Today we’re joined by Kaye Spencer who
shares a recipe for Meat and Potato Pasty and a bit about A Permanent
Woman, her latest romance which is part of the Lassoing a
Mail-Order Bride anthology. Learn more about Kaye and her
books at her website.
In
my story, Simon Driscoll needs a wife so he can get custody of his
grandchildren. Tessa Morris needs a fresh start and a new reputation. Desperate
men — and women — sometimes take desperate measures...but can she be A
Permanent Woman?
This
excerpt from A Permanent Woman is from Simon and Tessa’s first meeting.
A fiery
flush rose up Simon’s neck, and his button-up shirt collar felt like it was
strangling him. She was a fine looking woman—creamy smooth skin with a rosy
complexion and bright intelligent eyes. Her hat, perched just so on top of the
curls pinned up on her head, accentuated her neat, tailored and expensive
traveling outfit, which hugged a good figure.
Her
gentle touch and the hint of roses hovering about her stirred memories of long
ago summer evenings rocking on the porch swing, watching the stars come out,
holding hands and sipping lemonade, listening to the owls conversing in the
tops of the cottonwoods in the yard, then retiring to the bedroom and slipping
between cool sheets—
He
jerked back to his senses. Damn it to hell, he’d no business entertaining
bedroom thoughts about a woman. And a total stranger at that. It wasn’t part of
the arrangement; besides, it not being a fitting topic to broach with a lady. A
man could get himself into all sorts of trouble thinking of a woman the way he
was thinking of her.
“Miss
Morris, it’d be best if we don’t—”
“—waste
any more time with formalities? I concur, so I’ll move right on. I admire your
determination to assume responsibility for your grandchildren. And please
accept my condolences for the loss of your son and daughter-in-law. Such a
needless tragedy. With your wife gone but these four years, you’ve had more
than your share of troubles.” She clucked her tongue in sympathy and rested her
hand upon his knee as if it were the most natural thing to do.
Simon
mumbled his thanks, his hands sweating and his mouth as dry as cotton.
“Let’s
get to the heart of the issue, shall we?” She sat back, giving space between
them, and Simon exhaled in relief.
“As you
can see from my appearance, I have a sturdy and healthy constitution. I am of
good moral character, although you’ll have to take my word on it, as I am
willing to trust you. I’ve lived most of my life in a quaint little lakeshore
town I’m sure you’ve never heard of.” She gestured in a generally easterly direction.
“I have your advertisement here.”
Reaching into her handbag, Tessa brought out a paper with a torn, jagged edge,
and smoothed it out on her lap. “To further address your requirements, I am
well-educated, I keep a decent house, and I am acceptably versed in culinary
endeavors. My meat and potato pasty and whitefish chowder are highly regarded…”
So, on
that food note, here is a hand-me-down family recipe for a meat and potato
pasty that came to me via my maternal grandmother who brought it with her when
she and my grandfather moved to Fort Morgan, Colorado from Lamoni, Iowa by way
of Oral, South Dakota in 1922.
Meat and Potato Pasty
Ingredients:
2-1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cold shortening
1/3 cup ice cold water (may
need more or less)
2 or 3 medium sized
potatoes, finely chopped (peeled or unpeeled)
1 pound (approximately) cooked
or uncooked beef cut into small pieces (If already cooked, use larger pieces.
If raw, lightly brown the meat in hot lard in a skillet to seal in the juice)
salt and pepper to taste
chopped onion (optional)
butter
1 large egg, beaten
For filling, mix meat,
potatoes, onion, salt, and pepper together. Spoon mixture into each pasty bowl,
filling until 3/4 full. Top each mixture with approximately 1 Tablespoon butter.
Place the top crust over the bottom crust.
For crust, sift flour once,
measure, add 1/2 teaspoon salt, sift again. Cut in shortening until pieces are
size of small peas. Add ice water, a small amount at a time, and mix with fork
just enough to make flour hold together. Continue mixing until it is neither
sticky nor crumbly.
Divide dough into pieces
according to the size and number of pastys you want to make. Keep in mind you
need one bottom crust and one top crust per pasty. Roll the pieces out onto a floured
surface.
Place one piece of
rolled-out dough in container that holds up the sides, fill with meat and
potato mixture. Brush a film of beaten egg around the edges of the bottom and
top crust so the edges stick together. Place top crust over bottom crust and crimp
them closed. Remove pasty from the bowl and place on baking sheet to bake.
Repeat for other pastys, leaving space between each on baking sheet. Brush top
crusts with beaten egg. Bake at 350 degrees 45 minutes to an hour until crusts
are golden brown.
Lassoing a Mail-Order Bride
A woman would have to be
loco to become a mail-order bride...wouldn't she? Leaving everything behind and
starting fresh in the untamed west is the answer to a prayer for these ladies!
A beautiful socialite needs a husband fast —but her husband wants a bride for
life. A pregnant young lady becomes desperate —almost as desperate as her
soon-to-be husband, who just inherited his sister's kids. A man is in love with
a woman he can’t have —or can he? A woman’s reputation is tarnished and
professional career compromised —she runs, but she can't hide. Will they all
find love with strangers they've never met who are set on LASSOING A MAIL-ORDER
BRIDE?
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