Wedding Cake Murder (16 page)

Blend the ingredients in the saucepan together off the heat.

Turn the burner on MEDIUM HIGH heat and cook the contents of the saucepan, stirring constantly until thickened.
(This takes about 10 minutes on my stovetop.)

Remove the saucepan from the heat, but LEAVE THE BURNER ON.

Break the eggs into a small bowl and quickly beat them with a whisk until they’re well mixed.

Stir several Tablespoons of the hot mixture into the bowl with the eggs. Whisk until it’s incorporated.

SLOWLY pour the eggs into the saucepan with the hot mixture, whisking it all the while.

Return the saucepan to the heat and stir for 2 to 3 minutes until the mixture is very thick.

Remove the saucepan from the heat
(you can turn off the burner this time)
. Add the vanilla, stirring it in quickly.

Add the ounce of butter and stir it in until it’s melted.

Let the mixture cool until it is slightly warmer than lukewarm. Then stir in the third cup of heavy cream. Pour the sauce into a pitcher so that you can serve it with your soufflé.

Yield: enough Vanilla Nutmeg Sauce to serve over 6 individual soufflés.

MILK CHOCOLATE SAUCE

1 cup whole milk

1 cup heavy cream

additional cup of heavy cream at room temperature

½ cup white
(granulated)
sugar

6 ounces
(by weight, not volume)
milk chocolate chips
(I used a 6-ounce package
of
Nestle Milk Chocolate Chips)

2 large eggs, beaten

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 ounce
(
stick)
salted butter

Combine the milk, ONE CUP ONLY of heavy cream, and sugar in a heavy saucepan off the heat. Let the additional third cup of heavy cream sit on the counter to warm to room temperature.

Heat the mixture over MEDIUM HIGH heat on the stove, stirring constantly until little whiffs of steam start to escape and you think it’s about to boil.

Pull the saucepan from the heat, but don’t turn off the burner. This next step will take only a moment or two.

Add the milk chocolate chips to the sweet milk and cream mixture, stirring them in until they’re melted.

Give the beaten eggs a final stir and add approximately 2 Tablespoons of the chocolate mixture to the eggs, stirring it in quickly.
(This is called tempering and it’s important—without it you could have scrambled eggs.)

Off the heat, SLOWLY pour the egg mixture into the chocolate mixture in the saucepan, stirring all the while. When everything is incorporated, put the saucepan back on the heat.

Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a full boil.
(This took about 3 minutes for me on my stove.)
Pull the saucepan off the heat and this time you can turn off the burner.

Quickly stir in the vanilla. Then stir in the butter and continue to stir until the butter is melted.

Let the mixture cool on the counter for five minutes and then stir in the third cup of heavy cream.

Pour the Milk Chocolate Sauce into a pitcher and serve it with your White Chocolate Soufflés.

Yield: Enough Milk Chocolate Sauce for 6 individual soufflés or one large soufflé.

Chapter Twelve

H
annah was so tired when she got off the plane, she could barely keep her eyes open. They’d stayed up late celebrating on their heated patio, and the stress of the first night’s competition, coupled with the relief and euphoria she’d felt when Team Swensen had been declared the winner, had led to a night filled with both joyful and stressful dreams.

Now it was time to get off the plane, and Hannah stepped out into the aisle so that Ross could open the overhead bin and take out their carry-on luggage.

“Thank you for flying with us, Miss Swensen,” the stewardess said when she beckoned Hannah toward the door. “Congratulations. I watched the competition and my husband and I were hoping you’d win.”

For a moment Hannah was speechless. She hadn’t realized that the stewardess had watched the
Dessert Chef Competition
.

“Thank you!” she said quickly to cover her surprise. “I’m really thrilled that the competition is coming to my hometown.”

The stewardess leaned closer and lowered her voice so that it couldn’t be overheard by the others standing in line behind Hannah. “My friend at the desk says there’s a whole contingent of people from Lake Eden waiting for you at baggage claim with signs, and balloons, and bouquets of flowers. She said the baggage guy said there’s even a squad of cheerleaders there from Jordan High in Lake Eden.”

Hannah knew she must have looked shocked, because the stewardess laughed. “Don’t worry. I told her to snag you when you and your party come down the Jetway. She’ll show you another way out and someone will collect your baggage for you.”

“That’s . . . very thoughtful,” Hannah said, wondering if they did this sort of thing often.

