#COOKING WITH CLORIS FEATURING ANN MYERS' SOUTHWEST-STYLE EGGS IN PURGATORY

Ann Myers, author of the Santa Fe Café Mystery series, loves cooking, crafts, and cozy mysteries. She’s also one of the authors who contributed to We’d Rather Be Writing: 88 Authors Share Timesaving Dinner Recipes and Other Tips, for which a percentage of the profits of are donated to No Kid Hungry. Learn more about Ann and her books at her website. 

Southwest-Style Eggs in Purgatory

I love the name of this dish of eggs suspended in a bubbling tomato sauce. It’s also quick, inexpensive, and flexible. Classic recipes use Italian or Middle Eastern herbs and spices, but here the fire comes from Southwest chili.

Prep time: 10 min.

Cooking time: 25–35 min.

Serves: 4

1 T. olive oil

1 sm. onion, diced (about 2/3 cup)

1 clove garlic, minced

1-2 tsp. chili powder, to taste

1 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. ground coriander

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1/4–1/2 tsp. salt, to taste

Ground black pepper, to taste

Red pepper flakes (optional)

2/3 cup water or broth, divided

28 oz. canned diced tomatoes (or an approximate equivalent amount fresh tomatoes, whirled in a food processor until saucy but still chunky)

4 eggs

1/2 cup grated cheddar, Monterey Jack, fresh farmer’s or Mexican cheese

Corn or flour tortillas, crusty bread, fluffy sopapillas, or rice

Optional garnishes: sour cream, Mexican crema, chopped cilantro and/or chives, diced avocado dressed in lime juice, and salt.

Heat oil in lg. skillet or sauté pan over medium heat. Add onions, stirring frequently until onions are soft and translucent.

Mix in minced garlic, cumin, coriander, and red chili. Stir 1-2 min. Add tomatoes, 1/3 cup water or broth, oregano, salt, and pepper. Simmer gently about 15 min.

Taste for seasoning and check that the mixture is still somewhat soupy (add the extra water or broth if it seems dry.) Create little wells for the eggs in the tomato mixture. Crack an egg into each well. If you’re concerned about stray shells, crack each egg into a bowl and pour from there into the tomato mixture. Cover and cook eggs 5-7 min. or more, depending on how you like your eggs. Check occasionally, jiggling the pan so that the eggs don’t stick to the bottom. Sunny or medium-side up works well in this recipe because the eggs will cook more when broken into the hot tomatoes.

When eggs are nearly done, uncover and sprinkle with cheese, aiming for the tomato and egg whites rather than the yolks. Let the cheese melt 1-2 min. Serve immediately in wide pasta or soup bowls, garnished with the optional toppings and a side of seasoned pinto beans or green salad.

We'd Rather Be Writing

88 Authors Share Timesaving Dinner Recipes and Other Tips

Have you ever wished you could find more time to do the things you want to do, rather than just doing the things you have to do? Most authors juggle day jobs and family responsibilities along with their writing. Because they need to find time to write, they look for ways to save time in other aspects of their lives.

Cooking often takes up a huge chunk of time. In We'd Rather Be Writing: 88 Authors Share Timesaving Dinner Recipes and Other Tips you'll find easy, nutritious recipes for meat, poultry, pasta, soup, stew, chili, and vegetarian meals. All of the recipes require a minimum of prep time, freeing you up to read, exercise, garden, craft, write, spend more time with family, or whatever.

Within the pages of We'd Rather Be Writing: 88 Authors Share Timesaving Dinner Recipes and Other Tips you'll be introduced to authors who write a wide range of fiction—everything from mystery to romance to speculative fiction to books for children, young adults, and new adults—and some who write nonfiction. Some of the authors write sweet; others write steamy. Some write cozy; others write tense thrillers.

Some are debut authors with only one published book; others are multi-published and have had long publishing careers. Some are New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors who may or may not be familiar to you, but being a bestselling author doesn't mean they still don't have to juggle their day job along with their writing.

The authors who contributed to this book are a rather creative and resourceful bunch when it comes to carving out time from their busy lives. So in addition to timesaving recipes, within the pages of this book you'll find timesaving and organizational tips for other aspects of your life. And if you happen to be a writer, you'll also find a plethora of great ideas to help you organize your writing life.

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FAVORITES, FAILURES & FRUSTRATIONS--GUEST AUTHOR ANN MYERS

Knitting fail

Ann Myers writes the Santa Fe Café Mysteries featuring café chef and reluctant amateur sleuth, Rita Lafitte. When not writing, Ann enjoys cooking, crafts, and reading other authors’ cozy mysteries. Learn more about Ann and her books at her website.

