Wedding Cake Murder (6 page)

“Yes. That’s what it says in the rules.”

“Then it’s a perfectly good tactic. Just say that since they moved the competition up two weeks, you didn’t have time to practice making your wedding cake and you wanted to try out your idea with them to see what they thought of your creation.”

“That’s brilliant, Nancy!” Delores exclaimed. “That’ll put the judges in the position of helping Hannah with something other than winning the competition. And everyone wants to help with a wedding, especially since they all might be there.”

“That makes sense,” Michelle said. “It might give you an edge over the other contestants.”

“But . . .” Hannah paused and gave a little frown. “Do you think that’s fair?”

“It’s fair,” Andrea said without hesitation. “All the other contestants will be researching the judges and trying to figure out how to use that information to their advantage. You’ll be able to do that too, but you’ll also have the advantage of getting married. And no one else will have that.” She turned to Aunt Nancy. “We’re just lucky you’re here to advise us.”

“Thank you.” Aunt Nancy looked pleased as she turned back to Hannah. “So what do you think? Do you want to bake a Double Rainbow Swirl Cake for your wedding?”

Hannah shrugged. “I don’t know. I haven’t even thought about that yet. What
is
a Double Rainbow Swirl Cake?”

“It’s a recipe I used to bake for special occasions, and it includes one of Allen’s favorite ingredients.” Aunt Nancy paused to smile. The smile was impish with a touch of smug mixed in, and Hannah knew Aunt Nancy had thought of a recipe that might give her another advantage over the other contestants.

“My Double Rainbow Swirl Cake starts with white cake batter. You can use your favorite white cake recipe. You’ll only bake two layers for the judges, but the cake should be quite heavy so that the layers don’t topple when you stack them up for your actual wedding cake.”

“And I’m volunteering right now to bake the actual cake for the wedding and decorate it,” Lisa declared.

“I’ll help you bake it,” Aunt Nancy offered.

“Thank you,” Hannah said gratefully. If the competition ended the day before she was married, she really wouldn’t have time to bake her own wedding cake.

“What makes it a Double Rainbow Swirl Cake?” Michelle asked Aunt Nancy.

“It uses different flavors of Jell-O for the colors.”

“Jell-O!” Andrea exclaimed, looking intrigued. “I make a poke cake that has two colors of Jell-O in it.”

Hannah hid a smile. When she’d driven Andrea to the hospital to have Bethie, Andrea had admitted that she bought the cake, ready-made, at the Lake Eden Red Owl Grocery store and simply added the Jell-O.

“This cake uses Jell-O powder that’s added to the cake batter,” Aunt Nancy told them. “You use three colors of Jell-O in one layer and three colors of Jell-O in the other layer.”

“It sounds intriguing,” Delores said.

“It is, and it’s also very pretty. The layers are stacked on top of each other and that means you could get all six colors and flavors in every slice.”

“It sounds perfect.” Hannah smiled at Aunt Nancy. “Thanks for being here. Your help is . . . well . . . invaluable.”

“I’ll taste the test cake,” Delores offered.

“Thank you, Mother,” Hannah said, and then she turned back to Aunt Nancy. “This is sounding better and better. What do you think I should do for the ‘free-for-all’? It’s the last challenge in the competition and . . .” she referred to her notes, “it consists of any baked or cooked dessert the contestant chooses to make.”

“You’ll have to think about that one,” Delores said. “You make so many good desserts. There’s always your great-grandmother’s apple pie. Everyone’s crazy about that.”

“I know. It’s a really good pie. But everybody’s going to be going all out for that final challenge. Do you think it’s special enough?”

“Maybe,” Aunt Nancy said. “Do you use a top crust, or a French crumble?”

“Hannah makes it both ways and gives us a choice,” Andrea told her. “I like the French crumble best.”

“And I like the top crust with a slice of really sharp cheddar on the side,” Michelle said.

Delores looked slightly embarrassed. “I usually have two pieces so I can taste them both. And I like vanilla ice cream on top of both of them.”

“I like the French crumble with sweetened whipped cream,” Lisa gave her preference.

“This is beginning to sound better and better,” Hannah said. “I could do all the variations with the crusts and the toppings. I’ve never met anyone who didn’t like apple pie.”

Andrea looked thoughtful. “I think you should offer the judges nutmeg on top of the whipped cream. Chef Christian always says that freshly grated nutmeg is a gift from the gods.”

“Good idea!” Hannah turned to smile at her. It seemed that Andrea had learned something from watching Christian Parker’s show. Then she glanced up at the clock on the wall and came close to groaning out loud. It was a quarter to three and she’d asked Norman to meet her at three for coffee. She had to ask him if he’d be a groomsman at the wedding and she wasn’t looking forward to the encounter. She liked Norman. Perhaps she even loved him. That wasn’t it, at all. Even though they were friends, it was bound to be a very uncomfortable encounter.

Hannah shut her notebook with a snap. “Thanks so much for helping me. I couldn’t do it without you. I think that’s enough planning for today. Can we all meet here again tomorrow at two o’clock? Michelle and I will bake tonight and we should have some samples by then for you to critique.”

Michelle waited until Delores and Andrea had left, and Lisa and Aunt Nancy had gone back out to the coffee shop. When they were alone, she turned to Hannah. “What’s going on? I saw you glancing at the clock. Is Ross coming here?”

