by Larissa Ione
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Spicy Sticky Ribs
2 racks baby back ribs
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons salt
1 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon pepper
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 cup beef broth
1 tablespoon onion powder
1/4 cup hot sauce
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon paprika
3 tablespoons honey
Using a sharp knife, remove silver skin from ribs along the rack. Rinse ribs and thoroughly pat dry. In a small bowl, combine the dark brown sugar, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper and paprika. Sprinkle the spice mixture all over the ribs, being liberal with coverage. Allow to set for 10-15 minutes at room temperature while the sauce is being prepared. In a medium saucepan over low heat, add remaining ingredients and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring every 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and cover with a lid. Heat one side of grill to medium-high heat. Place ribs on opposite side so that the ribs cook over indirect heat. Baste ribs every 10 minutes with BBQ Sauce for a total cooking time of 45-55 minutes. Remove ribs from heat and double wrap in aluminum foil. Return to grill on low heat and cook for an additional 20-25 minutes. Remove from grill and allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
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Shade and Runa
Slice of Life
The rich, sweet aroma of vanilla made Runa’s mouth water as she turned on the professional quality electric mixer her mate, Shade, had gotten her for Christmas. She wasn’t a big fan of cooking meals, but she did enjoy baking sweet treats, and her family didn’t complain a bit.
Boots clomped on the floor down the hall, and she turned off the mixer as Shade sauntered into the kitchen. He’d donned his black paramedic uniform for his afternoon shift at Underworld General Hospital, and she had a powerful urge to rip it off. Right here in the kitchen. She could finish making cookies to go with the smoothie pops she’d just put in the freezer to celebrate Stryke’s A+ in science class later.
“Where are the boys?” he asked as he reached for a bottle of water in the fridge.
“They’re at Stewie’s pool party. Serena just sent a picture of them playing on the big float. It’s on my phone if you want to see it.”
“We should get a pool,” he said as he swiped his finger across her phone’s screen.
“We’re welcome to use theirs anytime,” she pointed out.
A smile ruffled his lips at the sight of the three dark-haired, espresso-eyed boys, the spitting images of their father, splashing in the water.
“Wraith and Serena made their house the place to be when they put it in, didn’t they?”
It was probably the very reason they put in the pool. “Well, they love parties and kids.”
“That’s because they only have one,” he muttered, but he was joking. Shade adored children, and when they were around, he could always be found nearby.
She fetched a can of cooking spray from a cupboard. “Speaking of kids, this morning a witch at the hospital told me I’m going to have twins in exactly eight years.”
“Only twins?” Shade twisted the cap off his water. “Awesome.”
She shook a spatula at him. “I remember when you wanted a whole bunch of kids.”
“I remember too,” Shade said. “And then we had triplets.”
“Are you saying you don’t want more?”
Pausing with the bottle at his lips, he shrugged. “We’ve got centuries ahead of us. I’m not in a hurry.”
Neither was she. She loved being a mother, but she only had so much time between volunteering at the hospital and taking care of triplets, a mate, and two homes. Granted, one of the homes was a cave in a jungle, but it still had modern appliances and conveniences like hot running water and toilets, and modern things needed to be cleaned.
“I still can’t believe your drive to impregnate me hasn’t kicked in since the boys were born.”
“That’s how it works when we’re mated.” He grabbed a granola bar from the pantry and tucked it into the leg pocket of his BDU pants. “The drive only kicks in when our mates are ready. You’re clearly not ready.”
“You think? I barely have time to shower, let alone have more kids. But I’m sure everything will be different in eight years,” she added, with more than a little sarcasm.
“You never know.” He waggled his brows. “Wanna practice making our twins?”
Always up for a little practice, Runa eyed her mate, her body already heating at the thought of watching him strip out of his uniform. Or maybe she’d make him leave it on. It was sexy as hell.
“Don’t you have to be at work in fifteen minutes?” she asked.
“Con will cover for me. Sin’s working late with DART today.”
Smiling, she peeled off her shirt and tossed it at him. “Then by all means...let’s get some practice in.”
* * * *
Shade lay in the afterglow of their lovemaking, knowing he needed to get to work. But even after nearly a decade with Runa, every day still felt like they were on their honeymoon, and he didn’t want to leave her.
Of all his siblings, he was the one who had fallen the most headfirst into family life.
He loved it. He loved everything about it. He was the PTA-attending soccer dad, and if Eidolon hadn’t needed him so much during the triplets’ early years, he would have been a happy stay-at-home dad. As it was, almost all of his days off were spent doing family things, from day trips to museums and theme parks to teaching the boys how to fish, how to perform first aid and, given that they were demons who would have to defend themselves from other underworlders, how to fight.
And yesterday on his day off, he taught them how to make meatloaf cupcakes for dinner. Blade was a picky eater who wasn’t a fan of meatloaf, but Shade had discovered that he’d eat any food that could be made into a cupcake.
“We’re the best parents, aren’t we?”
Runa turned toward him as she lay in the crook of his arm, her head resting on his biceps, covering three generational glyphs on his dermoire. “Hmm?”
“Of all my brothers’ families. Like, we’re the most normal.”
She gave him a placating smile. “Depends how you define normal. Our bedroom at the cave is a BDSM chamber, and once a month I turn into a werewolf.”
She had a point, but that wasn’t the point. “You know what I mean.” Taking her hand, he twined his fingers with hers. They were so delicate, but so incredibly strong. “I think we’re pretty awesome.”
“We are.” She wiggled closer. “But I might be biased.”
He stroked the soft skin on the back of her hand and stared up at the ceiling fan as it spun in lazy circles. “It’s weird how we all turned out so different. My brothers, and I, I mean. As parents.”
“I don’t know.” Runa thought about it for a second. “You and Lore are a lot alike. You’re both doting and patient.”
Lore had the patience of a saint. Mace was a handful, a mini-Wraith with an overabundance of attitude and mischief.
“Actually, you’re all pretty patient with the kids,” she continued.
“Yeah, but there are different kinds of patient. Wraith’s is like, meh, Stewie will do it when he’s ready. And Eidolon?” Shade snorted. “He’s not as patient as he is stubborn. He’ll wait as long as it takes for you to do what he wants, but you pay for every floofing minute you delay.”
Runa laughed. “Tayla says he’s relentlessly stubborn.”
“Poor Sabre.” Tayla was less strict than Eidolon, but they were both pretty intense, Type-A and focused.
“Oh, I think Sabre is fine,” Runa said as she began to trace circles on his abs, just above where the shee
t lay across his hips. “With his temperament, he thrives in that kind of environment. Could you imagine a kid like Stryke having Eidolon as a father?”
Oh, hell, no. “E would destroy Stryke.”
Stryke was the most sensitive and easygoing of their sons, a true mama’s boy with a good heart. Rade was the spirited one, the troublemaker and ringleader for most of the hot water they got into. Blade was a mix of his brothers and of the three of them, the one most like Shade.
Runa pushed herself up on one elbow. “You know, I was talking to Serena the other day, and she brought up a good point. All our children will be brought up in stable, loving families, largely in human society. It’ll be so different than what you and your brothers, or even most Seminus demons, grew up with.”
“I was raised in a stable, loving family of Umber demons,” he protested. “Until they were slaughtered and eaten by another demon.” He glanced over at her. “Yeah, yeah, I made your point.” Her kiss-swollen lips curved in a self-satisfied smile. “So you think our kids are going to be so well adjusted that they grow up and have boring, uneventful lives?”
“Boring and uneventful? In our family?” She chuckled. “Never. But they won’t have the kind of obstacles to happiness that you all had.”
Obstacles to happiness. Otherwise known as trauma.
But no, none of the children in his family would know trauma if he could help it. Life was full of surprises, but he and Runa, and all his siblings, had laid solid foundations for their families. They had, in fact, played a part in saving the world so the kids had a chance at all.
So Shade, figuring he had nothing to worry about, at least for right now, agreed with his mate, the female of his dreams, and turned off his cell phone.
Runa gave him a goofy smile. “What are you doing?”
He rolled over and, before she could blink, tucked her beneath him. “I’m playing hooky.”
“Nice.” Her smile turned naughty and her arms came up to wrap around his neck. “For how long?”
“For as long as you want. Con owes me several shifts.” He brushed his mouth over hers. “And then when you’re done with me...let’s talk about getting a pool...”
* * * *
For Runa and Shade’s romantic beginning (it actually wasn’t a romantic beginning at all...full of dungeons and monsters and betrayal, you know, the usual things), check out book 2 of the Demonica series, Desire Unchained!
Family Friendly Food
Hell Frozen Over Smoothie Pops
2 cups frozen blueberries
2 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup milk
2 cups vanilla Greek yogurt
In a food processor, add frozen blueberries, honey and milk and pulse until smooth. Pour into a large bowl and fold in Greek yogurt. Fill 8-10 popsicle molds and insert popsicle sticks. Freeze for 4 hours before serving.