Failures and Frustrations

Failures and frustrations…oh, where to start? I’ll confess first to crafting flops. There have been a lot. The cardboard sculptures that went straight to recycling. Sewing, particularly pants. A glass bead workshop I fled because of my totally reasonable fear of giant shooting flames. Metalsmithing went slightly better, but only as far as soldering with a crème brûlée torch. Then there’s knitting.

Those of you who knit probably think it’s as easy as devouring pie. Not for me. Friends and family have tried to teach me. I’ve watched videos and envied people who can knit in waiting rooms or on planes. How do they do it? I’ll probably never catch on. Even my dear, sweet grandmother lost hope. “You’re good at other things,” she told me.  

Which leads to other things: career failures. To better understand, let’s label me: I’m an introvert with an active imagination regarding murder. So, living in Florida in the boom years, I decided to sell real estate. Why not, I thought. I love looking at houses! I didn’t think about how I’d find clients, or about meeting people (potential murderers) in empty buildings. I had two listings: a beetle-chewed shack and a ’60s ranch home with a pool owned by a man who claimed to run an international spy agency. He also claimed the pool required expert care. That was true. It turned green, he changed agents, and I sold the shack and quit real estate.

You’d think I’d learn. No, I turned to insurance sales. With my expect-the-worst tendencies, I’m a big fan of insurance. However, insurance required cold calling. I dreaded this probably exponentially more than the average person dreads cold calling. And when I got appointments, they were on the other side of the state, across the vast Ocala Forest (a forest notorious for serial killings). I did meet lovely people and listened to a lot of books on tape. Predictably—in retrospect—insurance was another failure, and I moved on to grant writing and editing.

So, what did I learn? I guess I can’t change my nature. I’ll never be good at mingling, cold calling, or verbal persuasion. But I’ll always love books and solitary work, and what better way to channel my criminal suspicions than mystery writing? With crafts, I’m afraid I haven’t changed my ways. A friend and I are currently taking blacksmithing classes. Yes, more scary flames and a craft that’s a lot harder than it looks on YouTube videos. But we’re going to keep trying because that’s the fun part—and because bending steel seems a whole lot easier than knitting!

Feliz Navidead

Holly, jolly, and downright deadly—the third Santa Fe Café mystery unwraps surprises both naughty and nice…

It’s the most picturesque time of the year in Santa Fe, and Chef Rita Lafitte of Tres Amigas Café hopes the twinkling lights and tasty holiday treats will charm her visiting mom. Rita is also planning fun activities, such as watching her teenage daughter, Celia, perform in an outdoor Christmas play. What she doesn’t plan for is murder.

Rita discovers a dead actor during the premier performance but vows to keep clear of the case. Sleuthing would upset her mom. Besides, there’s already a prime suspect, caught red-handed in his bloodied Santa suit. However, when the accused Santa’s wife begs for assistance—and points out that Celia and other performers could be in danger—Rita can’t say no. With the help of her elderly boss, Flori, and her coterie of rogue knitters, Rita strives to salvage her mother’s vacation, unmask a murderer, and stop this festive season from turning even more fatal.

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#COOKING WITH CLORIS--GUEST AUTHOR ANN MYERS & MARGARITA MERINGUE PIE

Ann Myers loves cooking, crafts, and cozy mysteries. Talk about an author who’s perfect for Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers! Ann lives with her husband and extra-large housecat in southern Colorado but feels most at home in Santa Fe. Learn more about her and her books (and find a few more recipes) at her website.

As I write this, it’s my grandmother’s 96^th birthday, and I’m thinking of her and one of her signature dishes, lemon chiffon pudding. It’s a shape-shifting dessert, transforming in the oven into a creamy lemon pudding on the bottom and a fluffy soufflé on top. My grandfather used to say he married my grandmother for her lemon chiffon. Of course it was the beautiful, kind, witty woman who won his heart, but the pudding is still legendary in my family, a dessert made for wooing.

In Cinco de Mayhem (book 2 of the Santa Fe Café Mysteries) that dessert is “magic” chocoflan, seemingly impossible layers of chocolate cake, flan, and caramel baked up in a Bundt pan. Café chef and amateur sleuth Rita Lafitte isn’t looking for a proposal-producing pudding, though. For her upcoming home-cooked dinner date with hunky lawyer Jake Strong, she wants a dessert that says, “Let’s take our time.” Her flirtatious octogenarian friend Flori, on the other hand, thinks Rita can’t go wrong with chocoflan. I have to agree. It’s a truly magical dessert!

