The Blackmail Flour Trail: A Culinary Cozy Mystery (Slice of Paradise Cozy Mysteries Book 3)
Page 14
Laura and Faith shared a grin.
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Their waterfall in paradise was more beautiful than Faith had remembered it. Plus it was sundown, and the light was turning golden, making the waterfall pool ripple in the sparkling light.
“Goodness gracious,” Grandma Bessie said. “It does look rather nice in the evening, doesn’t it?”
Soon they were by the water’s edge. Grandma Bessie sat on a chair Nathan had carried through the forest for her, while Faith and Laura sat on rocks by the waterfall pool, dangling their legs. As usual, Nathan couldn’t stop walking around, dancing across the rocks and marveling at the place with new eyes. “I just can’t believe it,” he kept saying.
Grandma Bessie sipped on her pink lemonade – they’d brought the cooler along again – and tutted. “You’d better believe it, because I’m sick of hearing how you can’t.”
“Oh, leave him be, Grandma,” Faith said. “He’s just excited.”
After all the drama, they all felt a bit sick of cupcakes. They’d avoided making them ever since the contest a few days before, and were instead eating their fill of cookies and pastries. Chad had told Faith and Laura they could come down to his place and learn pastry chef skills if they wanted to – he was setting up a school in L.A., as far away across the country as he could get from all the memories with Tamalynn and Nico.
Faith broke off a piece of oatmeal M&M cookie and let out a sigh of satisfaction. “Ah. It just feels so good to be here.” She looked up at the creamy blue sky, where the fluffy white clouds rolled by at ease, and felt a deep sense of satisfaction.
Out of nowhere, it seemed, Grandma Bessie said, “You’re all coming, though, aren’t you?” Grandma Bessie said. “And that boyfriend of yours, too, Laura, whatever his name is. Harvard or something.”
“Yale,” Laura said with a giggle.
“Coming where, Grandma?” Faith asked.
“Keep up,” Grandma Bessie said, shaking her head. “On safari, of course. Kenya!”
Faith rolled over onto her front, her eyes bright. “What?”
“Don’t talk like that,” Grandma Bessie said. “It’s uncouth on you, Faith.”
“Sorry, Grandma,” Faith said, sitting up. “Are you really asking us to come on vacation, though?”
Laura looked just as jubilant. “Miss Bessie, are you serious?”
“Do I look like I’m joking?” Grandma Bessie said, quite put out.
Nathan came back over the rocks on bare feet. “That sounds amazing.”
“So it’s settled then,” Grandma Bessie said, nodding, then taking a bite of cookie.
The way she said it was so comical that Laura, Nathan and Faith burst out laughing.
Grandma Bessie looked exasperated. “What’s so funny now? You kids, do you never stop laughing?”
The End
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Thank you for reading our story! We hope you liked it! If so, the next book in this series is available for Pre-Order ON AMAZON.
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Continue for your delicious recipe…
A RECIPE FOR YOU!
Chocolate Tamarind Cupcakes
First, what is tamarind?
Wikipedia says: Tamarind is a tropical fruit best described as sweet and sour in taste, and is high in tartaric acid, sugar, B Vitamins and calcium.
Time: 20 minutes prep, 17-23 minutes baking, plus cooling time
Yield: 12 servings
Ingredients:
For The Cupcakes:
¾ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup self-raising flour
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
2 eggs at room temp
5 tbsp unsalted butter at room temp
¾ cup sugar
1/3 cup milk
¾ cup tamarind concentrate
For The Frosting:
6oz cream cheese at room temp
6 tbsp unsalted butter at room temp
2 ½ cups of powdered sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
pinch salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a 12-cupcake tin with wrappers
2. Cream butter until fully smooth, then add sugar and mix until combined
3. Add eggs into the mix and stir until smooth, then add vanilla extract, cocoa powder and tamarind concentrate
4. Mix in the flour and milk gradually
5. Spoon batter into your wrappers, then bake for 17-23 minutes
6. While you set the cupcakes to cool on a rack, you can make the frosting by beating all the frosting ingredients together
7. Once cupcakes are fully cool, spread or pipe the frosting on top of them
8. Drizzle tamarind concentrate over the top of the frosting
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Meet the authors…
Nancy McGovern
I'm a mother, wife, homemaker, pet lover, teacher, student, reader, writer, drinker of tea & wine (depending on the time of day) and sleep-deprived dreamer. While originally from Northern New Jersey, I now live in Syracuse, New York with my husband, Doug (a veterinarian & writer of science fiction), our three children and too many furred & feathered friends to list!
My Email:
Nancy@McGovernBooks.com
My Books:
http://www.Amazon.com/Author/NancyMcG
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@AuthorNancyMcG
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*** NOTE: This is NOT the mailing list for this series! This is my own newsletter! And, when you subscribe, I’ll not only send you updates & special offers on my future solo books, but you’ll also receive a FREE Cozy Mystery (from my “A Murder In Milburn” series) as a Thank You for joining me!
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“Slice of Paradise” Newsletter:
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*** Because Cyra & I are writing this series together, we have a series-specific mailing list that we will both be heading up! And when you sign up, you’ll also get a FREE BOOK from this series called The Cream Pie Alibi! If you enjoyed this book, you’ll love that one, as well!
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Meet Cyra Bruce…
Cyra Bruce
I’m a 30-something young woman with an old soul – I love staying in and baking on a Saturday night, growing flowers, little old southern houses, lacy tablecloths, taking afternoon tea on the porch and, of course, writing cozy mysteries! I live in a little stone cottage on the Caribbean island of St Lucia with my husband, a St Lucian, who I met and married in my native England. We decided to move to this little island paradise to grow our own food and live more simply, and I am grateful to live a much more peaceful life than the characters in my books!
While I have been writing for myself and others all my life, “Slice of Paradise Cozy Mysteries” is the first work I’ve published under my own name. If you would like to know more about both the books and me, please SUBSCRIBE to the series mailing list
! You’ll get a FREE story called The Cream Pie Alibi that cannot be found anywhere else PLUS special discounts & fun stuff…like contests! We’ll have so much fun!
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Rights & Disclaimer
This is entirely a work of fiction. All people, places and events contained have been completely fabricated by the authors. Any similarities to real people, places, or events are completely coincidental.
The Blackmail Flour Trail Copyright © 2017 Nancy McGovern & Cyra Bruce
All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any manner or used in any way without advanced written permission by the authors.