AN INTERVIEW WITH COZY MYSTERY AUTHOR DEBRA SENNEFELDER

Today we sit down for a chat with cozy mystery author Debra Sennefelder. Learn more about her and her books at her website. 

When did you realize you wanted to write novels?

I’ve always wanted to write since childhood, but it wasn’t until my 20s that I attempted to write a book. The first one was never finished but the second one was completed. And it was promptly rejected by every agent I sent it to.

 

How long did it take you to realize your dream of publication?

It was a journey with many stops and starts. I got serious about writing in the late 1990s when I met another author and joined a writing group. During the years between then and when I finally was published in 2018 with my debut novel, The Uninvited Corpse, I worked a full-time job, volunteered in my community, and had a food blog. There was a lot going on, but in 2015 I focused on writing fiction, and a year later I had signed with an agent and then sold the Food Blogger mystery series.

 

Are you traditionally published, indie published, or a hybrid author?

I am traditionally published.

 

Where do you write?

Most of the time I write in my home office. If the weather is nice, I’ll go out on the patio. But I prefer my office and working at a desktop computer.

 

Is silence golden, or do you need music to write by? What kind?

Silence is definitely golden, especially when I’m in the second draft of a book because I’m doing a deep edit of the manuscript and I need to fully concentrate on those words. 

 

How much of your plots and characters are drawn from real life? From your life in particular?

I typically don’t draw my plots from real life, but of course snippets of my real life do find their way into my stories. I rarely create a character based on people that I know. However, some of their habits, traits, or quirks may make it into a character. 

 

Describe your process for naming your character?

I like to find names that seem to fit characters and aren’t too long to type, especially if they are a prominent character in the story and I’ll be typing it a lot.

 

Real settings or fictional towns?

Fictional towns.

 

What’s the quirkiest quirk one of your characters has?

That would be Kip from the Cookie Shop Mystery series. He’s always telling baking jokes.

 

What’s your quirkiest quirk?

I don’t know. I’m sure I have one or two or three. You probably have to ask one of my friends.

 

If you could have written any book (one that someone else has already written,) which one would it be? Why?

Great question. It would be The Secrets We Share by Edwin Hill. I loved his voice, the tone of the book, the mystery, and the twist.

 

Everyone at some point wishes for a do-over. What’s yours?

Another great question. Here’s the thing, if I had the chance for a do-over, then most likely the things that have happened in my life wouldn’t have happened. It would throw everything out of whack. And I’m really happy with how things have turned out, mistakes and all. 

 

What’s your biggest pet peeve?

Whistling. 

 

You’re stranded on a deserted island. What are your three must-haves?

Sunscreen. Mascara. Coffee.

 

What was the worst job you’ve ever held?

Hands down it was working as a secretary for a commercial scale company. I wasn’t there long. 

 

Who’s your all-time favorite literary character (any genre)?

Jessica Fletcher. 

 

Ocean or mountains?

Mountains.

 

City girl/guy or country girl/guy?

I’m a city girl at heart.

 

 

What’s on the horizon for you?

I have another Food Blogger mystery releasing later this year.

 

Anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself and/or your books?

I love connecting with readers on social media and through my newsletter. I share photos of our Shih Tzu, Connie, and occasionally my recipes. 

 

A Corpse at the Witching Hour

A Food Blogger Mystery, Book 6

 

Hope Early has to contend with ghosts, a fatal curse, and a decades-old family secret to catch a killer in the new Food Blogger Mystery . . .

 

When her best friend’s Aunt Issy falls ill, food blogger Hope Early agrees to help him hand out Halloween candy at his aunt’s house, which is rumored to be cursed. A murder-suicide took place there a century ago, and legend has it that a woman has died there every twenty years since—on Halloween. Hope doesn’t really believe in curses or ghosts, but when all the trick-or-treaters are gone and she discovers a woman’s dead body on the front lawn, she wonders if the curse might be real after all.

 

Then Hope and her friend discover a cache of love letters linking the dead woman to Aunt Issy’s husband years ago, and Hope is certain they’ve uncovered the motive for murder—and the police are certain Aunt Issy is their main suspect. Determined to prove Issy’s innocence and nab the real culprit, Hope starts shaking other branches of the family tree. But she forgets that Halloween isn’t the only day people hide behind masks, and if she’s not careful, Hope will come face-to-face with a ghoulish fiend who’s not afraid to kill again . . . 