“No problem. We do it all the time with celebrities. Sometimes they want to avoid the fans and just get in their limo and go home.”

“But I’m not a celebrity!”

“You are to them. And you were on national television. And you’ll have even more fans if you win the entire competition. You might even get your own baking show and then you’ll be a celebrity dessert chef.”

“Oh my! I didn’t even think of that!” Hannah drew a deep breath and let it out again. “Thank you for being so thoughtful about the other way out and everything, but the people that are waiting for me are probably family and friends. They’re going to be really disappointed if I don’t show up at the baggage claim carousel.”

“You really
are
nice,” the stewardess said, motioning Hannah toward the door of the plane. “Most celebrities don’t want to be bothered.”

“I heard that,” Ross said, grinning as he handed her the smallest carry-on. “Eat it up, Hannah. You and Michelle deserve the acclaim. We’ll be ready to shoot some really good footage.”

As Hannah walked up the Jetway, she knew she was wearing a puzzled expression. She wasn’t a celebrity . . . was she? She’d have to ask Ross later, when they were alone. He’d know, one way or the other. She really wasn’t sure if she wanted to be a celebrity. She was perfectly happy being Michelle and Andrea’s sister, Ross’s bride-to-be, Moishe’s human mommy, Delores Swensen’s daughter, and owner of The Cookie Jar with her partner, Lisa. Anything other than that was an unknown position that she wasn’t sure she wanted to explore.

“Welcome home, Hannah!” Mayor Bascomb was the first to greet her when they arrived at the baggage carousel.

Hannah put on her best smile, just as Ross had told her to do. “Thank you, Mayor Bascomb,” she said in a clear voice. “I’ll be so very glad to be back at home in Lake Eden again, and I know that Michelle feels the same way.”

“I do! We’re so excited about bringing the Food Channel
Dessert Chef Competition
home with us, Mayor Bascomb.”

It was Hannah’s turn to speak and she picked up right on cue. They’d rehearsed it while they were waiting for the cart to drive them down to baggage claim.

“I just know that everyone involved in the competition will love Lake Eden,” Hannah said, hoping that she sounded sincere. She’d overheard Chef Duquesne refer to Lake Eden as a one-horse town that didn’t even have a decent restaurant, and Gloria Berkeley had referred to Hannah’s hometown as
Hayseed Central
, but she certainly didn’t want to think of that now.

“Almost everyone in town will be coming to the competition,” Mayor Bascomb said, turning toward the camera that was trained on him. “Chef Sally Laughlin put the tickets up for sale right after KCOW-TV aired their coverage and she told me that they were sold out within 10 minutes!” He turned to Hannah. “Everyone in town wants to see you win, Hannah. Can you give us a clue about what you’ll be baking for your first entry?”

Ross and Michelle had prepared her for this question, and Hannah fielded it just the way they wanted her to. “It’s a surprise, Mayor Bascomb, but I can tell you this . . .” Hannah paused for the required silent count of three, and then she continued. “It’s something that Ross and I will be serving at our wedding reception.”

“But that could be anything, Hannah.”

Hannah gave the slightly impish smile that she’d practiced in front of the mirror in the ladies’ room closest to the gate. “
I
know. And you’ll know too . . . along with everyone else at the competition.”

The Jordan High band was there and they played something that Hannah didn’t recognize. Later, after they were in the limo on the way back to her condo, she’d ask Michelle if she knew what song it was. Then Mayor Bascomb gave a short speech which, in Hannah’s opinion, could have been even shorter, to welcome them home.

All four of them, Hannah, Ross, Michelle, and P.K., gave collective sighs of relief as they climbed into the limo and the driver pulled away from the airport. That was when a most unwelcome thought occurred to Hannah and she turned to Ross with a question.

“You don’t think there’ll be another welcoming committee waiting for us at my condo . . . do you?”

Ross shook his head. “No one except Norman, Cuddles, Moishe, Mike, and Lonnie.”

“I knew Norman would be there with Moishe and Cuddles. But why will Mike and Lonnie be there?”

“Because I called and asked them to keep out anyone who doesn’t live in your complex. I didn’t think you’d want to deal with another official welcoming committee.” Ross paused and frowned slightly. “Was I wrong, Hannah?”

“Oh, no! You were absolutely right!” Hannah gave a big sigh of relief. It was wonderful to have the man she loved looking out for her. “Thank you, Ross,” she added quickly. “That was very thoughtful of you.”