Kate Meader's Blog, page 6

Let's Celebrate Curvy Heroines

FEEL THE HEAT is here in print at last! My sexy contemporary romance features a hot British celebrity chef and a curvy Italian gal. And to celebrate, I'll be be giving away lotsa books during my "Five Days of Curves" giveaway extravaganza. Each day this week, you can win a copy of one my favorite curvy heroine books and at the end of the week I'll draw a name to win a bumper pack of Forever Romance authors' books including Erin Kern, Jill Shalvis, Roxanne St. Claire, Marilyn Pappano, and Anna Sullivan.

Today, you could win a copy of BET ME by Jennifer Crusie. Minerva (or Min) is one of my favorite curvy heroines and if you haven't read this romance classic, you're in for a treat.

What do you have to do? Just head over to my page on Facebook and follow the easy instructions for entry*: https://www.facebook.com/authorkateme...

*Not sponsored by Facebook
Feel the Heat

The Great Chicago Pizza Giveaway is on!

I’m stopping by Ramblings from this Chick with a sexy excerpt from FEEL THE HEAT and a link to the Great Chicago Pizza Giveaway. FTH releases in print in just five days!

Also, in case you missed it, SOS Aloha interviewed me about my favorite scenes, heroine body issues, and why Chicago is perfect for lovers. Lots of fun.

Feel the Heat Print Release Countdown

Feel the Heat, Book 1 in the Hot in the Kitchen series is releasing in print on January 28. You can already get the ebook version for the low, low price of $2.99, but if you’re print-inclined, it will soon be available for $5-6, depending on the retailer.

To celebrate, my lovely publisher is offering an awesomely appropriate grand prize – two deep dish pizzas from Lou Malnati’s here in Chicago (shipped frozen to anywhere in the U.S.) and a copy of Feel the Heat! In the lead up to the release, I’m stopping by a number of sites to talk about my favorite scenes in Feel the Heat, my favorite fictional boyfriends, and why Chicago is great for lov-ahs. Here’s where I’ll be and see below for the link to the Big Pizza Giveaway!

(Links will be added as they go live)

1/22 SOS Aloha

1/23 Ramblings From This Chick

1/24 The Fiction Enthusiast

1/25 CurvyWriter Blog

1/26 Reading Between the Wines

1/27 Stitch Read Cook

1/28 The Avid Reader

Enter the Feel the Heat Pizza Giveaway

Hungry Hearts Holiday Hop: Happy New Year!

Welcome to the HUNGRY HEARTS HOLIDAY HOP! We are so excited to CELEBRATE the New Year with mouthwatering dip, appetizer, and drink recipes and delicious EXCERPTS from today’s hottest food-loving ROMANCE writers! Hop around each author’s site for a new recipe, and fill out the Rafflecopter form to enter our GIVEAWAY: an Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Book Depository GIFT CARD!

In addition to the HUNGRY HEARTS HOLIDAY HOP giveaway, Amanda Usen will be featuring Hungry Hearts authors on Writer.Chef.Romantic this week and gifting their books to lucky winners. Stay tuned to get in on the fun! If you’d like to party in real time, please join our Facebook Party December 26th – January 1st.

Enter our fantastic Rafflecopter giveaway!

Cheesey-Onion Apps Two Ways—Pizzette or Wontons

This started out as a pizzette recipe that I use in my sexy contemporary culinary romance, FEEL THE HEAT. Celebrity chef Jack woos Lili with a hot tasting in her family restaurant’s kitchen—and the results are explosive (taste-wise and sexy-wise!). I’ve since re-worked the recipe as a slightly healthier option, so if you want to get cracking on those resolutions earlier, that option’s for you.

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 large onions, sliced (about 4 cups)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon herbs de Provence
1 teaspoon sugar
1 ball pizza dough (about 12 to 16 ounces) OR a package of wonton wrappers
3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled (about 1/2 cup)

Optional: a couple of slices of chopped prosciutto, fresh rosemary to garnish

In a large skillet, heat the oil and add the onions, salt, pepper, herbs de Provence, and sugar. Cook the onions for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until caramelized (nice golden brown).