 

Recipes included!

 

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#COOKING WITH CLORIS--GUEST AUTHOR DEBRA SENNEFELDER BAKES UP A MYSTERY AND CHOCOLATE CHIP SCONES

Debra Sennefelder is the author of the Food Blogger Mysteries and the Resale Boutique Mystery Series. An avid reader who reads across a range of genres, mystery fiction is her obsession. When she’s not reading, she enjoys cooking and baking and as a former food blogger, she is constantly taking photographs of her food.Yeah, she’s that person. Learn more about her and her books at her website. 

I have a few things in common with Hope Early, the protagonist in my Food Blogger mystery series. One of those things is that we love to bake. Like Hope, I bake for enjoyment, and I also bake to help sort things out. There have been times when I’ve worked out plot ideas while whipping up a batch of brownies or making a big pot of stew. In The Corpse in the Gazebo, Hope has a lot of sorting out to do because she’s a person of interest in her neighbor’s murder. Not only is she at risk of being arrested and possibly facing jail time, but she’s also at risk of losing her career.

 

Hope loves to feed family and friends, and because she’s a food blogger, there’s always something to serve up. Like these chocolate chip scones. They are slightly sweet and crunchy on the edges while soft and moist in the center. 

 

Yesterday The Corpse in the Gazebo released, and as a treat to myself, I baked up a batch of these scones. I may have had two!

 

If you’d like to try baking these chocolate chip scones, here’s the recipe. Enjoy! And thank you for celebrating the release of my new book.

 

Chocolate Chip Scones 

 

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed

1/2 cup heavy cream (plus 2 tablespoons for brushing and a little extra if dough is dry)

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 large egg

1-1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1-1/4 cups mini chocolate chips

Turbinado sugar for sprinkling on scones before baking

Confectioners’ sugar for sifting on scones after baking and cooling

 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

 

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.

 

Cut in butter, with pastry cutter, two forks or your fingers, until the mixture resembles coarse meal but there are pieces of butter throughout. Set bowl in refrigerator while you combine the wet ingredients.

 

In a small bowl, whisk together 1/2-cup heavy cream, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla extract.

 

Remove flour mixture from refrigerator. Drizzle wet mixture over flour mixture and add in the chocolate chips. Mix until everything appears moistened, but don’t over mix.

 

Transfer dough onto a floured surface and work into a ball. Dough will be sticky. Add a little more flour to work more easily or add up to 2 tablespoons of heavy cream if the dough is too dry. Gently pat and shape dough into an 8-inch disc. With a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut into 8 wedges.

 

Transfer wedges onto parchment paper covered baking sheet. Set them 2-3 inches apart. Brush scones with the 2 tablespoons of heavy cream and then sprinkle with turbinado sugar.

 

Place scones in refrigerator for up to fifteen minutes before baking. If space is tight, you can place the scone wedges on plates and then transfer to prepared baking sheet just before putting them into the oven.

 

Bake for 22-25 minutes or until golden brown around the edges and lightly browned on top.

 

Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and then serve.

 

These are best eaten the same day but will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

 

The Corpse in the Gazebo

A Food Blogger Mystery, Book 5

 

Food blogging is turning Hope Early into a household name. But the dead body down the block makes her a #1 suspect...

 

It seems everyone loves Hope’s blog these days, and she’s busier than ever volunteering to help other women create their own paths to success. So she’s shocked when a neighbor petitions to run Hope right out of her small Connecticut town! Set in her ways, apparently Birdie Donovan doesn’t like the chaos Hope’s sleuthing creates, the police activity and crime scenes, and it’s happening way too often lately. Eager to make amends, Hope bakes Birdie a batch of her best muffins. The delicious treats might have smoothed things over—until Hope discovers Birdie dead in her gazebo the very next day...

 

Now instead of worrying about holding on to her beloved home, Hope is trying to stay out of jail. Because suddenly she’s the lead suspect in the case. Not even her boyfriend, Police Chief Ethan Cahill, is promising he can clear her name, much less discuss the investigation with her. It’s up to Hope to get to bake new ground on the case before the lifestyle brand she’s created—and her whole life—crumbles...

