Banana Cream Pie Murder

by Joanne Fluke

⅓ cup caramel ice cream topping at room temperature (I used Smucker’s)

  Place the whipped topping in a bowl.

  With a rubber spatula, fold in the caramel ice cream topping until it is well combined.

  Rinse off the rubber spatula, dry it, and “frost” the top of your Banana Cream Pie with the Caramel Whipped Topping.

  Once your pie is “frosted”, touch the side of your rubber spatula to the top of the Whipped Caramel Topping and pull it up quickly. Use the same motion you’d use to make points in the meringue all over the top of a pie.

  Let your pie sit in the refrigerator, uncovered, for another 30 minutes or longer before you prepare to serve it.

  You can garnish the top of your pie by drizzling on more of the caramel ice cream topping.

  Remove your pie from the pan by releasing the catch on the side and lifting off the ring. Leave the pie on the bottom of the pan and simply place it on a flat platter.

  Either cut the pie and serve it at the table, or cut it in the kitchen and place the pieces on pretty dessert plates. Serve with plenty of strong hot coffee. This pie is very rich and luscious.

  If there is any leftover pie, which there probably won’t be, be sure to keep it refrigerated. This pie will keep for several days in the refrigerator.

  Yield: 8 to 12 slices of delicious pie, depending on the width of your slices.

  Chapter Three

  Hannah leaned back in the cushioned chair and smiled at her new husband. Thanks to Ross, getting off the ship had been easy. Their owner’s suite had entitled them to an escort and they’d been the first passengers to get off the ship. Their luggage had been waiting for them, complete with a porter and cart, and they’d gone out to the street just in time to catch a shuttle to the airport.

  Once they’d gone through the airport security check, they had been escorted to the VIP lounge where a uniformed waitress had seated them at a table and taken their breakfast orders. They’d eaten the delicious breakfast, which had been followed by a pot of excellent coffee, and then they’d relaxed in lounge chairs until it was time to board their flight.

  Flying couldn’t have been easier, Hannah decided as she sipped the glass of orange juice that the stewardess had brought for her. Of course, Ross had prearranged everything for them and that was the reason they hadn’t experienced the delays and frustrations that plagued other airline passengers. All it took was money, he’d assured her, and Hannah was beginning to believe it. So far, their journey home had been worry-free and there was no reason to expect that the rest of the trip would be any different.

  The lift-off was smooth and uneventful, even though Hannah had reached for her husband’s hand when the engines had revved up and the plane had begun to move down the runway.

  The co-pilot had just announced that they had reached cruising altitude and they were now allowed to turn on their electronic devices. Since Hannah didn’t have any electronic devices and she probably wouldn’t have used them even if she’d had them, she closed her eyes and let the smooth sound of the engines lull her to sleep.

  * * *

  “Wake up, Cookie. We’re on approach.”

  Ross’s voice roused Hannah from a dream filled with duck appetizers quacking and spinning on the tips of the miniature waffle cones that held them. Except for the spinning and the quacking, it had been a replica of the appetizer they’d eaten at the ship’s French bistro restaurant the previous evening.

  “I think I can make them stop quacking if I eat them,” she told Ross groggily.

  “Make what stop quacking?”

  “The duck appetizers.”

  Ross reached out to hug her. “You’re still dreaming, honey.”

  “Oh.” Hannah took a moment to think about that. “You’re right. I was dreaming about the dinner we had last night on the ship. Everything was delicious.”

  “Yes, it was.” Ross reached across her and pulled a tray from the console between them. “You’re probably hungry. I ordered something for you before I woke you.”

  Hannah looked at him in surprise. “Isn’t it too late for a meal? I thought we were landing.”

  “We won’t land for another twenty-five minutes and the stewardess is making a pot of fresh coffee for you. I thought you might need it before we landed.”

  Hannah smiled gratefully. “Thanks, Ross. I do need something to wake me up. I’m still a little groggy.”

  “Here you are, Mrs. Barton,” the stewardess said as she delivered Hannah’s coffee. “Just let me know when you need a refill.”

