Welcome to Recipe for Romance!
It’s summertime! This is a great time for county fairs and carnivals, and celebrations of all kinds. And maybe a blind date or two?
I’m sharing a snippet of COURTING THE DRAGON WIDOW, book 6 in the Cloudburst, Colorado series. It doesn’t take place in Colorado, but Lissandra Charforest, widow, single-mom, and dragon shifter, is from there. Lissandra had come all the way to upstate New York for a blind date with the hottest bachelor in centuries. She’s still not sure she’s ready, but her daughters do.
Available now: Courting the Dragon Widow
There was some squabbling and a few odd sounds while the dragonets passed the phone between each other, but in the end Lissandra’s youngest came on the line.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Kress.”
“Hi, Mom. I miss you.”
“Aw, I miss you too, sa garren. How was your day?” Lissandra couldn’t help but smile.
“It was okay. We made a bunch of crocheted blankets for the homeless shelter and gave them out. Everyone said they were so impressed that I could crochet, but you taught me that like twenty years ago. It’s not that big a deal, right?”
Lissandra snorted. “It is for most humans who look as young as you do. But for dragons? Not so much.”
“Huh. Okay. How was your trip out east? Did you see a lot of cool migratory birds on the way?”
“Not this time, and it was dark when I got here. I just wanted to tell you I made it okay and I love you.”
“I love you, too, Mom. When are you gonna meet your new guy?”
Despite the premise of her trip, the idea of a new man in her kids’ life made her heart clench. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I’ll meet Denarrion tomorrow.”
“I know he’s the right one, Mom. Dad told me so.”
Lissandra’s eyebrows went up even though her daughter couldn’t see them. “He did? When?”
“Today during my nap. He said you would find a new dad for us and he’d make everything better.”
Goddess, I hope that’s true. Lissandra didn’t believe in fairytales. Even if she was a dragon.
“We’ll see. But you need to get to bed. It’s late. So I love you. Good night, sleep tight, don’t let the bedbugs bite.”
“Eww! I let the cat eat bedbugs.” She paused for a giggle before her voice grew serious. “But you are gonna meet him tomorrow, right, Mom?”
“Yep. A deal’s a deal, and I said I’d be there.”
“Promise?”
Lissandra frowned, wondering why her daughter seemed so intent on assuring her agreement. “Promise.”
“Good. I love you, Mom.”
“I love you, too, Kress. Good night.”
Gluten-Free Lángos (Hungarian Fry Bread)
Who doesn’t love fried bread? Whether it’s Navajo Tacos or Funnel Cake or Beignets, or heck, doughnuts, everyone loves fried bread. Mr. SM introduced me to his version of friend bread, and the family loves it. This is savory rather than sweet, but it can be treated as a sweet, if you so choose.
INGREDIENTS
Bread dough
Oil for frying
**Note – you can get frozen bread dough at any grocery store (not gluten free). Take it out of the freezer, put it in a container, drizzle liberally with cooking oil and massage gently to cover completely, and cover for up to 2 hours. The oil is to keep the bread from drying out as it thaws.
If using pre-made gluten free bread dough, as soon as it’s in its final dough form (everything mixed together), cover with oil, and let rise for 45 – 60 minutes.
DIRECTIONS
Cut the bread into inch (2.5 cm) thick slices. Coat your hands with oil and gently massage each piece into a wide, thin “disk” of dough. It allows the dough to fry evenly.
Place each piece in the oil. Fry until it browns, about 60 seconds, and flip, browning on the second side for the same time. Repeat with each piece.
With the gluten-free dough, keep manipulating it and working it because it will help it stick together better, and make 5 inch (12.5 cm) patties about 1/2 inch (1 cm) thick. It won’t be as elastic as the regular glutinated dough, but it will fry up as flatter fry bread.
Fry for 60 seconds each side and you’ll be done.
TO PREPARE THE HUNGARIAN WAY
Take a clove of garlic, slice the tip off, and rub the fresh face against the bread. You can do it both sides if you love that much garlic.
Sprinkle with salt, then add sour cream to the inside (or most of the round). Serve.
Serves 6-10 people
Loved the snippet and the cooking.
What fun! And when I lived in Hungary, I ate these delicious breads in the morning on market days. They were sizzling hot in snowy winter.