Margie freshened everyone’s coffee, and Ed continued on. “Once he was inside the house, he searched for his IOU. He had to move fast and said he ended up making a big mess. But he found it along with the others and took them all.”
Barbie was the first to speak up. “I’m surprised nobody noticed him. Very little gets by the folks in this town.”
Ed grinned. “He said he purposely went during bingo. That way almost everyone was uptown, at the Senior Center.”
Barbie bobbed her head. “Smart thinking. Got to give him credit for that.”
“Ya betcha,” Margie agreed.
I cleared my throat. “Ed, I don’t understand why he talked to Buddy and me at the Eagles. He’d have been better off keeping quiet, right? Did he say anything about that?”
“No, not really. But we got the impression he wanted to plant suspicion elsewhere as a precaution.”
Margie scooted her chair back. “You know, Ed, the sheriff’s goin’ to take credit for solvin’ this thing.”
Ed smiled. “He’ll try. But the rest of us will make sure the public finds out how he actually hampered the investigation. Who knows? Maybe a reporter might write a story about it.” He winked at me, then raised his eyebrows at Barbie.
* * *
After our early morning meeting in the café adjourned, I surprised Father Daley by driving to Hallock and attending mass. Afterward, we visited in his kitchen over lunch, him asking questions about the previous evening and me filling him in the best I could.
When we were done, I gave him a hug and promised to see him again soon. Then I returned to Kennedy, planning to grab my suitcase and the last of the recipes Margie had promised me, along with the little orphan dog I’d fallen in love with.
I had to hit the road so I’d be back in Minneapolis before it got late. I was tired. And I needed to be in my editor’s office “bright and early” Monday morning. I’d already briefed him. But he wanted to hear the details.
The sun was shining in the pale-blue sky as I parked my car in front of the café. The wind was blowing as usual, so I held my hair in a ponytail as I crossed the sidewalk and stepped inside. With the door slamming behind me, I stopped to allow my eyes to adjust to the change in light. Which was just as well because I couldn’t believe what I saw in front of me. It appeared to be Buddy.
“Hi, there,” he said.
It was Buddy! He was out of jail and standing ten feet away from me in the otherwise deserted cafe. I was so happy to see him. And so happy for him. But I couldn’t manage to verbalize either.
“So how are you?” he asked as he took two paces in my direction, causing my heart to jump up and down.
“I’m . . . umm . . . fine.” I took two steps of my own.
“Thank you for everything you did for me.” Another step on his part.
“It was Margie and Barbie too. And Buford and Ed and even Guy and Jarod.” I managed another step forward.
“Yeah, but I want to thank you. What you did took a lot of courage and—”
“No, it didn’t. I was just being nosy, like always. And I didn’t want to end up looking like a fool. That’s why I had to see what was in that tarp before going for help.” I was rambling. But there was no stopping it. “I was scared too, Buddy. Really scared. Like I told you before, I just kind of stumble—”
“Shh.” With one last step, he reached out to me, touching my lips with his fingers. “Can’t you just accept a complement?” He then treated me to a gaze that made my cheeks warm and nearly set a few other parts of my body on fire. “Now let’s try this again,” he said. “Emme, thank you for everything you did to help me.” He slowly removed his fingers from my lips.
“You’re welcome.” My voice was so high and squeaky I halfway expected to attract the dogs congregated around the bank next door.
“Now, was that so hard?”
“No.” I smiled. “Although there’s still one thing I want to know.”
“Only one?”
“Ha-ha.” I rested for a beat. “The joke, Buddy. What was the awful joke that Raleigh told over the farm radio that morning?”
He leaned his head to the side. “You really want to know?”
“Yeah. Like I said, I’m nosy.”
“Well . . .” He took hold of my arms. “I can’t say it out loud. It’s too raunchy. I’ll have to whisper it in your ear.” He then pulled me close and did just that.
He was right. It was kind of raunchy. “No wonder Little Val got upset. Especially with her mother right there.”
He chuckled. “Yeah, but they’ll survive.” He made no effort to release me. And I made no effort to be released. He gazed into my eyes. And I did the same in return. Then he lowered his lips and kissed me. It started out soft and tentative but soon grew deeper and more passionate. His arms slowly wrapped around my waist, and my arms found their way around his neck. And after that, I melted into him.
I wasn’t aware of anything except the two of us. Not until I heard the door open behind me. “Hey, there. You won’t believe what . . .” The voice sounded familiar, and my chest tightened as I broke away from Buddy and turned to find Randy in the doorway. He looked as if he’d just been punched in the gut, and I felt as if I’d been the one who’d done the punching. His eyes were full of hurt, and my heart wanted to break.
“It’s not what you think.” As soon as I uttered the words, I realized how pathetic they sounded. “I mean it was just . . .”
He turned away. “I didn’t mean to intrude.” And he walked out the door.
