Talkshow Thursday: Welcome Gail Pallotta!

Talkshow Thursday: 

Welcome Gail Pallotta

I'm excited to welcome Christian Suspense author Gail Pallotta to my blog today.  Grab a cup of your favorite beverage and learn about her writing journey and fantastic books.

When did you know you wanted to become an author?

I’ve enjoyed writing stories for as long as I can remember, but I considered it a hobby until I took a professional writing course in college. Taking the class, I realized I wanted to write books.

How did you learn to write?

While I worked after college writing press releases, editing a magazine and copywriting, I tried to write books on the side. I made some big blunders though. Many years later I heard about American Christian Fiction Writers and joined. At first, I belonged to a critique group then I had a critique partner. I also attended classes with James Scott Bell and Donald Maas.

Do you hear from your readers? What do they say?

I’m always so happy when I hear from readers. Learning a person found enjoyment, encouragement or something worthy in a book I’ve written lifts my spirits and encourages me. I enjoy meeting readers at book signings as well as online and treasure their kind words in reviews. Here are a few excerpts from reviews for the Discipleship Series.

From a Top Author Review about Hidden Danger, the first book the Discipleship Series: It’s a feel-

good book that’ll keep you on the edge of your seat and leave you with a smile. For readers looking for a book that combines the thrill of mystery with the warmth of a faith-filled romance, Hidden Danger is a highly recommended read.

From Deana a Celebrate Lit Review re: Dangerous Detour, Book 2: The story takes a turn that gives readers an illustration of God placing you in someone’s path for a reason. The ending is where you will find the beauty of faith, forgiveness and hope…I would love to see this book made into a movie.

From Lesa re: Dangerous Shadows, Book 3: The romance stays clean while still offering plenty of chemistry and emotional pull, and the spiritual thread feels natural, never preachy, as it grows right out of the characters’ journeys.

What does your writing space look like?

At one end of a large utility room there’s a bookcase to the left of my desk and windows overlooking our front yard and the street. On the right wall, I have a picture of Ireland’s writers my neighbor brought to me from her visit to Ireland. With a name like Pallotta, one wouldn’t think I’m Irish, but I am.

If you could write a spin-off book about one of your secondary characters, which one would you choose and why?

I would give Hucklesford a heroine and choose him as the hero. He first appears in Hidden Danger, Book one of the Discipleship Series. Then, he’s in Dangerous Shadows, Book 3. He’s grown quite a bit from book one to book three, so I’d like to see where he might go next.

Why do you write in your particular genre? 

I write Christian fiction with suspense, mystery and romance. Because my Christian faith is a part of me, it seeps into my characters’ everyday lives. I enjoy suspense and mystery and think romance puts a sweet touch to any story.

How did your job prepare you for being a novelist? 

Even though writing press releases and articles isn’t like making up a story, it requires structure and discipline as well as the ability to meet deadlines. I once was asked to compose copy for a radio ad so quickly I had to read it to the DJ as I wrote it, so he could repeat it on the air.

What is your next project? 

Another Christian romantic suspense.

About Dangerous Shadows: 

Shaken from an assault in the library parking lot at Hilltop College in Western North Carolina, crime reporter Emily Hanover contacts her ex-fiancé, private investigator Nick Lancaster. When the college hires Nick to recover quartz and ancient maps stolen from the library, Nick insists there’s a connection between the theft and Emily’s attack.

As Nick and Emily face danger from an elusive stalker, their romance rekindles. Nick’s sidekick, Hucklesford, spots two suspects, so he and Nick go undercover. While Nick’s surveillance points to illegal gambling and murder, Hucklesford’s investigation leads him to the college cross-country team. Can Nick and Hucklesford, along with Emily, connect the stalker, theft, college student, and gambler’s murder to solve this baffling mystery? Will Nick and Emily find true love?

Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DZXWGF3P

Social Media links:

Website: http://www.gailpallotta.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorsandMore
Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3226220.Gail_Pallotta
BookBub - https://www.bookbub.com/profile/gail-pallotta
Pinterest link: https://pinterest.com/Gwrt781/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gail-pallotta-b368b220/

Photo credits:

Author photo and book image: courtesy Gail Pallotta

Woman Reading: Pixabay/Pexels

DJ: Pixabay/Andrez Rembowski

Wartime Wednesday: January 1946

Wartime Wednesday: January 1946

By January 1946, World War II had officially been over for four months, but “administration” and logistics continued. The War Department announced a slowdown in demobilizing members of the armed forces from 800,000 to 300,000 per month. Unsurprisingly, there were protests by soldiers, sailors, and airmen as well as the public. The decision was quickly reversed as a result of the “Bring ‘em Home” movement.

The Japanese were stunned when Emperor Hirohito announced on radio that the emperor is “not a living god,” and he was not descended from the Shinto sun goddess Amaterasu Omikami. He also stated that citizens should no longer believe “the false conception…that the Japanese people are superior to other races and fated to rule the world.” He was not charged with war crimes, but General MacArthur began a two-plus-year purge of “undesirable people in office” resulting in over 210,000 individuals being removed or barred from serving.

January also saw the US.. Army partially remove a ban against marriage between American soldiers and

enemy nationals. This allowed servicemen to take Austrian brides. The ban was not lifted for German nationals until December.

Nazi Adolf Eichman escaped from an American detention camp where he’d hidden is identity with the alias SS Lt. Otto Eckmann. He fled to Austria, then Italy, and finally Argentina where he changed his name to Ricardo Klement. He was caught in May, 1960 and executed.

Vietnam saw its first democratic elections, and the last Japanese prisoners of war left the U.S. for home. The People’s Republic of Albania was declared, and the Soviet Union ratified a treaty with Poland that had been signed in August 1945. On the January 10, the first meeting of the General Assembly convened with delegates from fifty-one nations. The organizations first president, Belgium’s Paul-Henri Spaak, was elected. A week later, the United Nations Security Council held its first meeting with Australian politician and diplomat Norman Makin presiding.

January 19 saw the creation of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East by General Douglas MacArthur. By 1948, the tribunal would obtain twenty-five convictions, seven of them with death sentences for Japanese war criminals, including former Prime Minister Hideko Tojo. The following day Charles de Gaulle resigned as Chairman of the Provisional Government of the French Republic.

By the end of the month the first multi-party elections in almost fifteen years took place in the American occupied zone of Germany. Similar elections were later held in the French, British, and Soviet zones.

___________________

Spies & Sweethearts

She wants to do her part. He’s just trying to stay out of the stockade. Will two agents deep behind enemy lines find capture… or love?

1942. Emily Strealer is tired of being told what she can’t do. Wanting to prove herself to her older sisters and do her part for the war effort, the high school French teacher joins the OSS and trains to become a covert operative. And when she completes her training, she finds herself parachuting into occupied France with her instructor to send radio signals to the Resistance.

Major Gerard Lucas has always been a rogue. Transferring to the so-called “Office of Dirty Tricks” to escape a court-martial, he poses as a husband to one of his trainees on a dangerous secret mission. But when their cover is blown after only three weeks, he has to flee with the young schoolteacher to avoid Nazi arrest.

Running for their lives, Emily clings to her mentor’s military experience during the harrowing three-hundred-mile trek to neutral Switzerland. And while Gerard can’t bear the thought of his partner falling into German hands, their forged papers might not be enough to get them over the border.

Can the fugitive pair receive God’s grace to elude the SS and discover the future He intended?
Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/m0Od9l

Photo credits:

General Douglas MacArthur and Japanese Emperor Hirohito: By Gaetano Faillace - https://ddr.densho.org/ddr-densho-299-152/, Public Domain. 

American Soldier and his girlfriend: Courtesy Imperial War Museum

Japanese Prime Minister Hideko Tojo: By Unknown author - Hideki Tojo Alchetron: Free Social Encyclopedia of the World, Public Domain.

