Coconut Layer Cake Murder

by Joanne Fluke

  When 2 hours have passed, preheat your oven to 350°F., rack in the middle position.

  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or spray it with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray.

  If your cookie log has flattened in the refrigerator, leave it in the wax paper and simply roll it around a bit on the counter to round it out.

  Using a sharp knife, cut ¼-inch slices from the cookie dough log. Cut only as many cookies as you can bake at one time.

  Place the Strawberry and Vanilla Pinwheel Cookies on the prepared cookie sheet, 12 to a standard-size sheet.

  Once you’ve filled your cookie sheet, return the cookie dough log to the refrigerator.

  Bake the cookies at 350°F. for 8 to 10 minutes or until the vanilla part of the cookie turns slightly golden.

  Remove the cookies from the oven and cool them on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then remove them to a wire rack to cool completely.

  Yield: 4 to 6 dozen pretty and tasty cookies that everyone will love.

  Hannah’s 6th Note: These are more work than most cookies, but they’re well worth the effort. When you bring out a platter filled with Strawberry and Vanilla Pinwheel Cookies, your guests will love the way they look and taste.

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Hannah had just finished filling the bakers rack when Lisa came into the kitchen. “It smells good in here,” she observed. “What did you bake?”

  “Chocolate Cashew Marshmallow Bar Cookies.”

  “Great combination!” Lisa exclaimed, heading to the rack for a closer look. “They’re just what we need, Hannah. We’ve been really busy today and these take less work than regular cookies . . . don’t they?”

  “Yes, and that’s why I made them. Would you like a taste?”

  “Yes! You get the bar cookies, I’ll get the coffee,” Lisa responded, heading for the kitchen coffeepot to pour them both a cup. “I think cashews are my favorite salted nut.”

  “Mine too . . . unless you count macadamia nuts.”

  “But those are so expensive.”

  “Yes, they are, unless you have a macadamia nut tree in your front yard.”

  “Macadamia nut trees don’t grow here, do they?”

  “Unfortunately not, but Lynne told me that a friend of hers in San Diego had one in her front yard.”

  “Really! What do they look like?”

  “They’re green pods about the size of a golf ball. You have to cut or break them open to get the nut out. And then you have to roast the nuts in the oven with oil and salt.”

  “That sounds like a lot of work.”

  “Lynne said it is, but if they grow in your front yard, they’re free. And you can give a half-pound or even a whole pound of them for a gift and everyone thinks you’re giving them something really expensive.”

  “Is that what Lynne’s friend did?”

  “Yes, and it backfired.”

  Lisa was clearly puzzled. “How? Almost everyone loves macadamia nuts, don’t they?”

  “I think so, but everyone knows how expensive they are. Lynne’s friend gave a pound of salted, roasted nuts to her son to give to his algebra teacher for Christmas. And his teacher thought he was getting bribed for a higher grade.”

  Lisa laughed. “Oh, my goodness! What happened?”

  “The friend’s son brought the teacher home and showed him the tree, and then showed the teacher how to salt and roast them.”

  “Did the son get a good grade in algebra?”

  “Yes, an A. But the teacher said the son deserved it with or without the macadamia nuts.”

  Lisa took a sip of her coffee and reached for a bar cookie. She took one bite, looked heavenward, and sighed. “Wonderful!” she declared. “I think we should bake these for Valentine’s Day and pack them in pink satin, heart-shaped boxes. That would be bound to make anyone fall in love.”

  “You’re probably right,” Hannah told her, taking a bar cookie for herself. Even though this was the first time she’d made them and the recipe was a variation on a tried-and-true older recipe, Hannah totally agreed with Lisa’s assessment. “These are dangerous,” she said.

  “Dangerous? But why?”

  “Dangerous for anyone on a diet. I think they’re addictive.”

  “You’re probably right. The combination of chocolate and cashews is great. And the marshmallows enhance it perfectly.”

  There was a knock on the back door and Hannah began to smile. It was Norman.

