Tom said, “That’s real nice, but I’d rather just stay home.” We all agreed.
About a month into the new year, I received a postcard. On the front was a map of Brazil. I got online to check out the Portuguese text, handwritten by—I guessed—a twenty-two-year-old former stripper:
“No hao perdida.”
“I am not lost.”
The card was unsigned.
Brazil will not extradite murderers back to the United States.
Acknowledgments
The author would like to acknowledge the help of the following people: Jim Davidson; Jeff, Rosa, Ryan, and Nicholas Davidson; J. Z. Davidson; Joey Davidson; Sandra Dijkstra, my hardworking agent, along with her outstanding team; Carolyn Marino, my fabulous editor; Michael Morrison, Lisa Gallagher, Dee Dee DeBartlo, Lucinda Blumenfeld, Wendy Lee, and the entire brilliant team at Morrow/HarperCollins; Kathy Saideman, for her usual helpful readings of the manuscript; the entire excellent staff of the Evergreen branch of the Jefferson County Public Library, Evergreen, Colorado; Bryan Streelman, Esquire, Golden, Colorado; Diane Barrett, Esquire, vice-chancellor of the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado; Shirley Carnahan, Ph.D., senior instructor in the humanities, University of Colorado; Patrick N. Allitt, Ph.D., professor of history, Emory University; Curtis and Alana Bird of the Old Map Gallery, Denver, Colorado; the following writer friends, who supplied ongoing support: Jasmine Cresswell, Julie Kaewert, Emilie Richards, Connie Laux, Karen Stone, and Leslie O’Kane; the superb caterers John William Schenk and Kirsten Schenk of Littleton, Colorado, and our wonderful new caterer in Evergreen, Ed Neiman; and as always, my extraordinarily helpful source on police procedure, Sergeant Richard Millsapps, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, Golden, Colorado.
Recipes in Sweet Revenge
Chicken Divine
Chuzzlewit Cheese Pie
Prudent Potatoes au Gratin
Stylish Strawberry Salad
Bleak House Bars
Unorthodox Shepherd’s Pie
Deep-Dish Cherry Pie
Got-a-Hot-Date Bars
Piña Colada Muffins
Door-Prize Gingerbread
Chicken Divine
2 cups buttermilk
1 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
4 pounds (about 5 pieces) skin-on, bone-in chicken-breast halves additional sea or kosher salt freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup dried tarragon
In a large nonreactive or glass bowl, mix together the first 4 ingredients and stir until dissolved. Rinse the chicken under running water, pat it dry, and then place it in the buttermilk mixture. Make sure all the pieces are completely submerged. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place the bowl in the refrigerator overnight.
When you are ready to roast the chicken, preheat the oven to 400°F.
Drain the buttermilk mixture from the chicken and discard the buttermilk mixture. Rinse the chicken under running water and pat it dry with paper towels. Grease a 9-by-13-inch glass pan and place the chicken, skin side up, in the pan, being careful not to crowd the pieces. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste. Crush the tarragon between your fingers and sprinkle it evenly over the chicken.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken reads 160°F. Immediately bring out of the oven and serve.
MAKES 4 TO 5 SERVINGS
Chuzzlewit Cheese Pie
2 cups half-and-half
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
8 large eggs
½ pound extra-sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
½ pound Gruyère cheese, grated
In a small saucepan, heat the half-and-half over medium-low heat until very hot but not boiling. Remove from the heat. In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat, add the flour, and whisk a couple of minutes, until it bubbles. Slowly add the half-and-half, whisking constantly. Cook and stir this cream sauce until it thickens and is very smooth. Remove from the heat and set aside, stirring frequently, until cool enough to touch with your (clean) finger.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-by-13-inch glass baking pan.
Whisk together the baking powder, sea salt, and cayenne pepper. Stir this mixture into the cream sauce along with the mustard. Whisk until smooth. (Do not reheat.)