 

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#COOKING WITH CLORIS--GUEST AUTHOR DEBRA SENNEFELDER

Soon-to-be mystery debut author Debra Sennefelder has two constant writing companions: her Shih-Tzus, Susie and Billy. She's been an avid reader since childhood and found writing came naturally for her. When she's not writing, she loves to cook, exercise (yes, really) and read. Learn more about Debra at her website. 

Oatmeal Raisin Bar Recipe

It's almost the end of the month. Can you believe it? January is flying by. Wasn't it just yesterday when we were about to ring in the New Year and made a list of our 2017 resolutions?  One of the most common resolutions is to lose weight, aka exercise more and/or eat healthier. Those are great goals, and to succeed we need tools that assist us rather than hinder us. One of the things I think we all struggle with is eating healthier because it's so easy to eat not-so-healthy. Grab-and-go is very tempting when you're tight on time. I know, been there, done that and got the larger sized t-shirt as a souvenir.

We struggle with time because our calendars are jammed packed with things to do—work, family, home, friends, volunteering, etc. Add to that a mostly sedentary lifestyle, kind of like writing. Yes, I sit a lot during the day at my desk. And as an added bonus of working from home, I can sneak off to the kitchen whenever my little heart desires. Another bonus to my job? I'm writing about a food blogger who is constantly cooking. That means I'm cooking too.

I've managed to create a fitness routine and most of my meals are healthy but it's the snacking that is the landmine. I used to reach for those protein bars and then those other "nice" bars (you know the ones I’m talking about) and various other bars for my mid-morning snack with a cup of tea. Then I got to a point where I realized some of those bars are just as bad as a candy bar. Go ahead, read some of those labels. And the other bars, while they have real foods in them (don't get me started on the ingredients that I can't pronounce in packaged foods), I found them to be held together by something gooey and sugary, and I didn't like the taste or texture. Ugh. So I now make my own bars. And today's recipe is an oatmeal raisin bar that is easy, fast and flexible. Best of all, you know exactly what you're putting into the bar.

This Oatmeal Raisin bar recipe is a go-to for me. When I'm in the mood for a little chocolate, I add a handful of chips to the batter. When I want to take the bars up a notch, I substitute the raisins with dried cherries and add in dark chocolate chips. If you like the bars as is but want an added kick of cinnamon, sprinkle in a little extra. You really can't do anything wrong to this recipe.

Oatmeal Raisin Bars

Ingredients:

2 cups old-fashioned oats

1/2 cup all-purpose four

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 8"x8"baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl, add all of the ingredients and combine until smooth. Spread the batter in prepared baking pan and bake approximately 25-30 minutes until the bars are cooked all the way through.

Let bars cool completely and then cut into individual portion sizes, as large or small as you wish.

#COOKING WITH CLORIS--GUEST AUTHOR DEBRA SENNEFELDER AND #QUINOA-SPINACH PATTIES

Soon-to-be debut mystery author Debra Sennefelder has two constant writing companions: her Shih-Tzus, Susie and Billy. She's been an avid reader since childhood and found writing came naturally for her. When she's not writing, she loves to cook, exercise (yes, really) and read. Learn more about Debra at her website. 

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a great holiday and are looking forward to a great 2017. This is the time of year we make resolutions for change in our lives. From what my Facebook news feed looks like I'm pretty sure getting into shape is the number one resolution. Been there, done that and got the t-shirt. From my news feed (this is all very scientific, isn't it?) I also noticed that eating healthy is right up there with getting into shape. The two do go hand-in-hand but they can be overwhelming. In our over-scheduled lives with demands that pull us in multiple directions, how on earth can we magically make extra time each day to workout and cook healthy? I can feel those resolutions slipping away. But, wait! Eating healthy doesn't have to be hard or time intensive. I'm going to share with you one of my favorite recipes that doesn't take long to prepare.

Eating healthy is very important to me because I bake a lot of indulgent sweets because the sleuth of my soon-to-be published mystery series is a foodie and she's always in the kitchen whipping up something with way too many calories in it. Of course, as part of my research, I must bake what she's baking and I must taste it.

