Sunday, November 22, 2015

Feisty Foodies: Recipes and Reads from Romance Authors, 4


Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, 
and the sexiest! 
From Crepes to Donuts, is there anything sexier than breakfast in bed?
Join us for a lazy Sunday morning with Feisty Foodies.
Jeffe Kennedy is donating a copy of Ruby in eformat of choice
Ruby
a Facets of Passion novel
by Jeffe Kennedy
an Erotic Romance

Danielle Sosna has no problem denying herself in order to achieve her goals—after all, that attitude landed her a dream job at Vogue Paris. But in New Orleans for one last assignment before heading overseas, she’s faced with the most decadent of temptations. Seductive Cajun chef Bobby Prejean takes Dani’s strength of will as a challenge, and offers her a night of wild indulgence—if she will agree to obey his every command.

Dani can’t resist Prejean’s invitation to join him in a world of carnal desire, complete with fetish costumes and masks. Determined to keep her emotional distance, she gives Prejean everything but her name. A night becomes a week, as she spends Mardi Gras suspended in the delicious space where pleasure meets pain.

Too late, she realizes the cloak of anonymity has not protected her—and that chasing her dream might come at the expense of her heart.


Buy links:







 Foodie Excerpt

After she fixed her hair, setting the curls to dry naturally, and donned her makeup, she looked around for a robe. Finally she settled for wrapping herself in a towel and padded barefoot toward the enticing smells of breakfast.


“There she is.” He smiled and came to take her empty coffee cup, setting it on the counter. He drew her into his arms, kissing her in that leisurely way of his, as if they had all the time in the world. The dreamy arousal he seemed able to call up like a magic spell rolled over her, clouding the brief clarity she’d regained. The towel fell away and her skin hummed under his roving hands. “Mmm,” he murmured against her mouth. “Delicious. Sit here.” He helped her onto a barstool with a scrolled back and arms like in an ice cream parlor. “I need clothes,” she reminded him. “You’ll get them when it’s time.” Picking up a collar from the breakfast counter, he buckled it around her throat and clipped it to a chain attached to a hook. She let him do it in helpless shock, heat pulsing back into her pussy, with ready need. He raised an amused eyebrow at her. “You’re still mine until dawn.” “Can I have the towel back, at least?” He swiped it up from the floor, tossed it over a couch and grinned at her. “No. I like you this way.” So she sat naked, chained to his counter, while he cooked breakfast, sipping on the fresh cup of coffee he gave her. “How do your nipples feel?”


Unaccountably, she blushed, which seemed ridiculous, to feel self-conscious discussing the things she’d readily allowed him to do. “A little sore. They’ll be fine.” He crossed to a pantry and handed her a little glass jar. “Put this on them.” She cracked the lid and sniffed it. Hothouse roses. Prejean stood on the other side of the counter, drinking his own coffee, watching her expectantly. He raised an eyebrow. “Now, chère. Or do I have to tie you up and do it myself?” Huffing out a breath of impatience, she dipped her fingers into the cream and rubbed it into her right nipple, holding his gaze with remote disinterest.


The cool tingle of it zinged through her to her reawakening pussy, but she kept him from seeing it in her face. If he meant to bait her, he’d be disappointed. He watched, with a half smile, always seeming to read her mind. “Lovely.” He turned back to whatever he had cooking on the stove. A black-and-white tuxedo cat wound through his ankles, then sat back on its haunches, eyeing her with suspicion. “I didn’t know you have a cat.” Prejean glanced down and ruffled the cat’s fur with his foot. “This is Gary. He’s not used to company, so he tends to lie low.” She eyed Gary back and he yawned at her, flipped his tail in disdain and left the room. “Do you have any questions?” he asked over his shoulder. “Questions?” He laughed, low and smoky. “No, not you. And if you did, you’d die rather than admit them to me, right?” She shifted a little, not certain why this, too, aroused her. “I thought you’d spank me,” she admitted, trying to sound carefree and confident. “I know. That’s why I did something else.” “To keep me off balance.” “Yes. Besides, a little anticipation never hurts. I like to think of you imagining what it will feel like.” Bringing a plate over, he eased himself into the chair next to her and set it on the counter. She eyed it, her stomach leaping into furious, savage life. An exquisite crepe, perfectly golden, sat before her, drizzled in a chocolatecolored sauce and studded with fresh raspberries. He forked up a bite and held it out, his intent clear. “Now you’re going to feed me?” “Yes,” he returned in all seriousness. “As often as you’ll let me. Open for me.” The way he said it, with that sexy, stern tone of command, went straight through some short-circuit in her brain and she obeyed before she thought of refusing. The crepe dissolved on her tongue like golden cotton-candy, the raspberry perfectly tart and the sauce just slightly bitter enough to round out the flavor with a singing sensation, like the low notes of a wind chime on a hot afternoon. “Oh my God.” He grinned. “You’re welcome.”



