Recipe from Burned (a Beauty of the Dark novel, book two) | | Zucchini Bread

I decided I wanted to share recipes more often on my blog. My mom and I were making Zucchini Bread the other day and I said, "Oh, Aunt Abby made Zucchini Bread!" (Aunt Abby is Kiara's aunt from my Beauty of the Dark trilogy.) Kiara walks into the kitchen to find Aunt Abby making batter for Zucchini Bread. I thought it'd be fun to share a couple of recipes here. :) Recipes are an amalgamation and combination of other recipes my mom and I have used.

Basic:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 1/4 cups white sugar
2 cups grated zucchini 

1. Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). 
2. Sift together flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a bowl. 
3. Beat eggs, oil, and sugar in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans. 
4. Bake 40-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan  for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and let cool completely before serving.   

With Greek Yogurt:

1 cup Canola or Vegetable Oil
6 oz. Greek Yogurt (plain or vanilla)
3 eggs
2 cups sugar
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 cups grated Zucchini

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat two 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" bread pans with baking spray.
2. Cream oil, Greek Yogurt, and sugar in a large bowl. When combined, add in the eggs one at a time, beating well each time.
3. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir well.
4. Add dry ingredients into wet (in batches seems to work best) and mix until combined. Add in zucchini and stir well but gently. Divide the mixed batter between the two bread pans. 
5. Bake for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. 
6. Cool for about 10-20 minutes before removing from the pan. Then place on a rack to let cool before serving.

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Recipes from Scarred (a Beauty of the Dark novel, book one)!!

Happy March!! I asked the members of my Facebook Group (Amanda Leigh’s Lounge) what they’d like to see on the blog this month and the winner was a recipe from one of my books!! I was super happy because I LOVE to cook, which I’m sure is no secret by now. I’ve noticed that descriptions of meals come up fairly regularly in my books. These two that I’ll be sharing are from Scarred (a Beauty of the Dark novel, book one). Today on the blog, I’ll be sharing the recipe my mom and I have used for pot roast for years. It’s super simple and super delicious!! As well as a recipe for Beignets. Because this series takes place in New Orleans, they’re mentioned in Scarred and they are also delicious!!

Pot Roast Recipe:

(Trent is upstairs in Kiara’s room when he smells the scent of a pot roast dinner wafting up from the kitchen.)

 

1 3-4 pound pot roast 4 medium potatoes 4 large carrots 1 large onion 4 stalks celery 2 cloves garlic, chopped salt and pepper to taste 1 Tablespoon Rosemary 3 Tablespoons olive oil

Roughly chop the potatoes, carrots, onion and celery into large pieces. Place in a large bowl. In a separate bowl mix the olive oil, salt and pepper, and rosemary. Rub pot roast with some of the olive oil mixture. Place pot roast in a large roasting pan. Pour the rest of the olive oil mixture in the bowl with the vegetables. Mix until coated. Put the vegetables in the roasting pan around the pot roast. Cover top of pot roast with chopped garlic. Place top on pan and roast at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for two hours.

New Orleans Beignets

(This recipe is from the site My Recipes. Direct Link.) (Aunt Abby makes these in the book.)

 

1 (1/4-oz.) envelope active dry yeast 1 1/2 cups warm water (105° to 115°), divided 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1 cup evaporated milk 2 large eggs, lightly beaten 1 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup shortening 6 1/2 to 7 cups bread flour Vegetable oil Sifted powdered sugar

Step 1 Make the yeast mixture: Combine yeast, 1/2 cup warm water, and 1 tsp. granulated sugar in bowl of a heavy-duty stand mixer; let stand 5 minutes. Add milk, eggs, salt, and remaining granulated sugar.

Step 2 Form a dough: Microwave remaining 1 cup water until hot (about 115°); stir in shortening until melted. Add to yeast mixture. Beat at low speed, gradually adding 4 cups flour, until smooth. Gradually add remaining 2 1/2 to 3 cups flour, beating until a sticky dough forms. Transfer to a lightly greased bowl; turn to grease top. Cover and chill 4 to 24 hours.

Step 3 Roll and cut: Turn dough out onto a floured surface; roll to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut into 2 1/2-inch squares.