Quinoa-Spinach Patties is a healthy, easy recipe that is incredibly filling, so you won't be tempted to over-indulge. Quinoa is a potent grain that is packed with a long list of benefits including being very high in fiber and gluten-free, and spinach contains vitamins and is a good source of Omega 3 Fatty Acids. I've paired the patties with green beans and roasted sweet potatoes, and I have dinner ready to serve after a long day of recipe testing for my mystery series or of writing.

These patties are perfect year round, but I'm finding I'm enjoying them right now more so because after a few weeks of baked goods and heavy holiday meals, the patties are refreshing, and while they are filling they are not heavy. 

Quinoa-Spinach Patties

1-1/2 teaspoons canola oil

1 cup chopped onion

3/4 cup uncooked quinoa

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1-1/3 cups vegetable broth

2 cups spinach leaves, chopped

2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

1/2 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)

dash of kosher salt

dash of pepper

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan and swirl to coat. Add onion and cook for 4-5 minutes, until tender, stirring frequently. Add in quinoa and cook for 4 minutes or until toasted and lightly browned. Stir occasionally. Add in garlic, cook for 30 seconds, then add broth. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer and cook until liquid is fully absorbed (15-18 minutes).

Combine eggs, panko, salt and pepper into a bowl and set aside.

Stir in spinach, then spread out mixture in a single layer on a baking sheet and let cool, about 10 minutes. When quinoa mixture is cooled, spoon mixture into a large bowl and add goat cheese. Stir until combined, then add in eggs and panko mixture. Stir until all ingredients are combined. Set aside for 5 minutes.

Shape mixture into 4 (4 inch) patties.

Spray baking sheet with cooking spray and place patties on the pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Gently flip patties over and bake for another 10 minutes until lightly browned and thoroughly heated.

I serve the patties with roasted sweet potatoes which I simply cube and sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss with a little olive oil and roast until fork tender. I do drizzle a little balsamic vinaigrette on the patties.

#COOKING WITH CLORIS--DEBRA SENNEFELDER'S QUICK CRANBERRY EGGNOG MINI-POUND #CAKES

Soon-to-be mystery debut author Debra Sennefelder has two constant writing companions: her Shih-Tzus, Susie and Billy. She's been an avid reader since childhood and found writing came naturally for her. When she's not writing, she loves to cook, exercise (yes, really) and read. Learn more about Debra at her website. 

Once upon a time there was a writer who was in the midst of writing a manuscript while working a full-time job and caring for an injured dog at Christmas, and just when she didn't think her to-do list could get any longer, it did. She had to bake for her 20-plus co-workers. She needed something quick, easy and had a high yield because she was short on time. The countdown to Christmas day had begun and she needed her own little baking miracle. Then a flash of inspiration hit and within a couple hours she was packing up the cargo space in her SUV with treats for her co-workers. What saved the day? Cranberry Eggnog Mini-Pound cakes.

Let me first start by saying that I do prefer to make my own cake batter from scratch but I was a desperate woman and I needed fast more than I needed homemade cake batter. And I do have a fondness for Betty Crocker since it was the go-to for my mom when I was a kid. I looked through what I had on hand and that's when the inspiration sparked and I quickly gathered all the ingredients—eggs, vanilla, eggnog, cranberries. I used the eggnog in place of the milk. Add in some chopped cranberries and a plain pound cake became festive. Bake them in pretty molds and they become giftable (is that a real word? probably not but you know what I mean).

I always have a large roll of cellophane on hand and various ribbons stashed away for any occasion. I did have a stack of cake boards that I cut into small discs for the cakes. But that was a little time-consuming so now I just wrap the cakes in the cellophane. If you're really short on time you can bake one large cake or a couple of loaf cakes according to the directions on the box. I do love the smaller

These little cakes showed me that simple sometimes is the best thing we can do. We get so caught up in all the things we think need to be done for the holidays and yet these very easy treats have become one of my most requested desserts and I'm happy to whip up a batch.

The recipe? There really isn't one. But here are the basics and don't be afraid to experiment. I've made mini-petite cakes and added Bailey's Vanilla Cinnamon to the batter.

