Creamy Spinach and Artichoke Chicken #Recipe Peg Cochran/Margaret Loudon

 

This was very good and not difficult even though there is a long list of ingredients!  I made some adjustments.  I cooked a portion for two people instead of four and I cut a gigantic chicken breast (how can they even walk?) in half horizontally and pounded them since cutlets cost a lot more and are basically the same thing.  I used gluten free four and since I didn't have any white wine, I used dry Vermouth (my go-to when I don't have white wine--to cook with, not drink!) I forgot to buy fresh spinach (face palm) so I used the bag of frozen I had.  I defrosted it and drained it well but I think fresh spinach would still be preferable.

 

 4 (4-ounce) chicken cutlets (or breasts cut in half horizontally)

¼ teaspoon ground pepper

2 olive oil, divided

2 shallots, chopped

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped  

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (or gluten free)

¼ cup dry white wine

½ cup chicken broth

6 cups spinach, chopped

1 cup canned quartered artichoke hearts, rinsed and chopped

½ cup heavy cream

¼ cup cream cheese, cubed and softened

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)

⅛ teaspoon salt

¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Season chicken with ground pepper.  Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat and brown chicken on both sides, cooking until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees.  Remove chicken to a plate.

 

Add remaining tablespoon of olive oil to pan and sauté shallots and garlic until shallots are translucent.

Add flour and cook, stirring until fragrant or for about one minute.

 

Add wine and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated.

 

Whisking constantly, add broth and cook until mixture has thickened.

Add spinach and artichokes and cook, stirring, until spinach has wilted.

Add optional red pepper, heavy cream and cream cheese and cook until cream cheese has melted.  Season with salt and ground black pepper to taste.

 

Return chicken to pan and heat through, about 2 to 3 minutes. 

 

Remove pan from heat and add Parmesan and basil.  Stir until Parmesan melts.

 

 

Orzo Pasta with Shrimp from Vicki Delany

This a fabulous quick dinner. The goat’s cheese gives it a lovely creamy texture and you’re getting plenty of greens with the spinach. The splashes of red and green look good on the plate. 

Orzo Pasta with Shrimp

Serves four.

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups orzo pasta

Salt and pepper

4 oz fresh spinach

4 oz soft goat cheese

1 lb frozen shrimp (peeled and deveined)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ tbsp dried oregano

1 tsp red pepper flakes

28 oz can diced tomatoes

Directions:

Cook orzo according to package directions.  When al-dente, drain reserving about ½ cup of cooking water.   Return orzo to the pan and add spinach and goat cheese.

While orzo is cooking, heat oil in medium saucepan and add shrimp, salt and pepper.  Cook until shrimp is slightly browned, about 2 minutes.  Transfer shrimp to a bowl.

Reheat skillet. Add onion and ¼ tsp salt. Cook, until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, oregano and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring, about one minute.

Add tomatoes and juices. Simmer, covered, for 5 minutes.

Stir shrimp into the sauce. Remove from heat and let stand about another 5 minutes

Pour sauce over the orzo-spinach mixture. Stir to combine. If it seems too dry, add some of the pasta water.

 

  

Follow Vicki at www.vickidelany.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/evagatesauthor. You can sign up to receive Vicki’s quarterly newsletter at Vicki Delany – Canadian Author of Mystery Novels and Suspense Novels » Contact. She’s on Bluesky at @vickidelany.bsky.social

Now Available for Pre-Order:  Shot Through the Book, the 12^th Lighthouse Library mystery by Eva Gates, coming May 6 from Crooked Lane Books.  Shot Through the Book by Eva Gates: 9798892420440 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

 

Key West Woman's Club Cookbook

LUCY BURDETTE: This isn't a traditional recipe post, but with the Key West Woman's Club celebrating their 110th anniversary this weekend, I thought this would be a perfect time to talk about the Key West Woman’s Club Cookbook, including the new edition which I edited last year, and is now out in the world!

The first iteration of the cookbook was published in the 1949. It’s a wonderful piece of history even if you wouldn’t go anywhere near most of the recipes. (Turtle steaks anyone?) It’s all written in the handwriting of various women who worked on the book and contributed recipes, and it has wonderful drawings like this one:

As we mulled over the new edition, we knew we wanted to retain the spirit of both the book published in 1949 and the one published in 1988. Although some of the recipes were the same in 1988, the handwriting was replaced by standard typing, and many of the quirky drawings were also removed.

