Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Kate White Dishes on the Mystery Writers of America Cookbook #giveaway


LUCY BURDETTE: We are thrilled, thrilled, thrilled to host Kate White today--she's here to chat about her latest herding-cats project--editing the Mystery Writers of America cookbook. Kate, welcome! Please tell us about the book!

KATE WHITE: Because I was both a mystery author and have had experience as an editor—I ran Cosmopolitan magazine for 14 years, and four other magazines before that—MWA asked me to edit the cookbook for them. I loved doing it. True, at moments it was a bit like herding cats to get some of those successful authors to send me their recipes, but I enjoyed having contact with famous writers I’d never met and I also got a kick out of seeing what recipes they submitted. There are also some fun sidebars in the book, which I enjoyed researching and writing, like: What Exactly Is a Red Herring? And “Pretty Poisons Right in Your Garden.” The latter got me thinking about using poison again in a mystery. Only a few toxins are routinely tested for in autopsies, so poison can be a good way to kill someone and never be caught.


LUCY BURDETTE
: Were you surprised at which writers chose what recipes? (Was there a pattern, like hard-boiled=appetizers, cozy=dessert?) What were some of your favorites?





KATE WHITE: Oh, that’s a great question about patterns. I didn’t see any. For instance, Joseph Finder, the author of such strong, gritty suspense novels, offered a yummy apple crumble recipe. And James Patterson gave me a delicious chocolate cake recipe. (Conclusion: many male suspense writers are real sweeties!)


      There were some wonderful surprises. Gillian Flynn writes such fabulously dark stuff so it took me aback to see her recipe for the very All American-seeming “Beef Skillet Fiesta.” And Nelson DeMille’s funny “Male Chauvinist Pigs in the Blanket” almost made me fall off my chair laughing. 


     Other recipes were like little gifts. For instance, I still remember reading my first J.A.Jance novel year ago (Edge of Evil) and practically smelling the Sugarloaf Café sweet rolls she describes, and lo and behold, she sent in the recipe for them. And thanks to Lorenzo Carcaterra, I finally have my go-to marinara sauce.


     I’ve actually added a few of the wonderful recipes to my regular repertoire, like Kathy Reich’s “Shrimp Scampi” and Hank Phillippi Ryan’s “Worth-the-Effort Turkey Tetrazzini” (I always wanted to know how to use leftover turkey!).

LUCY BURDETTE: Do you like to cook? What menu might you serve at a dinner party?


KATE WHITE: I do love to cook and I do it a lot for friends and family. I’m not imaginative but I’m a cookbook addict, and I’m decent at following recipes. I have all the Barefoot Contessa cookbooks, for instance, as well as those by Nigella Lawson and Giada De Laurentiis. We live in Uruguay part of each winter, and my favorite chef is Francis Mallmann, who has a restaurant not far from us. His cookbooks—Seven Fires and On Fire—are fantastic. He believes that charring both meats and vegetables brings out unusual flavors. And he’s right! What I’ve also learned from him is that simple is so often best. Don’t overthink things, use just a handful of ingredients (but be sure they are the best you can find), and don’t fuss with food that’s grilling (let it char!!!). One of my favorite Mallmann dishes is a salad with thinly sliced raw zucchini, almonds, fresh mint, and parmesan cheese, dressed with olive oil and fresh lemon juice. For a summer dinner party, I might serve that first and then do a main course of grilled chicken, which I’ve marinated to death in lemon and oregano for two days, fresh sliced tomatoes, and Tuscan beans.

LUCY BURDETTE: Your suspense novel, THE WRONG MAN, will hit bookshelves in June. Tell us a little about that. And is it true that part of the book is set in the Florida Keys? 


KATE WHITE: The Wrong Man comes out in June, and yes it’s about Islamorada, which I discovered after being invited to a wedding there. In the book, a woman named Kit Finn takes her vacation in Islamorada and ends up having a very brief but thrilling fling with a man who is staying at the same hotel. He’s from New York City, as she is, and he asks her to dinner at his apartment in the city the week they both get back. But when she arrives, the man who opens the door has the same name as the man she met in Florida, but it isn’t him. That begins a nightmare that doesn’t want to quit.


