Cindy Arora's Blog, page 6

Meet: Petit Four Author Joel Zlotnik — Writer, Reader & Cheesecake man.

Today I am thrilled to announce the release of PETIT FOUR: Four Stories Frosted with Love! I had the privilege of working with three amazing writers, Sue Watson, Lucie Simone and Joel Zlotnik! We  had a great time writing about cake + love and the end result is this wonderful anthology that should feed your appetite for great reading and delicious cake.

Today I decided to interview the lone guy in our anthology, who according to our editor is also the most romantic of the bunch!

Let’s welcome Joel Zlotnik!

Where did you get the inspiration for your story premise?

The story is largely about how the endless stream of competing influences in our lives – our friends and neighbors, our surroundings, our past, and the little voices in our head – can often work for or against us as we do our best to make decisions that will lead to acceptance, happiness and peace in the worlds we carve for ourselves.

As far as the premise and really the story-telling device, I had recently lost a dear friend and mentor and was helping his family take care of his affairs. I’d been thinking a lot about the not-so-obvious things we save and what we leave behind. Sure, we’ll all have our family photos and watches and jewelry and saved letters or cards, but what about that one champagne cork sitting on the bookshelf? Or that sailboat charm? Or that Hot Wheels car? Why did he choose to keep those? I like to believe there’s a special story behind each one of those objects, I’ll just never know what they are. As for the cupcakes … well I love cupcakes and was lucky enough to have someone special bring me one once for St. Patrick’s Day and how can you not take inspiration from that?

Is this your first foray into chick lit and if so, what did you learn about writing Her Charms?

I have to admit, before this I wasn’t all that familiar reading very much chick lit, let alone writing it. And most of my writing – whether during my previous life as a journalist or creatively since then – has been geared toward essays, memoir and some short fiction. So part of what I learned was how much harder it is and how much longer it took to create characters who hopefully are real and whose actions and reactions make sense, and trying to put them in a place that readers can clearly see. That was a much more challenging and time-consuming effort than I thought, but it also was very rewarding.

 What was the biggest challenge to making this story come to life?

Knowing that chick lit readers are primarily women, I found myself doing a regular check of how something could be perceived by a man vs. a woman and whether or not the story and the characters were on track. I had to stop at times and question: would a female reader react differently than a male reader to this or that and how might it impact the story? I typically try and write without a specific audience in mind (it helps keep the number of voices in my head to a manageable chorus) so that was definitely different for me. Thankfully, I have a few very talented writer friends who are women and they were kind enough to help me as the story shaped up.

Where are you from? And what’s your writing background?

I come from a very creative family and I can’t ever remember a time when writing hasn’t played a significant part of my life. I guess that includes when I’m writing and also trying to figure out sometimes why the hell I’m not writing. I’m originally from Chicago and grew up in San Diego before heading to the University of Arizona in Tucson. I started college as a business major and they explained to me that I would have to pass calculus and statistics for a business degree (this was after it took me two semesters to squeak by Algebra with a D). I decided I might want to find a way to actually make a living and decided to switch to journalism. I spent the first dozen years of my career as a newspaper reporter and editor in San Diego and Orange County. Creatively, what I love most is being able to make someone laugh out loud (without any emoticon assistance) through my writing, it’s one of the best feelings I know.

 We have to know, what’s your favorite kind of cake?

I love a simple New York cheesecake.

Can you bake? do you bake? have you ever baked for a woman? and if you have, what did you make her?

I’m honestly not much of a sweets person and now that you ask I don’t think I have ever baked for a woman. Maybe that’s where I’ve been going wrong … to the kitchen!

 

 

Joel Zlotnik is a former Southern California journalist who was lucky enough to find a second career on the other side of the notepad, answering questions instead of asking them. He recently cancelled his cable so he would write more and quickly discovered online binge watching. You can find him living at the beach in South Orange County, where he listens to records, reads and watches the waves.

 Find Joel: on Twitter: @mindofzlotnik

How an LA Girl Celebrates Fall + BOOK GIVEAWAY!

Being from Los Angeles, October usually means I’m suffering from a gigantic case of Fall Envy.

While most people are dusting off their sweaters from storage and going on long walks for leaf peeping or apple picking,  we here in sunny  Los Angeles are often hunkering down for the last of the summer heatwaves. Sadly, our only hint that Fall has actually arrived is the pumpkin decal at Starbucks.

I know, I know … I shouldn’t complain, people love summer and if I’m honest, I’m a complete weather wimp. I lived in the Mid West and ran back to Southern California before I had a chance truly experience what my co-workers called “the despair of a long dark winter.” Thanks but no thanks. I can handle some weather, but when I have to warm my car up for a half-hour before leaving for work?  I’m tapping out.