My job was to figure out what should be retained from both versions and then to add in some modern day recipes from current members of the woman’s club. Luckily, I didn’t have to do the work of scanning or anything else technical. I had to choose, organize, and send it off. Here is T-bone helping me with the layout:

My suggestion was to use some of the hand written introductions and actual recipes as intros to each section. For example, we couldn’t possibly leave out this quote:

I had a spare copy of the second cookbook into which I could sandwich photocopies of the old sections that we did didn’t want to lose. I thought we would be overwhelmed with new recipe submissions, but luckily the number was manageable. I included the banana cream pie that I used in Key West food critic mystery number 12, A DISH TO DIE FOR. I wrote that before I got involved with the Woman’s Club, though there are several scenes that take place there. In fact, Hayley finds clues to the mystery in a box of old drawings that has been stashed at the back of a drawer for years and years.

The cookbook team is still working on marketing. As of today, there is no way to buy the cookbook online. However, there are copies available through our local bookstores, Key West Island Books ( 305-294-2904), and Books and Books Key West (305 320 0208). If you are a local or a visitor looking for a copy, they are also available at the Key West Art and Historical Society, the Woman’s Club, and also will be available at the brand new cooking school.

With fellow cookbook teammate, Marlene

We're so glad to have helped save this bit of Key West history. If you're lucky enough to be in Key West this weekend, check out the celebration!

Lucy Burdette writes the Key West food critic mystery series including USA Today bestselling A POISONOUS PALATE and A CLUE IN THE CRUMBS. 

Book 15 in the Key West series, THE MANGO MURDERS, will be in bookstores on August 12!

And the new trade paperback edition of A CLUE IN THE CRUMBS is out now!

Nigella's Lemon Pavlova #Recipe by @LibbyKlein #Easter #Mother's Day

Libby Klein I've followed Nigella Lawson since Nigella Bites. The mid nineties to early two thousands was the heyday for traditional cooking shows before they turned into competitions and Nigella was one of my favorites. I've tried to win that signed cookbook to no avail, and I make her carbonara recipe whenever we feel we need a special meal. I can't order it in a restaurant because half the time it comes as scrambled egg pasta and it's too easy to get it right on my own. Nigella has spoiled me. 

When I saw this recipe for Lemon Pavlova I saved it in my must make folder for a special occasion. The special occasion that finally arrived was it's snowing and I've been sick so I want a treat. So here we are. This makes 8-12 slices and it doesn't keep fresh for very long so maybe wait until you have an event or dinner party to roll it out. You can make the merengue base a day ahead. This would make a perfect dessert for a spring event like Easter or Mother's Day.

Lemon Pavlova by Nigella Lawson

Yield 8-12

Ingredients

6 egg whites
375 grams of caster sugar (2 1/4 cup of fine granulated sugar)
2 1/2 teaspoons corn flour (corn starch)
2 unwaxed lemons (are lemons usually waxed?)
50 grams flaked almonds (1/2 cup sliced almonds)
300 milliliters double cream (1 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream)
325 gram jar lemon curd (I personally like Tiptree but any kind you like will do)

Directions (I'm going to post these exactly as Nigella wrote them because they're kind of fabulous)

1.     Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C Fan/gas mark 4/350°F and line a baking tray with baking parchment. Beat the egg whites until satiny peaks form, then beat in the sugar a spoonful at a time until the meringue is stiff and shiny.

2.     Sprinkle the cornflour over the meringue, then grate in the zest — a fine microplane is best for this — of 1 lemon and add 2 teaspoons of lemon juice.

3.     Gently fold until everything is thoroughly mixed in. Mound onto the lined baking tray in a fat circle approximately 23cm/10inches in diameter, smoothing the sides and the top with a knife or spatula.

4.     Place in the oven, then immediately turn the temperature down to 150°C/130°C Fan/gas mark 2/300°F, and cook for 1 hour.

5.     Remove from the oven and leave to cool, but don’t leave it anywhere cold as this will make it crack too quickly. If you think your kitchen is too cool, then leave the pavlova inside the oven with the door completely open. When you’re ready to eat, turn the pavlova onto a large flat plate or board with the underside uppermost — I do this before I sit down to the meal in question and let it stand till pudding time. This is so the tender marshmallow belly of the pav melds with the soft topping.

6.     Toast the flaked almonds, by frying them in a dry pan over a medium to high heat until they have started to colour. Shake the pan at regular intervals and don’t let them burn. This doesn’t take more than a minute or so. When they’re done, remove to a cold plate so that they don’t carry on cooking.