For pizzette:

Roll out the pizza dough and cut into rounds with a cookie cutter or a small glass.
Lay out the rounds on a cookie sheet. Add a spoonful of the onion mixture to each round, then top with goat cheese. Bake for 10 minutes or until bubbly.
Top with prosciutto or garnish with a small sprig of rosemary

For wontons (slightly healthier – wrappers are approximately 20 calories each)

Lay out 24 wonton wrappers on a flat surface. Add a spoonful of the onion mixture, top with goat cheese, then close up the wrapper with wet fingers.
Transfer the filled wontons to a pre-greased baking sheet and spray with another blast of cooking spray.  Bake for approximately 15 minutes until wontons are crispy.

Easy peasy, right? Enjoy and thanks for checking in for the Hungry Hearts Holiday Hop. Don’t forget to enter the giveaway for a chance to win awesome prizes!

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And just to show how devastating these appetizers can be when used to heat things up in the kitchen, here’s an excerpt from FEEL THE HEAT, Book 1 in the Hot in the Kitchen series. Available now at all fine e-tailers for $2.99. Mass market print hits stores January 28, 2014!

“Comfortable?” he asked, his green-gold gaze locked on hers.

Her nod was a barefaced lie; she was the opposite of comfortable, but years of hiding had taught her how to train her expressions. He stepped away, taking his warmth and the scent of lemon-spiced skin.

Anticipation mounted even as the herby, heat-infused aroma of the cooling pizza diminished. Jack held the pizzette up, an invitation to eat from his outstretched hand. Not a chance, mister. She took it from him, anxious to avoid contact, anxious to suppress the memory of his talented hands. A memory still warm and present from last night’s kiss and this morning’s near miss.

A light bloom of flour on the underside of the crust coated her fingers and heat seeped from the mini disk into her skin. Little specks of green sprouted above the snowy, tan-freckled surface. It was just a squiggle of golden-brown onion topped with melted cheese, but right now she’d never seen anything so beautiful. Jack’s gorgeous mug finally had competition.

She bit down, listening for the juice-crunch, that familiar sound of crust and squish. The dough base was perfect. Chewy in the middle, crispy around the edges. The candied tang of sautéed onions assaulted her taste buds, invoking all sorts of happy.

“What do you taste?” he asked.

“Hmm, caramelized Vidalias?” she ventured. He was standing too close to her, his eyes searching her face for signs of yea or nay.

“And?”

“Oregano, for sure. Goat cheese?” He might have been sneaky and used feta, but she didn’t think so. Not salty or tangy enough, and feta didn’t look the same when it melted. She stroked her teeth with her tongue, relishing the creamy richness. “Definitely goat.”

“Oui, le chevre. Anything else?”

That little trill of French sent a quake of pleasure barreling down her spine. Not even Laurent’s dulcet tones had such a devastating effect on her. Although, Jack could be talking about cleaning out the kitchen grease traps in English, French, or Klingon and she’d be drooling like a St. Bernard within seconds.

***

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Hungry Hearts Holiday Hop: The Cookie Edition

Welcome to the HUNGRY HEARTS HOLIDAY HOP! We are so excited to CELEBRATE the holiday season with mouthwatering cookie recipes and delicious EXCERPTS from today’s hottest food-loving ROMANCE writers! Hop around and fill out the Rafflecopter form on each author’s site to enter our GIVEAWAYS: a spectacular mix of Harry & David Truffles, books, gifts cards, and Hungry Hearts author swag! Lots of awesome prizes to win!

In addition to the HUNGRY HEARTS HOLIDAY HOP prizes, Amanda Usen will be featuring Hungry Hearts authors on her site and giving their books away to lucky winners. Visit Writer.Chef.Romantic to get in on the fun! When the holiday season arrives, our hearts fill with CHEER. Life is a gift, isn’t it? Hop with us for the chance to win, and share your holiday JOY while we share our favorite COOKIE recipes with you!