  Hannah thanked her and took a sip of her coffee before she turned back to Ross. “I wonder if anyone will meet us at the airport.”

  “I don’t think so. I ordered a car to pick us up and take us to Lake Eden, but it wouldn’t surprise me if your family is waiting for us when we get back to the condo.”

  “You’re right. They’ll probably be there.” Hannah gave a little sigh.

  “You won’t be glad to see them?”

  “It’s not that. Of course I’ll be glad to see them. But I was looking forward to being alone with you and Moishe, and settling back into some sort of a normal routine.”

  “We’ll do that, honey. Don’t worry. But your family missed you and they’ll want to welcome you home. And then there’s your mother.”

  “Right.” Hannah sighed, admitting the inevitability of having company their first night home. “Mother will want to tell me all about Tori Bascomb’s murder.”

  “Naturally. And your sisters will want to hear all about our honeymoon cruise. That’s why I was glad that you got some sleep on the plane.”

  “Then you knew my family would be there when we got home?”

  “No, I guessed they’d be there. It just seemed like something they’d want to do.”

  “You’re right, Ross. They’ll probably bring dinner, or lunch, or whatever. What time is it, anyway?”

  Ross glanced at his watch. “It’ll be close to five by the time we collect our luggage and get back to Lake Eden.”

  “Dinner,” Hannah said. “I hope they don’t want to take us out. I’d rather just grab something at home.”

  “Then it’ll be pizza, hamburgers, or Chinese. There’s not a huge choice of take-out cuisine in Lake Eden.”

  “True, but that’s okay. I had enough fancy meals on the ship to last me for at least a month, maybe longer. I can tell them about the meal last night. It was spectacular, especially with the view. I wish we had some photos of the ship and the shore excursions to show them. The only one I have is the photo of us that you bought from the photographer on the sailboat.”

  Ross smiled. “It’s okay. I’ve got plenty. I made up a slideshow of them while you were sleeping. And I have a cable that I can hook up to your television set so that everyone can watch them. You can give them a running commentary.”

  “Or you can.” Hannah smiled at him fondly. “You’re the photographer, not me. The only photo I took was a selfie with my cell phone.”

  “I’m sure they’d like to see that one, too.”

  “No, they wouldn’t. I held the phone too low and I cut off the top of my head.”

  * * *

  Once they’d landed, retrieved their luggage and were met by the limo, the trip back to Lake Eden was uneventful and they turned in at the condo complex much sooner than Hannah dreamed was possible.

  As the limo passed the guest parking area, Hannah noticed that her sister Andrea’s car was there. Doc’s car was parked right next to it and she was sure that her mother would be with him. Hannah turned to Ross. “Looks like you’re right. Their cars are here.”

  “Told you,” Ross said. “And there they are.”

  Hannah took a deep breath as she saw that her whole family was gathered at the base of the staircase that led to her second-floor condo.

  “Michelle and Doc are holding takeout bags. And Andrea has something in a box.”

  “I guess they thought we’d be starving,” Ross said as he helped her out of the li
mo.

  “Not really. It’s just that since they didn’t arrange it with us ahead of time and they didn’t want to impose on us, they brought food for everyone. It’s a very Midwestern thing to do, but you probably already know that. After all, you grew up here in Minnesota.”

  “Yes, but my father wasn’t from the Midwest so it was different in my family. If we visited someone, we brought vodka.” Ross pressed a tip into the limo driver’s hand, took Hannah’s arm, and walked her over to where her family was waiting. “Hello, everyone! We’re home!”

  “Thank goodness for that!” Delores exclaimed rushing forward to take Hannah’s other arm. “There’s a surprise wedding gift waiting for you inside the condo. We’ll follow you, but we want you to go in first.”

  “Is Moishe inside?” Hannah asked, eager to see her pet.

  “Not yet. Norman called to say he was on his way, and Mike and Lonnie should be here in a bit. They wanted to give you a little time to get settled before they brought the rest of the meal.”

