Knowing the Struggle is Over! - K. M. Johnson, Author

Banana Cream Trifle
K. M. Johnson's Recipe

1 pkg (4 serving size) vanilla instant pudding and pie filling
2 cups cold milk
6 cups banana bread, cut into 1" cubes
3 ripe medium bananas, sliced
1 container (8 oz.) frozen whipped topping, thawed

Prepare pudding in a large bowl as directed on package using 2 cups of milk. Layer half of the bread cubes, pudding, banana slices & whipped topping in a 2 qt. serving bowl. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Cover and refrigerate until serving time but no longer than 24 hours. Cover and refrigerate any remaining dessert.

Knowing the Struggle is Over! - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

K. M. Johnson is a remarkable woman. She has been in the U. S. Army for 12 years. She served her first four years on active duty, the other eight in the Reserves. She recently completed her 12 month tour in Iraq. Whether you are man or woman, that's impressive to me. The hardships she has gone through in life and her way of handling life's battles has become an inspiration to me. Whenever I've had a hard day or life has thrown more problems at me than I feel I can handle, I simply ask myself "What would K. M. do?" I then pick up Knowing the Struggle is Over, read a couple of pages and feel much better. Through following the three simple steps suggested by K. M., I have developed the courage to face problems and start the process of dissolving them. Knowing the Struggle is Over has become a book that I keep on my bedside table. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

Reflections of a Mississippi Magnolia - Patricia Neely-Dorsey, Author

Dump Peach Cobbler - One of
Patricia Neely-Dorsey's Favorite Recipes
You need
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
1 stick butter
1 large can Peaches DO NOT drain

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Mix flour and milk, in 9x9 square Pyrex dish..., add sugar, dump can of peaches and juice into it mixture,cut butter into patties and put on top. Bake for 1 hr. and enjoy...

A cobbler that EVEN an "Undomestic Diva" such as myself can make!!!!!
(Recipe from a very domestic blogger friend)

The (Un) Domestic Diva
I don't cook and I don't sew.
And I can hardly make a bed;
I don't even grocery shop,
To keep my family fed.
My friends are always wondering,
And often ask what it is I do;
Now, I can just simply say,
I write sweet poems for you.

from Reflections of a Mississippi Magnolia-A Life in Poems
copyright 2008


Reflections of a Mississippi Magnolia - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat
I don't think I've ever picked up a book that brings back as many memories as Reflections of a Mississippi Magnolia. And the memories were all good memories. It made me remember growing up in the south and participating in the activities the poems represent. From the "Partyline" which talks about growing up with a telephone number shared by others, to the "Baptismal Sunday" which took place in a pond instead of a baptismal pool, and on to the "Making Cracklins" which I can still see my grandmother doing.

I have many favorites in this little book of memories but two that touched me the most were "Shelling Peas" and "Slopping Hogs." These two poems really took me back to my childhood while growing up in the south. So, if you are a Southerner and would like to awaken some memories of when life was more laid back, this book is a must read. If you're not from the south, reading Reflections of a Mississippi Magnolia will let you see what you missed. For me, this is a book I'll cherish forever.

Lost Witness - Laura Elvebak, Author

Easy Vegetable Beef Soup,
One of Laura Elvebak's favorite recipes
1 lb stew beef cut in bite-sized pieces

Roll in flour and season with garlic salt and All Purpose Seasoning
Pour a TBS of extra virgin olive in a large pot and braise the beef chunks over medium high heat. Add three 14 oz cans of beef broth and one cup of water and stir

Add:

Four medium red potatoes cut in cubes
Four celery stalks sliced
A cup of cut carrots
One small white onion cut in fourths
Two sliced zucchini squash
Two sliced yellow squash
1/4 – ½ small cabbage
Pinch or two thyme, basil, oregano, tarragon, and 2 bay leaves

Heat over medium high heat until bubbling
Simmer for two hours until meat and vegetable are tender

It's great on cold nights. Very filling. I serve it with hot biscuits or garlic bread.
Laura Elvebak


Lost Witness - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat'Barky looked forward to celebrating his sixteenth birthday by getting high. He grinned at his reflection in the storefront window, admiring the Mohawk he had shaped with a discarded razor in the Shop-N-Stop restroom. With a furtive sweep of the street, he veered off onto a gravel drive behind a strip mall. Satisfied no one could see him, he two-fingered the blunt from his jeans pocket. Soo-weeeet!... A noise distracted him and he coughed out smoke. His eyes snapped open. He froze. Sounded like a rat. Barky hated rats, terrified they'd find him asleep in some doorway and use his skinny-ass body for an appetizer.'

