Candy Crush–Cereal Killer Cookies

Hey, all, Suze here. As some of you may know, I write mysteries. Culinary cozy mysteries. I can’t talk much about my own current project just yet, but I can talk about other writers in the genre. So I’ve decided to start a new feature here at the Scribes.  Once a month or so I will introduce you to a cozy mystery author and prepare a recipe (or craft project) from one of her books. Sound like fun?

Book 17, coming in August

I’m starting off with one of my all-time faves, the Queen of the Culinary Cozies, Diane Mott Davidson. (Click here for a Wiki link) Diane’s series stars an espresso-swilling Colorado caterer named Gertrude “Goldy” Bear Schultz. Like her fairy tale namesake Goldilocks, she just can’t seem to keep her nose out of the business of the inhabitants of the upscale mountain town of Aspen Meadow. In each book she is called upon to cater an affair for the town’s snooty rich contingent, somebody gets killed, and Goldy finds a reason to get involved–even though her husband, Tom, a big yummy hunk of a local cop, repeatedly tells her to stay out of it. With the help of her zaftig moneybags BFF, Marla, and her assistant, aspiring chef Julian, Goldy always solves the mystery and delivers some of the most luscious recipes out there. Here’s one, from The Cereal Murders, book 3 in this long-running series:

Cereal Killer Cookies

2¼ cups old fashioned rolled oats
2 6-ounce packages almond brickle chips (Bits O’ Brickle or Heath Toffee chips)
1 2/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
¾ cup sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a small bowl, mix the oats with the brickle chips. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together. In a food processor mix the sugars until blended, then gradually add butter. Continue to process until creamy and smooth. Add eggs and vanilla and process until blended. Add the flour mixture and process just until combined. Pour this mixture over the oats and brickle chips and stir until well combined. Using a 2-tablespoon measure, measure out scoops of dough and place at least 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on racks.
Makes 4 to 5 dozen

Suze’s Notes: The one tablespoon of vanilla is not a mistake. For me, this recipe made four dozen chewy cookies, plus one, not counting the raw cookie dough I ate. I used a silicone baking mat and left the cookies in for about 9 minutes because I was using the convection feature on my oven. I took them out when they were browned around the edges but still slightly gooey in the center, then left them on the cookie tray to set up before removing them to a wire rack to finish cooling.

This recipe is a delicious twist on the classic oatmeal scotchie. Even the non-oatmeal-cookie-loving Crown Prince of Hardydom conceded that they were “pretty good,” as he grabbed another off the plate. Consensus around the Hardy house is that this recipe is a keeper!

Have you tried any new recipes lately? Do you have a series you’d like to see me feature?

You Can Tune A Piano, But You Can’t Tuna Fish

Hey, Scribelings. Suze here. It’s been a little crazy chez Hardy lately, and I’ve been super busy getting ready for a trip to St. Louis. Yup, I’m going to see the Mississippi for the first time. In fact, next week I’ll be posting from somewhere near the Arch. So stop back and see if, after too many free samples at the Anheuser-Busch brewery, I’ve managed to smuggle an adorable Clydesdale foal–or even better one of those hot St. Louis Cardinal baseball players–into my luggage.

Now that spring is here, my To-Do list and corresponding Honey-Do list have grown. Near the top of that list is “eat healthier and get some exercise.” As writers and readers you know we spend a lot of time with our butts in our chairs (unless you’re one of those coordinated people who can use a cool treadmill desk). So today I thought I’d give you a yummy, no-cook recipe for warm spring and summer days. It’s nice as a lunch on its own or as a side dish with grilled anything. Enjoy while I get back to my packing and planning!

Suze’s Bean and Tuna Salad

• 3 medium or 2 large stalks celery, washed, dried, and chopped
• 1 can (15.5 oz) cannellini beans, drained, rinsed, and drained again
• 1 can (5 oz) water-packed tuna, drained (save the tuna water for the cat!)
• 1 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
• 1 teaspoon dried dill, or a tablespoon of finely chopped fresh dill
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1-1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, white balsamic vinegar, or apple cider vinegar

Stir celery, beans, and tuna together. In a separate small bowl, mix Old Bay Seasoning, dill and lemon juice or vinegar. While continuing to whisk, drizzle in the olive oil until the dressing emulsifies. Pour dressing over bean mixture and toss gently. Add freshly cracked black pepper to taste. You can add salt if you want to, but I find it usually doesn’t need it. Tastes best at room temperature.