While winter and I have some challenges, my love of Fall runs deep. So deep that I realized this year that I have my own traditions that let me know summer has ended and LA’s version of autumn has in fact: Arrived.

 

Some of My Favorite Ways to Celebrate Fall in LA.

1.  Pumpkin Everything: This is the time of the year where one of my basic food groups includes pumpkin. I drink Pumpkin coffee, live for pumpkin scones and stock up on everything pumpkin from my neighborhood Trader Joes. Just this week I ventured out and got my stash of: Pumpkin Waffles, Pumpkin pita chips, Pumpkin Greek Yogurt (non-fat, it’s LA people)  and Pumpkin-Ginger Ice Cream Sandwiches. My kitchen pantry is a sea of orange and brown and you know what? I love it. My son loves it. And the pumpkin ice cream is absolutely perfect during another 90 degree evening.

2. Candles: Nothing says fall to me like scented candles. Over the summer it was all about Pina Colada this and Tahitian Breeze that, but guess what? It’s all Pumpkin Spice, Orchard Apple and Harvest scents now. Even when it’s 104 degrees outside, I’m practically living inside of an apple orchard in my apartment. Yay fall.

3. Home Decor: As soon as my calendar said October, I immediately took out all of my “fall-y” home accents, it helps me get into the mindset that yes it is unbelievably effing hot outside, but guess what? It’s Fall! Hurray! pumpkin and gourds sit in my front door (although I bring them in during the day so they don’t DIE from the heat), I have a few leaf garlands I bought at a craft store and this year I really went big and bought a rustic wood pumpkin that lights up at night. If that’s not fall, then I don’t know what is.

4.  Baking & Eating: Fall means we move past those ice box cakes and head back into the oven, right? Wrong. Not in LA. But when you grow up here, you learn to open those windows, put on your favorite Halloween t-shirt and get to baking those apple crisps, pumpkin bread and pie. I’ve got a baker’s dozen of chocolate pumpkin muffins going right now and the air conditioner. It’s all good.

5. Reading: Reading is an all-year hobby, but what’s better than snuggling up with some pumpkin cookies and reading a good book, right? Which is why I have decided to have a Fall Giveaway with a copy of my debut novel HEARTBREAK CAKE along with one of my favorite fall items from my list (probably not the ice cream guys, just saying.)

THE RULES:  Please share YOUR favorite way to celebrate the fall season, whether it’s baking, a snuggly sweater, a book, a special song … I want to hear all of your favorite fall ideas and I will select four winners on November 1st. 

     

 

Weekend Reading & Eating: Pie Girls by Lauren Clark

I recently finished reading PIE GIRLS  by Lauren Clark and I devoured it in two days much like I do when I have actual pie in the house. It was wonderful.  Sweet, but not overly sweet, rich characters and just the right amount of tartness to make it fun.  

I had the chance to chat with Lauren and I invited her to share what she’s Eating, Writing & Loving these days. She  is also sweet enough to share her wonderful blueberry pie recipe, which is a perfect accompaniment  to PIE GIRLS. 

Don’t forget the vanilla ice cream and whip cream!

Thanks to Lauren for joining us today: 

1. What are you EATING right now that you love, can’t live without or think everyone should know about?

During the writing of Pie Girls, as I was getting close to finishing the book, I planned a PIE WEEKEND, prepared my two boys, my friends, and their kids. Using all of my grandmother’s recipes, I made 9 pies in all, and taste-tested everyone! I selected 3 (Chess Pie, Chocolate Pecan, and Lemon Sponge), along with her amazing-no fail pie crust recipe to go in the Pie Girls book. I have great memories of visiting her house every holiday and on school breaks. She would always have baked some fabulous dessert for us, usually a pie or cake. I’ve always thought about incorporating her recipes in one of my novels. Pie Girls was the perfect opportunity. For Christmas a few years ago, I asked my mother to write down all of my grandmother’s recipes so that I could have them and preserve the family tradition. It was the best gift ever!

Her blueberry pie is one recipe that I didn’t include in the book, but is one that I make often, and would like to share with you today (see below). It’s easy, only takes a few ingredients, and is perfect for a warm summer day picnic or barbeque. I hope that you enjoy it! (See Below)

2.     What are you WRITING now that you want people to know about?

I visited a place in Greensboro, Alabama called the Pie Lab, a restaurant that has been written up in Southern Living, Bon Appetit, and many newspapers around the Southeast. The pie shop is a special place—small town atmosphere—great food, and personal attention, but the thing that makes it really unique is that it is a place where high school dropouts or people in need of skills and training can go and learn valuable skills—how to bake, run a register, make change, and give good customer service.