7.     Whip the cream until thick and airy but still with a soft voluptuousness about it, and set it aside for a moment.

8.     Put the lemon curd into a bowl and beat it with a wooden spoon or spatula to loosen it a little. Taste the lemon curd (if it’s shop-bought) and add some lemon zest and a spritz of juice if it’s too sweet.

9.     With a light hand, a glad heart and a spatula, spread the lemon curd on top of the meringue base. Now top with the whipped cream, peaking it rather as if it were a meringue topping. Sprinkle with the zest of the remaining lemon — you can grate this finely or coarsely as you wish — followed by the flaked almonds, and serve triumphantly.

Layla Virtue, a blue-haired, 30-something recovering alcoholic and former cop is trying to reinvent herself as a musician—between AA meetings, dodging eccentric neighbors at her trailer park, and reconnecting with her mysterious dad—in this ​unforgettable new mystery brimming with hilarity and heart.

Layla is taking her new life one day at a time from the Lake Pinecrest Trailer Park she now calls home. Being alone is how she likes it. Simple. Uncomplicated. Though try telling that to the group of local ladies who are in relentless pursuit of Layla as their new BFF, determined to make her join them for coffee and donuts.

After her first career ended in a literal explosion, Layla’s trying to eke out a living as a rock musician. It’s not easy competing against garage bands who work for tacos and create their music on a computer, while all she has is an electric guitar and leather-ish pants. But Layla isn’t in a position to turn down any gig. Which is why she’s at an 8-year-old’s birthday party, watching as Chuckles the Clown takes a bow under the balloon animals. No one expects it will be his last . . .

Who would want to kill a clown—and why? Layla and her unshakable posse are suddenly embroiled in the seedy underbelly of the upper-class world of second wives and trust fund kids, determined to uncover what magnetic hold a pudgy, balding clown had over women who seem to have everything they could ever want. Then again, Layla knows full well that people are rarely quite what they seem—herself included . . .

Libby Klein grew up in Cape May, NJ where she attended high school in the '80s. Her 
classes revolved mostly around the Culinary sciences and Drama, with one brilliant semester in Poly-Sci that may have been an accident. She loves to drink coffee, bake gluten-free goodies, collect fluffy cats, and translate sarcasm for people who are too serious. She writes from her Northern Virginia office where she serves a very naughty black smoke Persian named Sir Figaro Newton. You can keep up with her shenanigans by signing up for her Mischief and Mayhem Newsletter on her website. www.LibbyKleinBooks.com/Newsletter/

Asparagus Soup with Cumin -- a spring #recipe by @LeslieBudewitz

 

LESLIE BUDEWITZ:  This recipe appeared in To Err is Cumin, the 8th Spice Shop mystery, published last August. But since fresh asparagus is a spring vegetable scarce in the height of summer, I decided to hold off sharing it until the precious spears began to poke up in gardens and groceries. 

The area where my parents built the house I grew up in had been a small farm, and our lot was part of the asparagus field. Even after construction and yards, the stuff grew, and my mother corralled a patch of it in the backyard. No surprise that it’s one of my favorite vegetables, which we often called Sparrow Grass. (Mr. Right calls it Sparrow Girls.) 

The soup is creamy and lovely and tastes like spring. I hope you enjoy it as much as we – and Pepper – do. 

To Err is Cumin is out in audio as well as paperback and ebook. Isn't this a fun cover? I am so in love with that little dog! Watch for his next appearance in Lavender Lies Bleeding, out this summer, where Arf's secret history will be revealed! 

PS: I finally figured out how to embed a PDF of the recipe for easy printing. Scroll down to the 💕 for the link. 

Creamy Asparagus Soup with Cumin 

As sure a sign of spring as tulips, asparagus is one of Pepper’s favorite veggies—and a hit at every produce and farm stall in the Market! A few asparagus tips make a terrific garnish. Buy cumin seeds toasted or raw. 

2 pounds green asparagus, rinsed, woody ends snapped off

3 tablespoons butter

1 large white onion, chopped

1-2 gloves garlic, minced

kosher salt

fresh ground black pepper

5 cups chicken broth

1 teaspoon ground cumin, or more to taste

1 teaspoon ground coriander, or more to taste

1/2 cup sour cream, crème fraîche, or heavy cream, plus more for garnish

1/4 teaspoon fresh lemon juice, or to taste

toasted cumin seeds, for garnish

Cut 1-1/2 inch off the tips of 12 asparagus stalks and set aside for garnish. If the stalks are thick, slice them in half. Cut into 1 inch pieces.

