Murder by Chance (Betty Chance Mystery) (22 page)
Read Murder by Chance (Betty Chance Mystery) Online
Authors: Pat Dennis
Lori gulped. “A professional accounting firm? It’s really no problem for me to handle the money.”
Betty smiled warmly. “No really. When we get back I insist on hiring a firm to handle the money. It’s time we did an audit anyway.”
Lori lifted her tear-filled eyes. “Sure, it’s time we did that. We should have been doing it all along. But, once we do, I hope you’ll always let me be a part of Take A Chance.”
“You better be,” Hannah called from nearby. “You’re the only good thing about the company.”
Lori said, “Thanks, Hannah. I needed that.” But she added diplomatically, “But Aunt Betty and Tillie are just as good as I am, if not better.”
“Humph!” Hannah sputtered and turned her attention to Betty. She said, “Lucky for you, I still have enough money left in my bank account after this crummy trip to go on your next tour!”
“Lucky for me,” Betty responded, her fingers crossed behind her back.
Hannah spun on her heels to climb the steps into the bus. She hesitated as she placed her foot on the first step. Betty realized she needed help, and gently place her hand on Hannah’s elbow to give her a lift up. Without uttering a word of rebuke, Hannah accepted Betty’s help like she always did at the end of their journey.
Betty looked around at the bustling atmosphere of tour bus departures just as multitudes of new guests were arriving. Over the milling of the crowd, she heard a “Woo-hoo!” from another tour operator. It made her chuckle. It was always exciting to arrive at a casino with a busload of gamblers. For Betty’s group, she could feel the contentment of a job well done. The tour had, against all odds, ended smoothly and she could tell that her passengers were pleased.
She watched as a hotel staffer finished placing bags into the luggage compartment and closed the door. He gave the driver a thumbs-up. The tour was officially over and a new one would soon begin.
She buttoned up her coat and thought, “Lucky for all of us.”
Buffet Betty’s Blog
www.buffetbetty.com
Hungry Moose Buffet: Five Popped Buttons!
In only one hour, our tour bus will leave the Moose Bay Casino. I can tell by your posted comments that most of you are aware of what’s happened on this trip. News about murder and mayhem certainly travels at lightning speed across the Internet! And if you’re wondering if what you’ve read—a murder in a locked bathroom, a murderous passenger disguised as an elderly man, and a gang of international counterfeiters at Moose Bay—is true? Well, yes it is. But, pretty much when you run a tour company that specializes in casino junkets, anything can, and usually does happen. It’s not all jackpots and buffets!
But if you don’t mind, I want to be fair to Moose Bay. Forget about the murders and the phony money for a while. Moose Bay is wonderful and I want to you visit as soon as possible. So, let’s concentrate on the Hungry Moose Buffet and not the horrible events of the last few days. Plus, I want all of you to drive to Moose Bay! Don’t worry about driving when there’s six feet of snow on the ground, or that a real Moose might cross the highway at any given point. Moose Bay is worth the trip. For one thing, the loose slots that they advertise really are loose. I put ten bucks in a multi-progressive and walked away with a crisp twenty-dollar bill an hour later. Woo-hoo! Ten bucks profit for hour of fun! Life doesn’t get any better than that!
And the food? Fantastic! From locally grown ingredients to international cuisine expertly prepared, I gladly give five popped buttons to the Hungry Moose Buffet at Moose Bay Casino. Following are three recipes I wheedled from their chef for you to enjoy!
END
PECAN CRUSTED WALLEYE
2 walleye fillets (1/2 lb. each)
Flour seasoned with salt and pepper
1 large egg, slightly beaten
¾ cup finely chopped pecans
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons minced scallion
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 ripe pear, peeled and cut into slices
¼ cup white wine
juice of ½ lemon
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons bleu cheese
Dredge walleye in flour, shake off excess, dip in egg and coat in pecans. Melt butter and sauté walleye 6 minutes on each side. Transfer fillets to a plate and cover to keep warm.
Drain excess grease. Add scallions and pear. Cook 1 to 2 minutes. Add wine, and cook a few more minutes. Add cream, season with salt and pepper. Add lemon juice. At the last minute, add the bleu cheese and spoon over the fish.
NEW ORLEANS BREAD PUDDING
Bourbon Sauce:
½ cup bread melted butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup Kentucky bourbon whiskey
Bread Pudding:
1 loaf of stale French bread, cut into 1-inch squares (6 -7 cups)
1 quart milk.