Bobby Prejean’s Gingerbread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce



When my editor, the amazing Deb Nemeth, sent me the final version of Ruby, she whined a little bit. With this story taking place in New Orleans, and with the hero being a passionate chef in a five-star French Quarter restaurant, there’s a lot of food. Food as seduction, in particular.
I made her really hungry.
To throw her a bone, I sent her one of my hero’s recipes. She told me I *had* to post this for everyone.
So, download a copy of Ruby here, make a batch of Bobby Prejean’s gingerbread pudding with bourbon sauce, and settle in for some serious indulgence.
Ingredients
2.5 c + 2 t All Purpose Flour
2.5 t ground ginger
1.25 t cinnamon
1 t salt
5 oz crystallized ginger, chopped
1.5 sticks butter
½ c light molasses
2 t baking soda
6 eggs
½ c raisins
1/3 c + 2 T bourbon
1.5 c whole milk
1.25 c sugar
¾ c + 3 T whipping cream
1 t vanilla
Preheat oven to 375. Butter 13X9 pan.
Sift together 2.5 c flour, ground ginger, 1 t cinnamon, salt. In another bowl, mix crystallized ginger with 2 t flour. In another bowl, beat 1 stick of butter till fluffy. Add brown sugar and beat. In another bowl, mix molasses with 1 c of boiling water and baking soda. Stir the molasses mixture into the butter mix. Stir in flour mixture. Add 1 beaten egg and the crystallized ginger mix. Pour into pan. Bake 15 minutes, reduce to 350 and bake ~12 minutes more, until a tester comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack 30 minutes, turn out and cool. Can be made ahead. (As with all bread puddings, it’s better if the bread is slightly stale.)
Combine raisins and 1/3 c bourbon. Soak 30 min and drain.
Preheat oven to 375.
Put gingerbread, in 1” pieces, in bowl. Whisk milk, ¾ c sugar, ¾ c cream, 3 eggs, 2 egg yolks, vanilla and cinnamon. Pour over gingerbread. Add raisins. Transfer to 9X5X3 glass dish. Cover with foil. Bake 40 minutes. Remove foil and bake ~30 minutes, until golden.
Melt ½ stick butter on medium heat. Whisk in ½ c sugar, 3 T whipping cream & 2 T bourbon. Add a pinch of salt. Simmer ~3 min, until thickened.
I’ve made this a few times and it’s delicious! It’s also worth it to double or triple the bourbon sauce, because it’s like gravy – there’s never too much.
Enjoy!


About the Author:


Jeffe Kennedy is an award-winning author whose works include non-fiction, poetry, short fiction, and novels. She has been a Ucross Foundation Fellow, received the Wyoming Arts Council Fellowship for Poetry, and was awarded a Frank Nelson Doubleday Memorial Award. Her essays have appeared in many publications, including Redbook. 


Her most recent works include a number of fiction series: the fantasy romance novels of A Covenant of Thorns; the contemporary BDSM novellas of the Facets of Passion, and an erotic  contemporary serial novel, Master of the Opera. A fourth series, the fantasy trilogy The Twelve Kingdoms, hit the shelves starting in May 2014 and book 1, The Mark of the Tala, received a starred Library Journal review and has been nominated for the RT Book of the Year while the sequel, The Tears of the Rose, has been nominated for best fantasy romance of the year. A fifth series, the highly anticipated erotic romance trilogy, Falling Under, released starting with Going Under, followed by Under His Touch and Under Contract. 


She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, with two Maine coon cats, plentiful free-range lizards and a very handsome Doctor of Oriental Medicine.


Jeffe can be found online at her website: JeffeKennedy.com, every Sunday at the popular Word Whores blog, on Facebook, and pretty much constantly on Twitter @jeffekennedy. She is represented by Connor Goldsmith of Fuse Literary.





Donuts, Diamonds and Assorted Details
 by Skye McNeil

***Blurb***Gwen Smidt dreams of leaving Iowa for sunny Florida.

But her dream is derailed by Devon Smith, a dashing criminal attorney. While investigating the murder of her friend, Gwen discovers the truth about why Devon was transplanted into her life. 