You'll need:

1 box of pound cake mix along with the ingredients listed on the box but you'll replace the milk with eggnog and you'll add 3/4 cup finely chopped cranberries to the batter along with a dash of vanilla. In addition, confectioners' sugar to dust each cake.

Tips:

For the mini-cakes pictured above I bake them for 18-22 minutes, it all depends on your oven.

I typically get 6-9 mini-pound cakes from each box.

If you're using mini-bundt pans be sure not to overfill each mold with batter or else you'll never get the cake out. (Been there.)

I wish you a joyous holiday season!

#COOKING WITH CLORIS--#CHRISTMAS #COOKIE TIME WITH DEBRA SENNEFELDER

Aspiring author Debra Sennefelder has two constant writing companions, her Shih-Tzus, Susie and Billy. She's been an avid reader since childhood and found writing came naturally for her. When she's not writing, she loves to cook, exercise (yes, really) and read. Learn more about Debra at her website.

There are a few things I share in common with Hope Early, the amateur sleuth in my mystery series. One of those things is the love of baking, and Christmas is my Super Bowl. The other thing Hope and I share is that we are extremely busy, so we look to streamline as many things as possible. Since I love to bake cookies at Christmas and I work a full-time job and I am writing and I have a home to maintain and I ... you get the picture...I've come up with a method to bake batches and batches of cookies without having to spend countless hours in the kitchen.

I've been baking Christmas cookies for over 20 years and I've learned a thing or two about the process. This baking obsession started innocently enough with a cake when I was about twelve years old. My mom wasn't a baker so she used boxed mixes and I made a simple one-layer cake and covered it with white frosting and added some Christmas decorations to bring to our family's holiday dinner.

I was greeted by oohs and ahhs and I admit, I liked it. Watching everyone enjoy my cake made me feel happy, accomplished and proud. Over the years I traded in the Christmas cake for cookies because everybody loves a cookie and they're easy to make. But since I usually bake 10-12 different types of cookies for the holiday season, I needed to find a way to streamline the process. I've experimented with a few ideas - fewer cookies (not a good option), freezing baked cookies (not every cookie freezes well) or adding mini-cakes to my cookie trays (the people in my life want Christmas cookies, end of story). And over the past few years it's become more important to me that I not spend hours every night after work baking because I need to use that time writing. And weekends? Well, errands need to be run and the house needs to be cleaned and I need to write.

So how do I manage to deliver dozens of cookies to friends, family and co-workers?

#1 - Plan

#2 - Prep ahead

#3- Freeze the dough

#4 – Bake

Here's how I pull it all together.

In October I pull out my planner, and I list all the cookies I want to bake. There are some that I bake every year--Ginger Crackles, Double Chocolate Crescents, Rugelach, Sugar cookies, Chocolate Chip (the only cookie my husband eats), and Cranberry Drop cookies.

Then I decide on 4-6 other cookies I'd like to bake. With my list completed I create my shopping list. I review each recipe for the ingredients, and over the next few weeks I spread those purchases out during my regular shopping trips so it’s a little easier on the budget and I can take advantage on any sales. I also make sure to include gallon sized zip lock bags.

I then schedule my baking days. Since I gift these cookies, I usually bake ahead of Christmas Eve so I have time to make deliveries. I base the baking days on when I plan on delivering the cookies. I identify which cookies can be held the longest (it's usually no more than three-four days) and work down to the cookies that need to be delivered within 24 hours of baking (my Double Chocolate Crescents are those type of cookies, best served right after they’re baked).

Then I set the dates for my prep work.

The prep period is usually Thanksgiving weekend. I settled on this period a few years ago. I used to do the prep work in the evening after work but between working all day and writing at night, I couldn't continue to do that. Thanksgiving weekend gives me 3 full days to dedicate to prepping all of my baking bags.

On prep days I prepare all the dry ingredients for each cookie. It's that simple. Scoop, measure and dump into a re-sealable gallon sized bag and label. Then I move on to the next recipe. By the end I have all of the dry ingredients ready to go for baking. At this point, you can make the cookie dough and freeze it for baking at a later date. Depending how many cookies I have to bake, I will do this.

On my baking days all I have to do is grab a bag and then pull together all of the wet ingredients and mix, scoop and bake. Or, if you’ve frozen the dough, defrost in the refrigerator and bake.