Talkshow Thursday: Author Sarah Hanks

Talkshow Thursday: Author Sarah Hanks

I'm pleased to be hosting award-winning author Sarah Hanks as she shares about her latest release and her writing journey.

How many books have you written, and which is your favorite?

This month, I’m releasing my 11th novel. Asking which one is my favorite is like asking who’s my favorite child (I have ten.) I love them all in special ways. I will say that Braving Strange Waters was the most fun to write. New Creations has a tender place in my heart because it’s about my grandpa. And Mercy Will Follow Me was my professional debut, so it’s memorable for me.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?

I had already written my Mercy series and Braving Strange Waters, which all contained steamboats, when I found out I have a ancestor who was a steamboat captain. I was going through my grandpa’s mementos when writing New Creations and I found a newspaper article about him. Fascination with steamboats must be in my blood.

How are your characters like you? Different?

In Braving Fiery Waters, book 2 of the time sailor series that releases January 21st, Marina is an

overprotective mom of two teenagers. Having several children in that stage of life right now, I wanted to explore the bitter sweetness of children growing up and becoming more independent. However, Marina and I are vastly different as parents. She’s ultra prepared, with everything she might need in the case of any imaginable emergency in her purse. I often forget to bring a diaper bag, much less band aids and Neosporin. I definitely don’t have things as together as she does, though I have a friend who’s great at that. I’ve gotten more laid back the more children we’ve had. Now it takes a lot to ruffle me.

If your book is part of a series: Did you set out to write a series? Why did you decide to write a series?

With my other two series, the Mercy series and the Sisters in Arms collection, I did, but not with my time sailor series. Braving Strange Waters was a departure from my usual split-time style. It’s a time travel novel, and though I still have both a modern and historical storyline, it contains the speculative elements of a magical mailbox and time sailing rules. I had no idea if the idea would work or if anyone would like it. It wasn’t until I started receiving positive feedback that I decided to run with the idea and make it a series.

What sort of research did you do for your story, and was there an exceptionally interesting tidbit you knew you had to include?

The idea for Braving Fiery Waters came from a visit to the Missouri History Museum. They have a fabulous display about the Great St. Louis Fire of 1849. I devoured the book Fire, Pestilence, and Death: St. Louis 1849 by Christopher Alan Gorden. It fascinated me. Not only did the people of St. Louis deal with a devastating fire, they did so in the middle of a cholera pandemic. The resilience of my home city resonated with me.

In the book, it mentions a woman named Catherine Weber who everyone thought to be insane. She wandered around Quarantine Island, making wreaths for the dead and signing strange songs. I thought it would be fun to bring her into the story. You’ll have to read it to find out how I did so. I think it’s an interesting touch.

What draws you to the time period about which you write?

Steamboats. I’m only half kidding! Most of my books have a historical storyline somewhere in the 1800s. I’m not sure why, but I’m drawn to the antebellum era through Reconstruction. So much changed throughout that period, and yet many mindsets and prejudices stubbornly held. I feel like my history classes in school skimmed over some very important events and themes. I find digging into that history for myself empowering.

Why do you write in your particular genre?

I write split-time fiction because I enjoy exploring how the past shapes the present. Nothing happens in a vacuum. Choices made a thousand years ago affect us today. Learning from history enables us to make wiser decisions but also gives us a clearer lens to our own struggles. It paves a path to freedom by highlighting lies humanity has believed. Weaving past with present also fosters a sense of connection to those who have lived before us.

What is your process for writing? (do you outline, have a special place or time of day you write, etc.) What is your favorite part of the process?

I’m an outliner, for sure. I usually dedicate a full month to plotting and learning my characters before I jump into writing. My first drafts lack details, however. I’m just getting the story out. My favorite part comes in the next step where I go back and add the sensory and historical details that make the manuscript come alive. This revision is fulfilling for me. I’m not a big fan of going back through to self-edit the minutia of sentence structure, etc. But dressing up my WIP is delightful.