Serve in a hollowed-out ripe tomato, or on  a bed of romaine lettuce. Instead of tuna, you can also use cooked, cubed chicken or cooked, chopped shrimp.

What’s your favorite go-to recipe when time is short and the weather is warm? If you don’t cook, what are you reading now? I’ll need something to take on the plane.

Why Don’t You Cooperate?

Hi, all. Suze here. Welcome!

A couple of weeks ago, I learned a new word! And I’m about to use it in a sentence.

If you want to succeed in the writing business, don’t be afraid of cooperatition.

What’s cooperatition, you ask? Well, clearly it’s an amalgam of cooperation and competition. I’m crossing the border into Jennifer Fusco/Market or Die territory, here. The theory is that if two individuals/businesses are providing the same or substantially similar services, if they work together both will benefit–even if they are in competition with each other for the same customers. Ever hear the expression A rising tide lifts all ships? Same principle. Need a movie reference to understand it better? How about Miracle on 34th Street, when Mr. Macy and Mr. Gimbel send customers to each other’s store if their own doesn’t carry a requested item? Good will abounds and sales go through the roof. As Charlie Sheen might say: Winning!

Make no mistake: Writers are in competition with each other. But it’s much more subtle than, say, the rivalry between Pepsi and Coke or Microsoft and Apple. Writers compete with each other for spots on a publisher’s roster, for the attention of an agent, and for readers who have only so much time and so much money to spend on books.

But readers are the most wonderful kind of repeat consumers. They don’t buy/read just one book a year. And if readers see that an author promotes other authors and behaves professionally and enthusiastically toward them, they will think better of the writer for being a decent person who loves her craft. Theoretically, that translates into sales. As a consumer, I don’t buy products from jerks if I can possibly help it. And that goes for books and authors too!

Here are some ideas for practicing cooperatition with other authors with whom you share a readership (or potential readership):

1. Partner with someone. Example: Kristan Higgins and Jill Shalvis and their Facebook Man Wars. If you’re not familiar with Man Wars, check out these two authors on Facebook–once a week or so they choose a theme (men in uniform, Australian guys), post pictures of the hottest possible guys, and write funny, sexy captions. And they’re usually zinging each other in a friendly way. This technique promotes their brand (romance and hot guys) and engages readers with new content all day long–with nary a sales promotion in sight.
2. Promote other authors–especially those with products similar to yours.  Offer congratulations on Facebook and Twitter when a colleague hits a bestseller list or releases a new book. Leave positive reviews on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Goodreads. Hopefully, they’ll do the same for you. Even if they don’t, you’ve still put a lot of Macy’s/Gimbel’s-style goodwill out into the universe–and the universe tends to notice things like that.
3. Assemble a group of authors into a partnership that is about more than sales. Example: Jungle Red Writers bills itself as “The View. With bodies.” These mystery/crime fiction authors often talk about timely topics in a panel-type format. I think it’s brilliant! Yes, their books are mentioned, and links abound, but there is plenty of non-sales content as well. Another example: Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen. These writers of culinary mysteries post new recipes every day–again, promoting their brand and providing new content for readers. And if readers like one author’s books, they’ll probably like–and buy–the others.

What do you think about cooperatition? Do you have any ideas to add to the list above? We’d love to hear about it!

Hot Potato

Hi, Scribe fans! Great to see you. I’m in the middle of a project–doing a rewrite on a novel I wrote for NaNoWriMo a couple of years ago. It’s a contemporary romance (with an embedded mystery, of course!) about a woman with an organizational problem. Ask me how I know about this, LOL! So how about if I share an easy recipe for a winter day, one that doesn’t require a lot of thought or energy? It will get you out of the kitchen and back to your Work-in-Progress in no time.

Easy Potato Soup

5 medium potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped (I like Yukon gold, but any potato will really do)
1 T. olive oil
1 onion, peeled and sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and pressed
3 to 4 cups good chicken broth (or a couple of cans–but make sure it’s flavorful)

1/2 c. sour cream (light is okay, just don’t use the fat free stuff) — optional

Place potatoes in a large saucepan, cover with cold water, bring to a boil, then reduce heat a bit and cook until potatoes are soft.

Meanwhile, saute onion and garlic in olive oil over low/medium heat until fragrant and translucent. Don’t allow the mixture to brown.

