FEEL THE HEAT is the first book in my Chicago-set Hot in the Kitchen series about an Italian restaurant-owning family and the sizzling, sexy chefs who love them. One of the hottest scenes in FEEL THE HEAT involves a delicious cold treat: goat cheese salted caramel gelato. I’ll admit that there are quite a few steps to this recipe, but the end result is so worth it…

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Goat Cheese Salted Caramel Gelato

The gelato

1 1/2 cups whole milk
2/3 cup sugar
8 oz. fresh goat cheese (crumbled)
6 large egg yolks

Steps to nirvana

1. Prepare an ice bath and set aside.
2. Place the goat cheese in a bowl with a mesh strainer over it.
3. Mix the sugar and milk over a medium heat until the sugar dissolves.
4. Whisk the egg yolks lightly until thickened.
5. Add the milk/sugar liquid to the egg yolks slowly, stirring constantly to prevent the egg from scrambling.
6. Return the egg/milk/sugar mixture to the pan and heat, again with constant stirring. When the liquid steams and the custard coats the spoon, it’s ready.
7. Add the hot custard to the goat cheese through the strainer. Stir until the goat cheese is melted and the combination is smooth.
8. Set the bowl over the ice bath and stir until cool. Refrigerate for at least a couple of hours.
9. Make the ice cream/gelato in your ice cream maker.

Salted caramel sauce

2 cups granulated sugar
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into pieces
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (you can also use Fleur de sel)

1. In a heavy-bottomed 2-3 quart saucepan, cook the sugar over medium-high heat. It takes a few minutes but it will start to melt and clump. Whisk it until it is completely melted, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the butter (stand back, it will spatter up a storm!) and whisk until smooth
3. Remove from heat and add the cream
4. Add the salt and stir through thoroughly to dissolve
5. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes in the pot, then pour into a jar and refrigerate
6. Sauce will keep for 2 months in the fridge

Make the sauce ahead of the gelato so it is cool enough to mix with the frozen goodness. You can layer the gelato in a container and swirl the caramel through or you can drizzle over the top. Now you’re ready to seduce with gelato!

Hot in the Kitchen, Book 1

IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE HEAT . . .

Photographer Lili DeLuca spends all her time managing her family's Italian restaurant, instead of following her dream of getting an MFA. When famous British chef Jack Kilroy unexpectedly challenges her father to a cook-off, Lili decides she's tired of playing it safe and vows to seduce the tempting Brit. But once a video of her and Jack kissing goes viral and her luscious butt starts trending on Twitter, Lili fears she's cooked up a recipe for disaster.

. . . GET INTO THE BEDROOM

Jack Kilroy's celebrity has left him feeling used and used up. While Lili's oh-so-sexy moans when she tastes his delicious creations turn him on, he's even more aroused by how unimpressed this beautiful, funny woman is with his fame. He knows they could be amazing together, if she could only see past his bitch fork-wielding fan base. Now, as he's about to start a new prime time TV cooking show, can Jack convince Lili to realize her own ambitions - and turn up the heat in his kitchen?

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http://katemeader.com

I discovered this little trick to use up any ice cream that was languishing in the freezer. This is an easy recipe that’s designed to be flexible enough to deal with various amounts of left over ice cream. The result is something just a bit sweet and a bit like a scone. So I call it the Ice Cream Scone.

You’ll need

Melted ice cream. Any flavor. About a pint.

1 to 1 1/2 cups flour, preferably self-rising. (If you don’t have self-rising flour, add a teaspoon of baking powder and a pinch of salt to a cup of flour.)

If you have more than a pint of ice cream, you’ll need more flour. Less ice cream, less flour. It’s hard to mess this one up. You could even get creative by making multi-color, multi-flavor scones if you have small amounts of different ice cream flavors.

An 8 inch pie tin or cake pan. You can also use a muffin tin for this to make individual scones.

Step one – melt the ice cream. You use the microwave to speed up this process. The more melted it is, the easier it is to stir.

Step two – preheat the oven to 350 and grease and flour the pie tin or cake pan.

Step three - pick up a big wooden spoon or other stirring implement and pour some of the flour into the ice cream container. Go ahead and use the same container the ice cream came in. It makes clean up easier. Start stirring.

Step four – add more flour and stir until the results looks about the consistency of a good biscuit batter.

Step five – pour the batter from the ice cream container into the baking pan.

Step six – bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes or until a knife comes out clean.

Step six – let cool a bit and then enjoy. If you use a pie tin, you can cut the result into triangles, which seem more scone-like to me. If you’re feeling traditional, make a cup of tea to enjoy with your ice cream scone.

Step seven – go to the store and buy more ice cream, because you now have room in the freezer.

St. Augustine, Florida, is known for its ghosts and Lorenzo is one of them. He’s spent more than a century as a resident of Tolomato Cemetery. But he isn’t able to rest easy in his grave since Lucifer insists on resurrecting him regularly to offer him a job. While he can’t escape being condemned to Hell himself, Lorenzo refuses to help send others there.

Lucifer is irked when Lorenzo refuses him once again and turns to Tribal, an oversexed demon who has solved these types of problems before. Tribal has a solution to his Master’s problem. He plans to tempt Lorenzo with the one thing the passionate Spaniard can’t resist—a lover. Who better to catch a ghost than a ghost hunter? Tribal baits his trap with Tom, a hunky and lonely ghost hunter. When Lorenzo refuses to give into Tribal’s plan, the demon resorts to a dangerous trap that puts Tom’s soul in danger, and Lorenzo must defy Hell itself to save him.

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http://mariedees.com

My current book, Her Shameful Secret, is set in Rome and here's a taste of Italy for readers! Granita is an Italian frozen treat and Limoncello is a lemon liqueur from Italy that is traditionally served cold.

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Equipment Needed:

Knife

Fork

Microplane rasp, grater or zester

Cutting board

Citrus reamer

Measuring cup

Saucepan

A shallow baking dish that can go in the freezer

Ingredients Needed:

1 cup sugar

4 to 5 lemons -- you will use the zest and juice

1/2 cup Limoncello

Water

Recipe:

1. Combine 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves and the liquid thickens to a syrup consistency.

2. Turn off the heat and let the simple syrup cool.

3. Zest the lemons before you cut and juice them. The lemons will produce at least a cup of juice.

4. Add the lemon juice, lemon zest, 1/2 cup of Limoncello and another cup of water in the saucepan.

5. Pour the liquid into the baking dish and place the dish in the freezer.

6. Remove the pan from the freezer every hour and scrape the forming ice with the tines of a fork.

7. Many granita recipes suggest freezing for 8 hours. I find that the dessert is usually ready at the 4 hour mark.

8. Scoop the granita in individual glasses or small bowls and eat immediately. Serves 4 to 6 people.

Variations:

* No Limoncello? Use hard lemonade, a fruity white wine or more water.

* Add 1/4 cup finely chopped mint with the lemon zest for a more complex flavor.

* Instead of a baking dish, freeze the liquid in ice cube trays. Once the ice cubes are solid, chop them up in a blender or food processor. The texture will be coarser.

Isabella Williams would know those expensive shoes and that arrogant swagger anywhere. After months of hiding, Antonio Rossi has found her!

The cravings that she'd thought buried come flooding back, and with them the taste of regret--for her mistake means she'll never kiss his lips again. But now she has more than just herself to think about and, hand cradling her stomach, she faces his wrath.

Antonio might have masked his reasons for approaching her with business, but his need for her is entirely personal. And that's before he discovers her secret….

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http://www.susannacarr.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