Raspberry Danish Murder (Hannah Swensen #22)(76)

“I will if he doesn’t notice you out here and come over to say hello himself. Enjoy your late lunch, girls.”

Georgina saw them almost immediately and rushed over to them. “I was wondering when you’d get around to me,” she told Hannah.

“Then you have some information that might help us?”

Georgina shrugged. “I don’t know. On one hand, maybe it will. On the other hand, maybe it won’t. You can decide that for yourselves after I tell you.”

“When will that be?” Hannah asked the important question.

“A few minutes after I deliver your food. I’m due for my break in twenty minutes and I’ll come and sit down with you.”





RAISIN AND ALMOND CRUNCH COOKIES


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.



? cup salted butter, softened (1 stick, 4 ounces, ? pound)

? cup almond butter (I used Jif)

1 cup white (granulated) sugar

1 cup brown sugar (pack it down in the cup when you measure it)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 large eggs, beaten (just whip them up in a glass with a fork)

2 cups crushed salted potato chips (measure AFTER

crushing) (I used regular thin unflavored Lay’s potato chips)

2 and ? cups all-purpose flour (pack it down in the

cup when you measure it)

1 cup regular or golden raisins





Hannah’s 1st Note: 5 to 6 cups of whole potato chips will crush into about 2 cups.





Mix the softened, salted butter with the almond butter. Beat until they form a smooth mixture.





Add the white sugar and the brown sugar. Beat them until the mixture is light and fluffy.





Add the vanilla extract and the baking soda. Mix them in thoroughly.





Break the eggs into a glass and whip them up with a whisk or a fork. Add them to your bowl and mix until they’re thoroughly incorporated.





Put your potato chips in a closeable plastic bag. Seal it carefully (you don’t want crumbs all over your counter) and place the bag on a flat surface. Get out your rolling pin and roll it over the bag, crushing the potato chips inside. Do this until the pieces resemble coarse gravel. (If you crush them too much, you won’t have any crunch left.)





Measure out 2 cups of crushed potato chips and add them to the mixing bowl. Stir until they’re incorporated.





Add the flour in half-cup increments, mixing after each addition. (You don’t have to be exact – just eyeball it and add what you think is a half cup at a time.)





If you’re using an electric mixer, take the bowl out and scrape it down the sides with a rubber spatula.





Add the cup of raisins to your cookie dough. Mix them in by hand with a wooden spoon.





Let the dough sit on the counter while you prepare your cookie sheets.





Spray your cookie sheets with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray, or line them with parchment paper, leaving little “ears” at the top and bottom. That way, when your cookies are baked, you can pull the paper, baked cookies and all, over onto a wire rack to cool.





Drop your cookie dough by rounded teaspoons onto your cookie sheets, 12 cookies on each standard-sized sheet.





Hannah’s 2nd Note: Lisa and I use a 2-teaspoon cookie scoop when we bake these at The Cookie Jar. It’s faster than doing it with a spoon.





Bake your Raisin and Almond Crunch Cookies at 350 degrees F. for 10 to 12 minutes or until nicely browned. (Mine took 11 minutes.)





Let the cookies cool for 2 minutes on the cookie sheet. Then remove them with a metal spatula to wire racks to finish cooling. (If you used parchment paper, simply pull the paper over and onto the wire rack.)





Yield: Approximately 5 dozen chewy, sweet and salty cookies that are sure to please everyone who tastes them.





Hannah’s 3rd Note: This recipe can be doubled if you wish, but do not double the baking soda. Just use the 1 teaspoon it calls for in the original recipe.





Hannah’s 4th Note: These cookies are Norman’s favorite. Of course he always says that any new cookie he tastes is his new favorite. Andrea likes them too, even though she claims to hate raisins.





Chapter Twenty-three


The hamburgers were just as juicy and delicious as they always were, the fries and the onion rings were crispy, and the small dinner salads they ordered was cold and crunchy. They had two sides of blue cheese dressing apiece, one to spoon over their salads, and the other to use as a dip for their French fries and onion rings.

Hannah gave a satisfied sigh as she swallowed her last French fry and leaned back in her chair. “I’m full,” she declared.

“So am I, but I’ve got one onion ring left and I can’t let it go to waste.” Michelle picked up the final onion ring, dipped it in the blue cheese dressing, and munched until it was gone.