from A TASTE OF YOU!
“You want dinner? There’s plenty.” Carlo put a slab of prosciutto on the counter and began shaving off slivers of meat.
Garrett watched Carlo’s big hands expertly gliding the knife through the cured meat. Carlo mostly stayed out of the kitchen at Ransom. Garrett sometimes forgot that his partner was the product of four generations of Rotolo restaurateurs and an accomplished cook in his own right.
The aroma of cured ham filled the air, rich and sweet, exactly the way the meat would taste. His imagination automatically took him further, looking for flavor combinations, but all he could think about was the way Carlo’s fingers would taste after touching the meat. He imagined drawing them into his mouth slowly, sucking the sweetness off warm flesh. He could almost feel the texture of Carlos’s skin.
…More about A TASTE OF YOU
February 1, 2015
INFAMOUS $1.99 Sale
Send to Kindle
My INFAMOUS book is currently on sale for $1.99 on Amazon.com
(Amazon US only – sorry, I have no control of this.)
This is the book reviewers called fun, flirty and 10 kinds of hot . If you haven’t had a chance to check it out yet, this is the time to do it for cheap. Don’t forget, if you are a Kindle Unlimited subscriber, you can also borrow for FREE!
Enjoy!
Not sure? Read the 1st Chapter Free.
Socialite meets Soccer Dad, what could go wrong?
Infamous is only $1.99 on Amazon.com during February.
January 29, 2015
Lola Karns: Tips for Cooking With Kids
Send to KindleSome of my favorite childhood memories are of being in the kitchen with my mother. She always encouraged me to “help” her cook and even had a set of tiny cake tins so I could make my own cakes while she baked hers. Author Lola Karns is here this week to share her tips for how to successfully include your kids in family meal-making. She’s included a fun Cream Cheese Mint Recipe that your kids will love. Make sure to scroll down and check out her foodie romance, Bad Traveler, while you are here and don’t forget to enter for your chance at at $25 Amazon gift card!
Kid-Friendly Cream Cheese Mints
LOLA
Thank you for the invitation to join your food fest. Good food factors heavily in my writing. My characters enjoy dessert, salad, steak, cookies, coffee, potato chips or whatever I happen to be craving at the moment. In my home and my stories, people often cook together. My husband (who cooks – I’m lucky) and I try to include the kids whenever possible. Here are some ways to let kids help under close supervision, of course.
Measure ingredients – ages 3 and up. If you are making cookies, you probably don’t want to let them measure the baking powder or vanilla, but they can measure chocolate chips and oatmeal.
Crack eggs – Some kids love the mess, some hate it.
Arrange food to be served – let them sort out the cheese and crackers or divvy up a veggie tray how they would like. They can sprinkle garnishes on cooked food too.
Invest in ceramic and/or child sized knives. We recently bought one with a built in finger guard. The 11 year old chops onions and peppers with more precision than I can muster. The 7 year old slices softer ingredients like butter and bananas.
Use a step stool. If they can’t see what they are doing, they will make a mess. Get them taller and they can pour in ingredients and stir. For some reason my kids love to stir and try and “hide” the bay leaf in the soup.
Wait, you say, isn’t cooking with kids messy? Yes. Yes it is. How do I contain the mess? Rimmed cookie sheets, parchment paper and disposable table cloths. The bigger the potential mess, the more area I cover.
Thinking of mess – here’s a table-cloth worthy but so delicious recipe. My kids invent excuses to make these Cream Cheese Mints.
CREAM CHEESE MINT RECIPE
3 oz cream cheese softened
3 c. sifted powdered sugar
1/4 tsp flavoring. Peppermint is traditional, but orange is good too.
Food coloring (if desired)
Granulated sugar.
With hands, mix cream cheese and flavoring until blended. Knead in powdered sugar until it forms a smooth, firm ball. (Don’t be surprised if this takes a while). Add food coloring if desired – I use gel rather than liquid. Shape as desired and roll in granulated sugar. Lay on paper towels and dry overnight in fridge or freezer. Store in airtight container for up to six weeks. My 7 yr old made the pink, my 11 yr old sculpted the cat head. Enjoy!