Jeremy Schroeder is a hopeless romantic who never gives up on the possibility of Gwen. He is willing to do anything to convince her they are meant to be.

In a moment of sheer insanity, Gwen and Jeremy find themselves naked between the sheets. Their rendezvous now holds their friendship hostage, and while Jeremy wants more than friendship, Gwen is reluctant to give up on the notion of a perfect man.

Throughout the inevitable longing between Gwen and Jeremy, the reality Gwen believes in is a lie. Now, when reality comes crashing back down, Gwen must choose between choosing a man she loves and the man she wants to love... 
**Content Warning: Contains adult situations. Intended for 18+**
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Foodie Excerpt
Uncorking the bottle of white wine, Gwen set it aside and pulled out four wine glasses. Andi and Luke were joining her and Devon for dinner at her house in less than half an hour. Devon called earlier, letting her know his depositions had run long and he would be late, so Gwen helped herself to the first drink. The scent of freshly baked rolls filled her nose and she was glad it overpowered the cleaning supplies she used to clean the place. After getting home, Gwen instinctively switched to cleaning mode, though if anyone stepped in off the street they would think the house was hardly lived in prior to cleaning.
Truth be told, the majority of Gwen’s time the last few days was spent at Devon’s house in West Des Moines. Since seeing Jeremy on Wednesday, she didn’t want to be anywhere near him. “He deliberately ignored me,” she sputtered, chopping the green pepper on the cutting board. His new hair style threw her off guard at first glance. The last time his hair was that short had been the summer of their freshman year in high school.
Gwen stabbed a red pepper and pushed aside the memory. She didn’t want to think about Jeremy; about his soft caress and easy smile. “And now his damned short hair.” She sliced the pepper quickly and grabbed a cucumber. “I wonder what it feels like,” she pondered then shut that down quickly. “I don’t care.” She knew she did anyways. More than she would ever admit. He was dating the receptionist and apparently Melanie too. “They can each run their slimy hands through his stupid, short hair all they want. See if I care.” Try as she did, that thought made her insanely envious to know some other girl was spending so much time with Jeremy. “Or more than just time.” She grabbed an onion next. “What a player he is,” she muttered.
The more she diced the onion, the more she thought about Jeremy. His behavior during the last week was unheard of for him. During their fights in the past, he would still reach out to her and attempt to talk, but he failed to do a single thing this time around. “Glad to know I’m only good for a lay,” she mumbled and felt a pang of pain shoot through her body. Her endless headache resumed and she swore it had to do with her decision to go with Devon to the concert. Ever since that night, she suffered from a constant, dull, aching headache that no amount of pain meds made disappear. She turned back to the onion. If she knew that having sex was all Jeremy wanted from their friendship, she would have given it to him long ago just to spare herself the agony now. She felt tears well in her eyes and couldn’t decide if it was from the onion or Jeremy.
“Gwen?” Andi’s voice drifted to her, but she ignored it. “Gwen, you’re bleeding!” Andi yelped coming into the kitchen.
Dropping the knife, Gwen lowered her eyes. Sure enough, her finger was oozing blood. “Crap!” She grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her finger. She noticed the pool of blood on the cutting board and the once-white onion was now turning pink.
“What in the world happened?” Andi asked, taking over for Gwen and applying pressure to the wound. “Didn’t you feel that?”
“Apparently not,” she replied, leaning against the counter. She felt dizzy seeing her own blood. “I think I need to sit down.” She fumbled her way to the barstool with Andi’s guidance.
“Are you okay? You look pale.” Luke reported, coming to her aid when she missed the stool. He poured a glass of water and set it in front of her. “Try to not think about it. It only makes it worse.”
Gwen nodded, but didn’t see how she wouldn’t think about her bleeding finger. She was never good with blood. The one time she attempted to donate blood resulted in her fainting. “I’ll be fine.” She pushed Andi’s hand off, ignored the water, and went for her glass of wine.
“I’ll finish dicing the vegetables,” Luke offered and Gwen nodded her thanks.
She felt Andi’s probing eyes on her and when she looked up, she wasn’t disappointed. Luke turned the radio on and began humming away to the country ballad. “Let’s chat before Devon gets here,” Andi suggested, moving them into the living room. Despite the open concept, Luke’s noisy humming coinciding with the radio would drown out their conversation without a problem.
Gwen focused her attention on her still gushing finger. She definitely didn’t want to talk to Andi about Devon or Jeremy, but judging from Andi’s tone, she did. She let out a breath as Andi began.
“So, I saw Jeremy the other night at The Loft. He was with a cute blonde. And his hair is short. Like high school short.” She paused for a response, but Gwen refused to give one. They both knew Gwen preferred his hair shaggy, and Gwen resisted the temptation to make a snide remark. “Come on, Gwen, do something. Blink. Act furious. I don’t care, just react. I know you want to.”
Gwen shrugged. “Nothing to react to. He’s a grown man who makes his own decisions. Obviously he was playing me for years and only wanted one thing from me. Once he got it, he stopped talking to me. Simple as that.”
Andi shook her head. “No, it’s not simple. It’s the absolute opposite of simple. And he definitely didn’t just want to bang you.”
“How do you know that?” Gwen asked angrily. “He chopped his hair, something I always liked about him, ignored me after we did it, and started dating at least two girls at once.” She crossed her legs. “Sounds like one of Jake’s typical ‘Hang, bang, thank you sweet thang’ to me.”
“Actually, three girls,” Andi admitted, lowering her eyes to her hot pink heels.
“Of course it is three. He’s a player. I can’t believe I ever thought differently.” Gwen fumed.
“He is just acting out,” Andi explained. “He’s confused. Hurt, even, that you went out with Devon and that you are clearly doing so well.”
“That’s not my fault,” Gwen snapped. “Sleeping with Jeremy was obviously a mistake. He knows it. I know it. We’re both moving on.”
“He may act like he’s moving on, but he’s not,” Andi advised. “The two of you meant something and now you’re both hurting. It’s sad, really.”
“What are you talking about? You’re the one who set me up with Devon. How are you on team Jeremy now?” Gwen’s finger throbbed.
She felt the room spin when Andi said, “Jeremy and I talked on Sunday, Gwen. He doesn’t want to cut you off, but when he saw you and Devon, I told him to stop trying.” Andi placed a hand on Gwen’s leg, but she shrugged it off. “He needs to get over you. He can’t do that if he’s constantly reminded of you everywhere he goes. He deserves happiness too.”
Maybe it was the concern in Andi’s eyes or the continuous loss of blood that made Gwen finally agree. It was never a secret that Jeremy had a crush on her, but the fact that she liked him for so many years was well hidden. They both needed to forget, but it was so much easier said than done. “I guess you’re right.”
Andi gave her a side hug. “I knew you would come around. Luke wasn’t so sure, but it’s for the best. Now you can focus on Devon.”
A knock on the door beckoned Andi away, leaving Gwen alone. She slouched back in the couch and rolled her neck, trying to alleviate some stress. It wasn’t helping. Was she really ready to pack up shop and ignore all that was between her and Jeremy? She didn’t know, but for her own sake she was going to try.

