It's
Cozy Food Friday!
and
Giveaway!
That means it's time to share a recipe from
another great cozy mystery!
Today I'm featuring a recipe from the cozy mystery
PLAYED BY THE BOOK
Book 4 in the Novel Idea Mystery series
by
Lucy Arlington
The
New York Times bestselling Novel Idea Mysteries make their return with Lila
Wilkins, literary agent and “murder magnet” planning a book signing garden
party. But things aren’t coming up roses when she ends up trying to weed out a
dangerous killer…
The owner of A Novel Idea Literary Agency is
thrilled when former local boy and popular television show host Damian York
returns to Inspiration Valley, North Carolina, to launch his new gardening
book. But Lila is less than excited about the hubbub when she sees the mounting
to-do list on her desk. Between planning York’s gala and sprucing up her yard
for another event, she’s spread too thin—especially after she finds a skull
buried in her flowerbeds.
As Lila’s macabre discovery leads to other secrets
hidden in Inspiration Valley’s past, a member of the local garden club is found
slumped over her prize roses—murdered with a garden spade. Now it’s up to Lila
to dig through old mysteries and new clues to unearth a murderer before someone
else is found pushing up daisies…
Along with today's recipe,
author Lucy Arlington/Susan Furlong
is giving away this amazing prize package!
Book Tote
Apron with Lucy Arlington Mysteries logo
Tea Towel
Oven Mitts
Baking Utensils
2 Recipe cards
and
1 signed copy of
PLAYED BY THE BOOK!
I'm jealous I don't get to enter this one myself!
Use the Rafflecopter form
at the end of this page to enter
This give away is open to
US and Canada only
On to the yummy recipe!
In Played by the Book, Lila, who
is busy planning a book launch gala for one of her authors, feels overwhelmed
by her to-do list. (As well as her latest sleuthing adventure.) Her son, Trey,
takes to the kitchen to whip up a little comfort food. Here’s what he makes:
Trey’s Mac-n-Cheese
with Bacon and Tomatoes
Ingredients:
1 (8-ounce) package of penne pasta (elbow pasta or other like shapes are fine)
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
½ cup half-and-half
1 ½ cups milk
1 cup shredded sharp white cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded Gruyere or Swiss cheese
½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
5 slices of bacon, cooked
1 tomato, sliced thinly
¼ teaspoon of ground nutmeg (optional)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Prepare pasta according to
package instructions. (Best if cooked al dente.)
Cook bacon until slightly
crisp, and cut into pieces.
Melt butter in a large pot, whisk in flour and cook
the mixture while constantly whisking.
Whisk in half-and-half and milk.
Continue to whisk until the mixture thickens.
Slowly stir in all cheeses and
mix until smooth.
Remove the mixture from the heat and add salt, pepper, and
nutmeg if desired.
Fold in pasta until all the noodles are completely covered.
Stir in bacon pieces.
Pour the mixture into an 11x13 baking dish.
Top with
tomato slices and additional Parmesan cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly
and golden brown.
Yields: 7-9 servings
NOTE: All photos, with the exception of the first, are from Google images.
Your finished dish may look different from those shown here.
Your finished dish may look different from those shown here.
Is anyone else really hungry right now?
Before moving on to the Rafflecopter entry, Please, keep reading and check out my installments of
Book Beginnings on Fridays
and
The Friday 56
Book Beginnings on Fridays is a meme hosted by Rose City Reader
Share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading
Keeping my Cozy Food Friday theme going with
PLAYED BY THE BOOK by Lucy Arlington
Book 4 in the Novel Idea Mystery series
My Book Beginnings for this week..
I was completely engrossed in reading my latest proposal, a cozy mystery set in a charming English hamlet, when a couple of specks of dirt fell across my paper. I looked up just in time to see a blue ceramic pot coming down fast.
The Friday 56 is a meme hosted by Freda's Voice
Rules: *Grab a book, any book. *Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader (If you have to improvise, that's okay.) *Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it) that grab you. *Post it.
Continuing with PLAYED BY THE BOOK
My Friday 56...
"You mean you're not going to make it?" The question came out louder than I intended. I drew curious stares from every direction.
"I'm afraid not. I'm sorry. We've made a major breakthrough..."
I blocked out his words, shutting my eyes and attempting to stay calm.
PLAYED BY THE BOOK
by Lucy Arlington
My Review
There are books that I love from the very first page. PLAYED BY
THE BOOK is one of those books. I was drawn in to the story immediately and
savored turning every page. Well, not the last page because that meant this
wonderful read was over. Only a few pages in I laughed out loud when during a
conversation, Lila's boos said, "You scratch their backs and they'll
scratch yours." and Lila, whose point of view the story is from, thinks to
herself, "Oh yeah, well, my back isn't itchy." LOL Loved it!
The main character in the Novel Idea series is Lila. I
really enjoyed her character and look forward to spending time with her again,
as well as her family and friends when the next installment is released. (Do we
really have to wait a year?)
From the finding of the skull in Lila's flower bed, the murder of
a garden club member, to the exciting conclusion, (Quoting Ms. Arlington's
own words from a scene from this book), PLAYED BY THE BOOK had
"twists and turns so unexpected that they kept me spellbound until the last
page." I couldn't have said it better myself.
Readers may or may not know that the first three books in this
series were written under the pen name, Lucy Arlington, by authors Ellery Adams
and Sylvia May, both of whom created the series. They have turned the writing
duties over to the wonderful author, Susan Furlong. I mention this to
assure fans of this series not to worry. Ms. Furlong has flawlessly
transitioned into the role of Lucy Arlington and PLAYED BY THE BOOK is every
bit as awesome as the first books in the series. I'll go so far as to say, she
her voice has improved upon an already outstanding series.
And make sure to check out the preview of PEACHES AND SCREAM by
Susan Furlong which can be found at the end of the book. PEACHES AND SCREAM is
book 1 in the new Georgia Peach Mystery series, due out July 2015!
PLAYED BY THE BOOK
Pre-order now for February 3 release
Author Lucy Arlington/Susan Furlong
MEET
THE AUTHOR:
The
Novel Idea Mysteries is a New York Times bestselling series of cozy
mysteries, including Buried in a Book, Every Trick in the
Book, and Books, Cooks, and Crooks and, now, Played by the Book all written under the
pseudonym of Lucy Arlington. The writing team of Ellery Adams and Sylvia May,
two friends who collaborated on the series, first conceived of Lucy Arlington
and her literary agent sleuth. Together, the duo penned the first three books
in the series. As time passed and their personal writing workload grew, the two
passed the series to another author: Susan Furlong. In addition to now writing
as Lucy Arlington, Susan Furlong is the author of another upcoming
cozy mystery series for Berkley Prime Crime, The Georgia Peach Mysteries. To learn more about Susan, visit her
website at www.susanfurlong.com
As always, please leave a comment and
let me know what you think!
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On to the giveaway
GOOD LUCK!
NOTE: If you use both the "Follow on Twitter" and "Not on Twitter" entries, your "Not on Twitter" entry will be removed and in future giveaways readers will be disqualified.
"Not on Twitter" is only for readers who do not have Twitter accounts.
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Solutions!
From yesterday's blog
1. Nothing to Fear but Ferrets
2. Bite the Biscuit
3. Beaglemania
4. Never Say Sty
5. Chihuahua Chaos