Melt the butter in a stock pot over medium low heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until just soft, about 5 minutes. 

Add asparagus pieces and salt and pepper to taste, then cook, stirring, 5 minutes. When the asparagus is tender-crisp and still bright green, add the broth, cumin, and coriander, and simmer, covered, until asparagus is very tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a cup or two of salted water to a boil and blanch the asparagus tips until just tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain and set aside. If your cumin seeds are raw, toast lightly in a saute pan on the stove top, about 3-5 minutes. 

When the asparagus in the soup mixture is tender, taste and adjust spices. Purée with an immersion blender or in batches in a standard blender until smooth. Reheat if necessary. Stir in sour cream, transferring to a bowl (use caution when blending hot liquids), and return to pan. Stir in sour cream, crème fraîche, or heavy cream. Adjust seasonings and add lemon juice. 

Serve, garnished with asparagus tips, additional sour cream, and toasted cumin seeds. 

Serves 4. 

Shown with slices of Rosemary Garlic Focaccia. Click here for the recipe. 

What's your favorite spring vegetable and how do you like to prepare it? 

💕 Click here for a free printable PDF! 

ALL GOD'S SPARROWS AND OTHER STORIES: A STAGECOACH MARY FIELDS COLLECTION, now available in in paperback and ebook 

Take a step back in time with All God's Sparrows and Other Stories: A Stagecoach Mary Fields Collection of historical short mysteries, featuring the Agatha-Award winning "All God's Sparrows" and other stories imagining the life of real-life historical figure Mary Fields, born into slavery in 1832, during the last thirty years of her life, in Montana. Out September 17, 2024 from Beyond the Page Publishing.  

“Finely researched and richly detailed, All God’s Sparrows and Other Stories is a wonderful collection. I loved learning about this fascinating woman . . . and what a character she is! Kudos to Leslie Budewitz for bringing her to life so vividly.” —Kathleen Grissom, New York Times bestselling author of Crow Mary

Available at Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Books-A-Million * Bookshop.org * and your local booksellers!

TO ERR IS CUMIN:A Spice Shop Mystery (Seventh St. Books, out now in paper, ebook, and audio)

From the cover: One person’s treasure is another’s trash. . .

Pepper Reece, owner of the Spice Shop in Seattle’s Pike Place Market, wants nothing more than to live a quiet life for a change, running her shop and working with customers eager to spice up their cooking. But when she finds an envelope stuffed with cash in a ratty old wingback left on the curb, she sets out to track down the owner.

Pepper soon concludes that the chair and its stash may belong to young Talia Cook, new in town and nowhere to be seen. Boz Bosworth, an unemployed chef Pepper’s tangled with in the past, shows up looking for the young woman, but Pepper refuses to help him search. When Boz is found floating in the Ship Canal, only a few blocks from Talia’s apartment, free furniture no longer seems like such a bargain.

On the hunt for Talia, Pepper discovers a web of connections threatening to ensnare her best customer. The more she probes, the harder it gets to tell who’s part of an unsavory scheme of corruption—and who might be the next victim.

Between her quest for an elusive herb, helping her parents remodel their new house, and setting up the Spice Shop’s first cooking class, Pepper’s got a full plate. Dogged by a sense of obligation to find the rightful owner of the hidden treasure, she keeps on showing up and asking questions.

One mistake, and she could find herself cashing out. . .

Available at Amazon  * Barnes & Noble  * Books-A-Million * Bookshop.org * And your local booksellers!

Leslie Budewitz is the author of the Spice Shop Mysteries set in Seattle's Pike Place Market, and the Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries, set in NW Montana. As Alicia Beckman, she writes moody, standalone suspense, most recently Blind Faith. She is the winner of Agatha Awards in three categories: Best Nonfiction (2011), Best First Novel (2013), and Best Short Story (2018). Her latest books are To Err is Cumin, the 8th Spice Shop Mystery and All God's Sparrows and Other Stories: A Stagecoach Mary Fields Collection, in September 2024. Watch for Lavender Lies Bleeding, the 9th Spice Shop Mystery, on July 15, 2025.

A past president of Sisters in Crime and former national board member of Mystery Writers of America, Leslie lives in northwest Montana with her husband, a musician and doctor of natural medicine, and their cat, an avid bird-watcher.

