Devil's Food Cake Murder (Hannah Swensen, #14)(68)

extra sugar (about ? cup) for rolling dough balls before baking





*** - If you don’t have dark brown sugar, you don’t have to rush right out to buy it. As far as I can tell, there are 3 types of brown sugar. One is called “brown sugar,” another is called “light brown sugar,” and the third is called “dark brown sugar”. Light brown sugar has the least molasses and dark brown sugar has the most. If you have regular brown sugar in the house, just add a half-teaspoon of molasses to your mixing bowl and you’ll have dark brown sugar.

**** - If you’re using ground nutmeg in the jar and it’s old, do go out and buy a new jar. Unlike fine wine, nutmeg doesn’t age well. It tends to taste like soap! If you grate your own nutmeg, that’s preferable. Just use 1 teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg instead of the 2 teaspoons of ground nutmeg that it calls for in the recipe.

Hannah’s 1st Note: Although you can certainly make this recipe by hand, it’s a lot easier with an electric mixer.

Place the softened (room temperature) butter in a mixer bowl and beat it until it’s smooth.

Add the dark brown sugar and beat it until it’s nice and fluffy.

Mix in the eggs. Make sure they’re thoroughly incorporated.

With the mixer running on LOW speed, add the baking soda, salt, and nutmeg. Keep beating until you’re sure they’re evenly combined.

Add the flour in half-cup increments, beating after each addition.

Shut off the mixer, and stir in the chopped dried apricots by hand. (They tend to stick to the beaters.)

You can leave your cookie dough right in the mixing bowl if you wish. Just tear off a sheet of plastic wrap and press it down over the top of your dough, tucking it in on the sides so that no air gets in.

Refrigerate the cookie dough for one hour (overnight is fine, too) to chill it and make it easier to work with.

When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.

Take your cookie dough out of the refrigerator and set it on the counter.

Line your cookie sheets with parchment paper, or spray them with Pam or another nonstick baking spray.

Put some white sugar, a half-cup should do, into a small bowl. You’ll be rolling dough balls in the sugar before baking.

Roll the dough into 1-inch balls without making them smooth.

Roll each dough ball in the sugar, covering it completely.

Arrange the dough balls on your cookie sheets 2 inches apart. You should be able to get 12 dough balls on each cookie sheet.

Flatten each ball with the bottom of a glass, or the flat blade of a metal spatula.

Bake at 350 degrees F., for 8 to 12 minutes or until the cookies are golden brown. (Mine took 11 minutes, and so did JoAnn’s cookies.)

Remove the cookies from the oven, let them cool on the baking sheets for a minute or two to firm up. Then remove them to a wire rack to cool completely.

These yummy Nutmeg Snaps can be stored in an air-tight container or in a covered cookie jar up to one week. They freeze beautifully if you stack them like coins in a wrapper, roll them in foil, and place the rolls in freezer bags.

Yield: approximately 6 dozen cookies, depending on cookie size.

Hannah’s 2nd Note: These cookies make great “dunkers”. Bill always dunks his in his coffee when he comes into The Cookie Jar for an afternoon break. Mother does it too, but please don’t mention it if you see her. I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone because she says it isn’t proper etiquette.





Chapter Twenty-Two

“I’m really glad I didn’t have to settle for a chunk of pickled ring bologna!” Michelle said, biting into her double-double cheese mushroom burger.

Hannah waited until she’d swallowed a bite of her double-double gorgonzola burger before she replied. “What made you think you’d have to settle for pickled bologna?”

“I looked at the menu at the refreshment stand just in case Alice decided to take me up on my offer to fill in for her while she went up to the parsonage to see the real Reverend Matthew. The only things she serves are sodas, beer, chips, popcorn, and pickled bologna. She had that in one of those big glass jars behind the counter.”

“No pickled pigs feet?”

“No. I guess they’re too messy. A chunk of bologna’s neater.”

The two sisters fell silent as they ate their burgers and drank from chilled mugs of root beer. They didn’t speak again until their burgers were almost gone.

“I’m thinking about ordering a burger to go for Norman,” Hannah said, “but he must really be tied up. I thought he’d read my note and come straight out here.”

“Maybe the dental emergency is really complicated.” Michelle stopped speaking and began to frown. “Never mind. It’s not.”

“How do you know?”

“The dental emergency, if there really was one, is over. I can see through the leaves of the artificial plant sitting on top of the room divider, and Norman’s here.”

“Wave at him. He might not be able to see us way back here.”

“I hope he won’t. Whatever you do, don’t stand up, Hannah. We need to keep a really low profile.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Norman’s at a table for two in the middle of the dining room. He must have walked in shortly after we did.”