My latest release, ALL FIRED UP features an Irish pastry chef, so he’s a dab hand at making cookies and sweet treats. As is my husband, Mr. Meader whose chocolate pixie cookie recipe I’m featuring here.

Chocolate Pixies

These are cake-like cookies with a soft center and slightly crunchy crust.

The goods

4 one-ounce squares of unsweetened baker’s chocolate, melted

½ cup of vegetable oil

2 cups of sugar

4 eggs

2 teaspoons of vanilla

2 ½ cups of flour

2 teaspoons of baking powder

½ teaspoon of salt

1 cup of powdered sugar

The steps to cookie nirvana

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine chocolate, oil, and sugar. Mix well.

3. Stir in eggs, one at a time.

4. Add vanilla.

5. Slowly add flour, baking powder, and salt. Blend thoroughly.

6. Chill in refrigerator for several hours (overnight is okay).

7. With a cookie scoop, measure out and roll dough into balls.

8. Dip cookie dough balls in powdered sugar.

9. Bake 10-12 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cookie comes out clean.

Now check out all the other great cookie recipes from amazing romance authors during the Hungry Hearts Holiday Hop.

Hungry Hearts Holiday Hop giveaway

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Doctor Who Turns 50!

So I’m late to the party but that’s because I’m just emerging from the hangover of the official Doctor Who 50th anniversary party this past Saturday! Mr. M. is a major Doctor Who fan, not a “new” Doctor Who fan who latched on with the reboot, but a gen-u-ine old era fanatic who can name every companion in order starting with Susan in 1963. If you don’t know who Susan is, then you cannot compete with Mr. M. Don’t even try, Billie Piper lovahs!

This Saturday, we hosted a viewing party for the big 50th anniversary special. We’d already seen it in 3D at a movie theater earlier in the day because Mr. M could not bear to watch it with other people who might talk or whisper or eat potato chips during the first viewing. Second viewing, fine. All week, he prepared with Dalek and TARDIS ice cube molds, TARDIS pound cakes, unearthing the rare toys from storage, and generally Who-ifying the condo. So there was this:

Rare toys including a Doctor #4 viewfinder…

 

 

 

 

Our kitchen transformed into a TARDIS. Bigger on the inside…

 

 

 

 

 

We also had awesome chocolate Daleks and TARDISs…

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Doctor came to visit and keep an eye on things… which one is the Doctor?

 

 

 

 

 

 

So all in all, it was a great night. Happy birthday Doctor Who and here’s hoping I’m still around for the 100th anniversary!

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ALL FIRED UP is now available!

Hey everyone, ALL FIRED UP is here at last! This is Book 2 in the Hot in the Kitchen series but you don’t have to have read the first – it stands alone! What you’ll get is a sexy Irish pastry chef with a dirty mouth, an ice cool Italian girl with issues up the yin yang, and fallout from a wedding under the influence in Las Vegas. For your valuable book-reading dollars, you’ll also get meddling relatives, line-dancing, cowboy hats, motorcycle rides, rugby matches, at least two weddings, and more secrets than you can shake a whisk at. It’s sexy and funny and did I mention my dirty talkin’ Irishman?

Here’s what people are saying about ALL FIRED UP:

“…a sweet yet highly sensual and romantic read with intriguing characters, sizzling chemistry and a journey of self-acceptance in the hopes of a new beginning.” – Shirley, Goodreads

“If you are a fan of contemporary romance storylines with a little bit of heat and a whole lot of heart than All Fired Up is the perfect read.” – The Reading Café

“A very fun and sweet story that had me grinning and sighing… 4 1/2 out of 5 roses.” – Seduced by a Book

“The sex is damn hot!” – Kerri, Goodreads

Check about my website for an excerpt and a $100 AMEX gift card giveaway from my publisher!
http://katemeader.com

All Fired Up

ALL FIRED UP is available as READ NOW on NetGalley!

