Saturday Surprise — SNEAK PEEK at COWBOY BITES and a recipe!!

February 20, 2021

Cowboy Bites, the cookbook the marvelous Suzanne Johnson and I collaborated on releases on Tuesday!

This cookbook has 6 “slice of life” stories featuring members of the McKay family and a peek into their lives after their happily-ever-after 💖

First up is a snipped from LONG HARD BOIL, a Colby and Channing short story:

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Colby McKay was pitching hay for the horses when a big Dodge truck barreled up his driveway.

At first, he thought his older brother Cord had come calling, because the man drove like an idiot. He squinted at the driver—while telling himself he did not need glasses—and realized his sister-in-law AJ was behind the wheel of Cord’s truck.

She hopped out. Then his other sisters-in-law, India and Domini, exited the passenger side and the trio started toward him.

Leaning on his pitchfork, he drawled, “Happy as I am to see you all, Channing ain’t here. She took the kids to the dentist in Spearfish.”

“We know,” AJ said. “We wanna talk to you.”

Jesus. He did not like the sound of this. “Okay. What’s goin’ on?”

“Channing hits the big four-oh next week. Are you doin’ anything special for her?” India asked.

Colby pushed his hat back. “I hadn’t really thought about it.”

Sweet, usually shy Domini spoke next. But not to him: to India and AJ. “See? This is why we need to do this.”

Both AJ and India nodded.

“Do what?” Colby asked.

“Throw a surprise fortieth birthday bash for her,” AJ said.

He took a moment to organize a response instead of blurting out that’s a terrible idea. “While it’s really thoughtful of you all to wanna do this for her…surprises ain’t really her thing.” Ah, hell. That was a really frickin’ lame answer.

“And how would you know that? Have you ever thrown her a surprise party?” India demanded. “Have you or your kids ever planned a surprise for her?

You stepped into that one, buddy.

Colby made a show of looking around for someone who wasn’t there. “Where’s my sister? This sounds like one of her schemes.”

“That’s just it, Colby. The responsibility for special occasions in the McKay family shouldn’t always fall on Keely’s shoulders,” Domini said softly.

“So this is basically a courtesy call,” India said. “We are havin’ a big party for Channing next Friday night.”

No sense in arguing then. “You just need me to…what? Get the kids ready, acting as if we’re takin’ her out for supper? Then we’ll meet up with you and everyone else where you’re hosting the party?”

AJ, India and Domini exchanged a look and then laughed. A laugh that sounded slightly evil. “This isn’t a family party. This is just for us girls,” AJ said. “We need you to tell her on the morning of her birthday that you’re gifting her an hour-long massage. We’ll take it from there.”

~~~

Fried Mac & Cheese Bites — Suzanne Johnson

3 cups Bisquick

3 eggs

3 cups panko

Oil for frying

Salt and pepper

Leftover Mac & Cheese (or use Mac & Cheese recipe below)

Heat oil to 350 degrees in a Dutch oven or deep fryer. Remove leftover mac and cheese from the refrigerator and cut into 1-inch cubes. In a large bowl, add the flour. Dredge each cube in the flour and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Freeze for one hour. Remove from freezer and dredge in the blended eggs and then the panko. Fry in the hot oil for 1 minute or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Mac & Cheese

1 box elbow macaroni

5 tablespoons butter, divided

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup milk

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella

1 (8 ounce) block cream cheese

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bring 4 cups of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and continue to boil for 8-10 minutes or until the pasta is cooked through. Drain pasta and set aside. In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt 3 tablespoons butter and gradually whisk in the flour until a roux forms. Add the heavy cream and milk, whisking constantly until thickened. Then, stir in the cheddar cheese, mozzarella, and cream cheese. After you have a smooth cheese sauce, stir in the pasta. Pour pasta into a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes and serve.

LJ note: Okay, these are so freakin’ good I can’t even begin to tell you! This is another Beach Babes recipe I laid claim to as soon as I popped one of these in my mouth.

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This book will be available in ebook format at ALL retailers, in softcover format and in hardcover! Buy links are on the main page of my website.

Can’t wait for you all to get your hands on this gorgeous book!

L~

PS — No audio because…it’s a cookbook.

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