  “Norman?” Lisa asked.

  “Yes. You’re recognizing his knock now, too?”

  “Yes, it’s manly, but it’s also polite. It’s a great knock, Hannah.”

  Hannah was surprised by Lisa’s insight. “You’re right, Lisa. Manly, but polite. That describes Norman to a tee.”

  “Just sit here, Hannah. I’ll go and let him in. Then I’ll get coffee for him. Andrea should be back here soon. She just ran over to the real-estate office to make a couple of calls.”

  “Hi, Norman,” Hannah greeted him as he walked toward the work station. “What have you been up to?”

  “Not much.” Norman sat down and thanked Lisa for the coffee she’d brought to him. “I’m surprised that Mike isn’t here.”

  “Because I have some new bar cookies on a plate?”

  “Have you ever noticed how Mike always seems to arrive every time you bake something new?”

  “Yes,” Hannah admitted with a laugh. “If I ate as much as Mike does, I’d weigh three hundred pounds.”

  “You and me both.”

  “Have a bar cookie, Norman,” Hannah invited. “I want to know what you think of them.”

  Norman took a piece of Hannah’s new creation and took a bite. He made a muffled sound of satisfaction and waited until he’d swallowed. “They’re really good, Hannah . . . almost like a candy bar.”

  Before Hannah could thank him, there was an authoritative knock on the back kitchen door.

  “There’s Mike,” Norman said. “We talked about his uncanny knack for arriving when you’re serving something and here he is. Did you ever wonder if saying his name was a little like conjuring up the devil?”

  Hannah was clearly shocked. “Don’t say that, Norman!”

  “I know. I was only joking, but it was pretty inappropriate. My apologies for even thinking that. I’ll go let him in!”

  “Apologies accepted, but you do have a point,” Hannah admitted, getting up to fetch hot coffee for Mike and delivering it just as they returned and Mike was sitting down at the work station.

  “Oh, boy!” Mike said, zeroing in on the plate of bar cookies. “Those look good!”

  “They are,” Norman told him.

  “Have one.” Hannah moved the plate closer to Mike. “Or two. Or maybe three.”

  “Don’t mind if I do.” Mike reached out to take two bar cookies. He took a bite of one and placed the second piece on the napkin Hannah had brought with his coffee. “Mmmmm!”

  “Good, huh?” Norman asked him.

  “Mmmmm!” Mike answered, finishing the first piece in one bite. He chewed, swallowed, and then asked, “What did you find out from Danielle?”

  For a moment, Hannah wondered if Mike was a mind reader, but then she remembered that she’d told him her plan for the afternoon. “Benton has an alibi,” she said.

  “That’s what I figured, but it never hurts to ask. Will she testify to that, if there’s a court case?”

  “Yes, but she’d rather not.”

  Mike picked up the second bar cookie, took a huge bite, chewed, swallowed, and nodded, all within the space of two or three seconds. “Then it’s up to you to make sure she doesn’t have to give a formal statement.”

  Hannah sighed. “I know. Andrea pointed that out.”

  “So what else did you uncover today?” Mike busied himself finishing the second bar cookie while Hannah gave an account of her afternoon. When she got to the part about meeting with Kay Hollenkamp and Joe and the strangely-colored car Joe had seen at Darcy’s house,
Mike actually stopped chewing for a moment.

  “Interesting. I haven’t seen a car that color around here.” He turned to Norman. “Have you?”

  “No, sounds to me like a custom paint job.”

  Mike turned back to Hannah. “Call Cyril and find out if he knows anyone with that color paint job.”

  “Andrea’s doing that right now. She should be back here soon.”

  “Well, let me know,” Mike said, rising to his feet. “Sorry I have to eat and run, but I’ve got some things I have to do before I get home. I’ve got to get cleaned up. I’m meeting a friend for dinner tonight.”

  “It doesn’t have anything to do with the investigation, does it?” Hannah asked him.

  “Nope, purely social.” Mike walked over to get his parka. “See you guys later.”