How do you celebrate when you finish a manuscript?

Ice cream. I pretty much celebrate everything with chocolate ice cream.

What is your next project?

Right now, I’m working on the third book in my time sailor series, Braving Red Waters. This one features the hospital ship the USS Red Rover, which I’ve wanted to write about for years. Yes, another steamboat with fascinating history. It was the Navy’s first fully outfitted hospital ship and there was a handful of diverse women aboard. Couple that subject with a double romance, and I’m having a blast writing this one.

BOOK BLURB:

Her husband died in a fire. Now she’s heading straight into one.

Marina Stone planned an ideal family vacation, perfect for reconnecting with her two teenagers after their father's death. But those plans go drastically away when she time sails to the White Cloud in the year 1849. Now she must face her greatest fears and complete a mystery mission before she can return to her life and children. But what if they no longer truly need her or want her?

A family vacation to South Haven, Michigan, was the last thing Aiden wanted for his summer. Having just been dumped by his girlfriend and ticket to his future, he’d rather numb his mind with adventure. But when he connects with Nevaeh, a girl whose beauty is only matched by her faith, he might find there’s no place he’d rather be. When his sister runs away, he must work with Nevaeh to help guide her home.

In this second book in the Time Sailors series, new friends join the old in a faith-filled time travel novel you won’t soon forget.

Bio:
Sarah Hanks is a multi-award-winning author of split-time Christian fiction. Her background in teaching and children’s ministry prepared her for exercising her creativity as a writer, now her full-time job. She and her husband have ten children, a couple of whom seem to have inherited their mother’s love for playing with words and crafting stories. Though Sarah dreams of a cabin by the beach, the family lives jammed together in beautiful chaos near St. Louis, Missouri. She buys earplugs in bulk.

You can follow her here:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B08SC2GPF7
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorSarahHanks/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorsarahhanks/
Substack: https://authorsarahhanks.substack.com/
Website: www.sarah-hanks.com

Photo Credits:

Teenagers: Pixabay/Mircea Iancu

Steamboat: Pixabay/Dominador

Author Image/Book cover: Courtesy Sarah Hanks

Release Day! Love Under Construction

Release Day!

Love Under Construction

Love Under Construction is book 2 in The Chocolate Chronicles, a trilogy of stories that features the Krause siblings in the town of Cocoaville inspired by Milton Hershey and his town. 

In 2002, my husband and I left behind the rat race of Washington, DC to purchase and operate a bed and breakfast in central New Hampshire. We purchased an 1850 Federal house with good bones, but a lot of needed repairs. Intriguingly, the work done prior to the 1950s was well-done. Renovations after that not so much. We learned not to start any jobs after mid-March so we weren't stuck with an uncompleted project when season began.

We learned how to plaster, do plumbing and electric, and fix just about anything.  I used our renovation experience to write Nadine's story. 

Can two stubborn people tear down the walls of independence to find love?

Nadine Krause took in boarders to help her family climb out of debt after her father’s death. Business has gone well, and she’s earned enough to expand the house. When her brother’s friend agrees to take the job - the only man in town willing to work for a woman - sparks fly. But not the good kind. 

Or are they?

Looking for something different, Leo Albrecht takes a project working for Nadine Krause, the spunky owner of Cocoaville’s favorite boarding house. An easy job. Then he manages to injure himself and needs her help to finish making it nearly impossible to ignore his growing attraction. Should he break his rule of not mixing work and his personal life?

Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/47Gn0q

Movie Monday: High Sierra

Movie Monday: High Sierra

The 1940s and 1950s are considered the “classic period of American film noir,” although that term wasn’t used until much later. Instead, the movies were referred to as melodramas, and the plot typically revolved around a crime of some sort and often featured a “hard-boiled detective.”

Based on the W.R. Burnett novel of the same name, High Sierra released eighty-five years ago this month and stars Humphrey Bogart and Ida Lupino, an actress with a long career, yet who is often forgotten when listing the leading ladies of the time.