The End
Recipes from the Story
Carrot Bars
(the corrected version of the recipe from the first book)
2 c. white sugar
4 eggs
3 sm. jars baby-food carrots
¾ c. vegetable oil
2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1½ tsp. cinnamon
1 c. chopped walnuts
Mix together the sugar, eggs, carrots, and vegetable oil. Add the flour, soda, salt, cinnamon, and nuts. Stir well. Pour into a greased and floured 12” x 18” pan. Bake at 350º in a preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Use the toothpick test to determine when they are done for sure.
Frosting:
3 T. margarine
1 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese
½ tsp. vanilla
3½ c. powdered sugar
Cream together the margarine and the cream cheese. Stir in the vanilla. Add the powdered sugar and beat with an electric beater until creamy. Frost only after bars have cooled.
Frosted Banana Bars
½ c. butter or margarine, softened
2 c. white sugar
3 eggs
1½ c. mashed ripe bananas (about 3 medium)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
Pinch of salt
In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar, using an electric beater. Then beat in the eggs, bananas, and vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture and stir with a wooden spoon. Pour the batter into a greased, 15” x 10” x 1” pan. Bake at 350º, in a preheated oven, for 25 minutes or until done per the toothpick test. (It’s done if you stick a toothpick in it, and the toothpick comes out clean.) Cool.
Frosting:
½ c. butter or margarine, softened
1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
4 c. powdered sugar, sifted
2 tsps. vanilla extract
For the frosting, cream the butter and cream cheese in a mixing bowl, using an electric beater. Gradually add the powdered sugar, beating the mixture with an
electric beater. Add the vanilla and beat some more. Then spread over the cooled bars.
No-Bake Peanut Butter Cup Bars
½ c. butter
1¾ c. powdered sugar, sifted
1 c. creamy peanut butter
¾ c. finely crushed graham crackers
¼ c. butter
½ c. milk chocolate chips
Line a 9” x 9” baking pan with foil, leaving enough foil to hang over the edges. Butter the foil and set the pan aside. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter noted in the upper left column. Remove the pan from the heat. Add in the powdered sugar, stirring until the mixture is smooth. Then add the peanut butter and cracker crumbs, again stirring until the mixture is smooth. Pour that mixture into the prepared pan, smoothing it out to the edges.
Next, over low heat, melt the butter noted in the second column. Add the chocolate chips, removing the mixture from the burner and stirring until the chocolate is melted. Pour the chocolate mixture over the peanut butter mixture, gently spreading the chocolate over all the bars. Refrigerate the bars for at least 30 minutes so they can set. Finally, using the excess foil, lift the bars from the pan. Cut them with a pizza cutter. Store them in the refrigerator in an air-tight container.
Vegetable Hot Dish Express
1 pound ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 c. cubed carrots
1 c. fresh peas
4 potatoes, sliced
1 can of tomato soup
Salt and pepper to taste
Brown the meat and onions. Drain the grease. Add the carrots, peas, potatoes, and tomato soup. Stir. Add seasoning. Bake at 325º for two hours. Now, if you’re busy, you can substitute a can of peas and a can of carrots (16-oz. size of each), both drained, along with a bag (16 oz. or so) of frozen hash browns. Then you only need to bake it for 40 minutes or so. And that’s when you add “express” to the end of the name.
Sauerkraut Hot Dish
2 lbs. ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
2 lbs. sauerkraut
3 c. uncooked wide egg noodles
1 can cream of mushroom soup cheese
1 can cream of celery soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1½ c. of shredded cheddar
1 tsp. pepper
Brown the beef and the onions together. Drain off the fat. Layer one-half of the beef mixture in a 9” x 13” pan that’s been sprayed with cooking spray. Cover the beef mixture with the sauerkraut and top with the remaining beef mixture. Place the uncooked noodles on top of that. Combine the soups and pepper. Gently spread soup mixture over the uncooked noodles. Bake the dish for 45 minutes at 350º, in a preheated oven. Sprinkle the cheese on top and bake for another 20 minutes. This dish is great when you’re having German relatives over for dinner.
Overnight Hot Dish
2 c. macaroni, uncooked
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
½ medium onion, chopped drained
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
2 c. cubed cooked chicken noodles
2 c. milk
1 4-oz. can mushroom pieces
8 servings of chow mien
Combine all of the listed ingredients—except the chow mien noodles—in a large casserole dish. Cover. Place in the fridge overnight or for several hours. Then, cover and bake the hot dish at 350º in a preheated oven, for one hour. Remove the cover and bake for another 30 minutes. Serve over chow mien noodles. Makes 8 servings, fewer if you’re feedin’ farmers. It goes great with homemade bread or rolls.
Easy Sauerkraut Hot Dish
2 lbs. ground beef, cooked
2 cans cream soup, any variety
2 c. uncooked egg noodles
1 soup can of water
Raw sauerkraut
Place cooked ground beef in a greased casserole dish. Layer sauerkraut over it. Sprinkle uncooked noodles over that. Mix soup and water and pour that mixture over the noodles. Bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees in a preheated oven. Stir it all up and bake it—covered—for another hour.
