The Mad Catter
A Whales and Tails Mystery #2
Coming in February 2015
Join Caitlin, Cody, Tara, and Danny as they solve a murder and track down the person who made Maggie sick in the second installment of the Whales and Tails Cozy Mystery Series.
When a beautiful white cat named Alice comes into Cait’s life, she has no idea that the fury feline is about to lead her down a rabbit hole in which nothing is quite what it seems. Not only does Cait find out that a very unlikely person is behind her Aunt Maggie’s illness, but when a body is found in the church, the only real suspect is someone Cait’s heart tells her couldn’t possibly be a killer.
Grimm’s Furry Tail
A Whales and Tails Mystery #3
Coming in March 2015
Cait’s friend Cody buys the old newspaper and discovers a previously unpublished edition that details a murder that occurred decades ago. The fact that the story was written but never published peaks the curiosity of the friends, who decide to delve into a cold case that reaches back fifty years. When the truth is discovered they struggle with the ramifications of what they have uncovered. They know that revealing it will rock the small island community to its core.
Recipes by Kathi
Orange Muffins
Beefiladas
Irish Stew
Brandied Cherry Cheesecake
Contributed by Readers
Cedar Planked Salmon – contributed by Vivian Shane
Cheeseburger Pie – contributed by Connie Correll
Johnny Marzetti Casserole – contributed by Joyce Aiken
Cottage Pudding – contributed by Melissa Nicholson
Feline Recipe
Kitty Pretzel – contributed by Robin Coxon
Orange Muffins
Ingredients:
1½ cups vegetable oil
3 eggs
1¼ cups milk
2¼ cups sugar
¼ cup orange juice
3 tsp. orange extract
3 cups flour
1½ tsp. salt
1½ tsp. baking powder
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, beat oil, eggs, milk, sugar, orange juice, and orange extract until smooth. Add in flour, salt, and baking powder and mix.
Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners (makes 24).
Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
Cream Frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
2½ cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. orange extract
½ cup heavy whipping cream
Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, orange extract, and heavy whipping cream in small bowl. Beat until smooth.
Frost the tops of each cooled muffin.
Beefiladas
Ingredients:
2 lbs. boneless rib roast
Seasoned salt, garlic powder, pepper
40 oz. salsa (approx.) (I use half hot and half mild)
8 oz. diced green chilies
1 cup sour cream
8 flour tortillas
2–3 cups grated cheddar cheese
Trim all fat off boneless rib roast. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Place in slow cooker. Cover meat with store-bought salsa, either hot or mild, depending on preference.
Cook on high until meat begins to pull apart. Continue to shred meat as it cooks. When it’s completely done (cooking time depends on size of meat and heat of slow cooker, but about 8 hours), spoon meat from sauce with slotted spoon. Reserve sauce.
Mix meat in a large bowl with diced green chilies and sour cream.
Place ⅛ of meat mixture in a taco-size flour tortilla. Place in a large greased baking pan (9 x 13).
Cover meat with reserved sauce
or
cover meat with canned enchilada sauce; in my family there’s a division as to which is preferable, so experiment a bit.
Cover with grated cheddar cheese. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes.
Irish Stew
Ingredients:
1 tbs. olive oil
1 lb. beef stew meat
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
4 large carrots, peeled and chopped
¼ tsp. dried thyme
½ tsp. dried parsley
2 cups beef broth
2 tbs. butter, melted
2 tbs. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
Mashed potatoes:
4 baking potatoes, peeled and chopped into large chunks
6 tbs. butter
4 cloves garlic, smashed
3 tbs. milk
Brown the meat in olive oil. Add garlic, onion, carrots, and spices. Cook for 5 minutes before adding beef broth. Cover and simmer over medium-low heat for at least 2 hours.
After about 1½ hours, make mashed potatoes.
Boil potatoes for about 20 minutes or until fork tender. Drain potatoes and mash with the butter, garlic, and milk.
Mix the melted butter and flour together. Add slowly to the stew.
Continue to cook for 10 more minutes.
Serve the stew over the mashed potatoes.
Brandied Cherry Cheesecake
Crust:
1¾ cups graham cracker crumbs
⅓ cup butter or margarine, melted
Filling:
4 packages (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
1½ cups granulated sugar
⅓ cup whipping cream
1 tbs. vanilla
3 eggs
Sauce:
¼ cup butter or margarine
½ cup packed brown sugar
½ cup brandy
1 can cherry pie filling
1 tbs. cornstarch
Heat oven to 350°. In small bowl, mix crust ingredients. Press firmly in bottom of greased 2-qt. baking pan. Bake 10 minutes. Cool completely. Reduce oven temperature to 325°.
While crust is cooling, in large bowl, beat all filling ingredients except eggs with electric mixer on medium speed about 1 minute or until smooth. On low speed, beat in eggs until well blended. Pour over crust; smooth top.
Bake 90 minutes or until set.
Refrigerate until chilled.
In saucepan, melt butter. Mix in brown sugar and brandy. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly. Stir in pie filling and heat to boiling. Add cornstarch. Boil 3 to 4 minutes, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened. Let cool slightly and then pour over cheesecake.