Bogart is convicted bank robber Roy Earle, whose release from prison is the result of bribing the governor. Big Mac M’Gann is responsible because he wants a bank heist led by Roy on his behalf. Gang members include Red Hattery and Babe Kozak who brings his “dime-a-dance” girlfriend Marie Garson (played by Lupino). The robbery goes wrong as does the getaway, resulting in the deaths of Red and Babe. Roy and Marie head across country to discover the Big Mac is also dead having suffered a heart attack.

Former policeman Jake Kranmer has taken over Big Mac’s operation and tries to force Roy to give up

the jewels. Instead, Roy kills him, then tries to fence the jewels. After seeing the front-page news about the robbery that includes Roy’s photo and a description of Marie, Roy sends Marie to Las Vegas and returns to the get his money from the fence. Things go from bad to worse when Roy conducts a stick up for money to fill his gas tank and his recognized by local police. He heads into the mountains where he is pursued by law enforcement. The shootout that occurs is considered the highlight of the film.

Performances by both Bogart and Lupino were widely praised at the time and continue to be held in high regard. His portrayal of the “good bad man” creates a sympathetic character and adds depth to the quintessential, sometimes cliched gangster. About Lupino, one critic indicated she was “impressive as the adoring moll.” The film changed the way studio executives saw Bogart who until then had appeared in mostly “B movies. Warner Bros. realized they had a star on their hands.

With a budget of just under a half-million dollars, the movie made more than $1.5 million in the US and other markets. Despite its excellent reception High Sierra did not receive any Academy Award nominations, however, it was recognized by the National Board of Review as part of its top ten films for 1941.

The 1949 film Colorado Territory starring Joel McCrea and Virginia Mayo is also based on the novel as is the 1955 movie I Died A Thousand Times (Jack Palance and Shelley Winters). Two radio broadcasts were made on the Screen Guild Theater: 1942 with Bogart and Claire Trevor and 1944 with Bogart and Lupino.

Have you seen this classic?

___________________

Spies & Sweethearts

She wants to do her part. He’s just trying to stay out of the stockade. Will two agents deep behind enemy lines find capture… or love?

1942. Emily Strealer is tired of being told what she can’t do. Wanting to prove herself to her older sisters and do her part for the war effort, the high school French teacher joins the OSS and trains to become a covert operative. And when she completes her training, she finds herself parachuting into occupied France with her instructor to send radio signals to the Resistance.

Major Gerard Lucas has always been a rogue. Transferring to the so-called “Office of Dirty Tricks” to escape a court-martial, he poses as a husband to one of his trainees on a dangerous secret mission. But when their cover is blown after only three weeks, he has to flee with the young schoolteacher to avoid Nazi arrest.

Running for their lives, Emily clings to her mentor’s military experience during the harrowing three-hundred-mile trek to neutral Switzerland. And while Gerard can’t bear the thought of his partner falling into German hands, their forged papers might not be enough to get them over the border.

Can the fugitive pair receive God’s grace to elude the SS and discover the future He intended?

Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/m0Od9l

Photo credits:
Movie Poster: By Heritage Auctions, Fair use.
Bogart and Lupino: Movie Still, Warner Bros.
Bogart: mptvimages.com

Fiction Friday: New Releases in Christian Fiction

Fiction Friday: New Releases in Christian Fiction
January 2026 New ReleasesMore in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website

Action/Adventure:

Fire Between Two Skies by R.F. Whong -- Two eras. One relentless quest for truth amid desires and temptation. Across the centuries, two men are bound by parallel destinies that echo through time. Book 3 of this dual-time odyssey delves deep into the passions and struggles that connect their worlds. (Action/Adventure, Independently Published)
Amish (Contemporary and Romance):

Plain Jane’s Secret Admirer by Anne Blackburne -- Jane must overcome her disappointment upon discovering that the man she's loved since childhood is the same person who gave her a hated nickname in their school days; can she and Sam overcome her distrust and his guilt and shyness and find their way to a shared future? (Amish Romance from Barbour Publishing)