Rita also plans to honor the history of Cinco de Mayo with some French-inspired dishes. Here, I’m adding a recipe for another Cinco de Mayo favorite, margaritas, only in pie form (because what isn’t better as pie?) This margarita-meringue pie hits all the main margarita tastes and is perfect for spring: tart lime, smoky tequila (optional since there are toasted flavors in the meringue, too) and a salty-sweet pretzel crust. It also reminds me a little of my grandmother’s lemon chiffon. Let me know if you make it and get any proposals, or if you have a legendary dish in your family. 

Margarita Meringue Pie

Crust

1¼ c finely ground salted hard pretzels

3 T sugar

7 T butter, melted

Filling

1 T finely grated lime zest
4 large egg yolks (reserve the egg whites for the meringue)
1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 c fresh lime juice (from about 2 large limes or more if smaller)

1–2 T tequila (more or less to taste, or none at all)

Meringue Topping

4 egg whites

¼ t cream of tartar

6 T sugar

½ t vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat a 9-inch pie pan with non-stick baking spray.

Prepare the crust: Crush the pretzels until very fine (whirling in a food processor works well, or place in a plastic bag, cover with a towel, and take out some stress by striking with a rolling pin). Mix in the sugar and melted butter. Press the crust mixture into the prepared pan using the back of a spoon or measuring cup. Bake for ~9 minutes until the crust is firm.

Prepare the filling: Whisk the condensed milk and egg yolks in a bowl. Add lime zest, lime juice, and tequila (if using). Pour into the prepared pie shell. Note: the lime mixture will come only halfway up the pie shell. You’ll fill the rest of the space later with meringue. Bake the pie for approximately 20 minutes. Set on a rack to cool slightly. Keep the oven on at 350°F.

Prepare the meringue: In a clean, dry bowl, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Gradually add the sugar, vanilla, and pinch of salt and beat until the sugar is dissolved and stiff, glossy peaks form. Spoon the meringue over the pie and bake for 10 to 14 minutes until the peaks are set and slightly golden. Serve warm or chilled or with a margarita!

Cinco de Mayhem

Tres Amigas Café chef Rita Lafitte is busy baking up green chile soufflés and chocolate-flan cake for Cinco de Mayo. If only her friend Linda, the daughter of Rita’s octogenarian boss Flori, could get into the festive spirit. Linda’s cart, Tía Tamales, is losing business to Crepe Empire, the hottest food cart in Santa Fe. Napoleon, Crepe Empire’s owner, is a pompous, celebrity chef who wants to squeeze out the competition. But when Linda gets into a heated argument with Napoleon and his corpse is later found stabbed and pinned beneath the wheels of her tamale cart, she becomes the number-one suspect.

Determined to prove Linda’s innocence, Rita investigates. From Napoleon’s disgruntled former employees to a shady health inspector, the list of suspects is longer than Flori’s strings of dried chile peppers. And when another corpse surfaces, Rita must scramble to find an elusive killer with an appetite for murder…

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#COOKING WITH CLORIS--GUEST AUTHOR ANN MYERS AND CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP

Ann Myers loves cooking, crafts, and cozy mysteries. Talk about an author who’s perfect for Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers! Ann lives with her husband and extra-large housecat in southern Colorado but feels most at home in Santa Fe. Learn more about her and her books (and find a few more recipes) at her website.

What an honor to be on recipe Tuesday! The first book in my Santa Fe Café Mystery series, Bread of the Dead, came out last fall and includes recipes for a Day of the Dead feast. A recipe inspired the book, or at least the title and the seasonal setting. Pan de muerto, or bread of the dead, is a buttery sweet bread flavored with anise seed and orange. The aroma alone will lure back the spirits, and the dough is often shaped like a skull and crossbones—fun! Plus the name seemed made for a culinary mystery.

  

My main character, Rita Lafitte, is forty-one, newly single, and living with her teenage daughter in a tiny rental casita. Like me, she’s a relative newcomer to the Southwest and New Mexican cuisine. Rita, however, is a culinary pro and learning from a master, her elderly friend and boss, Flori. At Tres Amigas Café they cook up delicacies from green chile stew to cheesy enchiladas. As amateur sleuths, they stir up killers. Rita investigates the death of her beloved landlord in Bread of the Dead. In Cinco de Mayhem (coming out March 29, 2016) the sleuths take on a bully chef, a dicey health inspector, and a killer with sights set on Rita.

