Chocolate Cream Pie Murder (Hannah Swensen #24)(47)

If only life were that simple, Hannah thought, gazing at Mike as he continued to talk to Lynne. But life isn’t simple. Life is horribly complicated, filled with sorrow and longing for what might have been. I do want Mike to find Ross and lock him up for the pain he caused me. I really do. Ross hurt me emotionally, and now I know that he could hurt me physically, too. But at the same time, I want him to love me again, to hold me in his arms and tell me how much he loves me, only me. And it just about kills me to realize that something I want so badly just isn’t going to happen ever again.





PUB SOUP

You can use a Crock-Pot or make this soup on the stove.



3 cans (10.5-ounce each) condensed cheddar cheese soup (I used Campbell’s)

1 can of domestic beer ? cup real bacon bits (make your own or buy them at the store—I used Hormel real bacon bits from the store)

8-ounce package of shredded sharp cheddar cheese 1 teaspoon jarred fresh garlic (or 1 clove, peeled and crushed)

1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper (or 1 tea- spoon seasoned pepper – I used Lawry’s Seasoned Pepper)



3 Tablespoons sour cream to float on top of the soup bowls 3 Tablespoons real bacon bits to sprinkle on top of sour cream to garnish 1 Tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley to sprinkle on the bacon bits to garnish





If you are using a slow cooker to make this soup, spray the inside of the crock with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray. If you are using a large saucepan and making the soup on the stovetop, there’s no need to spray the inside.



Open the soup cans and empty them in the crock or the saucepan.



Hannah’s 1st Note: Save one soup can to use as a measuring cup. Don’t bother to wash it out because all it contained was the same soup that’s already in your Crock-Pot or saucepan.



Open the can or bottle of beer and fill the empty soup can. Pour it into the crock or the saucepan.



Add the third-cup of bacon bits to the crock or the saucepan.



Add the shredded sharp cheddar cheese to the crock or the saucepan.



Add the teaspoon of jarred garlic.



Add the teaspoon of coarsely ground black pepper.



Stir or whisk the contents of the crock or the saucepan until all the ingredients are thoroughly combined and the cold soup is smooth.



Turn the slow cooker on LOW and walk away. Since you worked so hard, you can finish the can or bottle of beer if you like.



Heat the Pub Soup for approximately 2 hours in the Crock-Pot or until the soup is piping hot.



If you’re using a saucepan for your soup, turn the burner on MEDIUM and heat your soup, stirring every minute or so. This will keep your Pub Soup from sticking to the bottom of the saucepan. Heat until the soup is piping hot.



Once your soup is the proper temperature, stir it again to check for thickness. It should be approximately as thick as cream of mushroom soup or potato soup.



If your soup is too thick, add a little heavy cream to thin it slightly. If your soup is too thin, add a little more shredded cheddar cheese and check for thickness again once the cheese has melted and you’ve stirred the crock or the saucepan again.



Ladle the Pub Soup into soup bowls or large mugs, spoon a dollop of sour cream in the middle of the bowl, sprinkle the top of the sour cream with bacon bits, add the finely chopped parsley on top of the bacon bits, and serve.



Hannah’s 2nd Note: When I eat this delicious soup, I always stir the garnishes in before I take my first spoonful.



Sally’s Note: At the Lake Eden Inn, we always serve bowls of Pub Soup with warm French rolls and soft salted butter, or a warm baguette with soft, salted butter. When Dick serves it at the bar, he teams it up with assorted salted crackers in a napkin-lined basket.



Hannah’s 3rd Note: Be sure to tell your guests that it’s perfectly acceptable to dunk their bread in the soup if they’re so inclined.





Chapter Twelve


She was terribly off-balance and everything around her was fading into little dots of color, very like a pointillist painting. The bright noon sky was taking on a reddish glow, and her legs were shaking as she gripped the branch above her and hung on for dear life. If she fainted now, she’d crash to the ground and break into little pieces like a china doll falling from a high shelf.

“I can’t do any more,” she told him. “I don’t feel good, Ross.”

“You have to do more. You promised you’d get a bushel for me. I need them, Hannah. I have to give them to Doug so he’ll give me the money.”

“But . . . I think I’m going to faint.”

“Don’t you dare!”

His voice was hard and Hannah’s knees began to buckle. There was a weakness in her legs that she couldn’t seem to control. “I can’t, Ross. I want to help you, but I can’t!”

“When we got married, you promised to love and obey. Now obey and pick some more! You don’t have a whole bushel and I need this bushel full to the brim!”

She reached up and plucked another apricot from the branch above her head. Just one apricot, but it was large, and juicy, and it looked delicious. Even though she knew she should drop it into the bushel basket, she was so hungry and thirsty she brought it to her mouth and took a huge bite.