I kind fell in love with the idea of such a place existing in Fairhope, Alabama, a lovely waterfront community near where I live. I decided to create a shop named Pie Girls there, and thus, Searcy’s story was born.Generally, while writing a novel, I do best when writing every morning (that’s usually 5:30 am – 7:30 am, before the kids need to be off at school and I have to get to work. I try to end my writing sessions having finished a chapter, which means that the next day, I have a fresh slate, of sorts. I’m also the type to just plow through from start to finish with my novel, going back to editing after (even if I think chapter 13 is the most awful garbage I’ve ever written).

 

3.      What are you LOVING right now?

Right now, I am loving a family weekend in Atlanta, Ga., which is about 6 hours from my house in Mobile, Ala. The boys have been talking about attending Dragon Con for months, and I decided that since next year, it’s in San Diego, there’s no time like the present. We spent Friday at the Georgia Aquarium, which was an amazing experience. It really makes you feel connected to the ocean and all of the creatures that live in our world. I’m definitely a water and beach person, so watching otters play, seahorses dance, and dolphins swim was pretty close to heaven!

Dragon Con should be pretty crazy. Thousands of people, dressed up in costumes, all gathered in 4 hotels to see stars from television shows, mini-series, movies, and cartoons.  I’m hoping to catch a glimpse of Patrick Stuart (X-Men), Mary McDonald (Battlestar Galactica), and Ralph Macchio (the Karate Kid).  If we all had time to find costumes and dress up, Patrick would definitely go as “Arrow” from the show on TV, John David would pick “Sonic the Hedgehog,” and I’d probably go with something girly and pink, like Princess Bubblegum from Adventure Time!

Delicious & Easy Blueberry Pie

1 qt fresh blueberries

2 tbsp flour

1 tsp tapioca

1 tbsp butter

¼ tsp salt

1 tbsp lemon juice

½ cup white sugar

½ cup brown sugar

1 (baked) Best Ever pie crust from Pie Girls or one Deep Dish 9” pie shell

Mix half of the blueberries, flour, tapioca, butter, salt, lemon juice, and both sugars in a saucepan. Cook over medium to low heat, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens, approximately 10-15 minutes.

Remove from heat. Add  remaining half of blueberries. Stir well. Pour into baked pie shell. Chill until set. Top with whipped cream if desired.

 

BIO:  Lauren Clark writes contemporary Southern novels sprinkled with sunshine, suspense, and secrets. A former TV news anchor, Lauren adores flavored coffee, local book stores, and anywhere she can stick her toes in the sand. Her big loves are her family, paying it forward, and true-blue friends.She is the author of three award-winning novels, Dancing Naked in Dixie, Stay Tuned, and Stardust Summer, as well as a short story, A Very Dixie Christmas, published in the Merry & Bright holiday collection. Lauren is a member of the Gulf Coast Writers Association and the Mobile Writers Guild. Check out her website at www.laurenclarkbooks.com.

BUY LINK:

PIE GIRLS KINDLE

PIE GIRLS NOOK

 

Novel Spotlight: Redesigning Rose

Novel Spotlight: Redesigning Rose finally made it off my To-Be-Read list and I loved it! I had a chance to chat with Lydia and get some insight on her characters.  Grab a cup a tea and learn a bit more about Redesigning Rose and Lydia’s goal to get her characters to their happy place.

Thanks for joining us here at Eat ~ Write ~ Love!

Gardening and tea were such a huge part of the way the characters in Redesigning Rose soothed themselves. Can you share your favorite kind of tea and also your experience with gardening as a form of relaxing?

 Orange Pekoe is my go-to tea for relaxing but I’ve also developed a fondness for David’s Tea Organic Chai which is pretty much black tea and cinnamon. It’s heaven in a tea cup. Gardening is something I find therapeutic, relaxing, invigorating and energizing! The creative aspect of it makes my mind whirl, and I love sitting out amidst my gardens with a book or a glass of wine. One of my most Zen things to do in the garden – and this is probably going to sound very bizarre – is to stand around watering the flower beds or even the grass. I could spend hours roaming from garden to garden with the hose. It’s almost meditative for me. See, told you I’m a little weird.

 I liked Becky as a side-kick to Rose’s  “demure” view on things, were you looking to create a Yin & Yang for their dynamic? How did she inspire you while writing her character?