To make a more layered popsicle, do not fold in Greek yogurt with the blueberries. Simply layer the two in the popsicle molds.
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Meatloaf and Monster Mash Cupcakes
2 pounds ground beef
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
2 eggs
1/4 cup chopped sweet onion
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 box cornbread stuffing mix
1 cup ketchup
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Topping
6 cups Mashed Potatoes (Click here for recipe)
Chopped parsley
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together all ingredients and distribute evenly in a 12-cup muffin tin. Bake for 25 minutes.
Top with Mashed Potatoes. To resemble a “cupcake,” add the mashed potatoes to a piping bag with a star tip. Pipe onto each meatloaf cupcake and sprinkle with parsley.
Mashed Potatoes
6 russet potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/4 cup mayonnaise
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 (12 ounce) can evaporated milk
Salt and pepper to taste
In a large stock pot, bring a pot of water to a boil. Add potatoes and boil until they are fork tender, usually about 20 minutes. Drain the water and add remaining ingredients. Mash with a potato masher and serve. For a creamier potato, you can use an electric hand mixer. Add remaining can of evaporated milk if not creamy enough, depending on size of potatoes.
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Chicken Parmesan
2 cups oil
1 teaspoon pepper
2 cups plus 1 cup flour
4-6 thin boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 cups milk
1 (16 ounce) box angel hair pasta
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 fresh mozzarella balls, sliced
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 batch Marinara (Click here for recipe.)
1 tablespoon salt
1 batch Parmesan Sauce (Click here for recipe.)
In a large skillet over medium high heat, bring oil to 350 degrees. Place 1 cup of flour in a large bowl, milk in a separate large bowl and remaining 2 cups of flour in a large bowl. Add garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper to the 2 cups of flour and stir to combine. Dredge each piece of chicken in the plain flour then milk then seasoned flour. Place 3-4 pieces of chicken in the skillet at a time and fry on each side for 3-4 minutes or until the internal temperature is 165 degrees. Drain on paper towels. While the chicken is frying, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta and boil for 6-8 minutes or until pasta is cooked through. Place the chicken on a cookie sheet and top with 2 slices each of mozzarella. Place in the oven and broil for 2-3 minutes or until cheese has melted. To serve, place about 1 cup of pasta on a plate and top with marinara. Add one piece of chicken and top with additional marinara and 2-3 tablespoons of Parmesan Sauce.
Parmesan Sauce
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3 cups chicken broth
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
In a small saucepan over low heat, melt butter then whisk in flour. Stir until combined then slowly add in chicken broth. Whisk until thickened, about 1-2 minutes. Add salt, pepper and Parmesan. Stir until combined then remove from heat.
Marinara
12 ripe Roma tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt
1 (28 ounce) can whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 celery ribs, diced
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
In a large pot with 4-6 cups of water, add in Roma tomatoes. Bring to a boil for 1 minute then remove from heat. Pour off hot water and replace with cold water. Allow to cool. Remove the tops of the tomatoes with a knife and peel off all remaining skin. Add to a food processor with the can of undrained San Marzano tomatoes. Pulse on low until completely pureed. In a Dutch oven over low heat, add the olive oil, onion, celery and garlic. Simmer for 10-15 minutes or until translucent and tender. Stir in tomato paste until blended. Add in tomatoes and remaining ingredients. Simmer for 2 hours, stirring frequently.
QUICK TIP
If you are unable to find “thin” chicken breasts simply cut a chicken breast in half.
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Cauliflower Pizza
1 head cauliflower
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 egg
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 cup fresh spinach
1 teaspoon dried basil
4-6 cherry tomatoes, sliced
1/4 teaspoon
salt
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Separate cauliflower into florets. Chop florets into smaller pieces and add to a food processor. Pulse until cauliflower is completely pureed and resembles a rice mixture. Spread cauliflower on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and place in a cheesecloth. Squeeze the liquid out of the cauliflower into a bowl. Squeeze until you can’t squeeze anymore. It needs to have as much liquid out as possible. Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees. In a large bowl, add the egg and seasonings. Whisk together with a fork, then add the 1/2 cup of Parmesan and cauliflower. When combined, place on a parchment-lined round pizza pan. Flatten with your hands until you’ve formed a thin crust. Bake for 20 minutes. Flip the crust over and top with fresh spinach, sliced tomatoes and Parmesan. Return to oven and bake until cheese is melted.
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Seafood Platter
A seafood platter can be mixed with a number of varieties. Here are a few of my favorites.