Cream Puff Murder (Hannah Swensen, #11)(29)

Hannah spent the next hour making another batch of cream puffs from her revised recipe. She pierced the side of each puff when they came out of the oven, placed them on a cooling rack away from any drafts, and sat at the stainless steel workstation, sipping a cup of coffee and waiting to see if disaster would strike twice.

Ten minutes passed, and the puffs were still high and golden. The baking powder had worked! She was about to go out and get Lisa when her partner stuck her head into the kitchen.

“Look at these, Lisa,” Hannah fairly crowed.

“They’re beautiful. I’m almost sure they rose higher than Mom’s ever did.”

“Really?”

“I think so. Did you change the recipe?”

“Just a little. I added baking powder and sugar. And I pierced them to let out the steam when they came out of the oven. Your mother’s recipe is a good one, Lisa. I’m going to call them Emmy’s Cream Puffs.”

Lisa shook her head. “I think you should name them something else, Hannah. Mom’s recipe was just a jumping-off place for you.”

“Well…maybe you’re right,” Hannah conceded. “But I made a batch of your mother’s vanilla custard, and I didn’t change a thing. I’ll name that Emmy’s Vanilla Custard if it’s okay with you.”

“It’s fine with me,” Lisa said with a smile.

“I thought we could have a taste test with different fillings if we have enough customers willing to sample them for us.”

Lisa laughed. “Are you kidding?! Get busy and fill them. It’s just about time for the midafternoon rush, and I can guarantee we’ll have plenty of customers ready to taste them.”



Hannah didn’t know when she’d felt so good. Delores and Carrie had come in, and both of them had gone into raptures over the cream puffs. Her mother had pronounced them even better than the ones her Aunt Bertha had baked. Now Hannah was in the kitchen making a third test batch. They were mini cream puffs, the bite-size kind she wanted to serve at her mother’s book launch party. She’d just opened the three cans of pie filling Florence had hand-delivered from the Red Owl in return for a dozen Walnuttoes, when Lisa appeared in the doorway.

“Mike’s here,” she said. “Do you want me to send him back?”

“Sure.” Hannah sliced the top from a mini puff and spooned in strawberry pie filling. She alternated between the three flavors, strawberry, lemon, and blueberry, placing them on a platter with the ones she’d already filled with Emmy’s vanilla custard and the rich, homemade chocolate pudding that her great-grandmother had made. Hannah had just replaced the tops like jaunty berets on top of the cream puffs and dusted them with powdered sugar when Mike walked into the kitchen.

“Hey, Hannah. What are those?”

“Mini Cream Puffs. I’m testing them out for Mother’s book launch party.”

“Need any help?”

Mike looked hopeful, and Hannah gave a little laugh. “Sure. Which do you like best, strawberry or blueberry?”

“Blueberry.”

“Okay.” Hannah picked up a blueberry mini cream puff and set it on a plate. “Now choose between lemon and vanilla.”

“Vanilla, as long as there’s lots of vanilla.”

“There is.” Hannah set a mini puff filled with Emmy’s Vanilla Custard on the plate. Then she added her final choice, a puff filled with her great-grandmother’s homemade chocolate pudding.

“They’re pretty,” Mike said when she delivered them with a steaming mug of coffee. “It’s almost a shame to eat them.”

“But you’ll make the sacrifice?”

“You said it!” Mike popped a puff into his mouth, and an expression of bliss crossed his face. He chewed, swallowed almost reluctantly, and followed that with a gulp of coffee.

“Good?” Hannah asked him.

“Better than good. I really like the blueberry. And there’s something else I like, too.”

“What’s that?”

“You filled them up full, and I can see what kind they are. The blueberry was peeking out at me. It’s not the box of assorted chocolates thing, you know?”

Hannah knew exactly what Mike meant. Unless you remembered the candy maker’s code for swirls that meant one type of filling and lines and squiggles that designated others, you could be disappointed in the chocolate candy you chose.

“Here goes the vanilla.” Mike picked up the mini puff and turned to look at Hannah. “You made the filling, right?”

“Right. It’s Lisa’s mother’s recipe for vanilla custard.”

“Oh, boy!” Mike popped the confection into his mouth and made a little sound of satisfaction. When he’d finished it, he took another swallow of coffee and sighed. “That was really good. And this is chocolate?”

“It’s not just any chocolate. It’s the richest chocolate pudding I’ve ever made.”

“I think I love you,” Mike said as he picked up the last mini cream puff and popped it into his mouth. He was smiling as he finished it, licked his fingers, and drank more of his coffee. “Correction,” he said. “I know I love you.”

“Actually, you love my great-grandma Swensen. It’s her recipe for chocolate pudding.”