LUCY: Kate thanks so much for visiting. Reds, we have a giveaway today--a copy of the MWA cookbook! To be entered in the drawing, leave a comment with your email.



KateWhite, the former editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine, is the New York Times bestselling author of six Bailey Weggins mysteries and four stand-alone suspense novels, including Eyes on You, and the upcoming The Wrong Man (June). She is also the editor of The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook. Connect with Kate at katewhite.com

51 comments:

  1. My goodness, the cookbook sounds absolutely incredible! I love finding new recipes and this book sounds like my kind of reading . . . . (email:ae215jfe@aol.com)

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  2. My mouth is watering reading those recipe titles.
    carstairs38 at gmail dot com

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  3. The cookbook IS fabulous, and how fun to hear from our editor. I was thrilled that my recipe ended up in such august company, and across the page from Hallie's! (So obviously don't include in the drawing.)

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  4. I've seen an actual copy of the book courtesy of my friend contributor/author Lois Lavrisa and it's flippin' BEAUTIFUL! Hardcover, gorgeous photos, (lol...food and bullets) fantastic recipes, and sprinkled with little writing/mystery tidbits. So well done, Kate! Can't wait to get this one.

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  5. I love cookbooks and read them like novels. This sounds great!

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  6. looks like a great addition to my cookbook shelf.
    margaretdotturkevichatgmaildotcom

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  7. I like it that we get to see a little about the authors through the recipe each has offered! Thank you for this contest.
    debprice60@gmail.com

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  8. I would love to own this cookbook - I thought Nelson DeMille was kidding about his pigs in a blanket!
    bobandcelia@sbcglobal.net

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  9. What a thrill: food and mystery tidbits.

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  10. Hi, Kate! I've got the book right here and I love it! (Male Chauvinist Pigs in a Blanket is too perfect...)

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  11. Mysteries and food, what could be better? (mary@summaria.net)

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  12. I'm looking forward to reading the book and trying out the recipes! nancy@arrowhead.lib.mn.us

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  13. I'd love to win a copy of this cookbook.

    Back when Diane Mott Davidson's Double Shot came out, Mysterious Galaxy (a great indie bookstore in San Diego - where I was living at the time) hosted a baking contest. I am not above bragging - so it is true that I won that contest, which was judged by Diane and the staff of the store.

    The point of my story is that when I making the treats, I said I myself that I really need to come up with a clever name for these. (They are chocolate/Raspberry crumb treats). The name I gave them:

    A Dark and Seedy Bar

    (I should note, the recipe actually calls for seedless Raspberry jam, so really it should be A Dark and Seedy(less) Bar. But that didn't flow as well).

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  14. This cookbook sounds like a winner!!

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  15. I'm a huge fan of cookbooks as my family can tell you. Two bookcases in my kitchen and probably a hundred or more ebooks on my kindle. I would love to win a copy and start trying all of the recipes.
    scarletbegonia5858@gmail.com

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  16. I love cookbooks, and this one sounds awesome! lkleback@hotmail.com

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  17. I love cookbooks and mysteries and both together makes it even better!

    harbingerdc(at)gmail(dot)com

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  18. I love cookbooks! I read them like novels. lafs3478@yahoo.com

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  19. Mystery and cooking, what more could we ask for? Chocolate maybe. mbquilts4@aol.com

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  20. Another big cookbook fan here. I've been thinking about getting this one, but have not been to the bookstore, and I'd rather not have it on my Nook, so throw my name in the ring, too, please.

    kmaslowskiatfusedotnet

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  21. Welcome, Kate! What a fabulous-looking cookbook. I have to ask -- what was Lee Child's entry?

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  22. Cookbooks and mysteries sounds like a great combination!

    grace dot koshida at gmail dot com

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  23. Great question, Susan - Didn't Lee Child do something hilarious like: A Cup of Coffee?

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  24. I'd love to have a cookbook that makes life more fun! I looked in my local bookstore last week, for a cookbook by mystery writers. Not even one!!! I was so mad...my guess is the employees were probably planning my murder! Hmmm...Murder of bookstore Customer.

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  25. Susan and Hallie, Lee Child's recipe is "Coffee, Pot of One", but he also gives his recipe for a delicious bestseller, as told to Hank!