I knew Rose needed someone in her life to kick her in the butt, to make her think, and to get her outside herself and not take herself so seriously. I hadn’t intended them to be quite so polar-opposite, but I think it worked well in that they both ended up learning from one another. Becky inspired me to have more fun and to get a little silly sometimes, and how to be a better friend. And they both taught me to take a bad situation and turn it into a positive.

 I was surprised by the ending –did you feel you needed an explosive event to happen in order to push the characters through their journey? Or just curious what you wanted the character Becky to learn from the experience?

I wanted Becky to have her own opportunity for growth, and I wanted Rose to be able to help just like Becky helped her. I also wanted to juxtapose what Rose went through with Frank to what Becky goes through and show that the two situations have startling similarities. Sorry, I know that’s vague, but I personally loathe spoilers so I won’t say anything more!

 Do you think it’s common for people to find themselves leaving relationships only to discover they never really knew their partner? I really felt for Rose as she would look back on her marriage feeling betrayed.

Sometimes I wonder whether we ever really know anyone, but then I come around and force myself to stop reading so many novels with crazy spouses. Gone Girl, anyone?

Rose obviously never really knew Frank, but I think after enough time passes, she realizes her own mistakes and grows from the experience. Have you ever gone through something horrendous only to be grateful afterwards that it happened? I think Rose feels that way. She’s stronger from the experience and much smarter. I don’t think she’ll make the same mistakes again. She won’t stay quiet, or ignore her intuition and she’ll be much happier for it. And because of this she’ll look back and be grateful for the experience, regardless of how agonizing it was at that time.

 What are you hoping readers take away from Rose and her motley crew of friends?

Fantastic question! Friendship is important. Family is important. Doing what you love is important. Love is important – but not if you lose yourself. Trust yourself. Never regret your mistakes – learn from them instead and be happy and grateful for what they taught you. Find “the happy.”

The Book: Redesigning Rose

Rose Parker’s husband has been lying. About everything. When a conversation with her husband triggers questions, Rose Parker uncovers alarming answers that shatter her perfect life. But it is only when she shoves her belongings in her SUV and drives off that Rose realizes just how far from perfect her life actually was. She has nowhere to turn. While debating between distressing sleeping arrangements–her mother’s house full of questions or a hotel room with too much solitude–Rose bumps into an acquaintance from her gardening class and allows bubbly, exuberant Becky to indulge her in a wild night full of whiskey, weeping, and whispered confidences. Suddenly, Rose has a new friend, a roof over her head, and two gorgeous men moving her out of her marital home.As Rose struggles to settle into her new life, she remains determined to comprehend her past. And with time and distance and especially wine, comes knowledge. Frank wasn’t the only one lying to her. Rose was lying to herself.

 The Author: Lydia Laceby

LYDIA LACEBY is a co-founder of the fiction book blog, Novel Escapes. Since 2009, she has read and reviewed as much women’s fiction as humanly possible while designing, organizing and expanding the blog from two reviewers to seven. In her spare time, she knits cute baby hats, would pick cheese over chocolate, and longs for the days she was able to cheat on her allergy free diet.Lydia began her career writing a soap opera at the tender age of thirteen. It never aired. Redesigning Rose is her first novel.

Love and the Apple Blackberry Sonker with NANCY SCROFANO

EDITORS NOTE:, I have been having fun reading Nancy Scrofano’s new book AMERICAN HONEY!   Nancy joins us today with a sweet recipe for the sonker,  a dessert that is just as  fun to say as it is delicious to eat.  Check out this Southern cobbler-like dessert that  is inspired from her new novel!

Thank you  to Nancy for joining us and for more information on her new novel, go to: www.nancyscrofano.com

  The Book:

In my new novel, American Honey, recent high school graduate Olivia “Ollie” McKenna leaves her small town roots in Summerville, Georgia, to pursue her dream of becoming a professional singer. With her best friend and older sister in tow, wholesome Ollie travels to the big city to compete in singing contest Atlanta Idol where she meets nineteen-year-old Jack Bradley, a fellow country singer who quickly becomes a close friend. The connection between them is magnetic and an opportunity to sing together could change their lives forever.

The Inspiration: 

I’m a fan of American Idol. I’ve been watching it since the first season, and I wanted to write a story involving a singing competition. I started working on American Honey after watching the season ten finale of American Idol in May 2011. I was inspired by winner Scotty McCreery and runner-up Lauren Alaina. I also found inspiration for this book from Disney Channel’s Austin & Ally and ABC’s Nashville. I love country music, and the title American Honey comes from a song of the same name by country music trio Lady Antebellum. The message of the song really coincides with main character Ollie’s journey.