Drain potatoes and return to saucepan. Don’t turn the heat back on yet. Add onion and garlic mixture. Add 2 cups of chicken broth, and mix with an immersion (stick) blender until smooth. If you don’t have an immersion blender, a potato masher will work fine, although you’ll end up with a chunkier soup. Add enough additional chicken broth to get to the consistency you like. (Remember when we made chicken broth? Click here. Now would be a great time to use it!)

Add salt and pepper to taste and heat the soup gently (over low heat). If desired, swirl in sour cream.

Enjoy as is, or top with leftover crumbled cooked bacon, diced ham, shredded cheddar cheese, or a sprinkling of chopped green onion. Serve with a green salad (get one of those salad kits in the produce section so you don’t have to wash lettuce).

Now, ask somebody else to do the dishes while you get back to work on your manuscript!

Help a sista out! What’s your favorite quick and easy recipe (other than calling for takeout–that’s a given) for when you’re deep in the writer’s cave?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, darlings! Suze here, writing to you from the deck of my cabin in the woods. I woke in time to see the sunrise over the lake. A flock of ducks just came in for a landing on the water below me. A bald eagle just flew past (I never, ever fail to be thrilled, no matter how many times I see them!). And if I’d remembered to set up the coffeepot last night, I’d be enjoying a cup right now, making it pretty much a perfect morning. We make our own electricity here and must be frugal with what we have, so it’s an old-fashioned top-of-the-woodstove percolator for us–no Keurig machine!

I have so much to be grateful for, more this year than most, perhaps. So I’m making a Thanksgiving resolution: to live more mindfully and to practice gratitude in some form every day.

That being said, I’m thankful for all of you, my friends!

Now that the mushy stuff is over, how about a no-longer-secret recipe? I make my Black Friday stew every … Black Friday! I’ve never shopped on Black Friday, and don’t intend to (except maybe once as a bucket list kind of thing). It takes a while, but it’s easy, and it’s a great way to use up leftovers.

SUZE’S BLACK FRIDAY STEW

Pick as much meat as you can off the turkey frame and refrigerate the meat. Get a big stock pot and put the frame in the pot, breaking it up if you need to. Toss in the wing tips, and any other bones that people didn’t gnaw on (legs, thigh, wings), as well as a quartered onion, a couple of bay leaves, a few carrots, a few stalks of celery, and a parsnip if you have one. Fill the pot about 2/3 full with water, cover, and put the pot on the stove. (I make mine on a woodstove here at the cabin). Bring the water almost to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for several hours. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

Strain out all the solids, discard, and return broth to the pot. (I find it works well to use two strainers—one with larger holes nested inside one with finer mesh).

Now comes the fun part. Add in:

-2 cans of cream of celery/mushroom/chicken soup, undiluted, or a combination of soups

-3 cans of creamed corn

-Leftover mashed potatoes

-Leftover gravy

-Leftover corn (or a can of corn, drained)

Stir to combine, and heat through (10 or 15 minutes is plenty). A few minutes before serving, add leftover turkey and heat for a couple more minutes.

Ladle into big bowls, and serve with a green salad and a loaf of French bread (I’m a fan of the Pillsbury French bread, the kind that comes in a tube in the refrigerator section).  Don’t forget leftover pie for dessert.

This feeds a crowd! If you don’t have a crowd, freeze the rest. It’s nice to pull out a tub of homemade soup for a quick supper or lunch on a cold winter day.

Have a wonderful day!

An Apple A Day

Happy Thursday, loves. Suze here. Guess what? This is our 500th post! Who knew we all had so much to say? Thanks for joining us here today, loyal Scribelings.

I’ve begun submitting my manuscript in earnest to agents/editors, and I’ve had several nibbles. Everybody seems to want something different in terms of formatting, length of submission, length of synopsis, etc., so I’ve been working hard to do everyone’s bidding, LOL!

So, like a good synopsis (something that still eludes me, but it’s far better than it was thanks to the assistance of some awesome friends/colleagues), today’s post will be short and sweet. How about a recipe?