If your eReader is hungry, I have a recipe for that too.
Bad Traveler is Available Now!
Bad Traveler
Take single mother Gwen Jones, her infant daughter and a business plan for a small town bakery. Combine with an eventful cross-country flight, chance encounter with Kyle Collins, her college crush turned basketball coach, and a dash of motion sickness. Stir in a few nuts, or family members, and large quantities of chocolate. Will this recipe be a delicious keeper or an oven oops?
“Ms. Karns is an elegant writer…. My biggest complaint was that the descriptions of the baked goods sounded so yummy I wanted a cookie when I took breaks from reading.” – Amazon Community review.
Where to Buy Bad Traveler:
About Lola Karns
Having worked as a bartender, shipping clerk, secretary, concierge, technical translator, doctoral candidate (in history) and more as she moved through Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, New Jersey, Georgia, and Virginia, Lola decided she needed a portable career. Writing fit the bill. Lola currently resides in Minnesota with her husband, two children, two hairless cats and a fluffy former stray cat. When not writing, or even while she is, Lola enjoys a good cup of coffee and a decadent dessert.
January 27, 2015
Giveaway Alert! Fated Desires Author Chat
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Prizes, fun, giveaways on Feb 3
I’ll be at this Facebook Event on Tuesday, February 3. I’m lucky enough to be hosting this event with authors Katalina Leon, Cara Carnes, Heather Thurmeier, Cassandra Carr, Desiree Holt and Rebecca Royce!
Between us, we’re going to be tossing out a fair number of prizes and giveaways. Of course I know you, dear reader, will come just for the scintillating conversation and pleasure of our company!
The actual chat is Tuesday 02/03 from 12-6 pm Eastern, but there are already some pre-event prizes up for grabs – so hurry on over and join the fun!
January 22, 2015
Racheline Maltese: Gourmet Grilled Cheese – 4 Ways
Send to KindleI’m not going to lie to you. I drooled a little when I got the picture for this Friday’s foodie post. Grilled cheese is one of my absolute favorite comfort foods. Racheline Maltese is here to show us how to make some yummy gourmet variations on the classic including an amazing dessert. If you’ve been slapping a single-slice of American between two pieces of white bread, it’s time to up your game!
Make sure you scroll down to get a preview of Racheline’s new book, Doves and don’t forget to enter my $25 Amazon Gift Card giveaway!
Perfect Grilled Cheese!
RACHELINE:
In some ways, I’m not a cook at all. I don’t own any fancy tools, I don’t use cookbooks, and I rarely plan meals out in advance. But I am the person who will look into the refrigerator and make something up on the fly that is often pretty great. Like some people have a strong internal sense of direction, I have a strong internal sense of food logic, which has carried over to Victor, one of the secondary characters in the Love in Los Angeles series I co-write with Erin McRae.
Sometimes, this character goes for the fancy, planned, and sophisticated food I never bother with. Certainly, he has more expensive cookware than me and better knife skills. But like me, he brings his internal food logic to making ordinary meals extraordinary.
For example, he’s happy to whip up a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup as comfort food when his boyfriend Liam is having a bad day, but nothing about that grilled cheese is simple.
In fact, all the ways grilled cheese can be dressed up without a lot of ingredients or a set recipe makes it one of my own favorite go-tos. It’s also one of Erin and my staple foods when we spend time in our Philadelphia writing office. There’s a place in Reading Terminal Market that makes absolutely divine grilled cheese, and those sandwiches have gotten us through many a long day of writing and editing.
If you want to try your own hand at grilled cheese, here are some of my (and Victor’s) favorite combinations.
Grilled Cheese Variation #1:
Heavily butter one slice of bread and place it butter side down in a frying pan.
Layer with a slice of havarti cheese, prosciutto, pesto, and a second havarti slice.
Place a second piece of bread on top and butter.
Turn on your stove on the lowest heat setting and let cook until cheese melts, sealing the sandwich shut.
Turn temperature to high and watch closely as butter starts to burn. You want golden brown, not charcoal. When that side is done, flip to get the other side to the level of doneness.
