Reprint Cluster
I mentioned a while back that I have made an effort to send out more reprints. That’s pretty evident this week, as two of my older stories find new life just days apart!
For Want of a Horse features my story “Red Dust and Dancing Horses.” You can grab it in ebook at Amazon and in print at Lethe Press, though Amazon should have it in print soon, too.
Meanwhile, Fantastic Stories of the Imagination has reprinted “Cartographer’s Ink.” This was one of my first pro-paying story sales in 2012, and features an elderly cartographer and magical maps that overflow onto living topography.
Read MoreBready or Not: Honey Roasted Chicken and Carrots
When bone-in chicken breasts go on sale, I’m really happy for the chance to make this family favorite: Honey Roasted Chicken with Carrots.
This is a fairly healthy recipe. It relies on the chicken skin and a touch of olive oil to keep the chicken tender and moist, with a little more butter added at the end. You can use however many baby carrots you want, though you might not be able to squeeze more than 12 ounces worth into a dish. The carrots end up tender and the slightest bit sweet and caramelized.
I have fresh oregano and rosemary handy, so I like to use one or both of those in this, but you can season this however you want. Dry herbs will rehydrate nicely.
One of the things I love most about this is that the breast pieces are meaty and we’re bound to have leftovers the next day. This tender chicken is delicious in salads, wraps, or sandwiches!
Modified from a recipe published in the Arizona Republic, October 4th 2007.
Bready or Not: Honey Roasted Chicken and Carrots
Ingredients
- 2 - 3 chicken breast halves with bone and skin
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 8 - 12 ounces baby carrots
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 1 Tablespoon honey
- 2 - 3 Tablespoons fresh oregano or rosemary, or a few teaspoons dry herbs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425-degrees. Set out a large casserole dish. Rub the chicken with enough oil to coat it on both sides, then season with salt and pepper. Place the breasts skin side down in the dish.
- Bake for 25 minutes. Turn the chicken over--watch out, it will sizzle and pop! Add as many carrots as desired to the pan.
- Bake for another 25 minutes. As the chicken bakes, in a bowl combine the butter, honey, and herbs.
- Turn the chicken over to be skin-side up again. Spoon the butter-honey mix over the chicken and carrots. Roll the carrots around in it for good measure. Roast for an additional 5 minutes.
- OM NOM NOM!
Links to Start September
First of all, two reminders: I’m doing a booksigning at the Phoenix Metro Center Barnes & Noble on Saturday September 12th from 1-3pm. I’m also traveling to Houston on September 26th to team up with Chuck Wendig and Richard Kadrey for a signing! This is at Murder by the Book at 4:30pm. I bet there will be shenanigans.
When you were a kid, did you ever have issues with the floor turning to lava when the vacuum was turned on? I have a poem at Zetetic about this common childhood plight: “The Reason I Limp.”
Rhonda Parrish interviewed me about my story in B is for Broken.
Over at A Dribble of Ink, I’m listed in great company as A Foodie Fantasy Author.
I’m also listed as a Not-So-Invisible Ninja at Charles Stross’s Antipope site–because some daft guys still insist that there are no women writers in science fiction and fantasy. I don’t know how to explain their blindness, either. But then, I’m also mystified by people who can stay awake during baseball games.
My story from last year, “The Cartography of Shattered Trees,” is still getting attention along with other stories in the FAE anthology. Jorie Loves a Story has incredibly kind things to say.
Read MoreSunday Quote pets the bunnies
Read More“Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.” ~John Steinbeck
Bready or Not: Cookies and Cream Chocolate Pie
Here’s a no-bake, super-easy pudding pie that perfect for summer.
You can go hardcore with this and make your Oreo crust from scratch. Me? I’ve done that before, but honestly, I prefer the store version for both taste and ease of use.
The chocolate flavor here is great because it’s neither weak nor strong. If you want to amp it up, heck, that’s easy to do with more chocolate topping. When I made this for my folks, my brother thought it was even better with dulce de leche added to individual slices. It made it taste kinda like a Twix with that caramel-chocolate thing going.
I used mini Oreos for everything in this recipe. They chop up easily to throw in and I can often get them on sale for about a buck. Plus, my son loves eating the leftovers!
This is the perfect pie for a potluck or to stash in the fridge to slice up and cool off on a hot summer day.
Modified from Inside Bru Crew Life.
Bready or Not: Cookies and Cream Chocolate Pie
Ingredients
- 1 Oreo pie shell store bought or homemade
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened; half a box
- 1/3 cup confectioners' sugar
- 3 cups Cool Whip divided
- 2/3 cup Oreo cookie chunks
- 3.9 ounce instant chocolate fudge pudding mix
- 1 cup chocolate milk
- 10 - 15 mini Oreo cookies
- hot fudge squirt bottle or dulce de leche topping, optional
Instructions
- Set out the Oreo crumb pie shell so it is ready to be filled.
- Beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar together and fold in about 1/2 cup of Cool Whip. Stir in the Oreo chunks. Spread everything in the bottom of the crust.
- Using the same bowl or a new one, whisk together the pudding mix and chocolate milk. Fold in 1 cup of Cool Whip. Spread this as your second layer.
- Top off the pie with the remaining Cool Whip. Add mini Oreos around the edge or even crumble some for the top, if you wish. If you have squirt bottles of chocolate or dulce de leche, add some swirls or cross-hatching to the top.
- Chill pie at least two hours before serving. Keep refrigerated thereafter.
- OM NOM NOM!