Image courtesy of Petr Kratochvil http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=3421&picture=apples-and-pears

It’s fall here in New England, and that means it’s apple season, but you can enjoy this all year round. Here’s my recipe for super easy homemade applesauce:

SUZE’S APPLESAUCE

*6 flavorful apples, peeled, cored, roughly chopped, and placed in a saucepan (Empire, Cortland, Pink Lady, Granny Smith, and Macouns are my favorites, but MacIntoshes will do in a pinch. No Red Delicious, please! The flavor is too bland and the texture is too mealy to work in this recipe). Add the following to the pot:

*1/2 cup of apple cider, apple or orange juice, or plain water

*1-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

*a few grates of freshly ground nutmeg (or a pinch of the kind out of a jar — don’t overdo this spice. It’s powerful)

*1/2 cup packed brown sugar (dark or light doesn’t matter)

Bring to a quick boil, then give everything a stir to make sure it isn’t sticking/burning (add more liquid if necessary). Continue to cook until apples are soft, about 20-25 minutes.

For a smooth-textured applesauce, allow the mixture to cool a bit, then whizz it up in a food processor (don’t overprocess, or you’ll end up with baby food). For a chunkier texture, which is how my family likes it, use a potato masher right in the pan until you get the consistency you like. Taste to see if you need to mix in a bit more brown sugar — apples have different degrees of tartness.

Serve warm or at room temperature with pork chops or pork tenderloin, chicken, or pierogies, or as a topping for vanilla ice cream.

**Note: You can also make this with pears! Just use a ripe, juicy, flavorful pear like a Bartlett or Anjou. The recipe is exactly the same.

Now for you. What’s your favorite fall meal? I could use some menu planning suggestions right about now!

 

Save the Liver! Happy Birthday, Julia Child!

Bon jour, my darlings! Suze here.

Yesterday was a special day. Julia Child would have turned 100 years old on August 15, 2012.

I said, “Dance!”

I grew up watching reruns of Julia on WGBY. Our small town in the boondocks didn’t have a lot of stations until later in my illustrious television-viewing career, so public television it was. Even as a kid, I understood on some level the magic that Julia had. In my real-life experience, women cooked to put food on the table and keep the kids and menfolk satisfied. It was a chore (granted, my grandmother on the dairy farm had ten children, and my mother was the oldest daughter–so they were cooking for and cleaning up after a small army three times a day). They did not enjoy it.

Then along came Julia, a six-foot-two preppie wearing an industrial-looking dress and pearls, wielding a giant cleaver, gleefully making a dead chicken dance on the small screen. Her joy came through, just short of palpable, for more than 30 years.

She inspired me to learn to cook something beyond the basics my mother produced for our family of seven. (One of Mom’s specialties was “Spanish Rice,” which consisted of hamburger browned with onion, cooked Minute Rice, and a jar of spaghetti sauce. Not sure where the “Spanish” part came into play)

In my adulthood, as I understood more of Julia’s story, my admiration for her grew. A child of privilege, she worked in Europe for the OSS, met and married Paul Child, the love of her life, and trained at the Cordon Bleu in Paris as a chef when women simply did not do such things. If you haven’t seen the movie Julie and Julia, do it now! The Julie storyline is completely forgettable (sorry, Amy Adams!), but Meryl Streep’s performance as Julia Child is nothing short of mind-boggling.

Here’s a link to the Smithsonian’s virtual exhibit on Julia Child. You can hear that famous warbly voice, see her kitchen recreated, and even look at some of the individual tools and gadgets she used.

And click here to watch one of the funniest parodies of all time: Dan Aykroyd playing The French Chef. Julia Child was said to have loved this so much that she kept a VHS tape of it. Note: you may want to watch this after breakfast!

So, in honor of her birthday, how about a small gift for all of you loyal readers? Here is my Secret French Toast recipe. No liver required. Bon appetit!

Suze’s French Toast

6 slices white bread (potato bread is delicious, if you can find it)

2 eggs

1/4 cup milk or half and half

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla (orange or almond extract is also delicious)

1 tsp. cinnamon

In a shallow bowl or pie plate, mix up the eggs, milk/half and half, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon. No need to drag out the mixer–a fork or whisk works fine. Dip the bread into the egg mixture, coating both sides. Don’t leave it to soak too long, or the bread will fall apart when you try to take it out.

Preheat an electric griddle or a skillet on the stove. Medium heat is best. Plop on a generous glob of butter. You want it sizzly, but not burning.

Take the bread slices out of the egg mixture, let them drain a bit, and place them on the griddle or skillet. Cook until golden brown and fragrant on one side (usually takes a couple of minutes), then flip and cook for another minute or two on the other side.

Serve with lots more butter, real maple syrup, and some berries or sliced bananas.

Welcome, Author Joy Smith

Hello, my lovelies! Suze here. Today I’m thrilled to bring you something different for the Scribes–an interview with nonfiction author Joy Smith. Welcome, Joy!