Cucumber Pasta Salad
Ingredients:

              8 oz. bow tie pasta

 
1 cucumber, thinly sliced
        1 onion, thinly sliced
        1 green pepper, thinly sliced
        1 red pepper, thinly sliced
        1 ½ teaspoons dried dill
       3/4 cup white vinegar
         1 cup white sugar
       1 cup water
       1 tablespoon vegetable oil
        1 tablespoon mustard
        Dash of salt and black pepper

Directions:

        Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook the pasta at a boil, stirring often, until cooked, roughly 12 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water until pasta is cool.
      Gently cook onion and peppers in pan until tender, yet still crunchy. Roughly 2-3 minutes.

        Stir pasta, cucumber, onion, peppers, and dill in a salad bowl. Whisk vinegar, sugar, water, vegetable oil, mustard, salt, and pepper in separate bowl until sugar and salt are dissolved. Pour dressing over the pasta mixture and lightly toss to coat. Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.
Author Bios
McNeil began writing at the age of seventeen, and has been lost in a love affair ever since. With the encouragement and support of her family, Skye continued to write and completed NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) in 2013. In high school, Skye’s poetry was published in Celebrate! Young Poets Speak Out.

Skye enjoys writing romance novels that leave readers wanting more and falling in love over and over again. She writes contemporary and historical novels ranging from sweet and sassy to steamy and sultry.

Skye loves spending time with her family including her pets, two cats and one dog who were adopted from her local animal shelter. When she is not writing, Skye enjoys photography, volleyball, meeting new people, traveling, and curling up with a cup of coffee and reading.
https://instagram.com/mcneilskye/
https://plus.google.com/u/0/115366799249982054399/posts
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14437675.Skye_McNeil
https://twitter.com/Skye_McNeil7
http://www.skyemcneil.com/
https://www.facebook.com/SkyesTheLimitWriting?


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