A Dark and Stormy Knit (Black Sheep Knitting Mystery) (31 page)

Dear Friends and Fellow Knitters,

I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine’s Day, sharing the love with romantic partners, family, and friends. My own knitting group whipped up some sweet little projects that made perfect gifts for V-day, and would suit just about any occasion. From ear warmers to cup cozies and teddy bears, I’ve posted links below to a selection of our favorites. I hope you try a few.

Adorable “You Have My Heart” Knitted Cap:

http://www.allfreeknitting.com/Knit-Hats/i-love-you-hearts-knit-hat

Elegant Heart Pattern Scarf, with scalloped border and heart lace design:

http://www.allfreeknitting.com/Valentines-Day-Knits/hearts-scarf-pattern
.

Mrs. Roosevelt’s Mittens—simple, functional, but made with love (that’s what counts, right?)

http://www.allfreeknitting.com/Mittens-and-Gloves/Mrs-Roosevelt-Mittens/ct/1

Sweetheart Mittens—cozy mittens covered with mini-hearts

http://www.allfreeknitting.com/Mittens-and-Gloves/Sweetheart-Mittens/ct/1

Valentines Mug Cozy—a mug-hugging cozy, covered with a big heart

http://www.allfreeknitting.com/Valentines-Day-Knits/valentine-mug-cozy

Take your pick between these two easy teddy bear patterns:

Bubby the Bear

http://www.allfreeknitting.com/Valentines-Day-Knits/bubby-the-bear/ct/1

One Seam Teddy Bear

http://www.allfreeknitting.com/Valentines-Day-Knits/one-seam-teddy-bear/ct/1

We also made many of these projects as gifts to donate and brought them to a shelter for homeless families, not far from Plum Harbor. It was a day for sharing the love and the knitting. Why wait for a holiday? We can do that every day of the year. Last but not least, thanks for continuing to visit my shop despite the news stories that seemed to link us with the infamous Knit Kats! As you know by now, there wasn’t a whisker to that rumor regarding me or my wonderful assistant, Phoebe.

Funny thing is, I’m suddenly getting many requests for a
class on fiber art and even—heaven help me—knitting graffiti. Just want you all to know that I’m working on it and will announce a session soon.

I can’t promise any late-night, subversive field trips—but we will have lots of fun.

As always, happy knitting!

Maggie

You know I hate posting stuff on this board. It’s so archaic. Why not just paint your message on a cave wall?

But the Valentine’s Day party I gave for my knitting group was such a smash everyone’s been asking me about the decorations and recipes and all that.

Hey, do I look like Martha Stewart to you? I sure hope not!

But, by popular demand, here goes. First, decorate. Loads of red, pink, and some white stuff should do it. Whatever you’ve got—tablecloths, napkins, ribbon, and scarves are nice, too. Especially flowery patterns, just wrap them around things. Be creative. Get the toxins out.

Lights are nice—especially little white ones. No worries if you don’t have any around the house. Find some candles and candle holders, different sizes and shapes gathered together look cool. A scented candle or two is a good thing, too. It’s Valentine’s Day. The world should smell good.

So you gather all the stuff, and spread it around. A vase or two of fresh flowers totally nails it.

To set the mood for a really awesome party, a special cocktail to greet your guests does the trick.

Here’s my original recipe for the Queen of Hearts Cocktail.
And you can make it nonalcoholic by substituting sparkling cider for the prosecco.

I’m also posting the recipe for my special appetizer, Cold Beet Salad with Goat Cheese.

Beets are really awesome. The magenta color always gets me. You can cut the slices into heart shapes, if you’re super crafty (crazy?). Only kidding. :) It tastes good either way.

From my kitchen to yours!

Yeah, I know, that’s a little scary. But I didn’t have any leftovers. Ask my friends if you don’t believe me.

XO Phoebe

One bottle prosecco sparkling wine, dry or extra dry

(Or one bottle of nonalcoholic sparkling cider)

One bottle of cranberry-pomegranate juice, regular or diet

3 large navel or juice oranges

Several fresh strawberries or raspberries

Long toothpicks

Ice

Large pitcher

Long-stemmed glasses (martini or margarita will do nicely)

Granulated sugar

First, prepare the glasses by rinsing with water and chilling in the freezer.

Mix 2 cup of cran-pom juice to 4 cups prosecco (or sparkling cider) in the large pitcher.

Squeeze two of the oranges and add juice, including some of the pulp.

Slice the third orange, and make a slit from the radius to the peel, so the slice will balance on the edge of the glass.

Clean strawberries, pat dry. Slice in half and string
on toothpicks. (Or clean raspberries and pat dry, reserve for bottom of each glass.)

Store pitcher in the fridge or freezer until you’re ready to serve. Don’t prepare the mix too far in advance, or the sparkling wine will go flat.

Just before serving, add several ice cubes to the pitcher and stir vigorously.

Don’t allow ice to melt. Quickly remove cubes with a slotted spoon.

Just before it’s time to serve, sprinkle a few tablespoons of sugar on a dish or in a soup bowl and dip the rims of each glass in the sugar. If the sugar doesn’t stick, lightly wet just the edges of the glass rims and try again.

Pour the sparkling wine mixture into each glass, garnish with an orange slice and a toothpick of strawberries. Or toss a few raspberries into the bottom of each glass.

Cheers!

3–4 raw beets

(Or a package of whole, cooked beets, sold in some supermarkets in the fresh produce section)

6–8 ounces of fresh goat cheese

¹
/
₂
cup slivered, toasted almonds

8–10 ounces of arugula

8–10 ounces of mixed greens

1 fresh lemon

2 tablespoons of white vinegar or sherry vinegar

Olive oil

1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard (optional)

Sea salt

Prep tips: Rinse and chill salad plates in the refrigerator or freezer.

Also, best to cook the beets the day before. Or very early the day of serving so they have to chill out in the fridge. (Unless you’re using pre-cooked beets, of course.)

When handling beets, wear rubber gloves. Especially after they’re cooked.

Enough said.

Wash and trim beets. Cut off green stems and hard tips on bottom and top.

Cover with cold water in a large pot and bring water to a boil. Lower to a simmer and boil with a cover on the pot until the beets are soft enough to push a sharp knife through easily.

Pour off water and run the beets under cold water a few minutes to cool them off.

Drain and place in a metal or glass bowl and cool in the refrigerator.

Rinse arugula and greens, let them drain thoroughly.

Squeeze lemon and grate some of the zest into the juice.

Mix the dressing by combining the olive oil with the Dijon mustard. Add the juice of one lemon to the vinegar. Add a dash of sea salt, if desired.

In a large mixing bowl, mix greens with some of the dressing, until they are lightly covered.

Slice the beets about
¹
/
₂
-inch thick. (At this point, you can decide if you really want to make heart shapes from the beet slices. You can use a cookie cutter, paper template from cardboard or parchment paper. Or just wing it.) Crumble the goat cheese and set it aside in a small bowl. It tastes best at room temperature.

Just before serving, remove salad plates from the fridge.

Arrange a mound of greens on each plate.

Set three or four beet slices overlapping across the greens.

Drizzle a small amount of dressing on top. Sprinkle on 2–3 tablespoons of cheese and 1–2 tablespoons of slivered almonds.

Author photograph by Katherine Vibbert

ANNE CANADEO
is the bestselling author of more than thirty books, including her popular Black Sheep Knitting Mystery series and the Cape Light series, written as Katherine Spencer. She lives in Northport, New York. You can contact her at [email protected] or visit her on
Facebook
.

FOR MORE ON THIS AUTHOR:
authors.simonandschuster.com/Anne-Canadeo

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