Fireworks, a Firecracker & Foul Play Page 8
Logan chuckles. “As if I didn’t know Tom is a medical investigator for the city.” He flings an arm around my shoulders and pulls me close.
“And that’s it? The case is all wrapped up?” Callie asks from the safety of Ben’s arms.
“The investigating team still has a bunch of work to do, but yeah, the case is closed.”
“Alrighty then.” I pull away from Logan. “I’ve got a ton of baking to do before the rehearsal dinner on Thursday.”
“I still don’t see why we have to have a rehearsal dinner. I know how to walk down an aisle,” Logan grumbles.
I point my finger at him and shout, “You will go to the rehearsal dinner and you will have a good time. And that’s an order, young man!”
He chuckles and pulls me back into his arms. “Whatever you say, Pixie Girl.” He rubs his nose along mine. “I can’t wait to make you mine.”
“I’m already yours.” I am. And I plan to never let him go. I dare someone to try and accuse him of murder again.
Chapter 15
Even pixies deserve a happily ever after.
“Wowza!” Callie shouts as she opens the door to the bridal suite. “I thought you were crazy for ordering a wedding gown from China, but I was wrong. You look gorgeous.”
I twirl around to show off the dress. “You think?” I had no intention of buying a full-length, multi-tiered gown, but then I saw this one on a website and I had to have it.
The bodice is red lace with a sweetheart neckline while the top layer of the dress is white satin. The underskirt is white satin decorated with more red lace. The top skirt is clipped open at the side with a large red flower arrangement ensuring the underskirt and its lace decorations are visible to one and all.
“It matches my hair, too.” I can’t help but point out how my usually pink hair is now streaked with red, white, and blue.
“Was your July 4th wedding an excuse to dye your hair red, white, and blue?”
“Of course not!” But who could resist the chance to dye her hair in patriotic colors?
“They’re ready!” Kristie announces as she rushes into the room. She stops when she gets a look at me. “You look beautiful.” She charges towards me and pulls me into a hug. When she sniffles, I smack her back.
“No crying! I think I have a pound of mascara on.” I’m not usually much of a make-up wearer. What’s the point when I spend most of the day in a hot kitchen? It would melt off anyway.
“Come on, maid of honor and bridesmaid, get me to the church on time.” Although we’re not going to a church. Of course not. A church equals traditional, and traditional equals boring. Something I refuse to be. Instead, I’m getting married in a vineyard.
I open the door and there stands my father. “Anna.” He swallows. “You look gorgeous, baby girl.”
I smile as I place my hand in the crook of his elbow. I may not always get along with my parents, but it turns out in this one aspect of getting hitched, I am a traditional girl. The only person I want walking me down the aisle is my dad. I nod to the onsite coordinator and the country voice of Darius Rucker croons from the speakers. No traditional Wedding March for me.
As soon as we walk outside, I hear rustling as everyone rises to their feet, but my eyes are riveted on Logan standing underneath a gazebo in the middle of the vineyard. His eyes widen when he notices my dress. I may have been teasing him for the past month about my non-traditional gown. He probably thought I’d come barreling down the aisle wearing a cupcake costume or something.
I squeeze my dad’s elbow and yank him down the aisle. My short legs make fast work of the distance. I’m practically running by the time we reach the gazebo where Logan picks me up and twirls me around. I giggle and throw my arms around him.
The officiant – some dude provided by the winery to perform the ceremony – clears his throat and raises his eyebrows. “Shall we begin?”
Logan puts me down and we stand side by side in front of the officiant. “I understand you’ve prepared your own vows.” No readings, hymns, music, or prayers for us. We’re diving right into the good stuff.
My soon-to-be-husband grabs my hands and holds tight. “Anna, from the moment I met you and you threw a Pillsbury dough boy at me, I knew you were the one for me. A woman who throws muffins as weapons will always keep me on my toes. And then you decided to dive headfirst into danger. Woman, you’ve given me more heart palpitations than my undercover work ever did.”
I roll my eyes. Exaggerate much?
