The best thing about fall is that it’s socially acceptable to eat pumpkin again, not to mention stick it in all your favorite recipes. I make my easy pumpkin-kale chili year round, so I use a lot of canned ingredients, but feel free to sub them out with the fresh alternative!

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INGREDIENTS
·          2 pounds ground beef (or ground turkey)
·          1 large onion, diced
·          2 cloves of minced garlic
·          1 bunch of chopped kale
·          1 can corn, drained
·          1 can kidney beans, drained
·          1 can tomato juice
·          1 can diced tomatoes with green chilis
·          1 can pumpkin puree
·          1/2 packet of chili seasoning (or one tablespoon of chili powder)

DIRECTIONS
In a large pot, cook the beef until it’s brown; drain. Stir in the onion, garlic and seasoning, and let it cook for a few minutes longer. Add all of the other ingredients and let it simmer for about an hour. Best served with crusty warm bread.

This recipe is extremely forgiving, which is what I love best about it. Feel free to add or subtract whatever vegetables and ingredients you would like. You can even throw everything into a crock pot if you like. Go nuts.

Night Whispers, Available November 6 from Samhain Publishing!

When every night is a battle for survival, love is an endangered species.

Analyst James Bennett has spent the years since humankind fell victim to the Illness living underground. Part of an elite group of survivors determined to save their race, his only interaction with the blood-drinking Shadows roaming the Earth is through surveillance technology carried by his team of search-and-rescue agents. Scarred by vicious events, he has no desire to leave the safety of his bunker for the dangerous world outside—until he recruits a tough, haunted young woman clear across the country.

Former gang member Jules Guerrero learned two things early on: the value of loyalty and never backing down from a fight. Both of those teachings come in handy now that her job
description includes protecting humans and kicking Shadow ass. But it’s hard to keep her mind strictly on her mission when all she can think about is the man whose voice keeps
her sane through the depths of each dark night.

When Jules is captured and threatened by a rogue organization even more bloodthirsty than the Shadows, James must draw on all of his courage to fuel a furious cross-country
chase through the lawless land…before the Jules he loves is destroyed forever.

Warning: Contains a hero who would fight monsters for his love, a heroine out to save the world, a treacherous wasteland, poetry as foreplay and flesh-eating enemies.

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You can find Alisha on Twitter at twitter. com/AlishaRai or visit her on the web at alisharai.com.

Good morning everyone! Today I’ll be sharing a cup of comfort in honor of fall and because I just think feeding a loved one is one of the sexiest things ever. Please, enjoy my Lemony Chicken and Rice Soup.

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1 Rotisserie style chicken (I get mine at WalMart) boned and shredded
6-8 carrots, peeled and chopped
4-6 stalks celery, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2T olive oil
2-3 quarts water
6-8 chicken bouillon cubes
2 bags cook in the bag rice--any brand, I use Success basmati or jasmine
salt and pepper to taste
2-3T parsley
2-3T dill (dry or fresh)
Juice of one lemon

Sauté all chopped veggies in the olive oil in a stock pot, if they seem a bit dry, just splash in a bit more oil. (see how I cook? I think that's why it's homey and comforting) Once they are softened up a tad, add your water and simmer until veggies are tender then add your water (I always microwave mine so it's already hot and the cooking process isn't stalled). Toss in that chicken and simmer for, oh, at least 30-45 minutes, but this can go all day. (You can even put it in the crock pot at this point if you want) After the at least 45 minutes rule, open the rice bags and add the rice--the cooking directions estimate of time is pretty accurate here just test it for doneness. Toss in your herbs and finish with the lemon juice.

Piper McGee can smell a set up a mile away. She can smell a Marine even further. Born to a dual-enlisted couple who divorced before she was old enough to remember a single family holiday together and proceeded to redefine the very definition of family through several marriages and even more step-siblings, Piper has made it her life’s promise to herself to never become involved with one of the few and the proud. They’re among the most irresponsible people she knows, leaving destruction in their wake and broken hearts paving the way to their next duty station. And in her opinion, Alec Douglas is just another example, until he pries her heart open along with other parts of her, making her question everything she's ever let herself believe about honor, courage, and commitment.

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http://realmanticmoments.blogspot.com

Perfect for a late summer’s eve with your hunnie, this sweet treat is sure to help set the romantic mood. Or deliver a touch of decadence at a dinner party. Based on the cocktail Shaun makes in Sweet Irish Kiss, this is by far one my favorite desserts to make when we have adult company. It’s quick, easy (just the way I like my time in the kitchen) and a real crowd pleaser.

