Soup is good food, and it’s especially satisfying when eaten with friends and family. Slow Cooker Ham and Potato Soup is a wonderful way to use up leftover holiday ham without putting too much pressure on the kitchen staff (usually just me). I’ve served this recipe to my book club gathered around a bonfire, to my family and friends after a day of holiday card games and snowball fights, and even split it with my family and our neighbors at the end of a busy workday. Paired with a loaf of crusty bread and sliced apples, it satisfies even the hungriest dinner guest.
The residents at The Abbey: Senior Living in my Nun the Wiser Mysteries always enjoy a communal meal together in the old sanctuary now appropriated as a dining room. As Bernie and her neighbors head to their tables each evening, they inhale the aromas of whatever the cooks have prepared for them. This soup, chock-full of savory goodness, is a fan favorite because it doesn’t include celery (an ingredient Bernie and I believe to be overrated).
Except for the potatoes, the soup’s ingredients can be prepped the night before, and it doesn’t take more than twenty minutes to produce this hearty main course. I love the options for cooking time, too. Best of all, nearly every ingredient in this recipe has a long shelf life, making the cook’s life even easier!
Slow Cooker Ham and Potato Soup
Inspired by a crowd favorite at The Abbey: Senior Living featured in Melissa Westemeier’s Nun the Wiser Mysteries.
INGREDIENTS
9-10 russet potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 large yellow onion, peeled and diced
2 large carrots, peeled and sliced
4 cups ham, cubed 1 teaspoon ground pepper
4 cups (or 32 oz) chicken broth
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup sour cream
DIRECTIONS
Combine potatoes, onion, carrots, ham, pepper, and broth in the crockpot and cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or HIGH for 4-5 hours.
A half hour before serving, mash the contents of the crockpot with a potato masher. Add the remaining ingredients and stir well. Cook on HIGH 15 more minutes.
Serve with crusty bread.
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One year, when I had an abundance—I’m talking bushels and bushels—of apples, and was searching for new ideas to use them, I discovered that besides apple pie or apple crisp—which are both delicious—apples are a tasty addition to many savory recipes. Maybe it’s a New England thing, but cheddar cheese is often served with apple slices, so I asked myself, why not mix diced apples with tuna fish when making a tuna melt? Since I was in the middle of writing my Little Dog Diner series, the Little Dog Diner Tuna Melt Surprise was born!
Mixing diced apples with the tuna fish added a surprising burst of crisp, tart flavor that paired perfectly with melted cheddar cheese. There’s something comforting about a tuna/apple mixture stuffed between two slices of thick bread, toasted to a crispy perfection, with cheddar cheese
oozing out with every bite.
Now, if I’m short on time around the holidays, unexpected guests show up, or I’m just in the mood for something that’s quick, easy, and delicious, the Little Dog Diner Tuna Melt Surprise is always on the menu.
Little Dog Diner Tuna Melt Surprise
Inspired by the Little Dog Diner series set in Maine.
INGREDIENTS
5-oz. can solid white tuna fish, drained
1 tbsp. mayonnaise plus extra for coating one side of each piece of bread
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
Cheddar cheese slices enough to cover one piece of bread
1 small apple, diced into small pieces
1 tbsp. minced parsley
2 thick slices of bread for one sandwich
Salt and pepper to taste
Splash of lemon juice
SERVING SIZE: 1 large sandwich | TIME: 15 minutes
DIRECTIONS
Mix drained tuna, mayo, diced apple, mustard, parsley, salt and pepper. Add the splash of lemon juice and mix again.
Spread mayo on one side of each slice of bread (this is the outside of the sandwich)
Layer cheese and tuna mixture on bread, cover with another slice of bread – mayonnaise to the outside. (If the tuna mix doesn’t all fit, just enjoy it while your sandwich is cooking.)
Heat pan with a drizzle of olive oil, then turn to medium. Cast iron works great!
Carefully place each sandwich on preheated pan. Adjust heat as needed so bread doesn’t burn. When one side is crisp, flip and cook the other side until the cheese is melted and the bread is golden brown. If you have a sandwich press, use it after you flip the sandwich.
Serve with sweet potato fries, potato chips, pickle, or tomatoes and enjoy!
Note: If you don’t like tuna fish, cheddar cheese plus apple slices is also delicious!
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French toast is always a favorite in my house. It’s usually something I reserve for weekends or a holiday, so when I was mulling over dishes that could be an extra-special breakfast specialty at Malone’s Diner in Paws, Claws, and Curses, the first book in my Purr-fect Relic Cozy Mystery series, it was the natural choice.
What usually sets my French toast apart from others is a trick I learned from a chef at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel years ago, and that’s to replace the traditional custard mixture with melted French vanilla ice cream. Sometimes I also add a touch of orange zest.