In the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat the eggs well, until they are frothy. Keeping the beater going, slowly add the cooled cream sauce and beat on low speed until completely combined. Toss the cheeses together, then thoroughly stir them into the egg–cream sauce mixture. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the pie is puffed, brown, and set in the middle. Serve immediately, as the pie deflates as quickly as a soufflé.
MAKES 8 LARGE SERVINGS
Prudent Potatoes au Gratin
½ tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large yellow onion, trimmed, peeled and very thinly sliced (approximately 2 cups)
4 pounds russet potatoes
½ pound Gruyère cheese, grated
½ pound Comte or Fontina cheese, grated
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh sage
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups heavy cream
Butter a 9-by-13-inch glass baking pan.
In a large sauté pan, melt the butter with the oil over medium-low heat, then add the onion. Cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until the onion is very limp and has caramelized without burning, 15 to 25 minutes. Be sure to cook until the onion has completely changed color.
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Scrub the potatoes under running water, then peel them. Slice them thinly. Toss together the grated cheeses. Place a layer of sliced potatoes in the prepared pan, followed by a scattering of the cooked onions. Sprinkle on a layer of cheese, then sprinkle on some of the sage. Continue to layer until you have used up the potatoes, onions, cheese, and sage. End with a layer of cheese.
Stir the salt and pepper into the heavy cream and pour it slowly all over the potato mixture so as not to disturb the cheese topping. Bake in the middle of the oven for about 1 to 1½ hours, until the potatoes are very tender and the top is golden brown.
MAKES 8 TO 12 SERVINGS
Stylish Strawberry Salad
1 head baby romaine, washed, patted or spun dry, and carefully separated into leaves
2 cups fresh strawberries, washed, hulled, and cut in half
3 tablespoons best-quality sherry vinegar
1½ teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
1½ teaspoons minced shallots
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ to ½ teaspoon sea or kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons best-quality extra-virgin olive oil
2 avocados, peeled and sliced at
serving time
additional sea or kosher salt additional freshly ground black pepper
Prepare the lettuce and wrap it in a clean dry cloth towel. Refrigerate until serving time.
Prepare the strawberries and set aside.
Whisk together the vinegar, mustard, shallots, sugar, salt, and pepper. Then, whisking constantly, drizzle in the oil until the mixture emulsifies. Set this vinaigrette aside.
Just before serving time, prepare avocados. At serving time, divide the lettuce among four plates. Arrange the strawberries and avocado slices (each person gets ½ avocado) on top of the leaves. Shake the vinaigrette and ladle a few spoonfuls onto each salad. If desired, sprinkle a tiny amount of salt onto each salad, then follow with a few grinds of black pepper. S
erve immediately.
MAKES 4 SERVINGS
Bleak House Bars
¾ cup pecan halves
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
2 cups all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon salt, divided
14 ounces (1¼ cups) sweetened condensed milk
18 ounces (3 cups) semisweet chocolate chips, divided
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ cup seedless raspberry jam
In a large sauté pan, toast the nuts for about ten minutes, until they are slightly brown and emit a nutty scent. Remove them from the heat, cool, and coarsely chop.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan.
In the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter until it is very soft and creamy. Keeping the mixer on medium speed, beat in the dark brown sugar. Remove the beater from the bowl and scrape it. Stir the flour, ½ teaspoon of the salt, and nuts into the butter mixture until very well combined. Measure out 2¼ cups of this mixture and set the rest aside. Wash and dry the bowl and beaters.
Press the 2¼ cups of butter mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for about 10 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown. While the crust is baking, combine the condensed milk with 2 cups of the chocolate chips in a heavy saucepan. Cook, stirring, over low heat until the chocolate is melted. Remove the crust from the oven and immediately pour the chocolate mixture over the hot crust.
In the large bowl of the electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until it is very smooth. Add the granulated sugar and beat once more until smooth. Finally, add the egg, vanilla, and remaining ¼ teaspoon of salt and beat until very smooth. In a small bowl, stir the jam until it is smooth.
