Secrets in the stacks, p.23
Secrets in the Stacks, page 23
Recipe
I was older when I joined the scout troop, so I didn’t get to be a Brownie or anything until I was in junior high. Then I joined a group that only lasted a few years. I did my Gold award on my own, helping out a troop leader with a younger group. But I loved the idea of being able to explore a lot of different skills and talents. One rainy Saturday, the troop made hamburger stew and we sat around the house afterward, telling ghost stories over microwaved smores. Not quite a campout, but fun nonetheless. My troop leader called it stone soup as she had each scout bring a different can or ingredient to mix in the pot. Rarity must have had the same Girl Scout book.
Rarity’s version of Hamburger Stew
1 chopped onion
1 tbsp oil
1 pound lean hamburger
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp crushed rosemary
1 tsp thyme leaves
1 tsp dried parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 small bag frozen veggies (the one without lima beans)
Three carrots, peeled and diced (if not in the frozen veggie bag)
Two medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 ½ cup beef broth
6 oz tomato paste
In a large pot, or dutch oven, on medium heat – cook the onions in the oil until they are soft. Then add the ground beef and cook until fully browned. Reduce the heat to low and add the herbs, plus salt and pepper. Stir constantly for a minute. Then add the tomatoes, frozen veggies, carrots, and potatoes to the pot, and cook covered for fifteen minutes. Mix the beef broth and tomato paste together, then add to the pot. Cook, covered until the potatoes are tender.
Mix up a batch of biscuits (or open a can of refrigerated dough) and bake to go with this. Great for a rainy day adventure. Or reheated for lunch.
Lynn
Turn the page for a sneak peek at Four Charming Spells by Lynn Cahoon
FOUR CHARMING SPELLS
A Kitchen Witch Mystery
New York Times Bestselling Author
Lynn Cahoon
In this spellbinding continuation of the Kitchen Witch Mystery series by New York Times bestselling author Lynn Cahoon, witchcraft trainee Mia Malone summons tasty dishes and unearthly murder suspects . . .
Before Mia Malone can sip tea at Time for a Cuppa, the charming new shop in Magic Springs, Idaho, her life changes course in downright supernatural ways. First her blossoming catering business and cooking school get a boost with the addition of an enchanting cake decorator. Then she catches the attention of the tea shop owner herself, local coven member Mahogany Medford, who’s set on immersing Mia in a twisted mystery that appears all but unsolvable without a special kind of help . . .
Still reeling from the recent loss of her mother and believing there was more to the abrupt death, Mahogany urges Mia to cast light on the truth. But old secrets might come back to haunt her in an investigation that demands conjuring up phantoms from the past on the property of Mia’s Morsels. Now, wearing Gran’s protective stone and empowered by a circle of trusted confidants, Mia must reveal who—or what—killed Ms. Medford as another deadly surprise brews!
About the Author
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Lynn Cahoon is an Idaho expat. She grew up living the small-town life she now loves to write about. Currently, she’s living with her husband and two fur babies in a small historic town on the banks of the Mississippi River where her imagination tends to wander. Visit her at www.lynncahoon.com.
A Survivors’ Book Club Mystery
Survivors become sleuths to find a missing member of their book club in new-age Sedona, Arizona . . .
Two things got Rarity Cole through her breast cancer treatments: friends and books. Now cancer-free, Rarity is devoting her life to helping others find their way through the maze to healing. She’s opened a bookstore focusing on the power of healing—Eastern medicine, Western medicine, the healing power of food, the power of meditation, and the importance of developing a support community. To that end, she’s also started the Tuesday Night Survivors book club. With its openness to new-age communities, Sedona, Arizona, is the perfect fit for Rarity’s bookstore and the tightly knit group.
But their therapeutic unity is disrupted when one of their members suddenly goes missing. Martha has always kept to herself, never opening up much of her personal life to the group. Now she’s nowhere to be found. With her car abandoned on a trail and her dog left with a friend, Rarity is sure something terrible had happened—but will she be able to uncover Martha’s secrets before it’s too late?
A Tourist Trap Mystery
First in Series!
In the gentle coastal town of South Cove, California, all Jill Gardner wants is to keep her store—Coffee, Books, and More—open and running. So why is she caught up in the business of murder?
When Jill’s elderly friend, Miss Emily, calls in a fit of pique, she already knows the city council is trying to force Emily to sell her dilapidated old house. But Emily’s gumption goes for naught when she dies unexpectedly and leaves the house to Jill—along with all of her problems…and her enemies. Convinced her friend was murdered, Jill is finding the list of suspects longer than the list of repairs needed on the house. But Jill is determined to uncover the culprit—especially if it gets her closer to South Cove’s finest, Detective Greg King. Problem is, the killer knows she’s on the case—and is determined to close the book on Jill permanently…
A Kitchen Witch Mystery
First in series!
In the first in New York Times bestselling author Lynn Cahoon’s Kitchen Witch series, Mia Malone is starting over in Magic Springs, Idaho—where murder is on the menu . . .
What’s a kitchen witch to do when her almost-fiancé leaves her suddenly single and unemployed? For Mia Malone, the answer’s simple: move to her grandmother’s quirky Idaho hometown, where magic is an open secret and witches and warlocks are (mostly) welcome. With a new gourmet dinner delivery business—and a touch of magic in her recipes—Mia’s hopes are high. Even when her ex’s little sister, Christina, arrives looking for a place to stay, Mia takes it in stride.
But her first catering job takes a distasteful turn when her client’s body is found, stabbed and stuffed under the head table. Mia’s shocked to learn that she’s a suspect—and even more so when she realizes she’s next on a killer’s list. With Christina, along with Mia’s meddling grandma, in the mix, she’ll have to find out which of the town’s eccentric residents has an appetite for murder. . . before this fresh start comes to a sticky end . . .
Lynn Cahoon, Secrets in the Stacks