Step 4 Fry until golden: Pour oil to depth of 2 to 3 inches into a Dutch oven; heat to 360°. Fry dough, in batches, 2 to 3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Drain on a wire rack. Dust immediately with powdered sugar.

I hope you enjoy these recipes!! If you make them maybe tag me on Facebook or Instagram. And if you want to check out Scarred (the book these foods appear in) just click on the image below. Happy Belated St. Patrick’s Day!!

Release Day ~ Taste the Heat by Rachel Harris ~ Recipe I'd Love to Make with My Sweetheart!!

Taste the Heat by Rachel Harris released today! In honor of this release Rachel Harris had the brilliant idea to post recipes! I believe the options were: a recipe you like to make or a recipe you would love to make with your sweetheart. (There may have been more options. I can't quite remember.) Anyway, the one I chose was a recipe I would love to make with my sweetheart. Actually, I have done just that. :) My sweetheart's name is Matt by the way. He has Nephropathic Cystinosis as well. We met in an online support group for adults with Cystinosis. (If you would like to hear more about that "story" let me know. I may post something here in that case.)

Before we get into the recipe let's see some more about this book. :) 

 

GoodReads Blurb:

One sexy fire captain. One Cajun chef, One combustible kitchen…

When chef Colby Robicheaux returned home to New Orleans to save her family restaurant, the last person she expected to reconnect with was her brother’s best friend and her childhood crush. As tempting as a sugar-coated beignet, Jason is one dish she doesn’t want to taste. Colby is counting down the days till she can leave the place where her distrust of love and commitment originated and go back to Vegas.

Fire captain Jason Landry isn’t looking for love, either. He knows he should focus on finding the perfect mother for his daughter, but when he first sees Colby, all grown up and gorgeous, he can’t help but be drawn to her. And when she suggests a no-strings-attached fling, Jason doesn’t want to say no.

As their relationship grows more intense, Colby finds that Jason isn’t as easy to leave behind as she thought. Could turning up the heat on something real be worth the possibility of getting burned?

Recipe:

This recipe is one of my absolute favorites. It's a well known Italian dish. It's become known as my signature dish. I love to cook. (Also, I'm Italian. And I was also raised quite Italian). Without further adieu, the recipe is:

Chicken Marsala:

Ingredients:

1 lb thin sliced chicken cutlet

1/2 cup flour - add salt & pepper to taste

10oz package of baby bella mushrooms, thinly sliced

2 + 2 tablespoons butter (see instructions)

2/3 cup Holland House Marsala Cooking Wine

1/3 cup water

1/3 cup heavy cream (can substitute half & half or whole milk)

1 tablespoon parsley

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

Instructions

Dredge chicken lightly in flour mixture; set aside.

Brown mushrooms in 2 tablespoons butter. Remove from pan.

Add 2 tablespoons butter to pan, add chicken, brown lightly on each side.

Remove chicken from pan.

Put mushrooms back in pan.

Add the Marsala wine and the water.

Add parsley and garlic salt.

Simmer 1-2 minutes.

Add heavy cream.

Simmer 1-2 minutes.

Put chicken in pan with sauce.

Simmer 4-5 minutes.

Serve over whole grain penne pasta.

I hope if you decide to make this recipe that you enjoy it! :)

About the Author:

 

Rachel Harris grew up in New Orleans, where she watched soap operas with her grandmother and stayed up late sneak reading her mama’s favorite romance novels. Now a Cajun cowgirl living in Houston, she still stays up way too late reading her favorite romances, only now, she can do so openly. She firmly believes life’s problems can be solved with a hot, powdered-sugar-coated beignet or a thick slice of king cake, and that screaming at strangers for cheap, plastic beads is acceptable behavior in certain situations.

When not typing furiously or flipping pages in an enthralling romance, she homeschools her two beautiful girls and watches reality television with her amazing husband. Taste The Heat is her adult romance debut. She’s the author of MY SUPER SWEET SIXTEENTH CENTURY and A TALE OF TWO CENTURIES. She loves hearing from readers! Find her at www.RachelHarrisWrites.com.

I hope you enjoyed this blog post! If you enjoy romance I think you should check out Taste the Heat. I'm currently reading it and enjoying it. Also, there is a giveaway below!

This Release Day was organized by:

**GIVEAWAY**

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