An Amish Second Chance by Beth Wiseman -- Can Hope and Rueben share the secrets that they've held close to their hearts and have the second chance they long for? (Amish Contemporary, Independently Published)

Children’s Middle Grade /Chapter:

The Case of the Four-Legged Friend by Becca Wierwille -- In this Christian mystery for kids, a girl must find a dog's home before he's sent to the animal shelter. (Children’s/Middle Grade, Independently Published)

General Historical:

What Loyalty Demands by Carol Ashby -- When rebellion breaks out in Roman Britain, the protective British cousin of a Christian woman and the Roman tribune who wants a future with her discover how enmity born of conflicting loyalties can be overcome when believers serve as the peacemakers Jesus commanded them to be. (General Historical from Cerrillo Press)

Historical Romance:

Far Grander Than Paradise by Barbara Blythe -- She needs to find her father. He needs to atone for his dead brother’s sins. Can they find what they seek on a voyage that takes them halfway around the world? (Historical Romance from Elk Lake Publishing)

Whispers in the Valley by Amanda Cabot -- A woman whose life is in shambles. A man who's fighting for his future. A decades-old mystery. Carr Valley will never be the same. (Historical Romance, Independently Published)

Love Under Construction by Linda Shenton Matchett -- Nadine Krause took in boarders to help her family climb out of debt after her father’s death. Business has gone well, and she’s earned enough to expand the house. When her brother’s friend agrees to take the job - the only man in town willing to work for a woman - sparks fly. But not the good kind. Or are they? (Historical Romance from Shortwave Press)

Romantic Suspense:

Hidden Talent by Bettie Boswell -- When author Leah Beach is threated because of a new rescue mule she's modeled one of her comic characters after, she seeks help from a reluctant body guard, Carlton Marsh, who soon discovers the threat is real. (Romantic Suspense from Mt. Zion Ridge Press)

Fighting for You by Robin Patchen -- She's running from her past. He's protecting his future. Together, they must fight for what matters most. (Romantic Suspense, Independently Published)

Trapped on the Alaskan Glacier by Megan Short -- Forced into hiding after witnessing a double murder by an organized-crime gang, Beth Ryder’s identity is suddenly leaked online and a kill order is placed on her head. Her survival is now in the hands of US Marshal Jake Cruz, who is determined to keep her alive. But when it becomes clear that more than one group is targeting Beth, the stakes are higher than ever. (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired [Harlequin])

Deadly Secrets by Penny Zeller -- Betrayal has consequences... Harper Amerson loves her job as a real estate agent. That is, until it becomes clear that someone is watching her. What happens when she attempts to sell the land someone doesn't want sold? (Romantic Suspense from Maplebrook Publishing)

Speculative Fiction:

Cerulean Rose by Demi Griffin -- A mysterious, in-depth re-telling of Cinderella. (Speculative/Romantic Fantasy, Independently Published)

Braving Fiery Waters by Sarah Hanks -- Her husband died in a fire. Now she’s heading straight into one. Marina Stone planned an ideal family vacation, perfect for reconnecting with her two teenagers after their father's death. But those plans go drastically away when she time sails to the White Cloud in the year 1849. Now she must face her greatest fears and complete a mystery mission before she can return to her life and children. (Speculative/Time Travel, Independently Published)

  Plus check out these recent additions to Fiction Finder published within the past month:

Death on Wolfe Mountain by Lynne Waite chapman -- Who was the man found dead on Wolfe Mountain and how did his body get there? (Cozy Mystery)

Love & Cheer – Holidays in Hallbrook by Elsie Davis -- Talia Hunter’s promotion is riding on one flawless New Year’s Eve company gala. But when her caterer cancels at the eleventh hour, her career is on the line. And with her six-year-old daughter, Nicole, on a holiday school break, everything is more complicated as Talia tries to juggle life. She needs a miracle, except the only chef available on such a big party night is a man from her past…one she would rather avoid. (Contemporary Romance)