 The Recipe:

The sonker is native to North Carolina, Jack’s home state, and his mother’s version of this deep-dish cobbler is legendary. Sonkers are often made with blackberries, a favorite local fruit. Jack tells Ollie that his mom’s famous baked fruit dessert is an Apple Blackberry Sonker. Maybe he would make it himself for Ollie as a friendly gesture or possibly as something more… Wouldn’t that be sweet? Or maybe Ollie would try to impress him with her own version.

 

The following recipe is courtesy of the Hallmark Channel.If you decide to make a sonker, please send me a picture of your finished product. I would love to see it!

INGREDIENTS

Pie pastry for 2-1/2 nine-inch crusts (Store-bought or your favorite recipe. NOTE: If you use pre-rolled store-bought pie pastry, piece it together to make a rectangle. Use the scraps to make the lattice.)

1-1/2 pounds Golden Delicious apples (3 or 4)

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

5 cups of blackberries

3/4 cup of sugar

1/ cup of flour

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

3 tablespoons of butter (cut into small pieces)

DIRECTIONS

Divide the pie pastry into two pieces–one about four-fifths of the dough and the other about one-fifth (for the lattice top). Flatten into disks, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.  Cut up the apples and place them in a large bowl. Toss them gently with the lemon juice to keep them from browning.

Add the blackberries and gently toss. Preheat the oven to 400°F. On a lightly floured surface, roll the larger piece of dough into a 12 x 16-inch rectangle. Line a 9 x 13-inch glass baking pan with the dough. Roll the remaining piece of dough into a rectangle about 10 inches long. Cut it into 1/2-inch-wide strips to use as a lattice top.

In a small bowl, blend the sugar, flour and cinnamon. Sprinkle a light layer of the sugar-flour mixture over the bottom of the crust. Layer the fruit into the baking pan, sprinkling with the sugar-flour mixture as you go. Dot with the butter. Arrange the lattice strips in an open basket-weave pattern diagonally across the sonker, trimming the dough strips to fit where necessary. Fold in the side pieces of dough to cover the ends of the lattice strips. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 350°F. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the fruit is hot and bubbling and the crust is browned. Let it cool for 10 to 20 minutes, then serve.

Makes 12 servings.

Add American Honey to your Goodreads shelf! Follow along with the American Honey Tour via Fictionella! Connect with Nancy at nancyscrofano.com

LOVE: Indie Movies for the RomCom Fix

I love a good romantic comedy. Just hits me right in the warm & fuzzy part of my heart, especially when I add  popcorn, glass of wine and a box of Goobers.   I’m pretty much at maximum joy capacity.

These days, motherhood has made going to the movies low on my priority list.  Free time  means  laundry, writing, dinner with friends or a shower that doesn’t include a toddler coming in and asking me what I’m doing and when I’ll be done.  Sigh.

Movie time has become something I do at home thanks to  Netflix, Amazon  and iTunes, but I have to admit that the romantic comedy selection has been feeling a little sparse.There doesn’t seem to be a lot out there for that can rival  my list of personal favorites:  40-Year-Old Virgin, Love Actually, The Cutting Edge, Gross Pointe Blank, The Holiday, Some Kind of Wonderful, The Thing Called Love, Sleepless in Seattle.

You know, the gold standards.

 

I’ve been ignoring the chatter that much like Chick Lit the  interest in romantic comedies is dead. That’s just silly talk. Check out this article from NPR written in March, 2013: Are Romantic Comedies Dead.

I’ll never give up on a great romantic comedy, I will stop watching a bad one, but give me a well-made, smart and genuine romantic comedy and I’ll give you my $20 for a price of admission and $40 for snacks and what not!

The lack of quality supply and my own personal demand has forced me to explore  other avenues for getting my romantic comedy  fix.  I’ve stumbled into some really great independents that have the spirit of a fuzzy romance with a streak of irreverence that I adore.

Check out these three smart independents that have made movie-watching fun again. Or maybe it’s the wine & Goobers … (oh never mind )

 

1. If you like When Harry Met Sally you will like Friends with Kids, this is a  smart, fun and thoughtful comedy that has an interesting angle on friends who get involved. Kinda. They have a baby and promise to keep things platonic and  then chaos ensues. You know how that goes! Really loved this movie and it doesn’t hurt that my boy crush Adam Scott is the hero in this movie.

