Till Death Do Us Tart (Oxford Tearoom Mysteries ~ Book 4)
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Till Death Do Us Tart
(Oxford Tearoom Mysteries ~ Book 4)
When Oxfordshire tearoom owner, Gemma Rose, enters her little tabby, Muesli, in the cat show at the local village fair, the last thing she expects is to stumble across a murder.
And when her meddling mother and the nosy Old Biddies decide to start their own investigation, Gemma has no choice but to join in the sleuthing. She soon finds there’s something much more sinister sandwiched between the home-made Victoria sponge cakes and luscious jam tarts …
But murder isn’t the only thing on Gemma’s mind: there’s the desperate house-hunting that’s going nowhere, the freaky kitchen explosions at her quaint English tearoom and an offer from her handsome detective boyfriend that she can’t refuse!
With things about to reach boiling point, can Gemma solve the mystery before the killer strikes again?
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OTHER BOOKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR:
See all H.Y. Hanna’s books at:
http://www.hyhanna.com/amazon-authorpage
The TENDER Series:
Classic romantic suspense mystery set in the exotic island of Singapore
– a perfect escapist read filled with intrigue and sizzling tension!
TENDER DECEIT (Book 1)
He was her first love…
Now he could be the man who wants her dead.
When her estranged father is murdered, Leah Fisher is forced to return to her childhood home of Singapore and face up to the past she left behind. She's never forgotten Toran James, the boy who had broken her heart, and now he's back - a handsome, dangerous stranger. She knows he's hiding secrets from her. Can she unravel the mystery surrounding her father's death before it's too late? But someone is out to silence Leah. And that someone might be the man she is rapidly falling in love with...again.
READ MORE:
Amazon | Amazon UK
GLOSSARY OF BRITISH TERMS
(fall into) a shambles – a mess, a chaotic situation
Biscuits – small, hard, baked product, either savoury or sweet (American: cookies. What is called a “biscuit” in the U.S. is more similar to the English scone)
Blast! - an exclamation of annoyance
Blighter - a person who is regarded with contempt, irritation, or pity
Bloke – man (American: guy)
Bloody – very common adjective used as an intensifier for both positive and negative qualities (e.g. “bloody awful” and “bloody wonderful”), often used to express shock or disbelief (“Bloody Hell!”)
Bobby – affectionate slang term for a policeman; derived from the nickname for Sir Robert Peel, the founder of the Metropolitan Police. Often used in the phrase: “village bobby” to refer to the local community police officer who looks after small English villages.
Bog standard – perfectly ordinary, unexceptional
Bugger! – an exclamation of annoyance
Bum – the behind (American: butt)
Cheers – in everyday conversation, a casual way to say “thank you”, also often used in farewell
Chuck – throw
Chuffed – very pleased
Clotted cream - a thick cream made by heating full-cream milk using steam or a water bath and then leaving it in shallow pans to cool slowly. Typically eaten with scones and jam for “afternoon tea”
Coconut Shy - a game at a fair where balls are thrown at coconuts to try and knock them off stands
Codswallop – nonsense (an old-fashioned expression expressing contempt / ridicule)
Cow – a derogatory term for a woman who is unpleasant, stupid or annoying
Cross – angry, annoyed
Cuppa – slang term for “a cup of tea”
Different kettle of fish – a different situation, a different state of affairs
Dogsbody – a junior or unimportant person who does all the running around and menial tasks for others
Fête – a public function, usually held outdoors and in the warmer months of the year, often to raise funds for a charity. It includes entertainment in the form of old-fashioned games and stalls which sell goods and refreshments (American: fair)
Fib – to tell a lie (usually small, white lies), also used as a noun
Git – a despicable person
Gormless – lacking sense, very foolish
Guv’nor – an informal term for one’s boss or someone in a position of authority (particularly used in the police force to refer to a higher ranking officer); occasionally still used as a respectful term of address
Have a nosy around – to snoop around, to be curious and sneak in somewhere or look into something, often without permission
Holiday – an extended period of leisure and recreation, especially one spent away from home or in travelling (American: vacation)
Hoo-ha – a fuss, a disturbance
Hoopla - a game at a fair where you throw rings from behind a line and try to encircle one of several prizes
Locum - a person who stands in temporarily for someone else of the same profession, especially a cleric or doctor.
