Author Liz Flaherty is joining me at the blog today with some “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” recipes that even a non-chef like me can do! The hero of her latest novel, Shades of Green, is definitely more culinarily gifted. Whether you’re a culinary genius or a never-cooker, you’ll find something to enjoy here!
Unlike me … way unlike me … Cari Newland, the heroine in Shades of Green, went to culinary school and specializes in desserts and soups. She actually cooks a lot more than that, butusing those two goes along with the recipes I’m sharing. My first thought when I considered doing a blog post about recipes was to find some handy Julia Child things I had tried. Only there weren’t any. While I don’t hate cooking and baking, I’ve been the chief cook and bottle-washer in our marriage for over 55 years—I’m really over it. I have a nice collection of cookbooks, some that were my grandmother’s, but most of the recipes I useare stolen and/or shockingly easy. Even their names, as you can see here, are … er … not particularly memorable.
Cake
- 1 boxed cake mix, flavor of your choice, 15½ ounces or thereabouts
- 12 ounces of carbonated soda (I use diet), whatever flavor seems to go with the cake mix
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Empty the mix into a large bowl and add the soda. Using a whisk, whisk it until it’s well combined. A couple of minutes at the most. Pour into a greased 9 X 13-inch baking pan or dish and bake for somewhere between 33 and 37 minutes, testing it for doneness with a toothpick.
I have read where others added an egg to this recipe, too, for protein, added richness, and structural binding. I have not done this, but if I remember next time, I will.
Allow the cake to cool pretty well to make it easy to cut. Ice as usual. I use sugar-free whipped topping instead to make it sort of diet. So far, my favorite has been German chocolate cake with Cherry Coke Zero, but I’m going to try lemon with Diet Sprite soon!
Soup
- 1 can Progresso Southwest-Style Black Bean Soup
- 5-ounce can chicken breast in water
- A small can or a cup of frozen corn (optional)
Heat over low heat until it’s heated through. Sprinkle shredded cheese over it if you like (I do.) Makes two good-size servings. You can also add some cooked rice or pasta for bulk and flavor.
Thanks for being here today, and thanks to Jacquie for having me! I hope you’ll visit Harper Loch. When I wrote Pieces of Blue, Maggie’s story, it was with the intent of it being a single title. However Ellie, from Patches of Red, and Cari had other ideas! I loved writing their stories and I hope you like reading them.
You can learn more about Liz’s books here:
Amazon: https://a.co/d/0dKnw8fA
D2D: https://books2read.com/u/3RRAgL
Thanks for hosting me, Jacquie!!!