2. Take This Waltz appeared on my Netflix because they seem to know I am a sucker for romances. Well, after weeks of skipping it, I finally pressed play and was completely engrossed for two hours. If you like Bridges of Madison of County, this could be an interesting alternative for you! Michelle Williams is awesome and Seth Rogen is still goofy, but endearing. Canadian actor, Luke Kirby is a stone cold fox.  Add it to your Netflix! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1592281/

3. Safety Not Guaranteed was an unsuspecting sweetheart of movie that really brings it home that there is “a pot for every lid.” Thought this was a great movie, with a great cast, love Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass and Jake Johnson. And guess what? Despite the smart deliveries, the sarcastic zingers and Aubrey Plaza’s well-known deadpan delivery, this movie is all about the Happily Ever After.

VALENTINE’S DAY EDITION: HOT CHOCOLATE SOUP

EDITORS NOTE: Happy Valentine’s Day! Love is in the air and chocolate is on the mind today, so what better way to celebrate than with a Hot Chocolate soup from mystery culinary writer, Sharon Moore.  Her new release MISSION IMPASTABLE  is a tasty whodunnit with plenty of inspired recipes to go along with the fun. Thanks for joining us Sharon! Check out her great blog Parsley, Sage and Rosemary for more information on Sharon.

 

HOT CHOCOLATE SOUP

This recipe is not in Mission Impastable, my just-released culinary mystery, but it will appear in Prime Rib and Punishment, the sequel out later this year. Alli, challenges her students at the cooking school to create a dessert soup that could also be a totally new ice cream flavor. They come up with some very interesting ideas! The winner in her class was Hot Chocolate Soup and Hot Chocolate Ice Cream.

 

What says love more than chocolate? To make your love scenario even steamier, serve your lover Hot Chocolate Soup on that special day. This soup is hot in more than one way.

Not only do you serve it warm, but the red pepper flakes in the soup add that surprise element you always want to keep in your relationship.

Leftover soup? No problem. Make Hot Chocolate Ice Cream and recall the night you first met this combo.

 

 

Hot Chocolate Soup (serves 4)

2 c heavy whipping cream

2 c milk

2 egg yolks, beaten

4 T sugar

4 oz grated 60-70% cacao chocolate

1 t vanilla

¼ t red pepper flakes

¼ c. toasted coconut

20-2”cubes pound cake or angel food cake

Put cake cubes under broiler. Watch closely. When browned, turn over and brown the bottom. Remove to a rack to cool.

In top of double boiler, heat whipping cream and milk. Slowly whisk in egg yolks and stir until begins to thicken. Stir in sugar.

Slowly add grated chocolate. Whisk until smooth. Add vanilla and red pepper flakes. Serve with five cubes of cake and a sprinkle of toasted coconut.

 

After 39 years as an educator, Sharon Arthur Moore “transitioned” to the life of full-time fiction writer. She’s an intrepid cook, game-player, and miniatures lover. She writes culinary mysteries, women’s fiction, historic

al fiction, short stories, plays, and erotic romance (Under the pen name Angelica French). Sharon has lived in every region of the country except the Pacific Northwest and loved every single one of them. Her current favorite region is the desert Southwest. She is married to the most extraordinary man and claims four children, one daughter-in-law, a grandson, and dog Maudie.

Heartbreak Tips & Heartbreak Heaven with Sue Watson

EDITORS NOTE: Happy to introduce Chick Lit friend from across the pond, Sue Watson, who dazzles with  her delicious reads, FAT GIRLS and FAIRY CAKES and YOUNGER, THINNER, BLONDER.   Make sure to read the directions to Heartbreak Pavlova, they are hilarious!  Thanks Sue! ~

HEARTBREAK TIPS & HEARTBREAK HEAVEN 

I haven’t had a ‘heartbreak’ Valentine’s Day since I met my husband a few years back – I hope that doesn’t sound smug, because trust me I’ve done my time with Valentine. I’ve sat on that back row watching the other girls get the flowers, cards and romantic Valentine dinners, and pretended I hadn’t even noticed the date. I’ve helped my pretty friends ‘guess who could it possibly be?’ from a long list of suitors sending chocolate hearts and touching declarations of anonymous love to them. And yes girls, I’ve cried into my pillow andshouted ‘stop Mr Postman’ in true Karen Carpenter style … which, I’ll admit, was a little weird.

But take it from me, when you’re standing on the sidelines watching the rest of the world fall in love there is an alternative. Baked goods. They just don’t let you down the way men do, and like Indira the feisty funny heroine in HEARTBREAK CAKE I have a weakness for ‘fresh from the oven stuff.’ I lust for Indira’s cardamom muffins, her fig and cherry scones and don’t start me on the chocolate ganache wedding cakes with candied bacon bits.

So for those of us still waiting for the chocolate heart, the dinner a dieux and the Valentine cards dropping on the mat trust me, they will come, but in the meantime, embrace Valentine’s Day.