Plate the sandwich and then drizzle with balsamic glaze, and add black pepper and salt to taste. Eat with a knife and fork, if you don’t want to get butter everywhere.
Grilled Cheese Variation #2:
Follow instructions 1-5 replacing the ingredients with swiss cheese and ham
Cut sandwich crosswise into 4 wedges and serve with honey mustard dip (make your own — honey and mustard — to get the exact flavor you want.
Grilled Cheese Variation #3:
Follow instructions 1-5, replacing the center ingredients with cheddar and sliced cooked chicken (fresh or packaged cold cuts).
Serve with sweet red-pepper chutney (available in ethnic food aisles in the supermarket– I’ve seen this grouped with Indian, Italian, and British food, so you may have to look closely).
Grilled Cheese Dessert Variation:
Heavily butter one slice of bread and place butter side down on wax paper.
Layer with goat cheese, thinly sliced strawberries (pat strawberries dry with towel to remove excess moisture), and more goat cheese. Make sure strawberries are fully surrounded/covered by the goat cheese.
Place second piece of bread on top and butter.
Wrap in the wax paper and freeze for 1 – 3 hours.
Pre-heat pan on high.
Remove sandwich from freezer, unwrap wax paper, and place in pan.
This is going to cook fast, and will not hold together as strongly as versions 1-3. Pay careful attention and be ready with a second utensil to hold the top on when flipping if this isn’t a strong skill for you.
Once both sides are golden brown, plate and drizzle with chocolate sauce. Don’t have chocolate sauce? Melt whatever chocolate bar you have on hand in a small pot placed in a bigger pot that you’ve filled with water. On a low flame, you’ve improvised a double boiler, and have gooey chocolate for you dessert grilled cheese.
Doves is Available Now
Doves, Love in Los Angeles Book Two
Two years after the events of Starling, Cinderella story and star of The Fourth Estate J. Alex Cook is living happily ever after with his boyfriend, television writer Paul Marion Keane. But when Paul’s pilot, Winsome, AZ, gets picked up, the competing demands of their high-profile careers make them question their future together.
As Paul becomes increasingly absent from their relationship, Alex tries to regain control of his private life and establish a career path independent of Fourth’s enigmatic, and at times malevolent, showrunner Victor. But the delicate web of relationships that connects Alex, Paul, and their friends — including Alex’s excitable ex-lover Liam and his no-nonsense fiancée Carly — threatens to unravel.
With the business of Hollywood making it hard to remember who he is when the whole world isn’t watching, Alex is forced to confront major changes in the fairytale life he never wanted as he discovers that love in Los Angeles often looks nothing like the movies.
Excerpt:
“Okay, we need to talk,” Carly calls as she lets herself into Victor’s house. She’s told Victor before that sometimes she feels extremely weird that both she and  Liam have keys, but he resents interruptions so intensely that he’d rather trust them than have to bother with the door whenever they come over. Victor nods at her from the stove where he’s making omelets.
“About?” he asks blandly as he crumbles cheese into one of the pans and Carly kisses Liam hello where he’s sitting at the bar that divides the kitchen from the next room, his bare feet hooked on the crossbar of the chair.
“I just got off the phone with Paul. What is going on with him and Alex?” she says, dropping her bags down and leaning into Liam’s side. He snakes an arm around her waist and frowns.
“Nothing good,” Liam says.
“Obviously,” Victor says. They all sit there silently for a long moment, listening to the faint gas hiss of the stove and Victor occasionally scraping the pans against the burners as he flips the omelets.
“I think it’s Paul,” Liam says.
“Don’t take sides, Lee,” Victor chides, although he certainly thinks it’s Paul too. Alex is likely being unhelpful, stubborn, and possibly mean. But Paul is insecure, which is dangerous.
