USA Today and New York Times,
best-selling author Lynn Cahoon is an Idaho native. If you’d visit the town
where she grew up, you’d understand why her mysteries and romance novels focus
around the depth and experience of small town life. Currently, she’s living in
a small historic town on the banks of the Mississippi River where her
imagination tends to wander. Learn more about Lynn and her books at her
website.
From ala peanut butter sandwich to
easy risotto, in one lifetime
Working a full time job and trying to be an author can limit the time
you have for other activities in your life. Like cooking dinner. What’s a girl
to do? My husband, the cowboy, is good with an occasional meal of Hamburger
Helper. (Don’t laugh, it can be dinner in a pinch.) But I get bored with just
the meat and potatoes route.
I always shied away from the fancier recipes. Or what I considered
fancy. I come from a lower-socio-economic family. Heck, we were poor. Living on
a farm, we always had food. Even if it was the mystery meat my mom liked to mix
into the spaghetti or meatloaf. Seriously, elk, deer, and bear meat do not
taste like beef. Even with a package of dry spaghetti mix to mask the flavors.
I could always tell we were having mystery meat by the way she watched me take
that first bite.
I ate a lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches growing up.
So fast forward, to grown up Lynn. I’ve become a bit of a food snob. Not
to the Julia Child level. I couldn’t even stomach making an aspic. But I do
love trying recipes and finding new ways to make old favorites. My only
challenge is finding the time to cook. I’m sure many readers can relate. With
kids to run to practice, or community obligations, it’s hard to find time to
play in the kitchen.
Watching several seasons of Top Chef and Hell’s Kitchen, I became
obsessed with risotto. I poured over online recipe blogs reading different
versions and wondering. Would it turn out? Would I like the taste when it did?
I made soufflés once. Neither I nor
the hubby were impressed. On the other hand, I spent a year obsessed with a
cheesy grits and sausage recipe I’d found and made my own.
One weekend night, I decided to experiment. When the risotto was done,
one taste and I was in love. Since that time, I probably make my version of
risotto once a week, especially when I have too many veggies in the fridge.
Quick and Easy Risotto
Ingredients:
3-4 cups chicken stock (If you have a day job, like I do, as soon as you
get home, put a pot of chicken stock on the stove to warm. If you don’t have
homemade chicken stock, boil water and add 3-4 bouillon cubes to make a stock.)
Chop assorted veggies – mushrooms, onions or green onions, asparagus (I
usually do the onions pretty fine, but the others can be course chopped or sliced.)
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1-1/2 cups Arborio rice
fresh spinach (optional)
Heat a large skillet and when warm, add a touch of olive oil. Sauté the
onion and mushrooms until the onion wilts, but doesn’t brown. Then add rice to
the skillet. Keep stirring as the rice browns (think Ricearoni) for a minute or
two. Then add a ladle or two of the chicken stock. Stir
to mix. Add Asparagus.
Let risotto cook as you prepare your choice of meat for dinner. (Or add
a can of chopped clams later on, and this can be a complete meal.) Continue to
stir, adding stock when rice appears dry. When the stock is all added, and the
rice is creamy, you’re done. Takes
about 30 minutes total.
If you want a veggie boost, add a handful or two of spinach leaves with
your last bit of chicken stock. The leaves will wilt into the risotto and give
you a nice color and extra nutrients.
Mission to Murder
In the California coastal town of
South Cove, history is one of its many tourist attractions—until it becomes
deadly…
Jill Gardner, proprietor of Coffee, Books, and More, has discovered that
the old stone wall on her property might be a centuries-old mission worthy of
being declared a landmark. But Craig Morgan, the obnoxious owner of South
Cove’s most popular tourist spot, The Castle, makes it his business to contest
her claim. When Morgan is found murdered at The Castle shortly after a heated
argument with Jill, even her detective boyfriend has to ask her for an alibi.
Jill decides she must find the real murderer to clear her name. But when the
killer comes for her, she’ll need to jump from historic preservation to
self-preservation …
Buy Links
6 comments:
Thanks for letting me take over your column Cloris....
Thanks, Lynn, for the recipe. Best wishes with your new book!
Hi Lynn,
This recipe does look easy. I'll give it a try, but I won't give up my peanut butter sandwiches. Congratulations on the released of your new mystery. I love the cover!
I'm not a big fan of rice, but I LOVE the sound of your story and the cover. M. S.
Hi Angela! According to a rerun of Top Chef, my risotto wouldn't make the grade - too many toppings. But it's yummy! Thanks for commenting.
Hi Kathleen - I still love my pb sandwiches... especially when I'm too busy writing to cook. :)
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