Refrigerate.
Cedar Planked Salmon
Contributed by Vivian Shane
I live in the Pacific Northwest, where salmon is a staple, and I am so fortunate that I have a fisherman neighbor who shares his catch quite frequently. This recipe is my favorite way to prepare it. Just add some fresh corn from the farmers market and a great wine from your favorite vineyard—a perfect summer evening meal! A bonus is that the cedar plank really smells great while the fish is cooking.
Soak a cedar plank in water for 4 hours (my grocery store carries the planks at the meat/fish counter). Season the salmon (see dry rub recipe below) and place, skin-side down, on the soaked plank. Place plank on grill using low/medium heat. Close lid and grill fish for 10–20 minutes or until fish flakes easily; there’s no need to turn the fish. The plank will smoke lightly, creating a cedar aroma. Avoid unnecessarily opening the grill lid to prevent loss of heat and smoke. Use a spray bottle to put out any flare-ups. Allow the plank to cool before discarding.
Dry Rub:
1½ tbs. salt
2 tbs. brown sugar
1 tbs. black pepper
1 tbs. garlic powder
1 tbs. dried basil
1 tbs. paprika
Cheeseburger Pie
Contributed by Connie Correll
My sons always piled into this, so I used 3 pounds of hamburger and doubled the remaining ingredients, using a cake pan to bake it in!
Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
1 cup (or to taste) chopped onion
½ tsp. salt (can omit for certain diets)
1 cup milk
½ cup Bisquick baking mix
2 eggs
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Cook ground beef and onion; drain. Stir in salt. Spread in a 9-inch pie plate. Mix together milk, Bisquick, and eggs until blended. Pour over meat. Bake 15 minutes at 400°, then sprinkle cheese on top and bake an additional 10 minutes.
There could be variations to this by adding taco seasoning to the burger, or even replacing the burger with diced ham and using Swiss cheese for a breakfast idea!
Johnny Marzetti Casserole
Contributed by Joyce Aiken
I tasted this at a church potluck about thirty years ago and really liked it. The woman who brought it was a good cook; she has since passed away. I guess I should have asked her who Johnny Marzetti was and why she named the casserole after him!
2 lbs. ground beef
I onion, chopped
⅔ cup green pepper, chopped
2 cups fresh mushrooms, sliced
½ tsp. pepper
Salt to taste
1 tsp. oregano
2 tbs. Worcestershire sauce
2 cups tomato sauce
8 oz. egg noodles
8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
Brown meat. Add onions, green pepper, mushrooms, and seasonings. Cook until veggies are tender. Add Worcestershire and tomato sauces. Simmer gently while you cook the noodles as per package directions in a separate pot.
Spray a 9 x 13–inch pan with PAM. Spread half of noodles, half of meat mixture, and half of cheese. Repeat layers.
Bake at 375° for 45 minutes.
Cottage Pudding
Contributed by Melissa Nicholson
This was always a favorite dessert in the fall/winter months because it’s served warm. My mom would make the chocolate sauce ahead of time and leave it sitting over the hot water in a double boiler. She would pop the cake into the oven just as we sat down to eat dinner (perfect timing to be slightly cool in time for dessert).
1 cup flour
½ cup sugar
⅛ tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
½ cup milk
1 egg
2 tbs. melted shortening
Sift together flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Add milk, beaten egg, and shortening.
Beat well and bake in greased shallow square pan at 400° for 20 minutes (until lightly browned).
Top with chocolate sauce (recipe below). It’s also good with a lemon curd sauce.
Chocolate sauce:
3 1-oz. squares unsweetened chocolate
1¾ cups milk or cream
1 cup sugar
¼ cup flour
¼ tsp. salt
1 tbs. butter
1 tsp. vanilla
Melt chocolate in milk (or cream) over pan of hot water (double boiler). Cook until smooth, stirring occasionally.
Combine sugar, flour, and salt. Add enough chocolate mixture to the dry mix and stir into a smooth paste. Add back to the remaining chocolate and blend in.
Cook and stir until smooth and slightly thick (about 10 minutes).
Remove from heat and stir in the butter and vanilla.
Can be left sitting over hot water if you’re going to be serving soon. It can also be refrigerated and is delicious on top of ice cream.
Kitty Pretzel
Contributed by Robin Coxon
I think we should have equal time for our feline fur babies. Here's a pretzel just for them.
¾ cup canned tuna fish, drained well
¼ cup warm water
1 tbs. butter, softened
1 cup whole wheat flour
Preheat oven to 300°. In a medium-size bowl, mash canned tuna fish well with a fork. Combine with water and butter. Add flour and mix to form a dough. Divide dough into 24 pieces. Roll each piece into a rope and shape into a pretzel. Place on ungreased baking sheet and bake for 20–25 minutes until lightly browned. Cool 5 minutes, then remove to wire rack until cooled completely. Store in airtight container.
Makes 2 dozen.
Your kitty will say meowvalous.