Where to Buy Doves:
About Erin McRae and Racheline Maltese
Erin McRae and Racheline Maltese are authors of the gay romance series Love in Los Angeles, set in the film and television industry (Starling (September 10, 2014), Doves (January 21, 2015), and Phoenix (June 10, 2015)), all from Torquere Press. Their gay romance novella Midsummer, Book One of the Love’s Labour series, about a summerstock Shakespeare company, is from Dreamspinner Press (Summer 2015). Racheline is a NYC-based performer and storyteller; Erin is a writer and blogger based in Washington, D.C. They write stories and scripts about the intersection of private lives, fame, and desire. You can find them on the web at http://www.Avian30.com.
Don’t Forget to Visit Racheline and Erin Online!
January 15, 2015
Jessica Cale: Chocolate Macarons with Bailey’s Cream (gluten free)
Send to KindleMacarons are all the rage these days. I’ve found them popping up everywhere, even in the wilds of central Texas. Lucky, lucky us, we’ve got Jessica Cale with us today to share a recipe. And…Oh. My. Goodness. Look at them! Mouth-watering. These are a must-try for my next special occasion!
Make sure to scroll down and check out Jessica’s fantastic new historical romance, Tyburn. Also, I’ve got a rafflecopter give-away for a $25 Amazon Gift Card going on through March 10.
Jessica Cale’s Chocolate Macarons
Jessica:
I love macarons. These gorgeous little French cookies are light, delicious, and you can make them in any color or flavor you can imagine. With Valentine’s Day coming up, I’m sharing the recipes for my favorite flavors and one of those is Chocolate & Bailey’s. I made these this weekend with my friend Jen in mind. Hot chocolate with Bailey’s in it was always our go-to drink in University and these indulgent macarons have the same taste with fewer calories (unless you eat them all. Not gonna lie, it could happen). Word of warning? They do take a little bit longer to make than hot chocolate…
Making macarons can be a little tricky at first, so before you start, I would really recommend looking up some tutorials so you know what everything is supposed to look along the way. Food Nouveau has one here that is incredibly helpful with extensive tips and a great troubleshooting guide. The Cupcake Project has another one with some great pictures here.
Chocolate Macarons with Bailey’s Cream Recipe
(makes about 30 complete macarons)
Ingredients:
For the chocolate shells:
2 egg whites
1 cup powdered sugar
2/3 cup ground almonds
¼ cup fine granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s, but any brand will do)
Ground cinnamon, for dusting (optional)
For the Bailey’s cream:
1 ¼ cups powdered sugar
1 tbs butter (Can substitute non-dairy butter such as Earth Balance. I prefer it!)
1 tbs milk (Can substitute soy or almond milk if preferred)
2 tbs Bailey’s
Equipment:
Blender or food processor
Hand mixer
Sifter or fine sieve
3 or more baking sheets
Non-stick baking paper or silicone baking mats
A medium stainless steel bowl
Rubber spatula
Pastry bag
Pastry bag tip (note: a tip with a ½ inch opening is recommended. You’ll get more uniform results with a ½ inch tip, but I’ve also used smaller ones with good results)
Method:
The day before: Separate the eggs and put the egg whites in an air-tight container. Leave the egg whites in the fridge overnight.
Three hours before: Take the egg whites out of the fridge and let them come to room temperature slowly. Put the stainless steel bowl into the fridge. (Yes, really)
Put the almonds, powdered sugar, and cocoa powder into the blender and grind together for a few seconds. Sift the powder into a bowl and set aside.
Take the bowl out of the fridge and give it a good wipe with a kitchen towel to be sure it is completely dry before you start. Put the egg whites into the bowl and beat them on medium speed with the hand mixer. When they get foamy and start to really expand, add the granulated sugar a little bit at a time and continue to beat all of the sugar has dissolved. At this point, the eggs will start to look thick and foamy, a bit like shaving cream. Lower the speed of the mixer and continue to beat the eggs until stiff peaks are left when you pull the mixer out. When your eggs are ready, they will be thick enough that you can hold the bowl upside down without them falling out. If you tilt the bowl and they’re still sliding, beat them on low for another minute and try again. (You might need to do this several times before they’re ready, but be patient! If your eggs aren’t right, the macarons won’t turn out.)
Note: If the bowl is very cold and the eggs have been aged long enough, this won’t take very long. If they haven’t, it’ll take forever. I’ve had this take anywhere from 4 – 30 minutes. Big difference!