3 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla
1 cup raisins (soaked overnight in ¼ cup bourbon)
½ teaspoon allspice
1/3 to ½ teaspoon cinnamon
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
Instructions:
Bourbon Sauce:
In a saucepan, melt butter; add sugar and egg, whisking it together. Stir constantly over low heat until the mixture thickens. (Do not allow to simmer because it could curdle.) Whisk in bourbon to taste. Remove from heat. Whisk again before serving. The sauce should be creamy and smooth.
The Pudding
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Soak the bread in milk in a large mixing bowl. Press with hands until well mixed and all the milk absorbed. In a separate bowl, beat eggs, sugar, vanilla and spices together. Gently stir into the bread mixture. Stir the raisins into the mixture.
Pour butter into the bottom of a 9”x13” baking pan. Coat the bottom and the sides of the pan with butter. Pour in the bread mix and bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes, until set. The pudding is done when the edges start browning and pulling away from the edge of the pan. Serve with bourbon whiskey sauce on the side; pour on to taste. Best fresh and eaten the day it is made. Makes 8-10 servings.
MAPLE WALNUT PUMPKIN PIE
Ingredients:
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon maple flavoring
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ginger
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Walnut Topping:
1 (9 inch) Graham cracker pie crust
½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter
½ cup chopped walnuts
Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In large mixing bowl, combine pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, eggs, cinnamon, maple flavoring, ginger, nutmeg and salt; mix well. Pour into pie shell. Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes. Reduce oven to 350 degrees F; continue baking 30 minutes. In medium mixing bowl, combine brown sugar, flour and cinnamon; cut-in butter until crumbly. Stir in nuts. Remove pie from oven; top evenly with crumb mixture. Return to oven 10 minutes. Cool. Garnish with chopped walnuts as desired. Store covered in refrigerator.
Killed by Chance is the second book in the Betty Chance Mystery series by Pat Dennis.
Take a Chance Tours is on the road again – this time to the casinos and mouth-watering buffets of Biloxi, Mississippi. Betty Chance hosts the tour, along with perky effervescent bus driver Tillie McFinn. Riding along are the original fan club members for Bradford and the Beekeepers, a popular rock and roll group of the 50s and 60s. The chance to see their idol perform live once again in concert is priceless to Bradford’s ardent followers.
Only problem is, the itinerary includes a bit of kidnapping, murder, and alligators. Betty puts her amateur sleuth ability to work and, with the help of Tillie and her niece Lori, they search for the killer.
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Pat Dennis is the award-winning author of
Hotdish To Die For
, a collection of six mystery short stories where the weapon of choice is hotdish, deadly recipes included. Readers demanding more were rewarded with
Hotdish Haiku
, featuring 50 haiku and recipes from her and other writers.
Murder by Chance
is the first of her Betty Chance Mysteries series. Killed by Chance, will be published in November, 2015.
Pat’s short stories and humor appear in many anthologies, including Anne Frasier’s
Deadly Treats
;
Who Died in Here?
;
The Silence of the Loons: Resort to Murder
;
Fifteen tales of Murder, Mayhem
and
Malice From the Land of Minnesota Nice
;
Once Upon a Crime Anthology
; Writes of Spring; and
Mood Change
. She is the author of the novel
Stand-Up and Die
.
The Witches of Dorkdom
, a middle school fantasy and mystery novel was published under her pseudonym, Nora England. Pat performed as a stand-up comedian with over 1,000 performances at comedy clubs, Fortune 500 companies, Women’s Expos, and special events. She has appeared on the same venue as Lewis Black, Phyllis Diller, and David Brenner. Visit her at www.patdennis.com. For recipes, contests and restaurant reviews visit Pat and her alter ego “Betty Chance” and www.buffetbetty.com.
I am indebted, as always to my friends and fellow writers: Marilyn Victor, Lance Zarimba, Theresa Weir (aka Anne Frasier) Lori L. Lake, Peter Schneider, Chris Everheart, Gary Bush, Wendy Nelson and Pat Frovarp. And I am in awe of my amazing editor Nick Dimassis, for not only doing such a brilliant job, but for believing in the book.
NOVELS
Who Died in Here?
Hotdish Haiku
NOVELS WRITTEN AS NORA ENGLAND
ANTHOLOGIES / PAT DENNIS
Anne Frasier’s
Deadly Treats
The Silence of the Loons
Resort to Murder
Fifteen Tales of Murder, Mayhem and Malice
Once Upon A Crime Anthology
Writes of Spring
Cooked To Death
(Fall 2016)