Thanks for having me here today, Suze. Please let your readers know I am open to any questions, especially about my newest book.

Oh No, They’re Engaged! is not just another wedding planner. It’s written especially for the mother of the bride or groom. Tell us about it.

Suze, like my other non-fiction books, Oh No, They’re Engaged! was born from a combination of practical experience and research. As the subtitle says, it’s really a sanity guide. While I loved the fluff of helping our children, a son and two daughters, plan their weddings, those years were trying–with a ton of emotional and logistical traumas (and pleasures) I could’ve never predicted. My book helps moms guide their “babies” toward making smart decisions about expenses, vendors, rituals–and issues related to their intended mates. For more information, your readers might want to check it out on Amazon or Barnes & noble websites. (Here’s a link)

You are known for your non-fiction books (The Empty Nest Cookbook, Kitchen Afloat, The Perfect First Mate). Are you also trying your talented hand at fiction writing? What are you working on?

“Trying” to write fiction is a good word for it, but frustrating is better. Fiction writing didn’t turn out to be the piece of cake I first thought it. POV, show don’t tell…you get the drift. I’ve completed a couple of manuscripts, but I feel only the latest–a romantic suspense about a gigolo and an ex-nun set in Colombia, SA—has all the right stuff to make it sell. At CTRWA’s Fiction Fest last month, I received four submission requests, so I’m crossing my fingers. At the moment I am plotting my next novel and procrastinating fixing two needy (but completed) MSs so the many, many hours I labored over them won’t have gone to waste.

How do you battle the doubt monster? Doubt Monster: the nagging feeling that your work is terrible and no one in her right mind would read this drivel, let alone buy it.

The doubt monster sits on my shoulder all the time, but I do my best to ignore him (it’s got to be a man). If I believe in my book, in my story, I keep at it until it is right–this could mean picking at an MS for several years. I learned from my non-fiction days to not ever submit a first draft until I’ve edited it to death. An important part of the process is gaining objectivity by allowing the piece to rest unread and untouched for as long as possible. Stephen King, in his fab book On Writing says to put first drafts in a drawer for six months.

Is there a project, non-fiction or fiction, that you want to tackle but haven’t yet? What is holding you back?

Suze, the only thing holding me back is time—and sometimes motivation. I spend much of my time aboard a sailboat. When cruising, it’s hard to stay focused even though I keep a laptop aboard and have no excuse when we’re at dock. On the ocean, my mind goes to mush.

What is the most surprising thing that has happened in your writing career?

At age 50+, I had three non-fiction books published within a three year period and built a reputation as a freelance nautical writer. I never planned to be a writer, but I had always been creative.

They say that every author has a partially completed, quite-possibly-terrible half a manuscript shoved in a drawer somewhere. What is yours? What is it about? What makes it terrible? Would you ever consider picking it up and finishing it?

Last week, I re-read my first real MS, a paranormal romance I had set aside for a year or so, and was appalled. My characters were stereo-typed, my opening sucked, and the plot needed a diet. I WILL fix it because it has potential—no way am I going to let all the research I did to make the story authentic go to waste. This winter I took a fix-your-book-in-a-month class on-line, based on James Bell’s Revision and Self-editing, which helped me get my newest book ready for market. Now that I know the procedure, all I need to do is carve out some serious focus time and apply what I learned to the paranormal. Maybe I’ll dig into it once I get going on the NEW book. Oops. Am I procrastinating?

Do you have a word-related pet peeve?

No, but overly descriptive passages make my eyes glaze over.

What is your junk food of choice?

Ice cream-any kind, any flavor. Put it near me and no matter what diet I’m on, I can’t resist.

What’s the most dangerous or risky thing that you’ve done?

Oh, let me think. I’m a basic chicken, but through my dearest captain, I’ve been drawn into scary situations so many times that I finally told him, no more. I’ve survived the “perfect storm”—20 foot waves and 60 knot winds for two days with a failed engine–and crossed the widest part of the Gulf Stream. In all, I’ve  sailed over 5000 miles on the open ocean—and I’m a lousy swimmer.

Eeek! You spend a lot of time traveling by boat. Where’s the most interesting place you’ve been?  Where haven’t you been that you’d like to go?

Years ago, we chartered a sailboat and cruised the Tahitian islands. The people were gracious, and every island was like a mini Garden of Eden with luscious fruits dripping from trees. We watched while men spearfished for our supper, visited a vanilla farm, and wore hand-dyed pareos–like the natives.

I’ve never been to England, and I’d love to go back to Thailand to visit my brother-in-law.

Would you like to share a recipe with us?

I thought you’d never ask. I created this quick-to-make chicken recipe aboard our boat using ingredients I had on hand. It tastes yummy. Find mango chutney with the condiments in the supermarket. Use the chutney as a sandwich spread for deli meat, to give zing to a chicken salad, or over cream cheese for an hors d’oeuvre.

Mango Chutney Chicken (Serves 4-6)

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon mild curry powder

6 chicken breast quarters, boned and skinned

2 tablespoons butter, separated

1 small yellow onion, cut in half and sliced thin, separated

1 fresh mango, peeled, pitted, and cut into bite sized chunks

1/2 teaspoon fresh minced ginger root, or 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger (more if you want it spicier)

1/3  cup chicken broth

1/3  cup prepared mango chutney (the chunkier the better)

Combine the salt, pepper, and curry powder in a small cup. Rinse chicken and pat dry. Sprinkle each side of all pieces with the curry mixture. In a large skillet on medium high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter until sizzling. Place three chicken pieces in bottom of pan, and then distribute 1/2 of the onion in spaces between chicken. Brown chicken on both sides, and sauté onions. Remove to a platter and set aside. Add the remaining butter to the pan. Brown the remaining chicken with the onion in the same manner.

When all chicken and onion are browned, return mixture to the hot pan. Stir in the diced mango and the ginger. Reduce heat to medium. Cover and cook about 10 minutes, or until chicken is done and mango softens. Remove the solid pieces to platter and keep warm.

Make chutney sauce: To the juice at the bottom of the pan, add the chicken broth and the mango chutney. Stir well. On medium heat, bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and become syrupy. Return the chicken mixture to the pan. Stir to coat with sauce. Serve over cooked rice with a salad or green vegetable.

What is your guilty pleasure? {Remember: this is a PG rated blog! }

Awk! I’m not putting THAT in writing.

Thanks for being here today, Joy!

Joy Smith is the author of several nonfiction books, including The Empty Nest Cookbook, Kitchen Afloat, The Perfect First Mate, and her latest, Oh, No, They’re Engaged! When she’s not cruising the world in some exotic location, you can connect with her through her blog (click here!).

Cowboys and Djinns … Welcome Back, Mina Khan

Suze here. Today I’m thrilled to bring back one of my favorite paranormal romance authors, Mina Khan.  I just can’t get enough of her Djinns. Click here to read my first interview with Mina.

Suze: After publishing your first novella, The Djinn’s Dilemma, with Harlequin Nocturne Cravings, why did you decide to go indie with A Tale of Two Djinns?

Smokin’ Hot!

Mina: My father died while I was still working on A Tale of Two Djinns and I wanted to do something to honor and thank both my parents. Education has always been important to them and to me, so I decided to self-publish and donate fifty percent of the proceeds to UNICEF’s Schools for Asia initiative. Self-publishing the book seemed to be the simplest way of doing this. I’m happy to share, I wrote my first check to UNICEF this month from the proceeds. Every dollar helps.

Suze: What has your experience been as an indie? Would you do it again, or is it back to traditional for you?

Mina: I was terrified when I first started looking into it, but it’s turned out to be a very positive experience. I loved being involved in the whole process (writing, editing, choosing a cover, choosing distributors, marketing, tracking my numbers etc.) even though it’s a lot of work. Actually, what I’d like to do is be a hybrid – do both traditional and independent books. That way I could have vary my workload, make my stories accessible to new readers, and take on special projects like my UNICEF effort with A Tale of Two Djinns.

Suze: Tell us a bit about A Tale of Two Djinns, Mina.

Mina: A Tale of Two Djinns is an exotic Romeo & Juliet tale with warring genies, feminists, flying carpets, kick-ass action and sexy adult fun. Djinn, btw, is pronounced “gin” and is what we from non-Western heritages call genies.

Here’s the blurb:

Akshay (Shay for short), warrior prince of the earth djinns, earns the title of Crown Prince at a high cost when he loses his best friend in a battle against ancient enemies, the water djinns. Heartsick, he escapes to Earth to mourn.

Nothing gets the biological clock ticking (and elders lecturing) like almost dying in battle, so Maya, princess of the water djinns, travels to Earth for some no-strings-attached sex to fulfill her duty and produce an heir. But the beautiful and tough warrior gets more than she bargained for when she meets Shay.