Barky is a street kid and when he picks up a tire iron and goes in search of the rat that interrupted his birthday celebration he found instead the beaten body of a woman. But that's not all he found. Hidden behind the dumpster was the woman's child who clung to Barky like glue. Wednesday was "Street Church" night so when he spotted Niki in the crowd he decided she would be the perfect person to turn his little friend over to. Niki is an ex-police officer who works as a counselor at Open Palm, a shelter for street kids. Barky was one of her "kids" so he knew she would take good care of the little boy.

After talking to the police, Niki learns that the child's mother was a drug mule smuggling drugs from Mexico into Houston. As much as she would love to keep him, Niki knows that she must turn him over to social services who will place him in a foster home. But when he turns up missing, she will leave no rock unturned until she finds him.

Lost Witness is a spell binding story that involves murder, drugs and love. It gives you the insite of what really goes on in the minds of the kids that have been swept out into the streets by parents and society. It gives you hope that people like Niki really do exist and their devotion to these kids will making a difference. Plus, Lost Witness will make you realize that the drug dealers will stop at nothing to acquire their drugs and make their sales. This was a very intense book that I couldn't put down.

Tilly's Tale - Harry Porter, Author

Tilly Tale Treats
These treats were created by Jenn DiPiazza
The Leftover Queen


2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup non-fat dry milk powder (we actually had this in our hurricane stash!)
1/2 tsp salt
6 TBS butter
1 egg
1 cup water
3 tsp wheat bran
3 TBS Peanut Butter

METHOD:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Put butter and egg in food processor and process until smooth. In a bowl mix the flour, milk powder, salt and wheat bran together. Add flour mixture, PB and water alternately to butter and egg mixture and pulse processor until the dough has come together into a nice ball (you may not need to use all the water).

Roll the dough out onto a floured surface and roll to about 1/2 inch thickness. If you have a cookie cutter, cut the shapes out. If not, you can use the Roberto method. Cut small (about 2 inch long) rectangles in the dough with a knife.

Fold piece in half lengthwise. Squish the middle of each end towards the center to make the 2 rounded knobs at each end. Flip over to smooth side and place on a cookie sheet (don’t worry about spacing, they aren’t going to grow).

Bake for about 15 minutes, flip and then bake another 3-4 minutes. Place on cookie racks to cool and keep out overnight to harden.

Makes about 60-70 cookies.


Tilly's Tale - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

First let me say that I'm an animal lover. It doesn't matter what the animal might be, I love them all but dogs are my favorite. They give non-conditional love no matter what you may do to them or how you may treat them. After reading the first few pages of Tilly's Tale I had to put the book down, hold my own dog and cry. The neglect of this beautiful animal tore at my heart. The more I read, the more I held my dog, Puff, and cried. When Tilly was finally taken to the shelter I had some relief from the pain that I felt for her, but when she was rescued and taken to her new home I have to admit that I still cried but they were tears of joy and happiness.

Tilly's Tale is a book that EVERYONE should read. If you are an animal lover and owner, like me, you will cherish your little angels even more. If you are not an animal lover, you may become one after reading Tilly's Tale. Animals that we make into pets, especially dogs, are God sent guardian angels and deserve the respect, love and kindness that you would give any angel. This is one book that I can't praise enough. It's a book I recommend to everyone, including kids. It has a message in it for all of us.

My Husband's Woman - Dee Dee M. Scott, Author

Sweet and Tangy ribs with a side dish of cheesy mac
Sweet and Tangy sauce
A favorite Recipe of Dee Dee M. Scott

one bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce (I use hickory smoked)
1/2 cup of ketchup
4 teaspoons of sugar
3 ounces of vinegar
3 ounces of mustard
3 ounces of hot sauce
3/4 cup onion,chopped
1/2 cup of oil

Season and cook ribs until they are tender and set aside. In a skillet, over low heat, saute chopped onion in 1/2 cup of oil until tender. Stir in ketchup, sugar, vinegar, mustard and hot sauce. Simmer for half hour to 45 minutes. Dip cooked, tender ribs in sauce and bake in a pan at 325 for thirty minutes.

Side dish Chessy mac

4 cups of cooked elbow macaroni, drained
3 cups of granted, sharp cheddar cheese
4 blocks of sharp cheddar cheese cut in cubes
1/2 cup of sour cream
1/2 teaspoon of salt
2 cups of milk.
teaspoon of mustard or dry mustard

Place cooked noddles in a baking dish. Pour two cups of milk into a pan and add 4 blocks of cheese cut in cubes. Simmer until melted into a cheesy sauce. While sauce is preparing, mix 1/2 cup of sour cream,1/2 teaspoon of salt, and dry mustard with noodles evenly. Once sauce is ready, pour over noodles. Top with 3 cups of granted sharp cheddar cheese and bake at 325 for thirty to 45 minutes.

