A Freshly Baked Cozy Mystery Box Set

by Kate Bell

  "What are you talking about?" I asked him.

  Then he got down on one knee and looked me in the eye. "Allie, I thought I liked my dull existence before you came into the picture, but I was wrong. Life with you has been anything but dull. I like this crazy little life I've been living since you appeared. I was going to wait and ask you when we got home and I could make it romantic but, everything else has been just a little crazy with us, so why wait? Will you marry me?"

  I stared at him as he pulled a jewelry box out of his pocket and opened it up. He took my hand and slipped a diamond ring on my finger.

  I gasped. "Is that what I think it is?" After our Valentine's Day fiasco, I wasn't jumping to conclusions. I had made a fool of myself when I assumed he was going to ask me to marry him then. I wasn't making that mistake twice. I wanted him to say it.

  He nodded. "Chocolate and vanilla diamonds on a strawberry gold band. An engagement ring, to be precise. Will you marry me?"

  The ring was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. The center chocolate diamond was square and was surrounded by vanilla diamonds. The vanilla diamonds, in turn, were flanked by smaller chocolate diamonds and the strawberry gold band was the prettiest thing I had ever seen. I squealed so loud I'm pretty sure the people in the next room heard me.

  "Alec! It's beautiful! Oh, my gosh! I love it! Oh, Alec! We're getting married!"

  He chuckled. "If you say yes, we are."

  "Yes!" I shouted. "Yes, yes, yes, yes!"

  "Do you like the ring? Because if you don't, we can take it back to the jewelry store and you can pick out another one."

  "Are you kidding? This is the most perfect ring in the whole world! I mean, it's chocolate and vanilla diamonds on a strawberry gold band. How could I pick out a more perfect ring?" I asked. "Look at it!" I gazed at it, admiring how the ring looked on my finger.

  "I guess that'll do then," he said with a chuckle.

  I threw my arms around him and held him close. It had been an awful week, but this more than made up for it.

  "I get to be Allie Blanchard," I sang. Happy tears filled my eyes. How had I managed to find someone so wonderful?

  He laughed again. "Yes, you get to be Allie Blanchard."

  When I finished crying, I pulled away from him and looked him in the eye. "Are you sure? Are you sure you want me? I can be a pain and I'm always getting into trouble and I want you to be sure you're making the right decision."

  "Stop it," he said. "I love your craziness. We'll do so much together. We'll run marathons, we'll catch killers, oh, and we'll go to France for our honeymoon."

  "Oh, no, we will not go to France for our honeymoon. No. No way," I said. "I've had all I can take of French anything for a while."

  "Are you sure?" he asked with a smile.

  "Stop it," I said. "We will go somewhere, just not there. And no more marathons or murders. Okay?"

  He nodded. "We'll work something out."

  "Okay," I said and gazed into his beautiful blue eyes.

  I had the man of my dreams and I couldn't think of anything that would make me happier.

  The End

  Author’s Notes

  Allie finally got her heart’s desire. I wanted Allie to have the perfect ring, and there wasn’t anything more perfect than a chocolate and vanilla diamond ring on a strawberry gold band. It fits her personality perfectly. I know she and Alec will be very happy together.

  I went to a strawberry festival on the California coast one year and it was such fun! They had strawberry everything and with the marathon taking place in the spring, I was thrilled to get to add some of the details I experienced when I went to the festival. And who doesn’t love strawberries?

  I hope you enjoyed this book in Allie and Alec’s adventure. I know Allie wants to retire from the sleuthing business, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she has another adventure or two in the coming months.

  Don’t forget to check out the recipes at the end of this book. And, if you’d like to receive updates on the next Kate Bell book, follow me!

  https://www.facebook.com/Kathleen-Suzette-Kate-Bell-authors-759206390932120/

  Strawberry Surprise Cupcakes

  Cupcakes:

  2 1/3 cups all purpose flour

  1 3/4 cups granulated sugar

  3 tsp. baking powder

  1/4 tsp. salt

  1/2 tsp. baking soda

  1/4 cup cornstarch

  1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

  3 eggs

  7/8 cup whole milk

  2 tsp. vanilla extract

  1/2 cup finely chopped fresh strawberries

  Filling:

  6 Tbsp. strawberry jam, separated

  8 ounces cream cheese, softened

  1/4 cup granulated sugar

  2 tsp. vanilla extract

  Frosting:

  1 cup unsalted butter, softened

  8 oz. cream cheese, softened

  4 cups powdered sugar

  4 tbsp. heavy cream

  ½ cup fresh strawberries, finely chopped

  Directions:

  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with liners.

  Cupcakes:

  In large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cornstarch and salt until well combined. Set aside.

  In a smaller bowl, cream butter and sugar until well combined. Add beaten eggs, milk and vanilla to butter/sugar mixture and mix until well combined. Slowly stir into dry ingredients and mix on medium for 2 minutes. Gently fold in strawberries. Set aside.

  Filling: Set aside strawberry jam. In medium bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until well combined.

  Fill cupcake liners 1/3 full with cupcake batter. Drop a teaspoon of strawberry jam into the cupcake batter. Next, drop a heaping teaspoon of cream cheese filling next to the jam. Cover the fillings with cupcake batter to fill the liners 2/3 full.

  Bake for 20-22 minutes on middle oven rack. Cupcakes are done when the tops spring back when gently touched. Remove from oven and allow to cool 5 minutes in pan. Remove from pan and onto wire racks to cool completely.

  Frosting:

  Beat all frosting ingredients together until creamy. Add more cream if it’s too dry, or more powdered sugar if it’s too wet.

  When cupcakes are completely cooled, frost with cream cheese frosting. Use a pastry bag with a large star tip to make a pretty top.

  Strawberry Pineapple Upside Down Cupcakes

  1 1/3 cups all purpose flour

  2/3 cup granulated sugar

  1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

  1/2 tsp. baking soda

  2/3 cup milk

  4 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

  2 tsp. vanilla extract

  1 egg

  pinch salt

  ½ cup finely chopped fresh strawberries

  Pineapple bottoms:

  1 20 ounce can crushed pineapple in heavy syrup, drained

  12 maraschino cherries

  2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

  1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed

  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 12 cup muffin pan.

  Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.

  Mix melted butter, granulated sugar, vanilla, beaten egg, and milk until combined. Pour into bowl with flour mixture and add strawberries. Mix on medium speed 2 minutes. Set aside.

  Pineapple bottoms: melt butter and mix with brown sugar. Divide the butter and brown sugar mixture evenly among the muffin cups. Place a maraschino cherry in the middle of each muffin cup, pressing all the way to the bottom. Surround the cherry with about 2 tablespoons drained crushed pineapple. Spoon cupcake batter into each cup until 2/3 full.

  Place cupcake pan on middle rack of oven and bake 18 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove pan to wire rack and allow to cool ten minutes. Loosen the cupcakes with a butter knife and invert onto a plate. Cupcakes can be placed upside down into a cupcake liner to make eating easier. Allow to cool completely.
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