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IRISH KISS ICE CREAM

For two

Ingredients

Four cups of vanilla ice cream

Bailey’s Irish Cream

1 bar of Cadbury’s milk chocolate (or similar)

mint flavoring

two ice cream bowls for serving

fresh mint sprigs, strawberries, and whipped cream are optional serving suggestions.

Directions

Remove desired amount of ice cream from the freezer and leave to soften slightly for five minutes.

Scoop four cups of ice cream into a food processor or blender and blend until smooth and creamy.

Pour into a sealable container suitable for the freezer.

Add two tablespoons of Bailey’s Irish cream and two drops of mint flavoring.

Mix all ingredients together until well blended.

Secure lid on container.

Freeze the mixture for at least two hours before serving.

Serving

Leave ice cream to soften for a minute.

Using a grater, knife or shaver, shave flakes from your bar of chocolate while ice cream is softening.

Arrange two scoops in each of your two ice cream bowls.

Tip; warm ice cream scoop in boiling water for a second before scooping out ice cream for nicely rounded scoops of ice cream.

Top with the chocolate shavings.

Optional; serve with fresh strawberries and a dollop of freshly whipped cream on the side. Top with a sprig of fresh mint.

Shaun Bell, a divorced workaholic, spends all his time tending bar in his Irish Pub. He's ready to love again, but the women who visit his bar are only after his infamous Irish cocktails. At the advice of his darts team, over a tanker or two of Beamish, he applies to 1Night Stand to get back into the swing of things and enjoy the company of a woman specially selected for him by Madame Evangeline.

Rachel Taylor has issues. Her father broke her mother's heart with his cheating and Rachel swore never to let that happen to her, but one ruined relationship after another and she's realized she's got to get over being closed off to men. Perhaps a one-night stand is just the baby step she needs to begin to build trust again.

A match seemingly made in heaven...until morning rolls around and Shaun can't bring himself to say good-bye. Can he win her over with his secret weapon, a Sweet Irish Kiss, or is Rachel still too scared to love?

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www.joannekenrick.com

This recipe was born of my LOVE for sea-salt caramels and my desire to have them with brownies! I just took a classic, fudgey brownie recipe and altered it a little to incorporate my craving. Have it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for the ultimate, decadent dessert.

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1/3 cup Dutch-processed cocoa
½ cup plus 2 Tablespoons boiling water
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter, melted
½ cup plus 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2½ cups (17½ ounces) sugar
1¾ cups (8¾ ounces) all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon salt
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, cut into ½-inch pieces

1-2 T coarse sea salt (although do this to taste. I like a lot)

1/2 bag of store bought carmels, unwrapped and melted in microwave safe bowl

1. Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9×13-inch baking pan with foil, leaving about a one-inch overhang on all sides. Spray with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Whisk cocoa and boiling water together in large bowl until smooth. Add unsweetened chocolate and whisk until chocolate is melted. Whisk in melted butter and oil. (Mixture may look curdled.) Add eggs, yolks, and vanilla and continue to whisk until smooth and homogeneous. Whisk in sugar until fully incorporated. Add flour and salt and mix with rubber spatula until combined. Fold in bittersweet chocolate pieces.

3. Scrape batter into prepared pan and bake until toothpick inserted halfway between edge and center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached, 30 minutes. Remove from oven and drizzle melted carmel over top. Return to oven for five minutes. Transfer pan to wire rack and then sprinkle with sea salt.

4. Using foil overhang, lift brownies from pan. Return brownies to wire rack and let cool completely, about 1 hour. Cut into squares and serve

He needs a wife for three weeks…

Owen Phipps is out for revenge. His mission? To expose the man who stole his sister’s money and dignity. All he needs is a “wife” who can play along. Too bad his last best hope is an actress who tries to mace him with perfume when he offers her the role of a lifetime.

Lindy Knight is a real sap. She loves too hard, feels too deep, and often finds herself saying yes when she should be saying “Let me think about it.” She can’t believe her good fortune when Owen offers her more than enough money to hold off foreclosure until she can find a job. Three weeks at a resort, money she desperately needs, and she gets to help bring a criminal to justice? Score.

It seems easy enough until a couples bonding game turns intimate, and they realize how dangerous their mutual attraction could be. Can they keep their hands to themselves long enough to find the evidence Owen needs? Or are the close quarters more temptation than they can handle?

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http://www.christine-bell.com/

I make a batch of these shortbread biscuits every week, and my family can’t get enough of them! Guaranteed to please just about everyone, and simple enough for my daughter to be able to do most of the mixing.

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Makes 40 cookies at 100kcal each.

2 cups (225g) plain flour

½ tsp baking powder

2 sticks (225g) salted butter

½ cup (100g) caster sugar

½ cup (100g) chocolate chips

¾ cup (75g) rolled oats

½ cup (60g) chopped nuts

Method:

Preheat oven to 300 ºF (150ºC)

Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl, then set aside.