Now you are ready to make the rest of the layers. Sprinkle the remaining butter-nut mixture over the chocolate. Using a soup spoon, ladle the jam evenly over the butter-nut mixture. Using another soup spoon, ladle the cream-cheese mixture over the jam layer. Finally, sprinkle the remaining cup of chocolate chips over the cream cheese.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the cream-cheese layer is set and no longer liquid in the middle. Cool on a rack.
MAKES 32 BARS
Unorthodox Shepherd’s Pie
2 pounds lean ground beef
2 cups chopped onions
2 cups chopped celery
2 tablespoons olive oil
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
2 teaspoons dried thyme, crumbled
½ teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
1 teaspoon sea or kosher salt, or to taste
¼ to ½ teaspoon freshly grated black pepper, or to taste
1 cup frozen baby peas
1 cup frozen baby corn
4½ pounds russet potatoes
1½ cups half-and-half
1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
additional sea salt, to taste
additional freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 ounces unsalted butter (½ stick), cut into bits
paprika
In a very large sauté pan, sauté the ground beef, onions, and celery in the oil over medium heat until the beef is browned and the vegetables are limp. Add the flour and stir for 2 to 3 minutes, until the mixture begins to bubble. Slowly add the chicken stock. Stir until completely combined, then stir in the thyme, rosemary, and salt and pepper. Cook and stir until the mixture is bubbling and thickened. Stir in the peas and corn and set aside.
Bring a large quantity of salted water to boiling. Peel the potatoes and drop them into the water. Cook for about 40 to 45 minutes. In a small saucepan, heat the half-and-half until it is steaming, but not boiling.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter two 9-inch deep-dish pie plates. Grease or line a baking sheet.
Remove the potatoes from the heat, drain, and place them in the large bowl of an electric mixer. Begin to beat the potatoes on low speed, slowly adding the hot half-and-half, the cheeses, and the additional salt and pepper.
Place half the beef mixture in each of the prepared pie plates. Place half the potato mixture on top of the beef. Scatter half the butter bits on top of each potato mixture. Sprinkle generously with paprika.
Place the pies on the baking sheet and place them in the oven. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until the potatoes are browned and the pies are completely heated through. This goes well with a fruit salad.
MAKES 8 LARGE SERVINGS
Deep-Dish Cherry Pie
Crust:
3½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-tablespoon pieces and chilled
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons chilled lard or vegetable shortening, cut into 1-tablespoon pieces and chilled
½ cup plus 1 to 2 tablespoons iced springwater
2 egg whites, kept in separate bowls and lightly beaten
additional granulated sugar or crushed sugar cubes
Filling:
2 cups granulated sugar
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 cup reserved cherry juice 4 cups canned sour pitted cherries (contents of 2 cans, drained, juice reserved)
1 tablespoon melted unsalted butter
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
To make the crust: In a large bowl (or the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade), whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt until thoroughly combined, about 10 seconds.
Drop the first 8 tablespoons of chilled butter on top of the flour mixture, and cut in with two sharp knives (or pulse in the food processor), just until the mixture looks like tiny crumbs. (In the food processor, this will take less than a minute.) Repeat with the rest of the butter and the lard or vegetable shortening in batches, keeping the unused portion of fat well chilled until it is time to cut it into the flour. The mixture will look like large crumbs when all the butter and lard has been incorporated.
Sprinkle the water over the top of the mixture and either mix with a spoon or pulse until the mixture just begins to hold together in clumps. If the mixture is too dry to hold together, add the additional water until it does. Divide the mixture in half and place each half into one of two 2-gallon zipped plastic storage bags.
Pressing very lightly through the plastic, quickly gather the mixture into rough circles in the center of each bag. Refrigerate the bags of dough until they are thoroughly chilled.
When you are ready to make the pie, preheat the oven to 400°F. Have a rimmed cookie sheet ready to place underneath the pie.
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