10. If making these into sliders, toss the pork with your favorite BBQ sauce and top with pickled red onions.
Makes enough pulled pork for 25 taco-sized servings, or 50 sliders
* * *
Noura's Picadillo
Ingredients
1 pound ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
3 potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 28-ounce can Whole Tomatoes with juice
1 8-ounce can Tomato Sauce
2 - 4 jalapeno peppers (depending on how spicy you want it)
Directions
1. Brown the ground beef in a heavy pot
2. Add the onions and cook over low heat until they are soft
3. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer slowly until the potatoes are tender. You may have to add a bit of water from time to time
4. When it's done, it should be thick like a stew, not thin like a soup
5. Serve with flour tortillas (see below)
Serves 4
* * *
Flour Tortillas
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup oil
1 teaspoon baking powder
2/3 cup water, warm
Directions
1. Mix first four ingredients.
2. Add water and mix well
3. Knead for two minutes
4. Allow to rest for 20 minutes (this is important)
5. Knead briefly
6. Cut into 8 pieces.
7. Pat each piece into a 4" circle
8. Allow to rest for 20 minutes
9. Roll each circle into an 8" circle
10. Cook for 30 seconds on each side in a pre-heated medium-hot skillet
Serves 8
* * *
Gorditas Zacatecanas
Zacatecan Baked Masa Cakes
FOR THE BEAN FILLING:
Ingredients
2 dried New Mexico chiles, stemmed and seeded
3/4 tsp. ground cumin
1 clove garlic
1 tbsp. canola oil
2 cups cooked pinto beans
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
FOR THE GORDITAS:
Ingredients
2 cups masa harina (available at most grocery stores that in the flour section)
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
Directions
1. Make the bean filling: Heat chiles in a 10" skillet over high heat and cook, turning, until lightly toasted, about 5 minutes.
2. Transfer to a blender with cumin, garlic, and 1/2 cup water; puree until smooth.
3. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat and add chile mixture, beans, salt, and pepper; mash with a fork and cook, stirring often, until thickened but not dry, about 20 minutes.
4. Set aside.
5. Make the gorditas: Heat oven to 400°.
6. In a large bowl, whisk together masa harina and salt; add shortening and 1 1/4 cups water, and stir until dough forms.
7. Divide into eight 2" balls (about 2 1/2 oz. each); flatten each into a 1/4?-thick disk, and place 1 heaping tbsp. bean filling in center.
8. Wrap disk around filling, pinching edges together to seal, then transfer, seam side down, to a parchment paper–lined baking sheet.
9. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes.
Serves 8
TOM'S RECIPES
Mini Crab Cake Appetizers
Ingredients
2 cups crab meat, cooked and freed of membrane
1-1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Dry Mustard Powder
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 egg yolk
1 Tablespoon mayonnaise
2 teaspoons fresh parsley leaves, snipped
Flour
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 Tablespoons water
Finely sifted dry bread crumbs
Butter
Directions
1. Mix first 7 ingredients together
2. Press mixture into 16 firm cakes
3. Chill well
4. Just before serving, dip cakes in flour, then in egg beaten with water, then in bread crumbs
5. Melt small amount of butter in frying pan
6. Sauté cakes quickly over high heat until golden brown, turning once
7. Drain on paper towels
* * *
Cowboy Corn and Black Bean Salsa
You can substitute fresh steamed corn and black beans you have cooked yourself if you prefer.
Ingredients
1 (15 ounce) can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (9 ounce) vacuum packed Corn
1 medium tomato, seeded and diced
1 small sweet red onion, diced
3 Tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar
2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 bunch fresh cilantro leaves, snipped
Salt to taste
2 avocados, diced
Directions
1. Mix all ingredients together except the avocados
2. Cover and refrigerate for one hour to allow flavors to blend
3. When ready to serve, top with diced avocado
Serves 12
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First and always, a big hug and thank you to my husband, Aziz, who does most of the cooking, all of the shopping, and totally ignores me when I'm in 'writing mode.' He truly understands. . .
Garry Rodgers, the author of the critically acclaimed "No Witnesses to Nothing" is an expert on anything dealing with death. You can read his blog at Dying Words I couldn't have written the autopsy and crime scenes without his expertise and unselfish advice.
Many thanks go to my first readers: Clyde Gibson, who checked out so many of my facts and medical terms to make sure I had it all together correctly; my sister, Vanery Dyer, who is my biggest cheer leader and, with her friend, Melisa Bauer, helped me get my cover 'just right'. My daughter, Nicolette Gibson, who has read my stories since she could first read and is always standing in my corner cheering me on.
Many folks in law enforcement have websites or blogs that offer good advice for the crime writer. The person I've learned a lot from is Joseph L. Giacalone, a retired NYPD Detective. Check out his blog at this link: Cold Case Squad
BOOK #2 IN THE DET. ANNIE AVANTS SERIES
DECEPTION • POWER PLAYS • MURDER
Detectives Annie Avants and Tom Weston tackle one of the most perplexing cases since they began working together.
A local, well-respected attorney has gone missing.
There's not much evidence to go on. His car was found an hour's drive out of town with blood on the passenger seat.
No body.
His staff is in a quandary. He had a new trial scheduled to begin the next morning. Everything was set to go.
And then, he just disappeared.
A mysterious package left in the restroom of the County Courthouse leads our detectives to believe that the attorney is dead.
Will our detectives find the answers before a media frenzy erupts in the Kern County/Bakersfield area? Will the FBI be called in to help?
And now. . . another person has gone missing!