To put a sweet holiday spin on this recipe, I’ve replaced the melted ice cream with another special occasion favorite in my house: eggnog. I’d like to think the Citrus Grove locals who hang out at Malone’s Diner would appreciate it as much as my family does.
Eggnog French Toast
Inspired by the Custard French Toast served at Malone’s Diner in Paws, Claws, and Curses by DeAnna Drake
INGREDIENTS
For the French Toast:
2 cups eggnog
3 large eggs
1/2 tbsp. cinnamon
Butter or non-stick cooking spray
12 slices of bread, thick-cut
Optional Toppings:
Butter
Powdered sugar
Maple syrup
Berries
Whipped cream
DIRECTIONS
Preheat griddle or large frying pan. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggnog, eggs, and cinnamon until well blended. Pour the egg mixture into a shallow baking dish or pie plate. Dip both sides of a slice of bread into the egg mixture.
Prepare the griddle or pan with butter or cooking spray. Cook the bread in batches until golden, a few minutes each side. Keep warm in the oven until ready to eat.
Serve with your favorite toppings.
For Custard French Toast: Replace the eggnog with 2 cups melted French vanilla ice cream.
For Orange Cream French Toast: Follow the directions for Custard French Toast, omit the cinnamon and replace with a teaspoon of orange zest and a teaspoon of orange extract.
DEANNA DRAKE is the editor of RECIPES TO DIE FOR: Holiday 2024 Edition and the author of Paws, Claws, and Curses and the rest of the Purr-fect Relic Cozy Mystery series. DeAnnaDrake.com
The holiday season is upon us, and what better way to kick off the heartwarming, joy-filled season than to immerse yourself in Tule’s best Christmas cozies—filled to the brim with snowy settings, festive treats, and a grisly murder or two…
Mix some mystery in your spiced eggnog this holiday season with these seven Tule Christmas mysteries—perfect for warming your hearts and kick starting all your merry endeavors this winter!
It’s one thing to write a mystery, but when your daughter is the suspect — you solve it.
Wedding planner Jenna Bell doesn’t panic when the groom is a no-show to the ceremony – even though he is her former high school sweetheart and this wedding is the small town’s event of the year. However, when he turns up dead and she is falsely accused… well, yeah, now it’s the time to panic.
Jenna’s mother, Maddie, puts her cozy mystery writing skills to use to try to clear her daughter’s name, stepping on by-the-book Chief of Police Jackson Bradley’s toes in the process. No matter how enticing he finds her, he doesn’t want this writer-turned-amateur-sleuth interfering with his murder investigation.
With nearly all of Hemlock, North Carolina, picking sides and the town’s own Gossip Brigade churning out the rumors, Maddie discovers the mystery isn’t very cozy when it hits this close to home.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year…to solve a murder?
Ho. Ho. No…
It’s Christmas in Sweet River, Texas, and the whole town is feeling festive apart from Ainsley McGregor. Ainsley has never enjoyed the holidays and would rather ignore them, but with her shop Bless Your Art busier than ever and filled with happy shoppers, even she’s feeling some Christmas spirit. That is, until her Great Dane, George Clooney, sniffs out a dead body in the Santa House at the Christmas Festival.
When one of her favorite crafters becomes the prime suspect, Ainsley is determined to prove his innocence. The case is full of so many twists and turns that even Ainsley begins to fear the truth. Is she protecting a killer?
With help from her friends and some extremely nosey townsfolk, Ainsley and her dog hurry to find the truth—as long as they can outwit and outrun the killer first. Otherwise, this Christmas might just be her last.
An isolated, snowy setting, an elaborate holiday wedding, and a dead Santa Clause…what more could go wrong?
It was going to be a Christmas wedding to die for…
What could go wrong when baker Rosie Hart heads to a snowy Colorado mountain lodge for a week of elaborate pre-wedding festivities at her friend’s wedding? The better question would be: what could go right?
Rosie’s fears for the nervous bride are confirmed when one of the wedding guests turns up dead. All evidence points to the groom being the intended victim, but with the guests dressed in Christmas-themed attire, and a dead Santa on their hands, Rosie’s not so sure. What if the killer did hit the right target all along?
Stuck in a blizzard with the wedding party being picked off one by one, Rosie’s investigative instincts kick in—only this time she’s acting without the support of her friends back in Airlie Falls. Until her four irrepressible card-shark mentors from Riverbend Retirement Village unexpectedly turn up to rescue her.
A delightful, heartwarming story, filled with Christmas spirit.
Don’t get married on Christmas Eve, they said.
The holiday will overshadow your special day, they insisted.
Little did they know that a shockingly festive murder would put everything else on hold.