Carefully fold in the dry ingredients a little bit at a time with a rubber spatula. Don’t mix them or stir vigorously, you don’t want to wreck the eggs! When it’s done, the mixture will be thick, airy, and should fall off of the spatula in slow, wide ribbons.
Pour the mixture into a pastry bag and pipe rounds onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper or a silicone baking mat. Try to make them all the same size as much as you can, leaving an inch between them. These will cover at two or three baking sheets, depending on the size and spacing.
Smack the baking sheets on your counter one at a time. Lift them a few inches above the counter and just drop them. (This makes a pretty loud noise, so if you live with other people, give them some warning!) Do this a few times for each tray.
If you’re using cinnamon, grab it now. Shake a little over the tops of the macarons while they’re still sticky.
Let them sit until the surface starts to dry. You’ll know they’re ready when you touch them and nothing sticks to your finger. When they feel like they’re there, preheat your oven to 285F.
Put the baking tray on top of another empty baking tray in the center of your oven. Bake the macarons for 12 minutes with the door closed before checking on them. If they’re still really sticking after twelve minutes, put them back into the oven for another 2-3 minutes.
Take the baking paper or mat off of the baking trays and leave them to cool completely on the counter (or cooling racks, if using). This only takes a minute or so. The macarons should pop off of the paper pretty easily, but if they stick, you can slide a thin knife between the shell and the paper to help them along.
For the Bailey’s Cream
Beat sugar and butter together in a bowl. If you’re using Earth Balance, it will tend to look crumbly, but this is totally fine. Add the milk (or soy milk) and the Bailey’s and it will all come together nicely.
This icing is a little bit on the thin side, so you will need to refrigerate it before assembling the macarons if it’s out too long. Alternatively, you can add a bit more sugar to thicken it up. Feel free to tweak the quantities to suit your tastes — I like this the best because it’s not too sweet and there’s just enough Bailey’s to give it a nice flavor.
So elegant!
Assemble!
Match shells of similar size and stick them together with a little bit of the icing. Chocolate is an incredibly versatile flavor, so you can have fun experimenting with different fillings. Try raspberry jam, chocolate ganache, mascarpone, or any flavor of buttercream that takes your fancy. Now that you know how to make it, you can replace the Bailey’s with almost anything to make buttercream in the flavor of your choice.
Put the finished macarons in an air-tight container in the fridge and let them sit overnight before you eat them. The flavor and texture improves overnight, so they will be at their best tomorrow.
And the whole process only takes three days…
Jessica Cale
Jessica Cale
Jessica Cale is recovering journalist with a history degree and rather a lot of Nick Cave records. She combines her loves of corsets and happy ending to write dark historical romances for Liquid Silver Books. Her first novel, Tyburn (The Southwark Saga, Book 1) is out now. You can visit her at www.authorjessicacale.com
Make sure to Visit Jessica Online!
Website: http://www.authorjessicacale.com
Twitter: @JessicaCale
Tyburn – Available Now!
Tyburn (The Southwark Saga, Book 1)
Sally Green is about to die.
She sees Death in the streets. She can taste it in her gin. She can feel it in the very walls of the ramshackle brothel where she is kept to satisfy the perversions of the wealthy. She had come to London as a runaway in search of her Cavalier father. Instead, she found Wrath, a sadistic nobleman determined to use her to fulfill a sinister ambition. As the last of her friends are murdered one by one, survival hinges on escape.
Nick Virtue is a tutor with a secret. By night he operates as a highwayman, relieving nobles of their riches to further his brother’s criminal enterprise. It’s a difficult balance at the best of times, and any day that doesn’t end in a noose is a good one. Saving Sally means risking his reputation, and may end up costing him his life.
As a brutal attack throws them together, Sally finds she has been given a second chance. She is torn between the tutor and the highwayman, but she knows she can have neither. Love is an unwanted complication while Wrath haunts the streets. Nick holds the key to Wrath’s identity, and Sally will risk everything to bring him to justice.
Unless the gallows take her first.
Where to buy Tyburn:
