Murder at the Big T Lodge: A Liz Lucas Cozy Mystery Read online

  1 tsp. finely chopped fresh parsley or tarragon

  5 cups chicken stock (If you’re worried about too much salt being in non-homemade stock, use low-sodium stock)

  1 garlic clove, smashed (I use the blade of a heavy knife. Whack it, remove the papery peel, then smash it again)

  1 shallot, minced

  1 ½ cups Arborio rice (Don’t think you can substitute this type of rice with another variety. Believe me, if you use a different type, the dish will not turn out well!)

  ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese plus ¼ cup shavings for garnish

  2 tbsp. heavy cream

  Fresh ground pepper

  Directions:

  Preheat the oven to 250 degrees or if you have a plate warmer setting, use that. Place four shallow soup bowls in it. Cook the pancetta in a frying pan until crisp. Drain on paper towels and crumble.

  Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the mushrooms, season with ¼ teaspoon sea salt, and cook over high heat, stirring until they begin to sweat. (In other words, start losing their juices.) Transfer the mushrooms and the liquid to a strainer set over a bowl. Lightly press on the mushrooms with the back of a spoon, reserving the liquid. Wipe the skillet clean and add 1 tablespoon of butter. Return the mushrooms to the skillet and cook for about three minutes or until they become brown. Add the parsley, turn the heat to low, cover and keep warm.

  In a medium saucepan, combine the chicken stock with the reserved mushroom liquid and bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low. In a large deep skillet melt 1 tablespoon of butter. Add the garlic and cook over medium heat for one minute. (You don’t want it to brown.) Add the minced shallot and cook until softened. Add the rice and stir until the grains are thoroughly coated with butter.

  Slowly add 1 cup of the hot chicken stock to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until the rice has absorbed most of the stock, approximately 1 to 2 minutes. Cook the risotto, adding the stock 1 cup at a time and stirring constantly between additions until each cup is absorbed. Continue to cook the risotto until it has a creamy consistency, about 20 minutes.

  Remove the risotto from the heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese, cream, and remaining tablespoon of butter. Season with salt and pepper to taste and transfer to the warm soup bowls. Garnish with pancetta, and Parmesan shavings. Serve and enjoy!

  Pecan Pie with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and Bourbon Molasses Sauce

  Pie Crust Ingredients: (May be made in advance)

  1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

  ½ tsp. salt

  ¼ cup unsalted butter plus more for buttering pie plate

  4-5 tbsp. ice water

  Directions:

  Coat a deep 9-inch pie plate with butter and set aside. In a large bowl, combine the flour and the salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender (well worth the money and a lot less messy than doing it with your hands. If you don’t have one you can use your fingers to mix the flour with the butter. Some people use two forks or two knives to work the butter into the flour. Your choice.) Keep at it until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Gradually add ice water and with a wooden spoon, mix until a ball of dough is formed.

  Put the dough onto a lightly floured sheet of plastic wrap and form it into a disc. Dust the top of the dough with flour and place another sheet of plastic wrap on top. Use a rolling pin and roll from the center out until the dough is round and about 1/8-inch in thickness. Remove the top piece of the plastic wrap and lay the dough across the pie plate. Remove the remaining piece of plastic wrap. Press the dough lightly into the bottom and sides of the pie plate. Cover the plate with a piece of plastic wrap and place in the freezer for at least 30 minutes or overnight.

  Chef Jackson’s Pecan Pie

  Ingredients:

  1 ½ cups pecan pieces

  3 large eggs

  1 cup sugar

  ¾ light corn syrup

  2 tbsp. unsalted melted butter

  ½ tsp. salt

  1 sheet of aluminum foil

  Directions:

  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the pecans in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake them for 8 to 10 minutes or until toasted. Stir together the rest of the ingredients. Remove the pie shell from the freezer and pour the filling in it. Bake for 55 minutes or until set, placing aluminum foil over the pie after 20 minutes to prevent excessive browning. Remove from oven.

  Bourbon Molasses Sauce

  Ingredients:

  ¾ cup sugar

  ¼ cup water plus 2 tbsp., divided

  3 tbsp. bourbon

  3 tbsp. unsalted butter

  1 ½ tbsp. molasses

  ¼ tsp. salt

  Pastry brush (or any other type of brush)

  Directions:

  Bring the sugar and 2 tablespoons water to a boil in small heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Using a pastry brush dipped in cold water, wash down any sugar crystals from the side of the pan. Boil, without stirring, swirling the pan occasionally until the color becomes a dark amber. Remove from heat and stir in the bourbon, butter, molasses, and salt. Return to heat and simmer, stirring to dissolve any hardened caramel if necessary (Can be made ahead and reheated.)

  Assembly:

  Pie crust

  Pecan pie

  Vanilla bean ice cream (Don’t skimp here. Treat yourself to the expensive stuff. You’ve come this far and believe me, it will be worth it when you taste the finished produce!)

  Bourbon molasses sauce

  Slice the pie into 8 pieces and plate as many pieces as needed. Using an ice cream scoop, put one scoop of the ice cream on the warm pie. Top with 2 tablespoons of the sauce. Enjoy!