In a different bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.

Add the flour a little at a time and gradually mix together with a wooden spoon to make a stiff dough.

Stir in the chocolate chips, rolled oats and half the nuts. Mix by hand if the dough is too stiff for a spoon.

Roll into walnut sized balls, and space evenly on ungreased baking sheets. Press down on top to flatten slightly. Sprinkle on the remaining nuts and press down lightly.

Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Leave on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool.

Two plus one equals scorching hot fun.

Freshly dumped and living in a grotty bedsit, Josh Carpenter lives only for his job as a glassblower…and occasional glimpses of his sexy downstairs neighbors, Rai Nakmura and Evan Truman.

Every time he overhears the diminutive academic and the hunky plumber having loud and obviously kinky sex, Josh is overwhelmed with lust…and a longing for a fraction of what they have.

To his amazement, Rai and Evan find his embarrassing tendency to blush utterly charming, and the three men grow closer over the course of the long, hot summer.

On the night a naked Josh falls—quite literally—into the middle one of Rai and Evan’s marathon sex sessions, the force of their mutual attraction takes control. But just as Josh dares to hope, he senses a change. Leaving him to wonder if the winds of love are about to blow his way at last…or if history is about to repeat itself.

Warning: Contains one well-endowed stud with a sexy accent, one improbably toppy bottom boy with an unfortunate owl obsession, and one blushing naïf who can’t believe his luck. Also, the occasional indulgence in mathematical spanking and some shameless armpit sex.

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http://josephinemyles.com/

Hi everyone. Nothing is more romantic than a cookout on a warm summer night, right? Cord and Dillon certainly enjoyed their cookout.

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Cookout beef and vegetables

Pre-cut twelve-inch squares of aluminum foil (two per person)

Fold them over your fist into pockets

Line the bottom of the pocket with thin slices of lemon to keep the food from burning, as well as adding extra flavor.

Then add some strips of dried beef, chopped potatoes and carrots cut small, peppers, onions, a small can of beans and a few shakes of garlic, salt and pepper.

Top each tube up with maybe a quarter cup of water

Fold the top edges of the pocket closed, and set it directly into the hot coals.

They take half an hour to cook slow roasting in their own juices.

Cord’s a werewolf and the holiday season makes Cord’s skin itch, his head ache, and his wolf side agitated. Usually he goes on vacation at this time of year but he wants to be with Dillon.

Cord decides to rent a little cabin in the mountains for the holiday week and Dillon agrees to come with him. They have a few wonderful days together, then Cord asks Dillon about werewolves and Dillon reveals his abhorrence of the animals and his animal heritage. Cord’s heart is breaking that the man he loves could be so mistrustful of him. How can they have a future without trust?

Warning ADULT erotic MM story, with a campfire and a cookout.

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http://berengariabrown.com/

It’s still salad weather here in the Rockies (although it probably won’t be for much longer—September’s always a little “iffy”). Here’s a salad that involves several of my favorite things: blue cheese, walnuts, and a yummy vinaigrette.

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¼ c. olive oil

2 t dry basil leaves (or fresh basil if you have it)

½ t salt

1/8 t each pepper and paprika

2 t Dijon mustard

5 t white wine vinegar

½ lb mushrooms, sliced

2 green onions (including tops), thinly sliced

2/3 c broken walnut pieces

4 oz blue cheese, coarsely crumbled

4 c bite-size pieces of romaine or butter lettuce leaves

10 cherry tomatoes, whole or halved

In a large salad-type bowl, combine oil, basil, salt, pepper, paprika, mustard and vinegar. Beat with a fork until blended. Mix mushrooms and green onions into the vinaigrette; let stand at room temperature to marinate for at least 30 minutes (longer is better—the mushrooms pick up more flavor).

Add walnut pieces, blue cheese, lettuce and cherry tomatoes and toss lightly. This is a great salad to bring to potlucks, by the way.

Once they said goodbye forever. Now they want to walk it back.

Konigsburg, Texas, Book 6

Eighteen months ago, Kit Maldonado was so over Nando Avrogado, she left Konigsburg without a backward glance. With the family restaurant in San Antonio sold out from under her, though, she’s back to manage The Rose, an exclusive resort eatery outside town.

Dealing with a stingy boss, an amorous head chef, an understaffed dining room and planning her aunt’s wedding should have kept her hands full. But she realizes she might not be as over Nando as she thought.

As the town’s new assistant chief of police, Nando’s got enough trouble without sexy Kit fanning embers he thought had long ago turned to ashes. Every time he turns around, she’s there—and it doesn’t help that everyone in town wants to see them back together.