I use more re-sealable bags and containers to store the baked cookies.

Just before I deliver the cookies, I bring out my trays (everyone on my cookie delivery list returns my trays and cookie tins so they can be reused) and cookie tins and begin assembly. I typically post on Facebook my baking progress so friends and family eagerly await their gift. It's so awesome to see their faces light up when I hand over my cookies. It never gets old. And the added bonus is that I am still able to balance everything that I need to do, which includes writing the second book in my series this holiday season.

At this time of the year we’re all in a time crunch and this is one way I found to help ease the stress of the season. Do you have a tip or two that helps lessen the stress of the holidays? If so, please share.

Before I go I’d like to share the recipe for my Double Chocolate Crescent Cookies. They are my favorite cookies and it’s very, very hard to resist devouring them just after they’ve come out of the oven. As I mentioned earlier, these cookies do not do well stored and should be baked within 2 days of sharing.

Double Chocolate Crescent Cookies

Yield: approximately 2 dozen

Ingredients

1 ¾ cup flour

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ pound butter, at room temperature

½ cup sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1/3 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (in a pinch you can use regular chocolate chips)

Confectioners’ sugar for dredging

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Combine flour, cocoa and salt.

With an electric mixer set at medium-low speed, beat butter and sugar until fluffy and light in color. Beat in vanilla and eggs. Reduce speed and beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Dough will be crumbly and dry. That’s okay.

Scoop dough into approximately 1-1/4” balls (you can use a tablespoon measure spoon for this part or an ice cream scoop). Roll each ball into a log about 3” long and taper ends. Bend each log into a crescent shape. (I use a donut cutter for uniform crescents, gently shape the log inside the cutter). Place about 2” apart on a silicone sheet lined baking sheet pan and bake until the edges are set and the bottoms are dry but corners are slightly soft, 10-15 minutes.

Remove from the cookie sheet carefully as to not break the cookies and immediately dredge in confectioners’ sugar. Continue to handle the cookies gently. Let them cool completely and dredge a second time in confectioners’ sugar.

#COOKING WITH CLORIS--GUEST WRITER DEBRA SENNEFELDER

Aspiring author Debra Sennefelder has two constant writing companions, her Shih-Tzus, Susie and Billy. She's been an avid reader since childhood and found writing came naturally for her. When she's not writing, she loves to cook, exercise (yes, really) and read. Learn more about Debra at her website.

Every new writer hears at least a bizillion times to "write what you know" when they begin their writing journey. Most of the time these new writers take the advice literally. They write about their own lives and just change the names to protect the innocent, or they stop writing because what they know isn't interesting enough to carry a three hundred-page novel. The truth is, there is a lot of bad advice out there for writers and one of the most important skills a writer can develop is the ability to identify the good advice from the bad advice.

I'm not saying "write what you know" is bad advice, it's a great place to start. I interpreted the advice as to write authentically, which comes from working the experiences in my day-to-day life into my stories.

I write cozy mysteries, but I’ve never been involved in a murder investigation. However, I can draw on past experiences where maybe I was a bit too curious or when I found myself living in a town that was swarmed by the media because of a tragic event. Now, my characters aren’t me and they aren’t living through every event/experience I’ve lived through. An example is my amateur sleuth in my series. She isn’t me. She’s divorced, she’s had fifteen minutes of fame, and she bought an old farmhouse with a wraparound porch (so jealous). But we share a lot of common interests and that helps me write her in a way I hope readers will find relatable.

One of the things we have in common is baking. It’s one of my greatest pleasures. Baking also helps me with my writing. When I’m stuck in my story, I go into the kitchen and bake something—cookies or muffins or my go-to snack of raisin-oatmeal bars—and just as I’m cleaning up, I find I’ve worked through my story problem. Plus, I have something yummy to eat. Win-win.

Over the summer I was stuck in edits. My agent had sent my manuscript back to me to make some tweaks here and there, but I came across one scene that I wasn’t happy with. I knew that it could be better. Staring at the page on my computer wasn’t yielding any results. Frustrating, to say the least. I pushed my chair back from my desk and headed into the kitchen.