  Once the door had closed behind Mike, Norman turned to Hannah. “I wonder what that was about.”

  “So do I, but he’ll tell us eventually. And I don’t think he’s lying when he said it was purely social.”

  “I don’t, either,” Norman agreed. “Would you like to go out to dinner, Hannah?”

  “Yes, thanks,” Hannah answered immediately.

  “How about Lynne?”

  “I don’t know. I would call to ask her, but she might still be at tea with Mother and Stephanie Bascomb.”

  “Then I’ll text her. That won’t disturb her. I just thought I’d take you ladies out for dinner before we went back to . . .” Norman stopped and began to frown.

  “What is it?” Hannah asked.

  “Something just occurred to me. You said the car that Joe Hollenkamp saw was parked in front of Darcy’s garage?” He waited until Hannah nodded, and then he continued. “I wonder if she had an arc light outside the garage.”

  Hannah could feel her mouth drop open in surprise and she closed it quickly. “I never thought of that! Arc lights do have an orange glow.”

  “Yes, and if the car was painted a light tan, it would end up looking pinkish-orange if it was parked directly under the arc light.”

  Norman pulled out his phone, sent a quick text, and laid his phone down on the work station. “We can drive past Darcy’s place on our way back from dinner tonight. Most people have lights like that on a timer, and Darcy’s father might have done that. If it’s on when we go past, we’ll see what color it is.”

  There was another knock at the back kitchen door, another knock that Hannah recognized. “It’s Andrea,” she said, getting up to let her sister in. “We can ask her if she knows about Darcy’s light.”

  “And I can ask her to join us for dinner, if you don’t mind,” Norman suggested.

  “Good idea!” Hannah said with a smile, walking quickly to the door. She was already planning to ask Andrea to bring the keys to Darcy’s house, just in case the switch was inside and they had to turn on the arc light manually.

  “Hi, Norman,” Andrea greeted him as she sat down at the work station. “Oooooh! What are those?” She pointed to the plate.

  “Chocolate Cashew Marshmallow Bar Cookies,” Norman told her.

  “Try one,” Hannah said, delivering a cup of hot coffee for her sister and gesturing toward the plate of bar cookies.

  “They smell great!” Andrea said, inhaling the scent that filled the kitchen.

  “And they are great,” Norman told her. “Go ahead, Andrea. Take a bite.”

  “Do I want to ask how many calories these are?” Andrea asked them.

  “I wouldn’t,” Norman told her.

  “I have no idea,” Hannah added. “Besides . . . remember what Great-Grandma Elsa told us about cookies, pies, and cakes?”

  Andrea looked at her blankly. “No, maybe I was too little to remember what she said.”

  Hannah smiled. “I guess you were, but I’ll tell you. Great-Grandma Elsa said that all the calories baked off in the oven.”

  “I’m going to remember that,” Andrea promised. “And I’m going to believe her. After all, would a great-grandmother lie to you?”

  Hannah and Norman watched as Andrea took a large bite. A blissful smile spread over her face as she chewed and swallowed. “Perfect!” she declared. “And it’s so good to know that they don’t have any calories.” Andrea took another bite, and then she addressed Hannah. “Where’s your murder book, Hannah?”

  “Right here.” Hannah retrieved the stenographer’s notepad that rested on the vacant stool next to her. “I was just about to go over my suspect list.”

  “Well . . . you can knock off another two suspects,” Andrea told her.

  “Two suspects?” Hannah asked.

  “Yes, Bill cleared Denny Jamison.”

  “Darcy’s fiancé?” Norman asked her.

  “Yes, when Denny left the Double Eagle that night, he went into a ditch several miles away. It was too far to walk back to the bar, so he called his sister to come and get him, and he spent the night at her house.”

  “So he couldn’t have gone to Darcy’s house with no transportation?” Norman surmised.

  “That’s right. And his sister wouldn’t let him borrow her car because he’d had too much to drink. She didn’t let him leave until he sobered up in the morning, and then she drove him back to his apartment.”