My Husband's Woman - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

"It's obvious you've made a few mistakes," Meshia replied over the sudden din. "Maybe your mistakes had nothing to do with cheating with a married man, but you made a bad choice that landed you in here. So sit back and listen to my story, and maybe you'll see that I can help. I'm here today to talk about choices. The choices you make can ruin or even take your life. I want to share with you a choice I made, and the steep price I paid for it. I promise you, by the time I'm finished, you will think more carefully about the things you do and the choices you make."

When I read a book for review, I do no research on the book. I don't read other reviews, I don't go to the Author's site, I want to judge the book on it's own with no outside influence. When I read this paragraph at the beginning of My Husband's Woman I thought, 'this may be a book that will have a hard time holding my interest.' Boy was I wrong! I'm getting over the flu and spent a couple of days in the bed with nothing to do but sleep and read. I picked up My Husband's Woman one of those bed ridden days and didn't put it down until I finished it that same night.

There are three main characters with a fourth being added near the end. Byron is the husband of Alexandra. He loves his wife and has provided a picture perfect life for her through his law practice. That is until he met Meshia. Byron met Meshia on a professional level when she needed an attorney to sue the city after an accident that killed her mother. This 20 year old beauty was just the thing Byron needed to add a little spice to his life.

Byron kept Meshia in line by telling him the usual lines told by men who cheat on their wives. He promised her a life, family and love if she would give him time to straighten a few things out at home. And of course, Meshia believed him because she loved him.

But what happened after the affair had been going on for a couple of years and Alexandra finds out? The events that take place as Alexandra bestows her revenge on both Byron and Meshia were a total surprise to me. The imagination of Author Dee Dee M. Scott is unbelievable as she steers Alexandra through the payback that she inflicts on both her husband and his girlfriend. And the ending... I've already put in my request for the sequel. This is truly an entertaining, enjoyable book that will keep you guessing and on the edge from beginning to end.

CEOs Don't Cry - Joselyn Vaughn, Author

Artichoke Dip -
One of Joselyn Vaughn's Favorite Recipes
It’s awesome.



1 can of artichoke hearts chopped. Small can is best and not marinated.
½ cup mayo
½ cup Parmesan cheese
Pinch of garlic salt
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (save some for the top)

Mix and place in small baking dish or pie plate. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.



CEOs Don't Cry - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

'"Could this day get any worse?" Leslie Knotts muttered to herself, eyeing the watermark-circled hole in the ceiling tiles above her head. Thudding and muffled expletive rumbled from the hole. She yanked her cashmere scarf from her neck and stomped the slush off of her Prada heels. She took one look around her new office in the Carterville branch of Hanston and Boyd Accounting and gasped. This place was a mere phone call away from being condemned.'

How can a city girl from Chicago be expected to take an office that is in such a rambling mess and be expected to turn it into a profitable branch? This is only one problem Leslie faces after being passed over for a junior partnership with Hanston and Boyd. Her dreams of becoming a CEO are pushed into almost non-existence after being transferred to a small town called Cartersville which exists out in the middle of nowhere. She had spent her whole life climbing the corporate ladder just to have one of her co-workers, Chuck, went behind her back and had her moved to this destitute town. Things couldn't get any worse.

Oh but they can and they do. Leslie meets Mark, the nephew of the lady who owns the bed and breakfast where she will be staying while she brings the branch into the 21st century. Mark is a handyman who wants to start his own construction business. Leslie decides to hire him to basically revamp the full interior of the office, and she needs it finished before tax season starts in full force. Again, in steps Chuck to destroy her plans and dreams.

On top of all of her other problems, Leslie learns that there is a group in town called the Library Ladies and Mark's Aunt Minnie is one of the ring leaders. Their purpose in life is to match unmarried men with unmarried women and their success rate is 100%. So, with Mark being single and Leslie being new to town as well as single, they make a perfect match. At least that's what they think but Mark and Leslie have their own plans for their futures and marriage isn't one of them. How do they fight the Library Ladies 100% success rate? You will have to read the book to find that answer.

CEOs Don't Cry has everything needed to make an enjoyable, lighthearted romance novel. The humor provided by the Library Ladies will keep you smiling and laughing throughout the book. Leslie's method of overcoming the obstacles bestowed on her are quite ingenious. Once I started reading CEOs Don't Cry, I didn't want to put it down. So what will Leslie do when the chance comes for her to have her life long dreams come true? You'll have to read CEOs Don't Cry to find the answer to that question.