  “The rest of the meal?” Hannah asked, looking at the two large take-out bags.

  “Yes. Mike and Lonnie are bringing pizza, and Norman’s bringing drinks for everyone. We’ll do everything, dear. You won’t have to lift a finger, I promise.”

  “I believe you,” Hannah said, turning to smile as her mother dropped back to follow them up the stairs.

  “What do you think our surprise is?” Ross asked in an undertone as they walked up the stairs together.

  “I don’t know,” Hannah answered in the same low tone of voice, “and I’m a little afraid to guess.”

  When they reached the landing, Hannah handed Ross the key. “Here. You unlock the door.”

  “I will. And then I’ll carry you across the threshold.”

  Hannah laughed. “You don’t have to go that far. It’s not like I haven’t been inside before.”

  “True, but I’d like to if you don’t mind. Is that all right?”

  “Of course it’s all right,” Hannah said, secretly delighted at his traditional gesture.

  Ross unlocked the door and opened it. Then he lifted Hannah into his arms. “Ready?” he asked her.

  “Yes.” Hannah wrapped her arms around his neck and he carried her across the threshold.

  “What in the world . . .” Hannah gasped. She was so amazed by what she saw, she almost lost her hold around his neck. For one brief moment, she wondered if Ross had unlocked the door to the wrong condo.

  “Wow!” Ross exclaimed, and it was clear that he was just as surprised as she was. “Look at that flat-screen! It’s got to be ninety inches . . . maybe more!”

  “They redecorated the whole living room!” Hannah’s voice was shaking with shock as Ross set her down on the floor. “Look at this beautiful new carpet!”

  “And look at those couches. There’s three of them, and it looks like the chairs recline. There’s seating for six. We can invite your family over to watch videos.”

  Ross took Hannah’s arm to lead her to the couches, but she pulled back. “Wait! I need to look at the kitchen!”

  Hannah hurried to the kitchen doorway and flicked on the lights. Everything appeared to be exactly as she’d left it. She breathed a sigh of relief and began to smile. “It’s the same.”

  “Did you hope they’d put in new appliances?”

  “No! My kitchen is exactly the way I want it. I’m really glad they didn’t decide to change it.”

  “You can thank me for that,” a voice said behind her, and Hannah turned to see Michelle. “I told Mother she’d be taking her life in her hands if she did anything to your kitchen.”

  “Thanks, Michelle!” Hannah threw her arms around her youngest sister and hugged her. “I can’t believe you all got together and refurbished the living room.”

  Delores arrived in the doorway and stood there, smiling at Hannah. “I hope you like your new living room furniture, dear.”

  “And your new carpeting,” Andrea added, coming up behind Delores. “I picked out the color. It’s called Autumn Leaves, and it’s shades of browns and reds, like autumn leaves.”

  “It’s beautiful.” Hannah glanced at Andrea, who was still carrying the box in her arms. “What’s in there, Andrea?”

  “A new Christmas cookie for you. It’s a whippersnapper cookie and Grandma McCann loves them.”

  Hannah smiled at her sister. If Andrea’s live-in nanny and housekeeper loved Andrea’s cookies, they must be superb. Grandma McCann was a great baker in her own right and Hannah had gotten several recipes from her.

  “What makes them Christmas cookies?” she asked, knowing that Andrea wanted to brag about her new creation.

  “They’re green and red. And those are the Christmas colors. I made them with pistachio pudding and I put in a little green food coloring. I’ve got dried cherries inside, but I didn’t think that was enough color, so I put a half maraschino cherry on top of each one.”

  “Sounds great,” Hannah told her. “Are we going to try them tonight?”

  “Yes. We’re all having dinner together.”

  “Unless you two are too tired,” Doc added quickly.

  “Not at all,” Hannah reassured them. “Ross? You’re not too tired to have dinner with everyone, are you?”

  “No. And I’m getting a little hungry.”

  “Then we’ll eat just as soon as you see the rest of the condo, and everyone else gets here,” Delores decided for all of them. She turned to Andrea and Michelle. “You girls set the table and Doc and I will show Hannah and Ross everything else.”