    Kristopher, what a fun contest! The name for your bar cookies was inspired:)

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  26. Sounds like a great cookbook. I need a copy!

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  27. The Wrong Man sounds wonderfully creepy. what a nightmare.

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  28. I would love to get this cookbook! I have a great collection of cookbooks, but this one sounds like such fun.

    I just had to order a book from the library that I already read, because I can't find the recipe that I copied out of it. ;)

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  29. Recipes and mysteries....A great combination. I'd love to win.
    dbahn@iw.net

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  30. i love to cook, this would be a great addition to my cookbook collection!!!!!!!!!!

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  31. Looks like a wonderful cookbook!
    Debbie.Erickson14@gmail.com

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  32. Oooh. I want both! The cookbook sounds great and The Wrong Man sounds really intriguing.

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  33. The Wrong Man is on my pre-order list! And I must have this cookbook - for the Sugarloaf Café sweet rolls and everything else. Thanks for the giveaway.
    sallycootie@gmail.com

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  34. I love reading cookbooks...what a great way to try new foods!

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  35. I am so glad I was eating lunch when I read this...

    Looking forward to both THE WRONG MAN and the MWA Cookbook!

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  36. This looks like a fun cookbook
    smidgen at verizon(.)net

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  37. I'd be thrilled to win a copy of this.
    rs9087547336 at verizon(dot)net

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  38. Thanks again for editing the collection, Kate! It's a fantastic book, as wonderful for the stories from each author as for the recipes themselves.

    And for me, you made something happen that I never dreamed could--and that some family members still don't believe. I am in a cookbook! Thanks for including so many of us.

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  39. I so want this cookbook! I can just imagine fixing a dish, receiving a compliment, and replying that it was a recipe I picked up from Hank Phillippi Ryan or Scott Turow. I find authors have really interesting cookbooks, such as Pat Conroy (The Pat Conroy Cookbook: Recipes and Stories of My Life). I'm looking forward to the sidebars in the Mystery Writers of America Cookbook as much as the recipes.

    Kate, what fun you must have had seeing what recipes the authors sent in, and what a lot of work you must have done in bringing it all together into a book that people are already gushing about. I'm wondering how many recipes you've tried out of it. The Wrong Man sounds like a great read. I love the idea of someone not being who they pretend to be. Going on my TBR and wish lists now.

    Kristopher, you are too funny. A Dark and Seedy Bar. Hahaha! Love it! "A dark and stormy night" is one of my favorite phrases, no matter how cliche it is, and if I were ever to get a tattoo and it would be a phrase, dark and stormy night would be it. Although, a dark and seedy bar sounds lovely, too.

    email: Kathy502@aol.com

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  40. As one of the unfamous contributors to the MWA Cookbook, I can't thank you enough, Kate, for including me. The book is so beautifully done. And at the same time, incredibly fun. Contributors here in Southern California hope to have a pot luck/book party soon. And I hope to meet you at the launch in New York. Congratulations on pulling off such a major project. And congratulations also on your new novel!!

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  41. I enjoy reading cookbooks, and I do try some of the recipes included in the novels (mostly mysteries) that I read.
    teenlibn at hotmail dot com

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  42. No wonder reading mysteries always makes me hungry!
    Patty

    pattymarsh31@gmail.com

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  43. SO late today! Had to do a story on the broken down commuter rail..sigh.

    But this cookbook is AMAZING! And I am very proud of my delicious recipe.

    But truly, it is BEAUTIFUL! I have never seen such a gorgeous book. Kate and her crew did an outrageously terrific job.

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  44. Another mystery-loving cookbook collector here. I'm looking forward to reading THE WRONG MAN and the cookbook, as they both sound great! Thanks, Kate.

    lola777_22(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  45. This sounds amazing!! I hope I win, but either way I have to get this book!! kayt18@comcast.net

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  46. sounds fun

    bn100candg at hotmail dot com

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  47. The cookbook sounds heavenly and I cannot wait for Kate's book to come out!

    davisel1830@hotmail.com

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  48. What an exciting approach for a cookbook!! riverboat38@hotmail(dot)com

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  49. Sounds like so much fun - and yummy, too!
    mackisa@gmail.com

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  50. Sounds like a wonderful compilation, can't wait for it to come out. Dycampbell1492@gmail.com

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