  “Good for her!” Hannah said. “She did him a big favor in more ways than one.”

  “And you’re minus a suspect,” Norman pointed out.

  “I know.” Hannah turned back to Andrea. “You said you cleared two suspects?”

  “That’s right. My client, the one who wanted to buy Darcy’s house, was in North Carolina that night for his niece’s wedding. He flew out at eight that morning and didn’t get back until the following afternoon. And . . . in case you’re wondering. . . he came back to Lake Eden today and bought Darcy’s house from her brother.”

  “How many suspects do you have left?” Norman asked Hannah.

  “Just three, counting Lonnie. And they’re all long shots. This case is turning out to be the toughest I’ve ever worked on.”

  “You’ll solve it,” Andrea said, and Hannah noticed that she sounded very confident. “It’s like Danielle said this morning. You always do.”

  CHOCOLATE CASHEW MARSHMALLOW BAR COOKIES

  Preheat oven to 350°F., rack in the middle position.

  2 one-ounce squares unsweetened chocolate (I used Baker’s)

  ¾ cup all-purpose flour (pack it down in the cup when you measure it)

  ¾ cup white (granulated) sugar

  ½ teaspoon salt

  ½ cup (1 stick, ¼ pound) salted butter, softened to room temperature

  2 large eggs

  1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  ½ cup chopped salted cashews (I used Planters— measure AFTER chopping)

  10.5-ounce package miniature marshmallows (you’ll use ¾ of a package—I used Kraft Jet Puffed)

  2 cups chocolate chips (I used Nestlé)

  Hannah’s 1st Note: This is a lot easier with an electric mixer, but you can also make these bar cookies by hand.

  Before you start, prepare a 9-inch by 13-inch cake pan by spraying the inside with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray. Alternatively, you can line the pan with aluminum foil and spray that.

  Hannah’s 2nd Note: If you decide to line your cake pan with foil, use the heavy-duty foil. Then, once your bar cookies are cool, you’ll be able to lift the contents right out of the cake pan and your pan will still be clean.

  Melt your chocolate first so that it has time to cool. Unwrap the 2 squares of unsweetened chocolate and place them in a microwave-safe bowl.

  Heat the chocolate squares for one minute on HIGH. Then let them sit in the microwave for another minute.

  Take the chocolate out of the microwave and try to stir it smooth with a heat-resistant spatula. If the chocolate has melted, you’re through with this step.

  If you can’t stir the chocolate smooth, put it back in the microwave and heat on HIGH in 20-second increments with 20-second standing time until you can stir
it smooth.

  Set the bowl with the melted chocolate on the counter to cool while you mix up the rest of the recipe.

  Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat them together on SLOW speed until they’re combined.

  Add the softened butter to the bowl. Beat on SLOW speed until the butter is well incorporated.

  Turn the mixer up to MEDIUM speed and beat the mixture until it is light and fluffy.

  Crack the eggs and add them to the bowl one at a time, beating on MEDIUM speed after each addition. Again, make sure the resulting mixture is light and fluffy.

  Cup your hands around the bowl with the melted chocolate squares. If it’s warm to the touch but not so hot it might cook the eggs, add the chocolate to your mixture. Beat until everything is well combined.

  Turn your mixer down to LOW speed and add the vanilla extract and the half-cup of chopped cashews. Mix everything in thoroughly.

  Transfer the batter to your prepared 9-inch by 13-inch cake pan and smooth the top as evenly as you can with a rubber spatula.

  Bake at 350°F. for 20 minutes.

  Take the pan from the oven and immediately pour the miniature marshmallows in a single layer over the top. This should take about three-quarters of a 10.5-ounce bag. Work quickly to spread the marshmallows out as evenly as you can.

  Cover the pan with heavy-duty foil crimped down tightly over the sides, or with a spare cookie sheet that entirely covers the top of the cake pan. Leave that in place for 20 minutes. You want the miniature marshmallows to melt on the bottom and attach themselves nicely to the top of your bar cookies.