Eye of the Mind by Sara Davison -- After witnessing a murder, firefighter Jules Adler must work with police sketch artist Dante de Marco to come up with a likeness of the killer before he tracks her down and silences her forever. (Romantic Suspense)

A Certain Mercy by Linda Dindzans MD -- From the opulent danger of Herod’s court to the quiet refuge of Bethany, from the shadow of the Cross to the glory of the Resurrection, A Certain Mercy weaves a powerful story of forbidden love, devastating betrayal, and the transforming grace of Christ. (General Historical)

Colors of the Ocean by Cheryl Fitzgerald -- A multi-generational story that follows thirteen-year-old Roxi on a transformative journey as she sails across the Pacific Ocean with grandparents she barely knows. Along the way she must navigate stormy conflicts in several relationships and within herself. (General Contemporary/Young Adult)

Feuding with the Cowboy by Louise M. Gouge -- He once defied his family for love; can he risk it again? (Contemporary Romance)

Into the Promised Land by Sarah Heatwole -- Into the Promised Land is a tale of courage to forge a new path, as Andy and Sylvia navigate the balance between Amish tradition and the compelling call of forgiveness and freedom in Jesus, until their Amish community demands a choice between faith and belonging. (General Historical)

Teatime Tuesday: Cooking with Tea

Teatime Tuesday: Cooking with Tea

Tea isn’t just for drinking! Like other herbs, tea is a leaf, and as such can be used like you would an herb either in cooking or baking. A current trend is the use of matcha tea as a baking ingredient. A mint-green powder made by grinding the leaves, it is often used in cakes and pastries adding an aromatic “punch” as well as antioxidants. More baking ideas include Earl Grey or chai tea in pound cakes or shortbreads. Peppermint tea adds zip to your brownies in time for the holidays.

You can bake with any tea, however, as one site says, “that doesn’t mean every recipe will taste great when you use any type of tea (think of pizza – you wouldn’t top it with just any cheese.) As such, you’ll want to choose the type of tea with care. The flavor should blend or complement the other flavors in the recipe.

There are many ways bake with tea:

• Tea-infused liquids
• Ground tea leaves
• Tea-infused sugar
• Tea simple syrup
• Tea ganache (yep, you read that correctly. Instead of using milk, try brewed tea)
• Tea glaze

So, how about cooking with tea?

Adding tea leaves to soups, stews, and broths like any herb creates a complex flavor combination sure to please. Green tea goes well with onion, garlic, and ginger. Try your favorite tea as a marinade or rub. Black and oolong tea work well with chicken, turkey or pork, and play well with soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and other spices. Tea-smoke duck is a classic Szechuan dish.

Dips, sauces, and dressings can also be “taken up a notch,” to quote a certain TV celebrity chef. Black tea goes well with hoisin sauce for your next stir fry. Or brewed sweet tea blends with sweet and sour sauce as a delicious dip for fried chicken, tempura vegetables, or other deep-fried goodies.

What your favorite not-so-usual way of cooking or baking with tea?

___________________

Legacy of Love, Part of A Cheerful Heart Anthology

Will their love come at a cost?

Escaping Boston to avoid a marriage of convenience aimed at garnering society’s respect for her family name in the shadow of her father’s war profiteering, Meg Underwood settles in Oregon. Despite leaving behind the comforts of wealth, she’s happy. Then the handsome Pinkerton agent, Reuben Jessop, arrives with news that she’s inherited her aunt’s significant estate, and she must return home to claim the bequest. Meg refuses to make the trip. Unwilling to fail at his mission, Reuben gives her until Christmas to prove why she should remain in Oregon and give up the opportunity to become a woman of means. When he seems to want more than friendship, she wonders if her new-found wealth is the basis of his attraction.

Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/4pO3PrZ 

Photo Credits:

Matcha Tea: Pixabay/Asana Kalumpaburt

Tea Leaves: Pixabay/DandelionL