“And I think you’re right,” Michelle said, tipping her Pineapple and Walnut Muffins out of the muffin pans, setting them on a serving platter, and carrying them to the booth. “Let’s all have one and then I’ll start the bacon and cheese scramble.”
“If these smell as good as they look, we could serve them at The Cookie Jar,” Hannah commented. “But we wouldn’t want to serve anything that didn’t have a seal of approval. I think we should all have two muffins, and then we’ll decide.”
“Great idea!” Doc said, taking two muffins and putting them on his plate.
Delores laughed. “Agreed,” she said, snatching his muffins and making him reach for two more.
For the next several moments there was no conversation, only smiles, sips of coffee, and big bites of Michelle’s delicious creation. Then Norman turned to Hannah. “You’re not going to . . .” he stopped, obviously unsure of exactly how to voice his question.
“Yes, I am,” Hannah told him. “It may not be easy, but I need to know who killed Ross and why.”
Doc nodded. “I knew you’d want to do that. As a matter of fact, that’s what I told Mike last night.”
“Last night?” Hannah was confused. “I don’t remember seeing Mike here last night.”
“You were already in bed when Mike came by,” Delores explained. “He just wanted to check on you to make sure you were all right.”
“That’s nice,” Hannah said, feeling glad that he’d cared enough to be concerned about her when he was in the middle of a murder investigation. “I suppose he’ll be here for . . .” she stopped speaking abruptly when the doorbell rang. “I should have known,” she said, turning to Michelle. “Mike and Lonnie probably smelled your incredibly delicious muffins all the way out at the sheriff’s station.”
PINEAPPLE AND WALNUT MUFFINS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
The Batter:
1 cup crushed pineapple, drained (measure AFTER draining and patting dry)
1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup white (granulated) sugar ? cup salted butter (1 and ? sticks, 6 ounces)
2 beaten eggs (just whip them up in a glass with a fork)
2 teaspoons baking powder
? teaspoon salt ? teaspoon cinnamon 2 cups all-purpose flour (pack it down in the cup when you measure it)
? cup whole milk ? cup finely chopped walnuts (measure AFTER chopping)
Crumb Topping:
? cup white (granulated) sugar ? cup all-purpose flour ? cup salted butter (? stick, 2 ounces) softened to room temperature
Grease the bottoms only of a 12-cup muffin pan (or line the cups with double cupcake papers – that’s what I do at The Cookie Jar).
If you haven’t done so already, put the crushed pineapple in a strainer with a small bowl underneath it. Press it down with the back of a mixing spoon, trying to get out as much juice as you can.
Pour the drained juice in a refrigerator container and save it for someone who likes to drink pineapple juice.
Once you’ve completely drained your pineapple, measure out 1 cup of pineapple and place it in a small bowl.
Sprinkle the crushed, drained pineapple with 1 Tablespoon of the all-purpose flour. Then mix the flour with the pineapple. (The flour will help to soak up any moisture left in your crushed pineapple.)
Get out a medium-size mixing bowl and a wooden spoon if you intend to make this recipe by hand, but you can use an electric stand mixer or a hand-held mixer from this point on if you wish.
Place the white (granulated) sugar in the bottom of the mixing bowl.
Add the softened, salted butter and mix it with the sugar. Mix until the ingredients are light and fluffy.
Add the eggs, mixing them in thoroughly until they are well incorporated.
Sprinkle in the baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Mix them in thoroughly.
Add HALF of the all-purpose flour to a mixing bowl and mix it in with HALF of the whole milk.
Add the remaining flour and the remaining milk. Mix until everything is thoroughly blended.
Mix in the crushed pineapple and the finely chopped walnuts by hand.
Fill the muffin cups three-quarters full and set them aside. If you have batter left over, grease the bottom of a small tea bread loaf pan and fill it with your remaining batter.
Crumb Topping:
Mix the sugar and the flour in a small bowl. Add the butter and cut it in until it’s crumbly. (You can also do this in a food processor with chilled butter and the steel blade by processing in an on-and-off motion.)
Hannah’s Note: If your topping isn’t crumbly enough, just put it in a plastic bag and stick it in the freezer of your refrigerator for 5 minutes or so. That should be enough to make it crumble in your fingers.
Fill the remaining space in the muffin cups with the crumb topping. Then bake the muffins in a 375 degree F. oven for 25 to 30 minutes. (The tea bread should bake about 10 minutes longer than the muffins.)
When your muffins are baked, set the muffin pan on a wire rack to cool for at least 30 minutes. (The muffins need to cool in the pan for easy removal.) Then just tip them out of the cups and enjoy.
These are wonderful when they’re slightly warm, but they’re also good cold.
Yield: 12 muffins and perhaps a tea bread.
Chapter Twenty-three
Once they got to The Cookie Jar, Michelle went up front to the coffee shop to help Lisa, and Hannah stayed in the kitchen. She knew what would be happening today, and she dreaded it. Everyone would come in to hear about Ross. They’d want to hear about Moishe and how Norman had found him, and they’d want to know how she had reacted after she’d discovered that the man she’d thought was her husband had been murdered.
Hannah didn’t want to relive the events of the previous evening, but her customers would expect Lisa to tell the story of the murder. And since Lisa hadn’t been there, it was up to Hannah to set the scene for her.
Even though it was the last thing in the world that she wanted to do, Hannah walked to the swinging door that led to the coffee shop, and pushed it open far enough to see that Lisa was behind the counter, arranging the large glass jars they used to display the day’s cookie offerings.
“Michelle?” Hannah addressed her youngest sister over her shoulder. “Will you take over out here for a few minutes? I need to speak to Lisa.”
“No problem,” Michelle answered. “I don’t have to leave for school for another hour.”
“Thanks! Lisa? I need to see you in the kitchen for a couple of minutes.”
“I’ll be right there,” Lisa promised, picking up one of the empty jars. “Do you want to sell the Molasses Crackles this morning? Or would you prefer to substitute something else?”
“The Molasses Crackles will do just fine,” Hannah told her, and then she retreated to the kitchen.
Since she knew exactly what she wanted to bake, it only took Hannah a couple of minutes to gather ingredients and put them next to the industrial-size stand mixer on the counter. By the time she’d arranged them in the order she’d need them, Lisa came in from the coffee shop.
Hannah gestured toward the work station. “Sit down and I’ll get you a cup of coffee.”
“I’m so sorry about what happened last night, Hannah,” Lisa said when Hannah delivered coffee for both of them and sat down on a stool. “If you don’t feel like staying and working today, just leave. Aunt Nancy and I can handle anything that comes up. And if we get really busy, all I have to do is call Marge and she’ll come right over.”
“Thanks, Lisa, but I think I’ll be all right if I stay in the kitchen and bake. We’re going to be very busy today. And I certainly won’t listen to the story you’re going to tell about the murder.”
“But, Hannah!” Lisa looked shocked. “You don’t want me to tell this story, do you?”
“Yes, I think you should. I wasn’t there when Mike and Lonnie found the body so you can’t tell that part, but you can begin when Norman and I got to the condo complex.”
“But how can I tell our customers about that if I don’t know what happened?”
“I’m going to tell you what happened right now.”