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Monday, December 29, 2014

#COOKING WITH CLORIS--GUEST AUTHOR LINDA TOWNSDIN AND BLUEBERRY WILD RICE PANCAKES

Linda Townsdin writes the Spirit Lake Mystery series set in Northern Minnesota. She worked for years in communications, most recently as writer/editor for a national criminal justice consortium in cybercrime, tribal justice and public safety issues. She blogs and is published in several anthologies. Learn more about her and her books at her website. 

In my Spirit Lake Mystery series, photojournalist Britt Johansson will do anything to protect the ones she loves, and get her story.

Her younger brother, Little, owns Little’s CafĂ©. He has his finger on the town’s pulse. If the situation calls for physical healing, something that’s frequently necessary with Britt, he breaks out the antioxidant ingredients and makes green smoothies.

If comfort food is needed, especially after someone in Spirit Lake has been murdered, he whips up a batch of blueberry wild rice pancakes or chicken wild rice hotdish. If morale is low, he bakes cinnamon rolls and when the aroma wafts through town, everyone shows up smiling. His berry pies have a similar effect.

Little’s Blueberry Wild Rice Pancakes

Ingredients
1 cup cooked wild rice (Little uses hand-harvested wild rice, not cultivated)
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tbsp canola oil
1 tsp vanila
3/4 cup flour
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
Nonstick vegetable spray

Combine wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, sift dry ingredients, pour together and stir until combined. Add blueberries. Preheat griddle and spray with vegetable spray. Cook pancakes until bubbles appear, then flip. Serves 4. Great with maple syrup and warmed mixed berries!

Focused on Murder
Britt Johansson is a photojournalist with a big heart and bad attitude, who works for the northern bureau of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

It’s the dead of winter and Britt’s following the murder of a local coed, but the sheriff thinks he’s already found the bad guy, a Native American kid from the reservation with a history of trouble.

Britt’s not so sure, and keeps digging until she makes a discovery that lands her in the crosshairs of an international crime ring that uses the US/Canadian border, and an Indian reservation for its dirty deeds.

This time she’s in way over her head.

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6 comments:

Angela Adams said...

Thanks for the recipe, Linda! Those pancakes look perfect for breakfast on New Year's Day. Best wishes for 2015!

Linda T. said...

Thanks, Angele! I hope you enjoy them. Happy New Year!

Michele Drier said...

I've read Focused on Murder and loved both Britt and Little's Cafe. Comfort food is one of my passions; I'll have to try the pancakes. Thanks, Linda!

Linda T. said...

Hi Michele! We all need and love comfort food. I hope you like the pancakes and thanks for commenting!

Cindy Sample said...

This is the start of a terrific new series and I can't wait for the upcoming sequel!

Linda T. said...

Hi Cindy, thanks for commenting! Close Up on Murder is coming soon. :-)