Transfer the sautéed onions and garlic into the bottom of your crockpot.
Add the 3 cans of beef broth and stir them in.
Add the 4 beef bouillon cubes and stir them in.
Add the cup of water and stir that in.
Add the Worcestershire sauce and black pepper and stir them in.
Cover the crock pot and cook your soup on LOW heat for 5 to 8 hours. (If you’re in a hurry, you can cook this on HIGH heat for 2 and ? to 3 hours.)
Before serving your French Onion Soup, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
Turn off the crockpot and add the 2 ounces of cognac or brandy to your soup and stir it in thoroughly. Re-cover the crock and set it on a towel on the kitchen counter.
Slice the French bread into 1-inch-thick slices and butter both sides. Then place them on the cookie sheet.
When the oven comes up to temperature, put the cookie sheet in the oven for 2 minutes or until the top has toasted. Then take it out, place it on a cool stovetop burner, and flip the bread over to the uncooked side.
Place the cookie sheet back in the oven and bake for another 2 minutes or until the top is nice and golden brown.
Take the cookie sheet out of the oven, place it on the stovetop burner again, and sprinkle on the grated Gruyere or Swiss cheese.
Return the cookie sheet to the oven until the cheese has melted, while you fill your soup bowls with onion soup from the crockpot.
Take the toasted cheese bread from the oven and place one slice, cheese side up, on top of each bowl of your onion soup. Your guests will love this soup. It rivals anything that’s served in fancy French restaurants.
Chapter Seventeen
“I wish I knew how to drive a boat like this,” Andrea said as they headed back to the Lake Eden Inn. “This is a lot newer than Bill’s boat and has a lot more bells and whistles. And it looks like it’s fun to drive.”
“It is. Why don’t you try it, Andrea? It’s just like driving a car, and there’s no one else even close to us on the lake.”
Andrea began to smile. “Are you sure?” she asked.
“I’m sure. If you get into trouble, I’ll be right next to you. I’m sure you can keep this one afloat.”
“I’d really like to try,” Andrea said. “Are you sure it’ll be okay with Dick?”
“I’m sure. He let me drive it without even asking if I’d ever driven a boat like his.”
“He’s probably got really good insurance,” Andrea said, and Hannah noticed that there was a grin at the corners of her sister’s mouth.
“He probably does,” Hannah agreed and then she laughed out loud. “Don’t worry, Andrea. We’re a long way from the dock and there’s absolutely nothing to hit out here. Even if you have trouble steering, you can’t mess up too badly.”
“Oh, no? Remember the first time Dad took me out in the car for a driving lesson?”
Hannah burst into laughter. “He was more ready for you than he was for me. I did exactly the same thing when we came to a corner. I didn’t realize that I had to slow down so I took it too fast, and almost went into the ditch.”
“He never told me that!” Andrea said, laughing along with Hannah. “Do you think he forgot about it?”
“I doubt it. Maybe he just wanted to see if excessive speed on corners ran in our family.”
“Do you mean Michelle did the same thing?”
“That’s what Dad said when he called me right after Michelle’s first driving lesson.”
“I wonder if Mother—”
“She did,” Hannah interrupted her. “I asked her about it. Her parents never let her drive their car and they didn’t teach driver’s education in the schools back then. Dad had to teach her how to drive after they got married.”
“We’re almost in, Hannah,” Andrea said as the dock appeared in the distance. “I’m not sure I know how to park this boat.”
“You mean . . . how to dock it?”
“Yes. What do you do? Just shut off the motor?”
“It’s a little more complicated than that. I’ll do it, Andrea. You can watch.”
“Oh, good!” Andrea looked very relieved as they switched seats. “I really wouldn’t want to have to tell Dick that I broke his boat.”
Once Hannah had docked Dick’s boat, the two sisters hurried up to the Inn. They entered the lobby and Hannah glanced over at the desk clerk. “Isn’t that Sally’s night desk clerk, Andrea?”
“I think so. He looks like the same person.”
“Great! Come with me. I want to ask him if he was here the morning that Sonny was killed.”
“Good idea! Are you hoping he saw something?”
“Saw or heard something,” Hannah amended the thought. “He must be working double shifts now that the college is on semester break.”
“Hi, Craig,” Hannah said, reading his name tag to get his name.
“Hello, Miss Swensen. Good to see you again.” The desk clerk gave her a friendly smile. “And this is your sister, right?”
“That’s right, but I’m not Miss Swensen anymore. Now I’m Mrs. Todd.”
“The sheriff’s wife. Sally told me that.”
“Were you here the night that Sonny Bowman got so drunk they had to carry him up to his room?” Hannah asked.
“You bet I was! I held the elevator door open for Doc so they could get the stretcher inside. I’ve never seen anyone quite that wasted, not even at the frat house parties.”
“You live at the frat house?” Andrea asked.
“Not right now. They’re painting the inside of the place and Sally found a room for me here. That way I don’t have to drive back and forth and I can work double shifts when she needs me.”
“I bet Sally’s taking full advantage of that,” Hannah said, and then she smiled.
“She is and that suits me just fine. Sally pays really well and I do little odd jobs for her during the day. She doesn’t charge me for the room and she feeds me all sorts of great food. If I have to pull an all-nighter, she even brings me rolls and coffee the minute they’re ready in the morning.”
“Were you here when Lily came in late that night?”
“I was here, and so was Rosa. I think Lily called Rosa to tell her that she was coming.”
“You’re probably right,” Hannah agreed.
“I met Lily before the fishing competition started,” Craig told them. “She came here with Wally the week before the contestants came in.”
“How about Sonny?” Andrea asked. “Did he come here, too?”
Craig shook his head. “Not him. I asked, and Lily told me he was busy shooting another fishing show at a different lake.”
“How about Lily’s mother?” Hannah asked. “Did she come along with her husband and daughter?”
Craig shook his head. “I just met her for the first time this morning. Sally introduced me.”
Hannah knew it was time to get down to the questions she really wanted to ask before someone else came in and needed something from the desk clerk. “Were you working when Sonny and Joey went out on the boat two mornings ago?”
“Yes. Actually, I think Sonny was still drunk from the night before. I thought, for sure, that Doc would have given him something to sober him up, but he was still acting like he’d had more than a couple.”