 

One of the best parts about writing these culinary cozies has been the excuse to research, cook, and eat yummy New Mexican foods. For instance, I’ve learned a lot about bizcochitos, New Mexico’s official state cookie. Bizcochitos appear at important events such as weddings and quinceañeras and especially for Christmas. They’re tasty shortbread cookies flavored with anise, dusted in cinnamon sugar, and traditionally made with lard. Bizcochito experts swear by lard for the proper tender texture. I’ll admit I’ve made butter and shortening varieties, too, but that borders on confessing to cookie sacrilege.

Spelling is also a matter of taste. When legislators met to designate the cookie, debate ensued about the spelling: biscochito or bizcochito? Bizcochito made the bill, but both versions remain common and contentious. As a writer fearful of grammar offenses, I worry when I mention bizcochitos. However the cookies are too important—and too tasty—to leave out.

I initially planned to post a bizcochito recipe. But now, post-Christmas, even I have had too many sweets. This chicken tortilla soup is quick and light but full of flavor. It’s also flexible. For a vegetarian version, you could substitute butternut squash for the chicken. For even easier prep, use leftover chicken (or turkey) or rotisserie chicken. You can also adjust the chile heat—more or none at all—or add some New Mexican roasted green chiles if you have them.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

serves 4-6

Ingredients:

4 chicken thighs, bone-in or boneless, with skin and excess fat removed

6 small corn tortillas, divided for use in soup and as a garnish

3 T olive oil

½ large onion, diced

2–3 cloves garlic, minced

1 t dried oregano

1 t ground cumin

1 t ground coriander

1 T chile powder (start with mild or medium spiciness, add more heat to taste)

1 (14.5 oz.) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes

5 c. chicken broth or water

1 (14.5 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1–2 T fresh lime juice

Salt and pepper to taste

Garnishes (mix and match as you like)

Corn tortilla strips

Fresh lime wedges

Chopped cilantro leaves

Avocado, diced

Sour cream

Crumbled Cotija cheese or other Mexican or fresh cheese

Stack all the corn tortillas and cut into 1/4” strips. Then cut the strips into approximately 2” lengths. Divide in half. Reserve one half for use as a garnish. The other half will dissolve into the soup as seasoning.

Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottomed soup pan. Add diced onion and sauté until soft and translucent, 8-10 minutes. Next add garlic, cumin, chile powder, and half of the tortilla strips. Stir for 2-3 minutes.

Stir in broth and canned tomatoes. Bring to a boil.

Nestle in the chicken thighs, meaty side down. Wait for soup to boil again. Then lower to a simmer and cook uncovered until the chicken is very tender, about 40 minutes.

Turn heat to its lowest setting. Carefully remove the chicken pieces from the soup and place on plate or cutting board. Let cool slightly, until safe to handle, and then chop into bite-sized pieces. If using bone-in chicken, remove the bones first and discard.

Check the soup pot and skim off any excess oil if necessary.

Place chicken back in pot. Add drained beans. Adjust seasonings. More salt? Pepper? Hot pepper? Keep in mind that the garnishes will add flavor, too. Simmer to meld flavors, 5-10 minutes.

While the soup is in its final simmer, drizzle some olive oil on the remaining tortilla strips. Toss the strips to coat with oil. Heat a wide frying pan. Add the strips and fry, stirring, for a few minutes until they are golden and crispy.

Immediately before serving, stir 1-2 T of lime juice into the soup.

Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish with tortilla strips, lime wedges (for diners to squeeze into their bowls if they want), cilantro, avocado, sour cream, and any other toppings.

Note: This is a great soup to make ahead or to freeze if you have any leftovers.

Bread of the Dead,

book 1 of the Santa Fe Café Mystery series

Life couldn’t be sweeter for Tres Amigas Café chef Rita Lafitte, decorating sugar skulls and taste-testing rich, buttery pan de muerto in anticipation of Santa Fe’s Day of the Dead bread-baking contest. That is, until her friendly landlord, Victor, is found dead next door.

Although the police deem Victor’s death a suicide, Rita knows something is amiss. To uncover the truth, she teams up with her octogenarian boss Flori, the town’s most celebrated snoop. The duo begin to sift through long-buried secrets and take full measure of duplicitous neighbors, but the clock is ticking and their list of suspects is growing ever longer. Just as the clues get hotter than a New Mexican chile, one of their main suspects winds up dead. Rita fears that the killer is dishing out seconds—and her order might just be up.

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