When all signs point to my sometimes friend, sometimes rival, Detective Crenshaw, I’ll need to work fast so that he’s not forced to spend his holiday in the slammer. But in throwing myself feet first into the real crook’s crummy conspiracy, I could be risking so much more than a spoiled day… The future of my forthcoming marriage could very well be on the line too.
Oh, boy… Can Pip and I solve this one in record time so that my fiancé’s and my perfect day can go off without another major hitch?
Have yourself a merry little Christmas with Crumbling Up Crooks this holiday season! Your copy awaits…
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…in jail?
She didn’t realize she’d traded “Naval Aviator” for “amateur sleuth”…
Retired Navy pilot Angel Warren’s new life awaits in Stonebridge, Pennsylvania, where she’s opening Shop ‘Round the World, her travel-inspired gift and novelty shop. A newly empty nester and longtime widow, she’s looking forward to leaving her flying career and its many life-or-death decisions behind and reconnecting with family and friends. Right now, Angel’s biggest challenge is getting the shop ready for its grand opening just weeks before Christmas.
Until she finds a dead body in the shop murdered with one of her specialty Santa figurines. Even worse, Angel’s fingerprints are on the “weapon” and she’s a prime suspect. It doesn’t help that the deceased is an old friend who’s collected a long list of enemies as a cut-throat real estate agent. And then there’s the Stonebridge Chief of Police—and Angel’s high school BFF—who brings her in for questioning.
If Angel wants to clear her name before the Christmas rush, she’s going to need to do some sleuthing on her own—and with the help of her stressed out parrot, Ralph.
Perfect for fans of ghostly shenanigans, sassy sidekicks, and a warm, holiday setting.
The launching of a new bakery and fundraiser in town should be cause for celebration, not a murder investigation.
Just when Nikki Knight thinks things might be getting back to normal in Frog Hollow, her friend Carla’s business manager is found dead at the scene of her new, year-round Christmas bakery.
When Dale, the gourmet grocer next door, suggests that the cookie fundraiser be held at his place, Nikki and the Accidental Ghost Detective team suspect foul play.
But all signs are pointing to Carla and some strange magical happenings. Can Dash and Nikki sniff out this case before the cookie crumbles?
Santa Clause is coming to town…to commit a murder?
How many Santas does it take to commit a murder?
Daisy Montgomery remains stuck somewhere between life and death, leaving her spirit roaming Dandelion Ponds. But when Mrs. Baker, Daisy’s neighbor and faux grandmother, turns up in the morgue screaming she was murdered by Santa, Daisy is determined to find the killer.
Convincing super-sexy Charlie O’Sullivan to help her find out whodunit isn’t difficult. But finding the murderer amongst the town’s several resident Saint Nicks is!
With the annual Santa contest about to bring even more wannabe Kris Kringles into Dandelion Ponds, time is running out to find the killer. And when the murderer catches onto the investigation, it’s Charlie’s life on the line. If they can’t catch this bad Santa in time, then Charlie could be the next victim of ho-ho-homicide.
Get in the hollyday spirit with this paranormal cozy by Beth Prentice! Claim your copy here!
The holiday season is here, and what better way to celebrate than with a collection of delicious, heartwarming recipes from eight of Tule Publishing’s most beloved cozy mystery authors? We’ve created Recipes to Die For: Holiday 2024 Edition,” where the spirit of the season meets the irresistible charm of cozy mysteries, and your favorite authors share not just stories, but some incredible holiday dishes!
Imagine your kitchen filled with the delightful scents of spiced cookies, simmering soups, and other home-cooked comfort foods—just like the cozy kitchens you have read about in your beloved mysteries. This cookbook is more than just a collection of recipes. It’s a festive collaboration between authors whose stories and characters have charmed readers time and again. Each recipe comes with a personal touch—a treasured family dish, a treat inspired by the pages of the author’s novels, or a holiday memory that shaped their love for cooking.
Whether you’re a seasoned cook or a beginner in the kitchen, there’s something here for everyone. From a mouthwatering breakfast and savory dinners to decadent desserts, these recipes are designed to bring a little extra magic to your festivities.
But the fun doesn’t stop there. As you cook your way through the book, you’ll get to know the talented women behind some of your favorite cozy reads—and perhaps discover a few new mysteries to add to your TBR pile!
So, grab your apron, clear out the kitchen, and get ready to whip up some culinary magic with recipes that are as comforting as a cozy mystery on a snowy day. Recipes to Die For is here to help make your holiday season a little tastier, and a lot more fun!
UP NEXT:
For the next 8 days, you’ll be treated to a special look inside the cookbook. You can also pick up your own free copy of Recipes to Die For today!
DEANNA DRAKE is the editor of RECIPES TO DIE FOR: Holiday 2024 Edition and the author of Paws, Claws, and Curses and the rest of the Purr-fect Relic Cozy Mystery series. DeAnnaDrake.com