One incendiary kiss, and there’s no denying the force of their attraction. But there’s a mysterious and oddly familiar burglar who’s been lurking around Konigsburg, someone who isn’t above a little mayhem—maybe even violence—to cover his tracks.

Product Warnings

Contains hot makeup sex, wedding madness, a hot chef, vengeful burglars, and unlawful abuse of a wedding cake.

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http://www.MegBenjamin.com

Only half of us in our family actually like mincemeat (I love it!).  So when we get some, it is usually a one-pie affair and we’ve had our fill. This recipe is something my mom used to make and even the non-mincemeat lovers in our family like them.

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¾ cup shortening or margarine

1 ½ cups brown sugar

3 eggs, well beaten

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

¾ tsp baking soda

½ tsp cinnamon

½ tsp nutmeg

1 tsp salt

1 cup mincemeat

1 cup chopped walnuts

Cream shortening and sugar; add eggs. Sift flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and add gradually. Then add mincemeat and walnuts.

Drop by teaspoonful on a greased cookie sheet (or use parchment paper, my personal fave). Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes, or until tops are golden. Let rest on pan for a few minutes, then remove to a cooling rack.

First Responders, Book 2

Jake Symonds has been a thorn in Constable Kendra Givens's side since the night they first met, when she'd had to arrest him. In his boxer shorts. The drunken comments he made that night are worsened by the truth she'll never admit. For a fleeting moment, they'd connected.

Two years later, when she's called to investigate a break-and-enter at his pub, the last thing she expects is for the now-competent businessman to cook her breakfast. But she's no fool. The former bad boy still lurks beneath the charm. And his business involves the one thing that she's hated since it ruined her childhood. Alcohol.

As far as he's concerned, Jake has changed, but Kendra still has a stick up her butt. Yet he can't help but like her sass and quick wit. One well-aimed baseball at the carnival dunk tank later and he's got a date.

Their spark of attraction quickly flares out of control, but their emotional baggage is stacked too high to risk anything deeper - until one tragic night strips the barriers from their deepest fears. And Kendra realizes the greatest danger Jake presents is to her heart.

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www.donnaalward.com

What could be nicer than curling up with a pot of tea, some warm scones and jam, and your favorite book? Forget about the hockey pucks masquerading as scones that you find in most bakeries. These are tender, moist and buttery, with only a hint of sweetness.

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Sugar-Crusted Scones

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, frozen (very important!)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup plain yogurt
White sugar for rolling, about 1/3 cup

1) Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper (or a Silpat mat if you have one).

2) In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking soda and salt. Using a hand grater, grate the frozen butter into the dough, mixing with a fork as you go, until all the butter is grated in and the mixture is a gravelly consistency.

3) In a small bowl, stir together the egg, vanilla and yogurt. Make a well in the center of the butter-flour mixture and stir in the yogurt mixture. Using your hands, gently knead mixture until a soft dough forms, adding a few drops of water if necessary.

4) Turn out onto a work surface or board that has been lightly sprinkled with white sugar. Gently smooth and fold dough, using more sugar if necessary as an aid to prevent sticking, and shape into a cohesive mass. Let rest two minutes.

5) Place white sugar in a saucer or small, shallow bowl. Pat dough into a rectangle that is about an inch thick and cut into squares, then cut each square in half. (Use your own judgment as to the size of the scones...as long as the dough is no more than an inch thick they will cook at the same rate no matter their overall size.) As each triangle of dough is cut, press it into the sugar, making sure each side of the triangle is well-covered with sugar. Space evenly on cookie sheet.

6) Bake until very lightly browned, with some darker spots at the edges where the sugar has caramelized; about 15-17 minutes.

7) Serve warm with whipped cream (or clotted cream if you can find it) and your favorite preserves. If there are any leftovers, store at room temperature for no more than a
day. Reheat before serving in a 300 F oven or in toaster (split in half horizontally before toasting).

 

When Hannah is caught watching her late husband’s cousin debauch the maid in the library, she’s mortified—but also intrigued. An unpaid companion to his aunt, she’s used to being ignored. The black sheep of the family, Leo has nothing but his good looks and noble birth to recommend him. Hannah ought to be appalled at what she’s witnessed, but there’s something about Leo that draws her to him. When Leo claims he can prove that women can feel desire as passionately as men, Hannah is incredulous, for her own experiences have been singularly uninspiring. Yet she can’t bring herself to refuse his audacious proposal when he offers to tutor her in the art of lovemaking. As the tantalizing, wicked lessons continue, she begins to fear she’s losing not just her inhibitions, but her heart as well. The poorest of relations, she has nothing to offer Leo but herself. Will it be enough when their erotic education ends?

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www.julianaross.com