Make it extra special whether you’re with the one you love or on your own. Like New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s day is the best time of the year if you’re holding the right hand – and the worst if you’re not.

So if you’re holding the wrong hand let go now, and if you’re single, call off the search and celebrate your status. And nothing says ‘single and happy,’ like sugar and whipped cream. Who needs a man when those bad boys are working it?

My advice this Valentine’s Day then, is to forget your ‘ho on the go’ bags, stay home and let crispy meringue and softly whipped cream give you all the TLC you need.

With this in mind, here’s my prescription recipe for ‘Heartbreak Pavlova.’ This little slice of ‘Heartbreak Heaven,’ is to be taken liberally on Valentine’s Day with a large sprinkling of Cindy Arora’s delicious ‘Heartbreak Cake,’ – the perfect Valentine’s celebration. ‘

Enjoy!

 

Recipe for Heartbreak Heaven Pavlova

1 copy of Heartbreak Cake

4 large egg whites

Pinch of salt

1 cup and 2 tablespoons of superfine sugar

Filling

1 ½ cups of heavy cream whipped

350 g (1 and ½ cups) raspberries, strawberries and redcurrants

a little powdered sugar

Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 2, 300°F (150°C) .

DIRECTIONS

Measure the sugar and put aside, now put the egg whites in a large clean bowl and whisk until they form soft peaks. Stop! Before you set off, don’t get too whisk-happy because over-whisking will cause a major collapse! Girl, just keep whisking and checking until you can turn that bowl upside down without the snowy white fluff sliding out and ruining your hair.

When the egg whites are at ‘upside down stage’ – whisk in the sugar slowly a large tablespoon at a time, whisking after each addition until all the sugar is incorporated. Now take a metal tablespoon and spoon the meringue mixture on to the prepared baking sheet, forming a heart-shape (you can draw this on your grease proof paper or simply just think of the one you love as you dollop).

Now using the tip of a skewer, make little swirls in the meringue all round the edge, lifting the skewer up sharply each time to leave tiny peaks. This will look like you know what you’re doing – even if you don’t! Then place the baking sheet in the oven, immediately turn down the heat to gas mark 1, 275°F (140°C) and leave it to cook for 1 hour.

While the heavenly meringue is cooking, take out your copy of ‘Heartbreak Cake’ (on kindle or paperback) and read about Indira and her scandalously sweet, cake-filled love life.

After an hour of reading turn the oven off, but leave the Pavlova inside the oven until it’s completely cold. You could even bake this the night before, take the book to bed and allow the meringue to completely cool overnight in the oven (you won’t be able to put the book down so will be up all night too).

To serve the Pavlova, put the book down and lift it from the baking sheet, peel off the paper and place it on a serving dish. Then just before serving, spread the whipped cream on top, arrange the fruit on top of the cream and dust with a little sifted sugar.

Put the kettle on, serve cut into wedges (remember it’s not for sharing!) and carry on reading ‘Heartbreak Cake…’ .

My heart-shaped Pavlova serves 5… but hey, that’s just a number, if you need to eat it all!

About Sue: I was a journalist on women’s magazines and national newspapers before leaving it all behind for a career in TV. As a producer with the BBC I worked on garden makeovers, kitchen takeovers and daytime sofas – all the time making copious notes so that one day I might escape to the country and turn it all into a book. For more information: http://fatgirlsandfairycakes.blogspot.co.uk

Art + Science of Cupcakes with Lucie Simone

For Christmas, I got myself a Kitchen Aid stand mixer. After battling a batch of sugar cookie dough with my little hand blender until my fingers cramped, I knew it was time to step up my game. And let me tell you, baking has never been so much fun.

I haven’t always been a baker. In fact, I didn’t start baking until a little over two years ago. It started out with cookies. Chocolate chip walnut cookies, to be exact. I was on a mission to perfect the cookie after having spent decades burning them to little black discs my cat wouldn’t even eat (and he eats anything!). It took some trying, but I finally figured out how to keep them crisp, yet moist without a hint of charred chocolate.

After mastering the cookie, I moved on to muffins and delighted my co-workers nearly every Monday with blueberry muffins, strawberry muffins, corn muffins, or chocolate chip muffins. And with every mmmm and ahhhh, my confidence grew until I was ready to take on the queen of desserts. The cupcake!

It wasn’t the cake part of the cupcake that intimidated me. It was the frosting. I’d never made frosting in my life, and I had no idea how incredibly easy it was. A couple sticks of butter, a couple cups of powdered sugar, a little vanilla, a splash of milk, and voila! Frosting! I still need a bit of practice with the pastry bag (I tend to get more frosting on my sleeves than on my cupcakes), but it’s super fun swirling the icing into tall peaks of buttercream bliss. It’s incredibly therapeutic.