Grandma’s Lemon Meringue Pie
Juice of one lemon
3 egg yolks (save the egg whites for the meringue)
3 T. cornstarch
1 c. water
2 T. butter
1 c. sugar
¼ c. sugar (for the meringue)
Put lemon juice, egg yolks, as well as the cornstarch, water, and butter, in a kettle. Cook until the mixture comes to a boil and thickens. Stir constantly. Remove kettle from the heat. Add the one cup of sugar. Stir some more. Finally, fill an already-baked pie shell.
For the meringue, beat the three egg whites you saved. Beat them until they are stiff. (Cold beaters help.) Add the ¼ cup of sugar. Beat a little more, until the sugar is mixed in. Spread the meringue over the lemon-filled pie crust and, for fun, make curls using the back of a spoon. Bake for about 10 minutes at 350 degrees in a preheated oven. Watch closely. Do not bake too long. The tips of the curls should just turn light brown.
Lime Jell-O Dessert
1 3-oz. package of lime Jell-O
1¾ c. boiling water
¼ c. lemon juice
1 c. evaporated milk, chilled
1 c. sugar
3 c. crushed Graham crackers
Cool Whip
Mix gelatin powder, water, and lemon juice. Let the mixture cool until it begins to set. Then whip it with an electric beater until frothy. Clean beaters and, in a separate bowl, whip the evaporated milk until it stiffens. Add the sugar to the evaporated milk. Mix well. Combine gelatin and milk mixtures. Gently stir before spooning the combined mixture into a 9” x 13” pan lined with crushed graham crackers. Refrigerate until firm. Spoon or cut from pan. And, of course, you can never go wrong by topping it with Cool Whip.
Black Bottom Cupcakes
Sift together the following—
1½ c. flour
1 c. sugar
¼ c. cocoa
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. soda
Then add the following to that mixture—
1 c. water
1/3 c. vegetable oil
1 T. vinegar
1 tsp. vanilla
Beat the fully combined mixture above with an electric mixer until thick and creamy. Then fill 24 large cupcake papers one-third full.
Next, cream 8 ounces of softened cream cheese with an electric beater. Then, add to it, the following—
1 small egg
1/3 c. sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
Beat this mixture with a mixer before stirring in one 6-oz package of regular chocolate chips. Place about one soup spoonful of this cream-cheese mixture on top of each unbaked chocolate cupcake. Finally, bake the cupcakes at 325º for 30 to 35 minutes in a preheated oven.
For something extra special, make approximately 60 mini cupcakes by using mini-chocolate chips instead of the regular-sized ones. Then into each mini cupcake paper, spoon 1½ tsp. of the chocolate mixture and ½ tsp. of the cream-cheese mixture. Then bake at 325 degrees, in a preheated oven, for 17 minutes.
Pudding Shots
White Russian
Whisk together—
1 pkg. vanilla instant pudding mix
¾ c. milk
Add in and beat with an electric beater until smooth and creamy—
¼ c. vodka
½ c. Kahlua
8 oz. Cool Whip
Portion and freeze and top with strawberries before serving.
Banana
Whisk together—
1 pkg. banana instant pudding mix
¾ c. milk
Add in and beat with an electric beater
until smooth and creamy—
¼ c. vodka
½ c. Banana Schnapps
8 oz. Cool Whip
Portion and freeze and top with strawberries before serving.
Pumpkin
Whisk together—
1 pkg. pumpkin instant pudding mix
¾ c. milk
Add in and beat with an electric beater until smooth and creamy—
¾ c. Captain Morgan
8 oz. Cool Whip
Portion and freeze and top with Cool Whip before serving.
Chocolate
Whisk together—
1 pkg. chocolate instant pudding mix
¾ c. milk
Add in and beat with an electric beater until smooth and creamy—
¼ c. vodka
½ c. Bailey’s Irish Cream
8 oz. Cool Whip
Portion and freeze and top with Cool Whip before serving.
Chicken Dumpling Hot Dish
3-4 c. cooked shredded chicken
½ c. butter
1 c. self-rising flour (original style)
1 c. milk
2 c. chicken broth
1 can cream of chicken soup
Melt the butter and pour it into the bottom of a 9” x 13” pan. Place the cooked shredded chicken on top of the butter. Meanwhile, in a bowl, whisk together the milk and flour and slowly pour it over the chicken, taking care not to move the chicken. Next, whisk the broth and soup together and slowly pour that over the flour and milk mixture. Do not stir! Bake uncovered in a 400º, preheated oven, for 35 to 45 minutes or until the top is a light, golden brown. A can of mixed vegetables could also be added if you want to be really healthy.
A Second Helping of Murder and Recipes: A Hot Dish Heaven Mystery Page 25