“That sounds wonderful, dear!” Delores looked vastly relieved. “I knew I could count on you girls to help me find a suitable place to hold the event. And . . . I probably shouldn’t ask this because I know you’re so busy here for Valentine’s Day, but do you think you could handle the catering for my book launch?”
Hannah exchanged glances with Michelle. Their sisterly telepathy was operating well because Michelle gave a very slight nod and Hannah caught it immediately. “Of course we can, Mother. Don’t worry about a thing. Michelle and I will make sure the refreshments are handled.”
“Thank you!” Delores said, sounding very grateful for their help. “I must get back and tell Carrie. Do you think you could pack up some of those cookies for Carrie and Doc now?”
Michelle jumped to her feet. “I’ll do it. Sit and finish your coffee, Mother. We can discuss what you want us to bake sometime in the week before the launch. Right now, we’re all trying to come up with Valentine recipes.”
“I can help you with that,” Delores offered. “I think you should make things with chocolate. Everyone I know loves chocolate. Do you think you could make some bar cookies with chocolate and butterscotch?”
“I’m sure we could,” Hannah told her.
“Then I know that Doc will order tons of them to give to his nurses at the hospital. They have a Valentine’s party every year. And I’ll tell everyone I know that you’re making them. Most of my friends will come in to order some for their Valentine’s Day parties. Everyone loves chocolate. And everyone loves butterscotch, too.”
Hannah considered that for a moment. “Of course we can do that, Mother. We’ll come up with a recipe and give you a sample to taste. If you like it, we’ll make sure we have them available for your book launch, too.”
“Wonderful!” Delores accepted the plastic-wrapped plate that Michelle had just filled for her. “Thank you, dears. Will you have fresh cookies ready for me to taste for breakfast tomorrow morning?”
“Yes, we will, we always have fresh cookies at The Cookie Jar,” Hannah promised her.
“Oh, good! You girls have a wonderful evening and I’ll check in with you again tomorrow to find out whether there’s enough seating at the clubhouse.”
Hannah made a mental note to herself. Check clubhouse for seating. Then she locked the door behind their mother and turned to Michelle. “Did we just agree to cater Mother’s book launch party and provide the venue for her?”
Michelle laughed. “We certainly did! Now I know why everyone in town thinks Mother is such a dynamo when it comes to organizing things.”
“Why do you think she’s such a dynamo?”
“Because she’s a genius at getting other people to do the work,” Michelle responded. “She got you to check out the seating at the condo clubhouse, didn’t she?”
“Yes, she certainly did.”
“And she got both of us to agree to cater her event, didn’t she?”
Hannah sighed and it was a resigned sigh. “Yes, she did that, too. And you’re right, Michelle. Mother got us to do all the work and everyone there is going to think she organized the whole party all by herself.”
*
“Ready, Hannah?” Norman asked, once Hannah had made a point of looking through the peephole and, only then, opening the back kitchen door. “I left the car running so it’s nice and warm inside.”
“I’m almost done here,” Hannah told him, wrapping plastic wrap over the top of the last batch of cookies she’d mixed. “Just hold on a second and I’ll put these in the cooler. Then all I have to do is say goodbye to Lisa and Aunt Nancy, and I’ll be all ready to go.”
There was a whole shelf lined with metal mixing bowls covered with plastic wrap, and Hannah felt proud as she surveyed the work she’d done since Norman had left The Cookie Jar.
“Ready,” she said, stepping out of the cooler and closing the door behind her. “I’ll tell Lisa and Aunt Nancy I’m leaving.”
“Not quite yet,” Norman said, smiling at her. “I have one more thing I have to do while we’re here.”
Hannah recognized that smile. It was Norman’s I’ve-got-a-secret-and-you’re-going-to-love-it smile, the one he used when he was convinced he’d done something that would both surprise and please her. “What else do you have to do?” she asked him.
“I have to make a phone call to Clara Hollenbeck before we leave to make sure she’s home.”
Hannah was puzzled. “But Clara’s okay, isn’t she?”
“Clara’s fine. And she’s going to be even better when she gets my call. I stopped by the hardware store and talked to Cliff. And Cliff told me that Clara and Marguerite bought their phones from him and took out the insurance policy.”
“Insurance policy?” Hannah questioned. “You mean Clara’s phone was covered by insurance when it was stolen?”
“That’s exactly what I mean. Cliff filed the insurance form for Clara and he found out that the insurance company will replace her phone free of charge.”
“But . . . Marguerite told me that Clara doesn’t want another phone.”
“I know, but she’s entitled to one. And that’s not the best part.”
Hannah sat down on a stool. “Okay, Norman. Tell me. What’s the best part?”
“All of Marguerite and Clara’s information is on the cloud. They signed up for that kind of coverage when they bought their cell phone insurance.”
Hannah blinked. “You mean . . . Clara’s photos of the big pine tree and the shadows are on the cloud?”
“That’s right. Her phone backed up to the cloud every time she saved a photo. And Marguerite told me that Clara always saved each photo after she took it. It’s all there, Hannah. And Cliff is going to put them all on the new phone that Clara is getting from the insurance company.”
“That’s great news! Clara’s going to be very happy that she doesn’t have to take those photos all over again. When can she get her new phone, Norman?”
“Cliff took it out of the box while I was there and he hooked it up to download Clara’s cloud backup. She’ll have her photos and everything else on her new phone by the time Cliff opens the hardware store in the morning.”
CRUNCHY CHEWY WHITE CHOCOLATE COOKIES
DO NOT preheat oven—dough must chill before baking.
1 and ? cups melted butter (3 sticks, 12 ounces, ? pound)
2 cups white (granulated) sugar 2 large eggs beaten (just whip them up in a cup with a fork)
? cup white Karo syrup 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
? cup finely chopped pecans (measure AFTER chopping)
4 cups all-purpose flour (pack the flour down in the cup when you measure it)
2 cups white chocolate (or vanilla baking) chips (an 11-ounce bag will be fine)
? cup white (granulated) sugar for coating the dough balls
Hannah’s 1st Note: To measure Karo syrup, first spray the inside of a measuring cup with Pam so that the syrup won’t stick to the sides of the cup.
Melt the butter in a microwave-safe bowl by heating it on HIGH for 90 seconds or until melted. (I use a 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup with a spout.)
Hannah’s 2nd Note: You can use a mixer from this point on if you wish.
Pour the melted butter in the bottom of a large mixing bowl and add the white sugar on top.
Mix until everything is well combined.
Feel the bowl. If it’s not so hot that it will cook the eggs, add them now and mix them in.
Add the Karo syrup, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and vanilla extract. Mix thoroughly.
Mix in the finely chopped pecans and mix until thoroughly blended.
Hannah’s 3rd Note: You can use finely chopped almonds or finely chopped walnuts if you prefer.
Add the flour in half-cup increments, mixing after each addition.
Remove the bowl from the mixer. Give it a final stir and set it on the counter.
Stir in the white chocolate (or vanilla baking) chips by hand.
Cover the dough in the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and stick it in the refrigerator.
Chill the dough for at least 1 hour. (Overnight is fine, too.)
When you’re ready to bake, take the cookie dough out of the refrigerator and set it on the counter.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.