“So, here is my promise to you. I promise to love and cherish you until the breath leaves my body. I promise to always have your back, even when you’re doing something you shouldn’t be. Or should I say especially when. I promise to always love your hair color, no matter what that color is. And finally, I promise always to love and try your often weird cupcake combinations until my taste buds rebel and I get fat.”
He leans forward and places a gentle kiss on my mouth. My cheeks are starting to ache from all the smiling I’m doing.
“Hey! No kissing the bride yet.”
Logan chuckles at Ben’s command, but he leans away and nods at me.
“Oh, my turn? I promise to always bail you out of jail. I promise to believe you’re innocent even when the rest of the world would have you burned at the stake. I promise to always make you cupcakes even when you claim to be on a diet.” I pause. I should have prepared. I’m sure I’m forgetting something. My groom raises an eyebrow and clears his throat. “Oh yeah, I promise to love you forever and ever.”
Logan chuckles as he shakes his head.
“The rings, please.” Ben steps forward and hands the officiant the rings.
As Logan places the ring on my finger, he murmurs, “I give you this ring as a visible and constant symbol of my promise to be with you as long as I live.”
When it’s my turn, I place the platinum band on his finger. “I give you this ring to not only remind you of my promise to be with you as long as I live, but to remind other women you are mine.” I may be a little jealous of the attention Logan garners with the opposite sex. I get it. He’s super hot, but he’s also mine.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife.”
The officiant barely gets the word wife out before Logan’s picking me up and plastering his lips to mine. Cheers erupt and my smile widens. We did it! We’re married. And no one’s going to jail.
I hope you enjoyed Anna’s July 4th story. The Death by Cupcake series continues with a Halloween story from Kristie. Kristie may seem quiet and shy, but the woman is stubborn with a capital S, which naturally leads to her getting into a whole mess of spooky trouble. Pre-order Trick or Thief for 99 cents here.
Is your mouth watering for some scrumptious cupcakes? Don’t worry. I’ve got you covered. Just scroll to the next pages for the recipes of all the cupcakes mentioned in the story. Enjoy!
Complete book list ~ Death by Cupcake series
Never Trust a Skinny Cupcake Baker
Bring Your Own Baker
Self-Serve Murder
Christmas Cupcakes & A Caper
Fireworks, A Firecracker & Foul Play
Trick or Thief
♥♥♥
Thank you for reading Fireworks, A Firecracker & Foul Play. Word-of-mouth is crucial in the cutthroat world of publishing. Seriously, it’s totally cutthroat. Too bad there’s no swashbuckling. That sounds like fun. Spoiler alert: I have no idea what swashbuckling is. But seriously, it would be a huge help if you could leave a review of Fireworks, Firecrackers & Foul Play. It doesn’t have to be more than a sentence, maybe two. Just follow this LINK.
Did you miss the start of the Death by Cupcake series? Check out the first chapter of Never Trust a Skinny Cupcake Baker, Book 1 in the series.
Recipes
You’ll find some of the recipes for cupcakes mentioned in Fireworks, A Firecracker & Foul Play below.
I use metric weights and temperature combined with cups for volume. This is what happens when you g
row up in a country without the metric system but end up living most of your adult life in a country that does have the metric system. You got all confused and mix things up!
Chapter 7
Red Velvet 4th of July Cupcakes
If you need to give a suspect a push to confess, these cupcakes can come in handy. I used a cake mix as I don’t always have time to make cake batter from scratch. It’s not that I’m lazy. Honestly.
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
1 box red velvet cake mix
3 eggs
1/3 cup oil
1 cup milk
½ cup sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the whipped cream topping:
8 ounces (226 grams) cream cheese, cold
1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pint heavy whipping cream, cold
Blueberries for decoration
Directions
Make the Cupcakes
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius) and line cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
Sift cake mix into a large bowl. Add eggs, oil, milk, sour cream, and vanilla extract. Stir until smooth.
Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Let cool.
Make the whipped cream topping
Beat cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth (make sure the bowl is cold). Add vanilla. Slowly add in heavy cream and beat until stiff peaks form.
Pipe onto cooled cupcakes and top with blueberries to give a red, white, and blue look!
Chapter 8
Peanut Butter Fingers with Salty Milk Chocolate Glaze
Bake these cookies whenever you need to ‘bribe’ someone to help you out. It worked for Anna, didn’t it? Anna wasn’t joking when she claimed it took her a day to make these cookies. Luckily, most of the time is due to refrigeration!
Makes 12 fingers
Ingredients
For the cookies:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon table salt
½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light brown sugar
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup creamy peanut butter (not all-natural)
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
For the glaze:
3 ½ ounces (100 grams) milk chocolate
1/8 teaspoon table salt
¼ cup heavy cream
Flaky sea salt for sprinkling
Directions
Make the Cookies
Grease an 8 x 8 x 2-inch pan (20 x 20 x 5 centimeter) with nonstick cooking spray and line with parchment paper, leaving some to hang over the sides, and grease again.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Cream the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, approximately 3 to 5 minutes. Add the oil and peanut butter and continue to mix until fully incorporated, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
Decrease the mixer speed to medium-low and add the egg and yolk, one at a time, beating well and scraping the bowl after each addition with a rubber spatula. Add the vanilla and mix to combine. Add the dry ingredients all at once, mixing just to combine.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours.
Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit (180°Celsius).
Press the dough into the bottom of the prepared pan, making it as flat and even as possible. Bake for 22 to 27 minutes, until browned and dry to the touch. Let cool.
Freeze for about 10 minutes (makes it easier to cut).
Lift the bar cookie from the pan using the parchment paper sling. Trim off all four edges, then slice the bar in half horizontally and vertically cut each half into 6 slices, creating 12 fingers.
For the glaze
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Place the chocolate and salt in a small heatproof bowl.
Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat, until just boiling.
Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let sit for 1 minute.
Mix the chocolate and cream together until the two are combined. If the chocolate is not completely melted, place in a pan set over simmering water and melt on the stove top over low heat.
Dip the top of each finger in the glaze, double-dipping for a thicker coat if desired. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle each finger with flaky sea salt.
Refrigerate until the chocolate sets, about an hour.
Chapter 9
Firecracker Cupcakes
Take two dozen frosted cupcakes and top them to make firecracker cupcakes. These are totally adorable!
Ingredients
One black licorice wheel (or other black string licorice)
24 large marshmallows
12 ounces (340 grams) red melting chocolate wafers
24 frosted cupcakes
Directions
Unwind the licorice wheel and separate the two strands. Cut the licorice into one-inch pieces.
Place the red melting chocolate wafers in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 30-second increments, stirring every 30 seconds to prevent overheating. Continue until the wafers are melted and the chocolate is smooth.
Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. Skewer a marshmallow with a toothpick, and dip it into the melted chocolate. If necessary, use a spoon to pour chocolate over the marshmallow to make sure that it's fully covered.
Place the marshmallow on the baking sheet and gently twist the toothpick out of the top. While the coating is still wet, stick a piece of licorice into the hole on top of the marshmallow.
Repeat until all of the marshmallows have been dipped. Refrigerate the tray to set the chocolate completely, about 10 minutes. Once set, stick a marshmallow firecracker on top of a frosted cupcake.
Chapter 10
Triple Chocolate, Double Graham Smores Cupcakes
I gotta be honest with you. These cupcakes are work. Serious work. They look awesome when done, though!
Makes 24 cupcakes
Special Equipment:
a fine-mesh sieve
a candy thermometer
a culinary chef's torch
Ingredients
For the Graham Cracker Crust:
1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
For the Double Chocolate Graham Cupcakes:
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup graham flour
1 ¼ cups natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
2 ounces (56 grams) 70% cocoa chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup boiling water
1 cup buttermilk
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
2 ¼ cups granulated sugar
For the Chocolate Buttercream Frosting:
4 ounces (113 grams) 70% cacao chocolate, finely chopped
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 teaspoon light corn syrup