THIS EXICITING SEQUEL TO CAUSE OF DEATH IS AVAILABLE NOW AT ALL AMAZON STORES!
BOOK #3 IN THE DET. ANNIE AVANTS SERIES
The 3rd book in the Det. Annie Avants series will be "Southern Secrets." This title was released in May 1, 2014.
Here is a synopsis:
Annie's cousin lives in Mena, Arkansas and has come into possession of three journals written by one of his ancestors who was deeply involved with the Knights of the Golden Circle. The journals spell out explicitly the locations of some of the biggest caches of 'rebel gold' hidden by the KGC to fund a second Civil War. Zack had read the book, "The Shadow of the Sentinel: One Man's Quests to Find the Hidden Treasure of the Confederacy" by Bob Brewer and Warren Getler. He w
as surprised to find that several of his ancestors were featured in the book.
Zachary Isom Avants is a history buff and professor at a local college who is aware that throughout Arkansas exist the ruins of many abandoned cabins and homesteads of his ancestors. He is also an avid genealogist. For years, he has been tracking down these abandoned homesteads, looking for artifacts and information on the lives of his long-dead relatives.
Deep in the Ouachita forests, he comes across a derelict shack that hasn't been touched for almost 100 years. It's covered with vines and falling down and he almost misses seeing it.
He sets up camp next to the shack and begins clearing away the vines. It's a small cabin, but he finds signs that it had been occupied by a couple and 2-3 kids. It's not the typical sentinel outpost shack of the Knights of the Golden Circle, which is probably why no one bothered with it.
When he can safely climb down into the basement, he finds a rotting wooden trunk. Inside is a cast iron dutch oven with a lid that has been sealed with pitch.
Excited, he takes the pot to his makeshift table outside and unseals the lid. Inside, wrapped in many layers of oil cloth, he finds three books - journals - kept by someone high up in the KGC during the Civil War. The only signature is 'Avants'.
Unbeknownst to Zack, the leadership of the modern KGC are aware that these books still exist, but had never been able to find them. When he begins making discrete inquiries in town, the KGC begins to suspect that he has found the long-lost journals and are determined to recover them.
Why? They don't know what caches the journals expose, and they don't want treasure seekers finding the hidden treasures.
Throughout the years, the American government has also been interested in the KGC and the millions of dollars they stole and hid. FBI Special Agent Jason Smith overhears someone talking about the journals and alerts his superiors. They, too, are determined to possess the journals and recover as much of the stolen loot as possible.
Zack finally realizes the significance of his find and mails the journals to his cousin, Annie, in California. He knows he is being followed and that he, and his family, are in danger.
RENEE'S STORY
I remember the first long story I ever wrote. I was in the third grade and my teacher, Miss Steere, asked us each to write a story about something in history.
I chose to write about the Donner party and the tragedies that befell them as they tried to make it to the Wild West.
I went on and on. I was having so much fun and making up stories about the people and conversations between them. It was like a game to me. It didn't occur to me that I wanted to be a writer when I grew up. I wasn't even old enough to understand what it meant to be grown up.
Throughout school, whenever I had to write something, I always had a lot of fun with assignments. I remember writing about the Salem Witches when I was in high school and how exciting it was to make up "real" people who lived then and, unfortunately, also died.
So what did I do when I was finally an adult? I worked as an accountant, secretary, draftsman of pre-fab metal buildings, I studied Criminal Justice and worked at the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department for a time. I ended up with a career as a paralegal.
Well, that wasn't too bad. It encompassed a lot of research and writing and, in the meantime, I had actually written short stories, poetry, and two unpublished novels. I did have one non-fiction piece published in a magazine in the 80s. Yippee!
When I lived in Hawaii, I even helped a famous Chef publish to cook books.
Finally, I said "enough", quit everything, took early retirement, and moved to Morocco.
Now, I am a writer. I love my life, and I hope you enjoy my books as much as I enjoy writing them. I have a lot of fun with my characters and stories. To me, they are real people and my joy is sharing them with you and the rest of the world.
Questions? Comments?
Help make the next book in this police procedurals series even better. Have you found typos? Formatting problems? Did something not make sense?
If so, let me know and we can talk about it.
You can email me at email at:[email protected].
Thank you!
Thank you for joining Detectives Annie Avants and Tom Weston and the members of the Kern County Sheriff's Office!
Did you enjoy reading CAUSE OF DEATH?
Here's what you can do next:
If you liked this book and have a moment to spare, I would really appreciate a short review on the page where you bought this book. Your help in spreading the word is gratefully appreciated. Reviews make a huge difference to help new readers find the series.
If you would like to be notified when the next Annie Avants book is available, follow this link: http://ReneeBenzaim.com
One Last Thing…
If you've read Caise of Death on a Kindle, when you turn the last page, Kindle will give you the opportunity to rate the book and tell your friends about it on Facebook and Twitter. They'll automatically post the cover of this book along with your thoughts on it. How cool is that? Be the first one of your friends to use this innovative technology. Your friends get to know what you're reading and I, for one, will be forever grateful to you.
All the best,
Renee Benzaim
Table of Contents
Copyright
Dedication
Introduction
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six
Chapter Forty-Seven
Chapter Forty-Eight
Chapter Forty-Nine
Chapter Fifty
Chapter Fifty-One
Chapter Fifty-Two
Epilogue
Cast of Characters
FAVORITE RECIPES OF ANNIE AND HER FRIENDS
Acknowledgments
Renee's Story
Questions? Comments?
Thank YOU!
One Last Thing. . .
Cause of Death (Det. Annie Avants Book 1) Page 26