Until Sunday, November 3 at 12 noon EST, ALL FIRED UP, my sexy contemporary romance from Forever/Grand Central is available as READ NOW on Netgalley. That's automatic approval to any Netgalley account holder who clicks the READ NOW button.

Sexy Irish pastry chef with a secret. Check. Buttoned up Italian gal with issues. Check. A marriage under the influence in Sin City. Check, check, and check!

If you're an avid reader, reviewer, or blogger, grab it now and get reading!

ALL FIRED UP on Netgalley

Hungry Hearts Holiday Hop: Thanksgiving Recipe and Giveaway

Welcome to the HUNGRY HEARTS HOLIDAY HOP!

We are so excited to CELEBRATE FALL with mouthwatering Thanksgiving recipes and delicious EXCERPTS from today’s hottest food-loving ROMANCE writers! Hop around and fill out the Rafflecopter form on each author’s site to enter our Grand PRIZE Giveaway: a Harry & David Crater Lake GIFT BASKET Classic!

In addition to the Grand Prize, one SWAG pack will be given away on Amanda Usen’s blog on each day of the hop. Visit each day for an AUTHOR spotlight and more FALL GLEE.

When the seasons change, our hearts fill with GRATITUDE. Life is grand, isn’t it? Hop with us and share your love of all things food, fall, and THANKS-giving!

We all love gravy and mashed potatoes. Or gravy and turkey. Or gravy and roasted root veggies. See a pattern here? Yes, we all love gravy! I like my gravy to have a bit of a kick to it – no taupe bland paste for me – so here’s my recipe for Caramelized Onion and Herb Gravy.

Caramelized Onion Herb Gravy

½ cup (1 stick) butter

2 onions, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon of chopped fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon of chopped fresh thyme

1 tablespoon of all purpose flour

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons of honey

6 cups of chicken broth (use broth if making gravy separate from a turkey, otherwise use the turkey’s pan juices after you’ve spooned off the fat from the top)

Melt butter in a large, heavy bottomed pot
Add onions and sauté until a deep caramel color, about 30-40 minutes (Stir every 3-5 minutes to ensure they don’t burn)
Add herbs
Add flour and stir for a minute
Add vinegar and honey
Simmer until thickened.

The gravy base—all ingredients but the broth/pan juices—can be made a day ahead. Cover and chill.

If you’ve made a turkey, see note above about the pan juices. Add pan juices/broth and boil until gravy is reduced to approximately 4-5 cups. This should take about 8-10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon over your favorite foods!

Now check out the other Hungry Hearts Holiday Hop authors for more recipes and chances to win amazing swag!

Fill out the Rafflecopter form on each author’s site to enter the Grand PRIZE Giveaway: a Harry & David Tower of TREATS! In addition to the Grand Prize, a SWAG pack will be given away on each day of the hop.

Click this link to enter our giveaway for an awesome HARRY & DAVID gift basket!

 

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Sunday Snippet/Weekend Writing Warriors #4

Morning, snippet readers and Weekend Writing Warriors. Here are another few lines from ALL FIRED UP, releasing in two short weeks on November 5.

She pressed her hand against his chest, then curled it into a ball because the flat of her palm felt unaccountably intimate against all that vitality. He was as hard as Sheetrock. Sheetrock with wonderfully sensitive nipples.

Stop it.

“No one takes advantage of me,” she said, smoothing her voice to a businesslike tone. “I cannot be played. You’re not the first mistake I’ve made and I can guarantee you won’t be the last, but I’m owning it and now I want to move on. It happened and we can un-happen it. It doesn’t say anything about who we are or who we want to be or what we mean to each other.”

Whatever gets you through the night, Cara! Thanks for reading. Now go check out the other excerpts at Weekend Writing Warriors and the Facebook group for Snippet Sunday. And there’s still time to enter the Goodreads giveaway for an advanced reading copy of ALL FIRED UP. Ends November 4!

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