Loo – toilet
Moggie – a mix-breed cat
Nappies – disposable absorbent material wrapped round a baby's bottom and between its legs to absorb waste. (American: diapers)
(to) Nick - to steal
Off your trolley – crazy, mad (American: off your rocker)
One sandwich short of a picnic – a derogatory term to describe someone who seems simple, stupid or crazy
(to) Pinch - to steal
Plonker – an annoying idiot
Porter – usually a person hired to help carry luggage, however at Oxford, they have a special meaning (see Special terms used in Oxford University below)
Pudding – in the U.K., this refers to both “dessert” in general or a specific type of soft, jelly-like dessert, depending on the context.
Queue – an orderly line of people waiting for something (American: line)
Ring – call (someone on the phone)
Row – an argument
Skip (Bin) – giant metal container for construction waste and other big items of rubbish, often used in building & renovation (American: dumpster)
Snug - a small, comfortable area in a pub or inn
Sod off – “get lost”, go away, stop bothering me; milder version of the phrase using the F-word.
Sort-out – the activity of tidying and organising things, especially sorting them into categories
Sop – something done or given to appease someone who didn’t get what they really wanted
Snog / Snogging – kiss / kissing
Ta – slang for “thank you”, more often used in the north of England
Takeaway – food that’s taken away from the restaurant to be eaten elsewhere (American: takeout)
Union Jack - the national flag of the United Kingdom, formed by combining the red and white crosses of St George, St Andrew, and St Patrick and retaining the blue ground of the flag of St Andrew.
Wee – small, tiny
(to) Wind (someone) up – to annoy someone; can also mean to tease someone, depending on context
***
Special terms used in Oxford University:
College - one of thirty or so institutions that make up the University; all students and academic staff have to be affiliated with a college and most of your life revolves around your own college: studying, dining, socialising. You are, in effect, a member of a College much more than a member of the University. College loyalties can be fierce and there is often friendly rivalry between nearby colleges. The colleges also compete with each other in various University sporting events.
Don / Fellow – a member of the academic staff / governing body of a college (equivalent to “faculty member” in the U.S.) – basically refers to a college’s tutors. “Don” comes from the Latin, dominus—meaning lord, master.
Fresher �
�� a new student who has just started his first term of study; usually referring to First Year undergraduates but can also be used for graduate students.
Porter(s) – a team of college staff who provide a variety of services, including controlling entry to the college, providing security to students and other members of college, sorting mail, and maintenance and repairs to college property.
Porter’s Lodge – a room next to the college gates which holds the porters’ offices and also the “pigeonholes”—cubby holes where the internal University mail is placed and notes for students can be left by their friends.
Quad – short for quadrangle: a square or rectangular courtyard inside a college; walking on the grass is usually not allowed.
Tutor for Admissions – a member of the college faculty who oversees the intake of new undergraduate students each year
VICTORIA SPONGE CAKE RECIPE
* The most important thing to remember about the ingredients is to have the same weight of butter, caster sugar and self-raising flour as the eggs. So it would be best to weigh the eggs first (in their shells) and then to measure out the butter, sugar and flour accordingly. In the recipe below, I have assumed the eggs to be around 50g each but please check your own eggs and adjust accordingly.
The other key is to have all ingredients at room temperature, especially the eggs—this will help to prevent the mixture from splitting / curdling
INGREDIENTS:
(U.S. measurements are in brackets but be aware that results may vary since the recipe will not be as accurate as weighing the ingredients.)
4 eggs of approx. 50g each, at room temperature (in the U.S. use “Large Size Eggs”)
200g unsalted butter, softened at room temperature (plus some extra for greasing the cake tins) - (U.S.: 1 cup)
200g caster sugar (U.S.: 1 cup & 2 tbsp superfine sugar)
200g self-raising flour (U.S.: 1-3/4 cup & 2 tbsp, using the spoon and level method)
1 tsp baking powder
A pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla essence
3 tbsp milk (to loosen batter if necessary)
For the filling:
250ml double cream or whipping cream (U.S.: 1 cup)
1 jar of good quality strawberry jam
To finish:
Fresh strawberries, halved
Icing (powdered) sugar
INSTRUCTIONS:
1) Preheat the oven to 180C / 160 C fan (350F/gas mark 4)
2) Add the butter and caster sugar to a bowl (or mixer) and combine thoroughly, taking your time. Keep mixing until the mixture is smooth and creamy and you cannot feel any of the sugar granules.
Do not rush this step—even if it takes five minutes—as it is the key to making your sponge cake light and fluffy. The longer you can mix the butter and sugar, the better your cake will be.
