Playing with Bonbon Fire
Page 29
“What are you going to do now?” Bertie asked me.
I looked to Harley. He slipped his hand around mine.
“I suppose I need talk to Florence.” It hurt to say aloud what I’d tried to deny since Saturday. “She’s my mother, not Carolina. That’s what she came to talk to me about. That’s what I didn’t want to tell anyone. I suppose the two of us will need to decide what kind of relationship we’re going to have.”
“I meant about the Chocolate Box,” Bertie said in that gruff voice of hers that I loved. “What are you going to do about that gaping hole where a window should be? We can’t open the shop with it looking like this.”
“Oh, that? The engineer said there was no serious structural damage, so we’re cleared to start making repairs. I’m not sure how I’m going to pay for them, but they’ll get done … eventually.”
“That’s what I wanted to hear.” Bertie nodded to someone standing behind me.
I turned around and saw that she’d actually nodded to a large group of someones standing behind me. The residents of the Pink Pelican Inn had come armed with power tools. Just beyond the door, I spotted a bright red pickup truck precariously packed with what looked like half the inventory of the local hardware store.
“Here in Camellia Beach,” Arthur Jenkins said as he ambled forward, “we make sure we take care of our own.”
The sawing and drilling and hammering that followed sounded like sweet music as Althea, Tina, and I headed into the kitchen to make more chocolate. I looked forward to many more uneventful days like this in my peaceful little town of Camellia Beach.
Recipes Snipped From the Camellia Current, Camellia Beach’s Local Newspaper
Biting into a piece of fine chocolate is like falling in love. But with chocolate, you’ll never have to suffer through a bad breakup.
—Tina Penn, honorary resident of Camellia Beach, SC
Harley’s Slow Cooker Mole Poblano Shrimp Stew
All of your neighbors will be singing your praises when you serve Harley’s special shrimp stew swimming in a rich mole sauce. Use the extra sauce as a dip for tortilla chips and offer it as an appetizer. Serve the stew over white or brown rice.
Ingredients
Coarse salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 (28-oz) can diced tomatoes
1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped
2 dried ancho chilis, stemmed
1 can chipotle chilis in adobo sauce (for a milder sauce, use only a few chilis and a tablespoon of the adobo sauce)
¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted
2 tbsp sunflower seeds
2 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp raisins
3 oz 70% or higher fair-trade dark chocolate, finely chopped
6 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
¾ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground cinnamon
2 lbs shelled deveined uncooked medium shrimp, tails removed, coarsely chopped
Remove stems and seeds from ancho chilis. Lightly toast in dry pan. Place all ingredients except shrimp in blender. Blend on high for 1–2 minutes or until smooth. Pour sauce in slow cooker. Cook on high 3 hours. Add shrimp. Cook on high an additional 30 minutes.
Mabel’s Sweet and Savory Cheddar Cheese and Pretzel Bonbons
Word has gotten around that Penn can’t manage this recipe. Well, this editor has tried it without encountering any trouble. The sharp cheddar cheese perfectly complements the rich chocolate shell and salty pretzels. Serve the bonbons after a cheeseburger cookout or with popcorn on movie night. They’ll delight your sweet tooth.
Ingredients
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 cup whole milk
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1½ cups pretzels
12–24 oz fair-trade semisweet chocolate, chopped (Amount is dependent on the size of the cheese balls. Smaller balls means you’ll need more chocolate.)
1 tbsp coarse sea salt
In medium saucepan, heat butter and corn starch over medium low heat. Whisk until bubbly. Add milk. While whisking, bring to a simmer. When white sauce thickens, take off the heat. Gradually stir in shredded cheese until melted. Crush the pretzels. (Put in freezer bag and hammer with a meat tenderizer until you end up with about ¼ inch pieces.) Cool in freezer for 30 minutes. Roll into ¼ to ½ inch balls. Roll the cheese balls in the crushed pretzels. Return to freezer for at least another half hour. Melt semisweet chocolate in double boiler or microwave. (To melt in microwave: In microwave-safe bowl, heat chocolate in small batches on 50% power for 2 minutes. If not melted, continue to heat for 30-second intervals. It won’t look completely melted. Stir until smooth.) Dip cheese balls into melted chocolate. Coat completely. Set on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle lightly with ground Himalayan or sea salt before chocolate sets. Place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour to set. Store in refrigerator in airtight container. Makes 24–36 bonbons depending on size of cheese balls.