Cheater BBQ - Mindy Merrell & R. B. Quinn, Authors

One of my favorite recipes from this book

1 bath of brine (recipe in book)
One 3 lb. pork loin
vegetable oil
2 Tbl. Cheater Basic Dry Rub (recipe in book)

Brine the loin for 4 - 6 hours in the refrigerator.

Heat oven to 500 degrees

Drain loin, discarding the brine. Rinse and pat dry. Place the loin in a large roasting pan and brush with a light coating of vegetable oil. Sprinkle all sides of the loin with the dry rub. Place in the oven and immediately reduce the heat to 300 degrees. Cook for 1 hour or until a meat thermometer reaches 155 degrees. Let rest for 10-15 minutes before slicing.

Cheater BBQ - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

This has to be one of the best indoor BBQ cookbooks I've ever read and used. In the recipe above I used the Apple Cider Brine, which I choose from a total of 4 simple recipes. Out of the twelve rubs and sauces to choose from I decided to use the Cheater Basic Dry Rub. The combination of the brine and rub gave my pork loin a wonder taste and a tender, juicy texture. I've served this to 4 of my "food testers" so far and they have given this dish a 10+. So this is a real winner.

As I've read through the other recipes in Cheater BBQ and have marked at least 10 more dishes to make. I miss grilling during the winter months and with the use of the bottled smoke that is applied to each dish, I can now enjoy the same taste year round. This is a must have cookbook for winter grilling as well as those summer days when it's simply too hot to fire up the grill.

It's In The Eyes - Charles Toftoy, Author

COCONUT MACAROONS DIPPED IN CHOCOLATE
One of Charles Toftoy's favorite recipes

2- 14oz bags Bakers flake coconut
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup flour
1 t salt
13 egg whites,large(not jumbo)
4 t almond extract.

Chocolate Coating
18 oz. of semi-sweet chocolate morsels(1 6oz bag and 1 12oz bag)
2 T shortening

Combine ingredients; stir well. Drop by level tablespoons onto a (Pam sprayed) greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, until brown around edges. Remove from baking sheets at once, cool on wire racks. When cool, dip one-third of each cookie in melted chocolate/shortening mixture that has been melted in double boiler. Place on wax paper lined baking sheet, chill until firm. Can be stacked after chilled. Keep refrigerated. Can be made three days before needed. ENJOY!ENJOY!ENJOY!


It's in the Eyes - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

'"Please get him." Lars looked down at her and flashbacked three years, as if he was seeing his own daughter at the morgue. Candance Hawthorne, the fourth rape and murdered coed, was almost an identical twin of Lars' daughter, Lisa. As he looked at Candance's face, he recognized some of those facial features. And the blue eyes seemed to be staring intently at him. A tear stung Lars' eyes. Even though the temperature outside the Lubber Run Nature Center was a warm 62 degrees Fahrenheit, he felt a chill.'

Lars Neilsen is a West Pointer who served three tours in Vietnam as a ranger/paratrooper, Special Operations. He was awarded the DSC, three Silver Stars, two Purple Hearts and many other awards while serving his country. He knows the streets, is clever and has good instincts. He also believes in justice for the victims and has no problem in carrying out whatever needs to be done to acquire that justice. But most important, Lars heads a team he created called the Alpha Team. The Alpha Team takes their position seriously and won't stop until their job is complete.

Nathan Green, called 'Tiger', originally from New Orleans, served with Lars in Vietnam. Tiger was a sergeant in the military and was very accomplished in the Special Ops by performing top secret missions. He, as well as Lars, has a brown belt in Tae Kwon Do and won't hesitate to use this art of defense when needed.

Doris Wagner was a former FBI profiler and recognized as their best. Her husband died in the World Trade Center on 9/11, draining her emotionally. She now does part-time work for the FBI. She's clairvoyant, into astrology and develops clinical psychological leads to uncover criminals.

Brenda Little is a journalist who helped break a big murder case in Richmond. She was hired by the Washington Post but burned out after six years and now does freelance work. She studied criminal justice at the University of Maryland, her father was a metro cop killed in the line of duty and she has a black belt in Tae Kwo Do.

Now you know the Alpha Teams. When Candance Hawthorne was raped and murdered the Alpha Team was hired by the family to find her killer. This case turns out to be the toughest case the team has encountered.

I've enjoyed following Lars and his team as they search for the 'Coed Killer', only to find out that there is not one killer but two, bringing even more excitement to the story. Charles Toftoy created 4 characters, dedicated them to justice, but still give the reader the feel that these 4 characters are normal everyday people. He does this through the jokes and humor of 'Tiger', the compassion of Brenda, the confused lifestyle and childhood memories of Doris and the pain felt by Lars due to the death of his wife and daughter. I couldn't help but enjoy It's in the Eyes and look forward to reading it's sequel Eyes of Cold Case Killers.