3) Whisk the eggs in a bowl and then add it to your butter & sugar mixture a little bit at a time, making sure to mix thoroughly after each addition before adding more. Again, take the time to cream the mixture as much as possible—the smoother it is, the better the texture of the cake will be.
4) Finally add in the vanilla extract and mix well.
5) Sieve the flour into the mixture, together with the baking powder and a pinch of salt, then fold very gently to combine, using a figure of 8 motion. This keeps as much air in the mixture as possible (If using a mixer, keep it on the lowest, gentlest setting) You must not overwork the batter otherwise the cake will come out tough and dense.
6) Keep mixing gently until the batter is smooth and passes the “dollop test”, ie. when you lift some of it up with the spatula, it falls easily off in a dollop. If it sticks to the spatula and is too dry, add a bit of milk to loosen it and mix gently again. Be careful not to add too much milk as you don’t want the batter to be runny.
7) Get two 8-inch round cake tins and lightly grease the insides, then lay a circle of greaseproof paper at the bottom.
8) Divide the batter evenly between the two tins, using the spatula to smooth the tops until they are flat. (Don’t worry if they are not perfectly even—they will melt and even out in the oven)
* Tip - Weigh the batter as you divide between the cake tins to have equally even cakes.
9) Place in the middle layer of the oven and bake for 20 – 25mins, until the cakes are golden and have risen nicely. To check that they’re done, slid a sharp knife or skewer into the centre and it should come out clean. The cake will also spring back when gently pressed and the edges should be shrinking slightly away from the sides of the tin.
10) Take them out and allow to cool for 10 mins in the tin, then remove from the tins, peel off the greaseproof paper and cool on a wire rack, flat side down.
* It is important to allow the cakes to cool completely otherwise it will cause the cream in the filling to melt and will ruin the cake.
11) While the cakes are cooling, prepare the filling by whipping the double cream until it forms soft peaks.
12) Take the “uglier” cake and use that as your base. Spread the top with a generous portion of strawberry jam, being careful not to go too near the edge. Follow with a layer of fresh whipped cream, using a spatula to carefully spread it over the jam. Finally, place the second cake gently on top to form the “sandwich”
* Variation: some people may also like to include fresh sliced strawberries in the filling, between the jam and the cream.
13) Decorate the top of the cake with the strawberry halves and then dust everything with icing sugar.
Enjoy!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
H.Y. Hanna is an award-winning mystery and suspense writer and the author of the bestselling Oxford Tearoom Mysteries. She has also written romantic suspense and sweet romance, as well as a children's middle-grade mystery series. After graduating from Oxford University with a BA in Biological Sciences and a MSt in Social Anthropology, Hsin-Yi tried her hand at a variety of jobs, before returning to her first love: writing.
She worked as a freelance journalist for several years, with articles and short stories published in the UK, Australia and NZ, and has won awards for her novels, poetry, short stories and journalism.
A globe-trotter all her life, Hsin-Yi has lived in a variety of cultures, from Dubai to Auckland, London to New Jersey, but is now happily settled in Perth, Western Australia, with her husband and a rescue kitty named Muesli. You can learn more about her (and the real-life Muesli who inspired the cat character in the story) and her other books at: www.hyhanna.com.
Sign up to her mailing list to be notified about new releases, exclusive giveaways, early reader discounts and other book news: http://www.hyhanna.com/newsletter
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Thank you once again to my lovely beta readers: Basma Alwesh, Rebecca Wilkinson, and Melanie G. Howe for their tireless enthusiasm and for always finding time to squeeze me into their busy lives. Special thanks also to my proofreaders, Connie Leap and Jenn Roseton, for their eagle eyes in checking the manuscript and helpful suggestions.
I am very grateful to the talented Kim McMahan Davis of Cinnamon and Sugar… and a Little Bit of Murder blog, for acting as my “baking consulant” and helping me test the Victoria sponge cake recipe, and providing the U.S. measurement equivalents. Thank you also to retired West Yorkshire Police Inspector, Kevin Robinson, for helping me check the police procedural details in the story and responding to my endless questions with so much patience.
And as always, to my wonderful husband for his patient encouragement, tireless support, and for always believing in me—even when I am full of self-doubt. I couldn’t do it without him.
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Copyright © 2016 by H.Y. Hanna
All rights reserved.
ISBN-13: 978-0-9945272-2-6
www.hyhanna.com
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, business establishments, pe
rsons or animals, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or otherwise, without written permission from the author. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author