Penn’s Microwave Bonbon Fire Kindling
Penn told this editor that if our readership wants to taste the original bonbon fires, they’ll have to buy them from her at the Chocolate Box. If you like spicy, it’s well worth the trip to Camellia Beach to get one. While you’re visiting the shop, you can also find out what fresh trouble Penn has found. Although I can’t bring you the bonbon fire, Penn did agree after much cajoling to share this quick and easy recipe for spicy Bonbon Fire Kindling, which is like a fiery chocolate bark.
Ingredients
6 oz 70% or higher fair-trade dark chocolate, chopped (or use 6 oz semisweet chocolate chips)
1 tsp cinnamon
½–1 tsp (depending on the amount of heat you want) red pepper flakes
1 tsp paprika
½–1 tsp (depending on the amount of heat you want) ground cayenne pepper
1 tsp salt
In microwave-safe bowl, combine the chocolate with all other ingredients. Melt on 50% power for 2 minutes. Stir. If not melted, continue to heat for 30-second intervals. Stir vigorously until smooth. Spread on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Cool in refrigerator until set (about an hour). Cut into “kindling” strips. Store in refrigerator in airtight container.
Mabel’s Chocolate-Covered Cherry Bonbons
This recipe is a must-have for anyone collecting chocolate recipes. Chocolate-covered cherry bonbons are what many people think of when someone mentions a bonbon. Mabel Maybank shared this recipe with me shortly before her passing. She taught me its steps so I could in turn teach them to Penn. Despite my patient nature, Penn still hasn’t quite mastered the recipe. Working with her is driving me batty while also threatening my already not-so-trim waistline. It’s not a hard recipe to learn. To prove it, I’m sharing this recipe with all of you, the readership of this paper. I know you’ll make Mabel proud.
Ingredients
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp light corn syrup
1 pinch salt
2 cups 10x powdered sugar
36 maraschino cherries
12 oz semisweet chocolate chips
Combine butter, corn syrup, and salt. Add sugar and mix until smooth. This makes a fondant. Chill in refrigerator for ½ hour. Drain cherries and let dry on paper towels. Flatten a small amount of fondant in your hand and wrap around a cherry (completely cover the cherry or juice will leak out and make dipping difficult). Repeat with remaining fondant and cherries. Refrigerate fondant-covered cherries and let harden. Melt chocolate in double boiler or microwave. (To melt in microwave: In microwave-safe bowl, heat chocolate in small batches on 50% power for 2 minutes. If not melted, continue to heat for 30-second intervals. It won’t look completely melted. Stir until smooth.) Dip fondant-wrapped cherries into melted chocolate. Coat completely. Set on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour to set. Store in refrigerator in a
irtight container. Makes about 36 bonbons.
Also by Dorothy St. James
The Southern Chocolate Shop Mysteries
Asking for Truffle
The White House Gardener Mysteries
Oak and Dagger
The Scarlet Pepper
Flowerbed of State
This is a work of fiction. All the names, characters, organizations, places, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to real or actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE: The recipes contained in this book are to be followed exactly as written. The publisher is not responsible for your specific health or allergy needs that may require medical supervision. The publisher is not responsible for any adverse reaction to the recipes contained in this book.
Copyright © 2018 by Dorothy St. James
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Crooked Lane Books, an imprint of The Quick Brown Fox & Company LLC.
Crooked Lane Books and its logo are trademarks of The Quick Brown Fox & Company LLC.
Library of Congress Catalog-in-Publication data available upon request.
ISBN (hardcover): 978-1-68331-468-4
ISBN (ePub): 978-1-68331-469-1
ISBN (ePDF): 978-1-68331-470-7
Cover illustration by Rob Fiore
Book design by Jennifer Canzone
Printed in the United States.
www.crookedlanebooks.com
Crooked Lane Books
34 West 27th St., 10th Floor
New York, NY 10001
First Edition: March 2018
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