Swing by Leslie's website and join the mailing list for her seasonal newsletter. And join her on Facebook where she shares book news and giveaways from her writer friends, and talks about food, mysteries, and the things that inspire her.

Happy Book Birthday to "Waters of Destruction"! @LeslieKarst

 

Happy book birthday to Leslie Karst—for today her second Orchid Isle Mystery, Waters of Destruction, spouts into the world! Here’s the synopsis:

After a vacation of a lifetime in Hilo, Hawai‘i, retired caterer Valerie Corbin and her wife Kristen have decided to move permanently to the beautiful – if storm-prone – Big Island. The couple are having fun furnishing their new house, exploring their new neighborhood and playing with their new little dog, Pua. But while they’ve made good friends with local restaurant manager Sachiko and her partner Isaac, they can’t help but feel a little lonely.


So when Sachiko begs Val to fill in for a member of her bar team who’s gone AWOL, Val dusts off her cocktail shaker and happily agrees. It’s a great chance to meet more people – and learn the local gossip.


Such as about Hank, the missing bartender, who vanished after a team-building retreat at a local beauty spot a week ago, and hasn’t been seen since. Until, that is, his body turns up at the bottom of the waterfall, and the police seem very interested in where Sachiko was at the time of his death.


Sachiko couldn’t have killed him . . . could she? Val dives into the murky waters of the case, determined to find out.


“Immerse yourself in Hawaiian lore and savor the portrayal of the stunning landscapes while enjoying the entertaining mystery.” Kirkus Reviews


Congrats, Leslie!


Waters of Destruction is available as both a hard copy and ebook. Buy it here.

RELEASE DAY NEWS: Scone Cold Dead by @MaddieDayAuthor #Country StoreMystery

Congratulations to our own... 

MADDIE DAY 

for today's release of 

SCONE COLD DEAD!

The book is #13 in her long-running Country Store Mysteries series. Can you tell a baby is on the way for Robbie Jordan and her husband Abe?

“Fearless and forthright protagonist …crafted to maximize intrigue…hefty serving of heart…Robbie Jordan kicks as much butt as Jack Reacher…with way better food!” – Jay Roberts, reviewer

Release Day: NO ROAST FOR THE WEARY by @CleoCoyle #CoffeehouseMystery

 

Congratulations to our own... 

CLEO COYLE 

On the release of her New  

(21st!) Coffeehouse Mystery 

No Roast for the Weary

☕

"A KNOCKOUT STORY"  

"FUN AND FRESH" 

"A JOY TO READ" 

☕

NO ROAST FOR THE WEARY

When the Village Blend opens a Writer's Block Lounge, a cold case crime turns up the heat on Clare and her crew in this gripping new entry in the beloved Coffeehouse Mystery series from New York Times bestselling author Cleo Coyle.

As much as master roaster Clare Cosi adores coffee, the landmark shop she manages won't survive if she doesn't sell enough of it. So when the Village Blend's customer traffic grinds to a halt, she turns to her staff for creative ideas, and the Writer's Block Lounge is born.

Madame, the eccentric octogenarian owner of the shop, is upset by this news. Years ago, a group of accomplished writers used the shop's second-floor lounge to inspire each other, but the group disbanded when something dark occurred. Though that history is shrouded in mystery, Clare presses forward...

Soon the Village Blend tables are filled with aspiring novelists, playwrights, and poets, all happy to be coaxed, cajoled, and caffeinated by her coffeehouse crew. Clare admires the stamina of these scribes, many of them toiling at night jobs—driving taxis, tending bar, ushering for Broadway—while penning projects during the day.

Then one of their fictions turns fatal when a shocking secret leads to a deadly end. Unless Clare can untangle this mystery, uncover the truth, and stop a desperate killer, she fears more of these weary writers may be marked for eternal rest. ~ Includes a knockout menu of recipes. 

Learn more or buy at: 

Amazon 

Barnes & Noble 

Bookshop.org 

+ More Buy Links 

No Roast for the Weary  
is also a culinary mystery 
with a killer menu of 

delectable recipes... 

👇

Click here or on the image above 

for Cleo Coyle's Free Illustrated 

Guide to the Recipes featured in 

No Roast for the Weary. 

👇

CLICK HERE to sign up for 

Cleo's Free Newsletter! 

Keep in touch with Cleo on 

book news, bonus recipes, 

and fun giveaways!