  LUMP CRAB MEAT AND CITRUS SALAD WITH CHARDONNAY DRESSING (SERVES 4)

  Dressing Ingredients:

  2 tbsp. Chardonnay or white vinegar

  1 tsp. Dijon mustard

  1 tsp sugar

  5 tbsp. olive oil

  Directions:

  Whisk together the chardonnay or vinegar, mustard, and sugar in a small bowl. Slowly add the olive oil to the mixture, whisking until it has all been incorporated. Set aside. (May be made ahead and refrigerated.)

  Salad Ingredients:

  2 cups lump crabmeat

  1 orange, peeled and sectioned

  1 grapefruit, peeled and sectioned

  16 leaves romaine lettuce

  1 tsp. chopped chives for garnish

  4 cylindrical glass sundae dishes

  Directions:

  Gently combine the crabmeat, orange, and grapefruit in a bowl.

  Assembly:

  Line the sundae dishes with the romaine leaves. Divide the crabmeat, orange, and grapefruit evenly and place in the sundae dishes. Spoon 2 tablespoons of the dressing over each mixture and top each one with ¼ teaspoon chives. Enjoy!

  LEMON SOUFFLE PANCAKES WITH BLUEBERRY MAPLE SYRUP

  Syrup Ingredients:

  2 tbsp. butter

  1 cup maple syrup

  1 cup fresh blueberries, rinsed

  Directions:

  Place ingredients in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Stir occasionally until the butter is melted. Turn heat to low and keep warm until ready to serve.

  Pancake Ingredients:

  2 cups all-purpose flour

  2 tbsp. sugar

  1 tsp. baking soda

  ½ tsp. salt

  2 large eggs, yolks and whites separated

  1 ½ cups buttermilk

  2 tsp. grated lemon peel

  3 tbsp. lemon juice

  Put bowl and beaters in freezer for beating egg whites

  Directions:

  Turn oven to 250 degrees or use warm if you have that setting. In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. In a small bowl whisk together the egg yolks, buttermilk, grated lemon, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons butter. Take the bowl and beaters out of the freezer and whip the egg whites until they hold stiff peaks. Pour the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture and stir to blend. Gen
tly fold in the egg whites.

  Butter a frying pan or griddle over medium heat. Pour batter in ½ cup portions onto the pan or griddle, being careful that the portions don’t touch each other. Cook until golden brown on each side, turning once. Keep the finished ones warm in the oven and repeat the process to cook the remaining pancakes.

  Serve the pancakes with the warm syrup. Enjoy!

  AVOCADO HALVES WITH CHILLED BROCCOLI CHEDDAR CHEESE SOUP

  Ingredients:

  1 packet of cheddar cheese broccoli soup (I’m not a big fan of canned soup. Far prefer the packets of soup, and they’re available pretty much everywhere)

  1 ½ cups cheddar cheese, grated

  1 cup broccoli florets (I use small prepackaged florets that come in a plastic bag)

  2 avocados, cut in half with about 2 tbsp. flesh scooped out (Leave enough in there to form a boat shape)

  8 lettuce leaves

  Chives, chopped for garnish

  Salsa Verde for garnish (There are a lot of bottled brands available. I don’t really have a preference)

  Directions:

  Place 4 salad plates and forks in the refrigerator to chill. Prepare the soup according to directions on packet. Add 1 cup of cheddar cheese and broccoli florets and cook until florets have lost their crispness. If you want a thicker consistency add the additional ½ cup grated cheddar cheese. You can enjoy a bowl of hot soup at this point. Refrigerate the rest.

  Assembly:

  Place 2 lettuce leaves on a chilled plate. Place one avocado half on each plate and spoon chilled soup into each half. Garnish with chives and/or Salsa Verde. Enjoy!

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  ABOUT DIANNE

  Dianne lives in Huntington Beach, California, with her husband, Tom, a former California State Senator, and her boxer dog, Kelly. Her passions are cooking, reading, and dogs, so whenever she has a little free time, you can either find her in the kitchen, playing with Kelly in the back yard, or curled up with the latest book she’s reading.

  Her other books are available below:

  Amazon: Blue Coyote Motel

  Amazon: Coyote in Provence

  Amazon: Cornered Coyote

  Amazon: Coyote Series

  Amazon: Kelly’s Koffee Shop

  Amazon: Murder at Jade Cove

  Amazon: White Cloud Retreat

  Amazon: Marriage and Murder

  Amazon: Murder in Cottage #6

  Amazon: Murder in the Pearl District

  Amazon: Murder and Brandy Boy

  Amazon: Murder in Calico Gold

  Amazon: The Death Card

  Amazon: Murder at The Cooking School

  Amazon: Murder & The Monkey Band

  Amazon: Murder at The Bed & Breakfast

  Amazon: Murder at The Secret Cave

  Amazon: Murder in Cuba

  Amazon: The Blue Butterfly

  Amazon: Trouble at the Kennel

  Amazon: Murdered by Words

  Amazon: Murdered by Country Music

  Amazon: Murder at the Big T Lodge

  Please feel free to follow her on these social media sites:

  Website: http://www.DianneHarman.com

  Blog: http://www.DianneHarman.com/blog

  Email: [email protected]

  Twitter: @DianneDHarman

  Google+

  Facebook Author Page (Thriller)

  Facebook Author Page Cozy Mystery

  Amazon Author Page

  Blue Coyote Motel, an Amazon Kindle Best Seller, was a quarterfinalist in Amazon’s Breakthrough Novel Award Contest and was also a Goodreads Psychological Thriller of the Month Book.