Their not-so-simple one-night stand is interrupted by assassins and the world, as they know it, is changed forever. As Maya and Shay pull together to survive, both are determined to have their happily-ever-after and bring peace to their worlds — warring families, shadow assassins, and nosy busybodies be damned.

Suze: In our first interview with you, we learned that you are married to a real-life cowboy. How did you two meet? And did you bring enough cowboys for everyone?

Mina: Lol! Through a friend…at a bar…actually, a Country & Western bar with dancing. He taught me how to do the Texas Two-Step. Ahem, if you read A Tale of Two Djinns…you’ll find plenty of sexy cowboys & djinns in there!

Suze: I’ve read this story, and I can tell our readers that Cowboys and Djinns is a game they will definitely want to play! Mina, you are also a food writer. Can you share a recipe with us? How about something hot and deliciously spicy, like your romances?

Mina: My pleasure! BTW, you’ll be happy to know that in my current WIP, my genie hero LOVES to cook! Here’s the recipe for Red Hot Smokin’ Seafood Soup that I put together for Rukh & Sarah from my first novella, The Djinn’s Dilemma”:

http://minakhan.blogspot.com/2011/11/red-hot-smokin-fiction-seafood-soup.html (I decided to send you a link because it comes with pictures!)

Suze: I will soooooo be trying that recipe! What’s next? What are you working on now?

Mina: I’m working on the third and fourth genie stories (yes, I know I’m nuts…they just came together), and I really want to try my hand at a ghost story soon!

Other than writing, I’m planning a trip to Bangladesh this summer to pay homage to my late father, introduce my children to some of my favorite things from childhood and my extended family, and also do some research for future stories. If I have decent internet access, I hope to blog during my trip.

Suze: Have a safe and wonderful trip with your family. Hope you come back inspired.

 

Rashda/Mina Khan is a Texas-based writer and food enthusiast. She is Rashda the food columnist by day and Mina the romance author by night. She grew up in Bangladesh on stories of djinns/genies, ghosts and monsters. These childhood fancies now color her fiction. Her debut novella, THE DJINN’S DILEMMA was published November 2011. A second novella, A TALE OF TWO DJINNS, came out March 2012. Meanwhile, she’s busy working on more stories.

You can find her at:

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/Mina.Khan.Author

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5234352.Mina_Khan

Blog: http://minakhan.blogspot.com/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/SpiceBites

Cal’s Double Chocolate Cherry Cookies

Good day, 7 Scribes fans!

Calder Quinne here, stepping in for Casey Wyatt. She’s busy writing her next novel, Mystic Storm about Zephyr. Seriously, I don’t understand why the old wind bag, excuse me, God of the West Wind needs his own novel.

Whatever.

In case you don’t know me, I’m a demigod son of Ares and am madly in love with Nix, my sexy, sea nymph wife (see Mystic Ink for more details). Since my retirement from the Delian League (supernatural police force for all you newbies out there), I’ve become the proprietor of a bake shop – S’more to Love.

One thing I quickly learned was that women (and a lot men too) love chocolate with an almost fanatical obsession. Chocolate is worshipped to the point that I’m sure you won’t be surprised to learn there is a Goddess of Chocolate -Ixcacao. Supposedly, she’s part of the Aztec pantheon, but no one’s seen her in centuries.

I’m here to share one of my wife’s favorite recipes. I can vouch these cookies will put a smile on any chocolate lover’s face.

Here’s what you need:

• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1 cup butter or margerine, softened
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (if don’t have it, substitute 1 teaspoon vanilla extract instead)
• 1 egg
• 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup quick cook oats
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup dried cherries

1. Heat oven to 350 F. In a large bowl, beat sugar, butter, milk, egg, and almond extract with an electric mixer until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients. Drop dough by rounded tablespoons on an ungreased cookie sheet. I use parchment paper – the cookies bake more evenly and it’s easier to clean. Remember to leave about 2 inches between the dough.

2. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until surface is no longer shiny. Another way to check for doneness – touch the center and if it barely leaves an indent – they’re done. Immediately remove the cookies onto a cooling rack.

Yield: about 4 dozen. But seriously, they won’t last that long.

Thanks for having me today. If you’re ever in Mystic, CT be sure to stop by and say hi. Remember to support your local businesses!

Got any questions? Shoot’em my way!