A quick read novella set at Christmas time with more focus on the mystery than the holiday. I loved picking this novel up because it contains 3 novellas in one novel. I loved making the turtle cookies because they are my sweetie’s favorite.
This is book 10.5 from the Country Store Mystery series. A fantastic holiday novella with interesting characters and an intriguing mystery. As a fan of the Country Store Mystery series, I can’t imagine anything bad happening to Great Aunt Adele, I’m glad she has Robbie to protect her.
Scarfed Down a novella inside Christmas Scarf Murder by Maddie Day
Turtle Cookies
from a cozy mystery novella:
Scarfed Down
by Maddie Day
Book Outline and Tone:
Robbie Jordan’s store Pans’n Pancakes is in the hot seat again. This time it isn’t that someone has tampered with her food, but Great Aunt Adele’s yarn that is sold in the store. Adele is a spitfire of a senior and I love that she was featured in the story. Robbie would do anything to keep Adele safe and that means she immediately jumps into investigator mode when Adele’s yarn comes into suspicion. A fast read with many plausible outcomes, author Maddie Day keeps the story moving quickly and doesn’t reveal the true suspect until the end.
One of the great elements to Maddie Day cozy-mysteries is she doesn’t just include sweet treat recipes. She often has main dishes and other savory recipes. I have reviewed several including one of my favorite recipes, Maple Curry Biscuits.
Also in this book: Christmas Scarf Murder by Carlene O’Connor, Death by Christmas Scarf by Peggy Ehrhart.
The Best Quote:
“Now I did have a VGR-a Very Good Reason- to investigate how Vicky ended up dead. I’d listened to a podcast not long ago featuring a cozy-mystery author who had talked about the need for an amateur sleuth to have a VGR. I seemed to have become a bit of an amateur sleuth myself oddly enough.”
Point of View:
The novel is told in first person point of view from the perspective of main character, Robbie Jordan.
The Author: Maddie Day
Maddie Day is one of my favorite authors to follow on social media. She posts regularly on Twitter @edithmaxwell. She also has a large following on Instagram and Facebook. Like so many authors, Maddie Day is a pseudonym for Edith Maxwell. She has at least six book series that can all be found on her website which is elaborate and has inside information and reviews for all of her books.
What is not to like?:
A fun and lighthearted mystery. It could have used a bit more tension, but just a bit more. It is a cozy mystery after all.
The verdict:
The turtle cookies are easy and delicious. If you are a fan of turtle ice cream (as people in my family are), you simply must try these. While the novel is not critical to the overall plot of the Country Store Mystery series, it is an enjoyable read with familiar characters.
Disclaimer: In the name of full transparency, please be aware that this blog post contains affiliate links and any purchases made through such links will result in a small commission for me (at no extra cost for you).
Turtle Cookies
Assemble the Ingredients
Do not preheat the oven, the dough needs to chill for 1 hour in the refrigerator.
Combine flour, cocoa and salt.
In a separate bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Separate the egg yoke from the egg white. Keep the whites to be used later in the recipe.
Mix in the egg yolk, milk and vanilla.
Stir in flour mixture until just combined. Chill dough in the refrigerator for one hour.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Whisk egg white in a shallow bowl until frothy.
Place chopped pecans in another shallow bowl.
Remove dough from the fridge. For each cookie, scoop out less than a tablespoon and roll into a small ball.
Roll each ball in the frothy egg whites, and then roll and press in the chopped pecans.
Place on a greased baking sheet or use a silicone baking mat.
Use the back of a small round measuring or soup spoon or your thumb to make an indentation in the center of each dough ball or use your thumb.
Bake for about 10-12 minutes, or just until set.
Don’t overbake, as cookies will harden as they cool.
As the cookies come out of the oven, gently repress the indentations with a small round spoon.
In a microwavable bowl mix the caramel bits and water. Microwave at 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until caramel is melted (1-2 minutes).
Pour small spoonfuls of caramel into the indented cookies. Let cool.
Melt chocolate and drizzle lines over cookies.
These Turtle Cookies are fantastic!
Turtle Cookies
Ingredients
Cookie Dough
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup butter (1 stick) at room temperature
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, separated
- 2 Tbsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup pecans, finely chopped
For the Caramel
- ⅔ cup caramel chips or regular caramels (about 15)
- ½ tsp water
Chocolate topping
- ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Combine flour, cocoa and salt. In a separate bowl
- Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Mix in the egg yolk, milk and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture until just combined.
- Chill dough in the refrigerator for one hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Whisk egg white in a shallow bowl until frothy.
- Place chopped pecans in another shallow bowl.
- Remove dough from the fridge. For each cookie, scoop out less than a tablespoon and roll into a small ball.
- Roll each ball in the frothy egg whites, and then roll and press in the chopped pecans. Place on a greased baking sheet or silicone baking mat.
- Use the back of a small round measuring or soup spoon or your thumb to make an indentation in the center of each dough ball or use your thumb.
- Bake for about 10-12 minutes, or just until set. Don't overbake, as cookies will harden as they cool.
- As the cookies come out of the oven, gently repress the indentations with a small round spoon.
- In a microwavable bowl mix the caramel bits and water. Microwave at 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until caramel is melted (1-2 minutes).
- Pour small spoonfuls of caramel into the indented cookies. Let cool.
- Melt chocolate and drizzle lines over cookies.
What would I do differently next time?
I quickly ran out of chopped pecans, next time I would chop up some more nuts.
Here are some other wonderful Christmas cookies to try!
Chocolate Mint Cookies from Chocolate Cream Pie Murder
Molasses Sugar Cookies from An Appetite for Murder