“No, he’s going to come back to the condo for dinner at six, but then he has to go to Jordan High to cover the basketball game. The Gulls are playing the Browerville Tigers tonight.”

“KCOW is going to televise high school basketball?”

“They are now. It was Ross’s suggestion, and they decided to give it a try. Ross told them he was sure it would increase their viewers.”

“I think he’s right. Everyone in town supports the Gulls.”

“I know. And even if people go to the game, they’ll still record the coverage on KCOW and watch it again later.”

“You said that Ross isn’t getting to the condo until six?”

“That’s right. All we have to do is make some corn muffins to go with the Green Tomatillo Stew we started in the crockpot this morning. He can stop by after the game to have coffee and dessert with us. That’ll give us a chance to bake something.”

“That sounds good to me. I’ll make the corn muffins. I’ve got something I want to try anyway. But I still don’t understand why you kept glancing at the clock if Ross wasn’t coming here.”

Hannah sighed. Michelle was like a dog with a bone once she honed in on something. “I kept my eye on the time because I asked Norman to meet me here at three. And I didn’t want him to arrive when everyone was still here.”

“You asked Norman to come here?”

“Yes. I need to talk to him.”

“Oh, boy!” Michelle looked worried. “That might be very awkward for you. You haven’t talked to Norman since you decided to marry Ross, have you?”

“No. I didn’t know what to say.”

“And now you do?”

“I know what I have to say. I have to invite Norman to be part of the wedding party.”

“Oh, boy!” Michelle repeated. “You
did
ask Ross first, didn’t you?”

“Actually . . . no,
I
didn’t. Mother called Ross to ask him if he minded Norman and Mike being in the wedding party. And Ross said it was fine with him. He likes both of them.”

“
Mother
called Ross?”

“That’s right. And that’s not all. Then Mother called both Norman and Mike to sound them out about doing it. Grandma Knudson told me about it this morning.”

“This is really convoluted. Are you telling me that you knew nothing about it before this morning?”

“That’s right.”

“And you agreed to everything?”

“Yes. Grandma Knudson convinced me that it was the right thing to do.”

“Wait a minute. If Mother already talked to Norman and he said he’d do it, why are
you
asking him?”

“Because it’s the right thing to do,” Hannah repeated. “I’m the bride. I ought to talk to Norman and Mike about it.”

“Then they’re both coming here at three?”

“No, just Norman. Mike said he’d be here at four.”

“Mistake,” Michelle said. “You should have invited them to come together. They would have kept each other in check. Separating them means that each of them can tell you exactly how they feel about the fact that you’re marrying Ross. They wouldn’t do that in front of each other.”

“I know that, but I decided that this way would be fairer. Both of them are my friends . . . or at least they
were
my friends. I’ve been avoiding both of them, and that’s wrong. I should give them a chance to say whatever they want to say to me.”

“You’re probably right, but that doesn’t change the fact that you’re a glutton for punishment. Do you want me to stay here with you to help?”

“Now
you’re
being a glutton for punishment!” Hannah did her best to smile. “Thanks for the offer, but I have to see them alone. If they want privacy to give me a hard time, I’m going to give them the chance to do it. That way all of their feelings will be out in the open and we can put this whole thing behind us.”

“You hope.”

“Yes. I do.”

“Okay, but I still say you’re asking for it.” Michelle headed for the door to the coffee shop, but she turned back before she pushed it open. “Cookies!”

“What?”

“You’ll need cookies. I baked Chocolate Almond Crisps this morning, and I’ll put some on a platter for you. Chocolate would be best in case one or both of them gets upset. You’d better have one, too. Doc doesn’t think it works, but you might need a dose of chocolate endorphins.”

“That’s a good idea, Michelle.”

“I know. And then I’ll go out in the coffee shop and keep everyone else out of the kitchen while you talk to Norman. Just give me the high sign when he leaves. And I’ll do the same thing when you talk to Mike.”

“Thanks, Michelle.”

“You’re welcome. I just hope I don’t come back in here and find you in a little puddle on the floor!”

CHOCOLATE ALMOND CRISPS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F., rack in the middle position

1 cup melted butter
(2 sticks, 8 ounces, ½ pound)

1 cup white
(granulated)
sugar

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

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup almond butter
(I used Jif brand)

2 teaspoons vanilla

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

2 and ½ cups all-purpose flour
(pack it down in the cup when you measure it)

1 cup regular chocolate chips
(6-ounce net weight package or half a 12-ounce package—I used Nestle)

Microwave the butter in a microwave-safe mixing bowl to melt it. This should take about 90 seconds on HIGH.

Add the white sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix until everything is combined.

Measure out one cup of almond butter.

Hannah’s 1
^st
Note: Spray the inside of the measuring cup with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray before you put in the almond butter to measure it. Then the almond butter won’t stick to the sides and bottom of the measuring cup, and it will be easier to remove.

Add the almond butter to your bowl and mix it in. Continue mixing until the contents are thoroughly incorporated.

Mix in the vanilla and the beaten eggs. Continue to mix until the contents are completely combined.

Add the flour in half-cup increments, mixing after each addition. Continue mixing until the cookie batter is smooth.

If you used an electric mixer, scrape down the bowl, give it a final stir, and mix in the chocolate chips by hand.