I remember that Sunday well because it was one of the least hot, humid days of this summer. I could breath and didn’t feel like I needed to be wrung out. Which meant I could turn on the oven for a little bit. I needed to bake something. It had to be quick, easy and satisfying. My decision was made. Corn muffins. I love corn muffins with a light spread of soft butter.

I pulled out a mixing bowl and the muffin tins and started baking. As I followed my recipe, I let my mind wander and do its own thing. When my husband woke, he found a treat waiting for him, and I had an idea of how to fix the scene I was unhappy with.

  

And that leads me to share with you my recipe for corn muffins that I now affectionately call, Fix the Story Corn Muffins.

Fix the Story Corn Muffins

Makes 12

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup cornmeal

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup low-fat milk

1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter, melted

Nonstick cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. Combine the eggs and milk and mix. Pour the melted butter and mixture into the dry ingredients at the same time and mix just until blended.

Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray and evenly divide between the muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean, 20-25 minutes.

Serve warm with fresh butter or fruit preserves. 

#CRAFTING WITH ANASTASIA--GUEST WRITER & KNITTER DEBRA SENNEFELDER

Aspiring author Debra Sennefelder has two constant writing companions, her Shih-Tzus, Susie and Billy. She's been an avid reader since childhood and found writing came naturally for her. When she's not writing, she loves to cook, exercise (yes, really) and read. Learn more about Debra at her website. 

I am thrilled to be here today on Killer Crafts and Crafty Killers. Life is full of surprises. You’re never quite sure what will come your way when you least expect it. For several years I thought the only craft hobby I’d do would be counted cross stitch. I’ve been very content with stitching samplers on linen for years. I’ve accepted the fact that quilting wasn’t my thing, that scrapbooking was just too overwhelming for me (so many papers and stickers and glitter), that folk-art painting was messy, and that knitting would just end with a project discarded mid-way after tearing out rows over and over again.

Then life threw me a curve ball when I least expected it.

When that curveball came my way it was a beautiful spring day in Massachusetts. I had entered a yarn shop with my friend Megan. We were hitting some shops because we arrived a day early for a writer’s conference. Megan entered the shop looking to buy something; I entered solely as a window shopper—until I saw the most beautiful baby blanket. I was drawn to the blanket, white and pale blue, and then I touched it. So soft, so thick, so cuddly. Perfect for our new little nephew.

Megan shopped, but I stood mesmerized, wishing I could knit. Now, I’m not a complete stranger to knitting. I know my way around a circular needle and I’ve even stitched cables, but I’ve yet to complete a project that I was proud of.

Megan saw me staring at the blanket and came over. She agreed that it was a beautiful blanket and said that I could knit it. I laughed. She couldn’t be serious, could she? Before I knew it, she and the shop owner had the yarn and the project book in hand and were discussing my ability to make the blanket.

I was curious about how thick the blanket felt and Megan explained that it was knitted using double-strand yarn. Okay, that was foreign talk to me and there was no way I would be able to knit that blanket. Fast forward twenty minutes and I walked out of the shop with a bag of yarn and a circular knitting needle.

A couple weeks after the conference I settled down one evening, pulled out the yarn, needle and instructions and after several attempts, I finally was knitting the blanket.

Over these past couple of months I’ve pulled out my knitting bag and added a few rows each evening. And I’ve noticed that on the nights I didn’t knit, I was a little sad the next day. I missed knitting. Hmm…I wonder if I’ve unleashed my inner-knitter?

I think I have since I’m now obsessed with knitting blogs. I’m even following some of those knitters on Instagram, and I’m buying every knitting magazine I can find. I am also thinking about what I’ll tackle next once this blanket is completed. I’m confident I won’t have a problem finding a project since I have a list of patterns that I found on Ravelry that I want to knit.

Since the pattern is not mine I cannot share it with you. But, I can share with you the great satisfaction I am feeling as I knit to the last row of this blanket. This will be the first time I will be gifting anything that I’ve made that didn’t come from my kitchen (I’m a baker and I love sharing my baked goods,) and I’m super excited about giving it to our nephew.

When I began this project I was full of doubt; it was much like when I began writing the manuscript that landed me an agent a few months ago. I’m so glad that I tried knitting again. If there is a hobby you let go of at some point and every now and again you think about it, I encourage you to give it another try. You never know what you could create.