And since I started baking cupcakes, I’ve tested a few different recipes, looking for the perfect crumb. And in my opinion, this is it. Light, fluffy, moist, and delicious. Yum!

I got this recipe from cookiesandcups.com – Vanilla Cupcakes

Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

1 3/4 Cups cake flour

1 1/4 Cups all purpose flour

1 3/4 Cups sugar

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp kosher salt

1 Cup butter, room temperature, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

4 eggs

1 Cup milk

2 tsp vanilla

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°

Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners.

In bowl of stand mixer add the first 5 ingredients and stir together using paddle attachment for about a minute. Enough to get them nice and combined.

With mixer on low, drop in butter, a few cubes at a time continuing until all butter is in and mixer resembles coarse sand.

Add eggs one at a time on low speed.

With mixer still on low slowly pour in milk and vanilla. Turn mixer to medium and beat for 2 minutes until batter is smooth, scraping sides of bowl as needed.

Fill liners 2/3 full (about 1/4 cup batter) and bake for 15-20 minutes until centers are set and toothpick comes out clean.

Allow to cool completely before frosting.

Note: to substitute cake flour, use all purpose cup for cup, minus 2 tablespoons, plus 2 tablespoons corn starch.

And for the frosting, my own concoction:

2 sticks room temp butter

2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

1 tablespoon vanilla

2-3 tablespoons milk

Cream the sugar and butter together until smooth, add the vanilla, and milk (one tablespoon at a time) until the frosting is the consistency you like it.

This recipe will frost 12 cupcakes if you like to pile it on high, or 24 if you prefer a light shmear.

Enjoy!

                                                                                   

Lucie Simone has a passion for travel, yoga, and writing. She has a degree in Journalism, a   Master of Fine Arts in Television Production, and is a certified yoga teacher. Her love of comedy (and living under the delusion that she might one day be an actress) resulted in a stint studying improvisation, which, ironically enough, taught her to be a better writer.

 www.luciesimone.com

 

FEED YOUR HEART: RECIPE WEEK

This week I’ve decided to give the kitchen table here at EAT~WRITE~LOVE over to a few authors & bakers who know a thing or two about romance  and, er… dessert. Grab a coffee and  join us everyday this week and get inspired as I combine my two loves: baking and Chick Lit.

Enjoy!

MEET HERS BAKERY

I was lucky enough last week to spend an afternoon with a handful of bloggers from MomsLA.com for my very first book club for HEARTBREAK CAKE. I was nervous (terrified) as you can imagine, but also really excited to hear from readers who wanted to chat about my book (awesome!)

I had been coordinating for a few weeks with editor Sarah Auerswald and she had briefly mentioned getting a heart-shaped cake for the event.

Cake? No problem, I thought. When it comes to cake, I know exactly who to call.

Tasha Sanchez and her business partner Melanie Johnstone are the women behind Los Angeles based Hers Bakery, an indie catering company with a focus on sweet desserts.  I gave  Tasha some details on the cake  that was inspired from one in my book and she said “I got this.”

Boy, she wasn’t kidding.

On the day of the book event, no one could stop taking pictures of the cake or saying how amazing it tasted.  Moist, sweet but not overly sweet, just the right amount of crunchy hazelnuts and an undertone of Nutella that made  you heady with happiness. Seconds were a must.

 

  I had a quick chat with Tasha, who is a busy mom of two, and while she wouldn’t give me the secret to how she makes such a moist cake, seeing as it’s an industry hazard. She did give me a  peek into some of the steps she took to make this baking beauty.

How did you make this glorious cake? Tasha: LOL! I started with our  lovely chocolate cake recipe, baked three layers in a heart-shaped pan.  I made a chocolate and Nutella buttecream and garnished it with crushed hazelnut candies on the edge.

It was epic, thank you! Is this a popular cake for Hers Bakery?  I made it for the first time a few months ago for a wedding and it was delicious! I was hoping I could make it again soon.

So do you think chocolate and hazelnuts are good for heartbreak? Anything with chocolate is good! Add nuts and it is even better, you can’t mess with a good chocolate and hazelnut cake, it can handle anything!

Thanks to Tasha and to everyone at Hers Bakery for making this beautiful cake!  And thanks to MomsLA.com and all the amazing bloggers who came out for lunch for some book talk + cake!

RECREATE THIS CAKE: Recipe from Kitchen Daily.