  “Wait,” Hannah said, glancing down at the beautiful carpeting again and noticing that it appeared to stretch all the way down the hallway. “Did you carpet the whole condo?”

  “Everything except the kitchen and the bathrooms,” Andrea told her. “I had them stretch it nice and tight so that Moishe can’t hide anything under the carpet anymore.”

  “That’s good,” Hannah said, remembering the old green carpeting that had come with the condo when she’d purchased it. Moishe had torn it loose in several places so that he could hide his toy mice in a nice, safe place to retrieve for later enjoyment.

  “Wait until you see the master bedroom,” Doc said, slipping his arm around Delores’s waist. “Your mother picked out the bedroom set, but I put my foot down when she wanted to give you a delft blue bedroom with puffy white curtains and French Provincial furniture.”

  “That furniture was beautiful and you know it!” Delores contradicted her husband. She attempted to glare at him, but her lips turned up in a tiny smile that let everyone know she was teasing. She turned back to Hannah and Ross. “You two should be very grateful to me.”

  “Why is that, Mother?” Hannah asked, noticing that her mother looked even more amused.

  “My dear husband wanted you to have a bed made out of logs with grizzly bears carved on the bed posts. They looked like they were ready to tear someone into little pieces and I just knew you’d have nightmares every night if you had to sleep in that bed!”

  “Come on, Lori,” Doc Knight gave her arm a pat. “It wasn’t as bad as you’re describing it. The whole bedroom set was designed by a renowned chainsaw artist! It had acorns for knobs on the dresser drawers, squirrels chasing each other on the mirror frame, and that bed was unique, not another one like it. It was one of a kind.”

  “I heard the salesman tell you that, but one of a kind doesn’t mean it’s good. It just means the man with the chainsaw didn’t think he could sell more than one of them!”

  Doc laughed and put his arm around Delores again. “You could be right, dear. Those bears were a bit menacing.” Then he turned back to Hannah and Ross. “We compromised and went for a Mediterranean look. Your mother saved you from marauding bears and I saved you from spindly chairs and gilt-edged curlicues.”

  “Not to mention the horrors of the French Revolution,” Hannah said, getting into the spirit of things. It really was good to see her family again and the wedding gift t
hey’d given her was truly amazing. It was almost too much to take in all at once, but she knew she’d have plenty of time to appreciate each and every thoughtful touch they’d made in the days to come. And tonight, after everyone had left, they’d sleep in a new bed, in a new bedroom, to start their new life in Lake Eden together.

  SPUMONI WHIPPERSNAPPER COOKIES

  DO NOT preheat oven yet. This dough has to chill.

  1 box (approximately 18 ounces) white cake mix, the kind that makes a 9-inch by 13-inch cake (I used Duncan Hines Classic White)

  1 package Instant Pistachio pudding mix (I used Jell-O, the kind that makes 4 half-cup servings)

  1 large egg, beaten (just whip it up in a glass with a fork) several drops of green food coloring, if desired

  2 and ½ cups of thawed Cool Whip (measure this— a tub of Cool Whip contains a little over 3 cups and that’s too much!)

  ½ cup chopped pistachio nut meats (measure after chopping)

  ½ cup chopped dried cherries (I used Mariani brand)

  ____________________

  ½ cup powdered (confectioner’s) sugar small jar of red maraschino cherries, cut in half vertically and without stems

  Hannah’s 1st Note: Notice that the measurement for the Cool Whip is different in this whippersnapper recipe. That’s because of the added dry pudding mix. It’s 2 and a HALF cups of thawed Cool Whip.

  Hannah’s 2nd Note: If you can’t find pistachio nut meats, don’t bother cracking all those pistachios. Just use chopped pecans, walnuts, or almonds instead. The taste will be different, but it will be good.

  Hannah’s 3rd Note: If you can’t find dried cherries, you can use cherry-flavored Craisins instead.

  Pour the dry white cake mix into a large bowl.