A Legacy of Lies By:Stephenia McGee

Here’s a great recipe for chewy chocolate chip cookies that one of my characters makes in A Legacy of Lies.


Montana Chocolate Chip Cookies



Description:

Soft and chewy, these sweet, triple chocolate chip cookies are the ultimate treat! Great for curling up on the couch with a glass of milk and a good book!

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

¾ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

3 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 12 oz pack semisweet chocolate chips

1 12 oz pack milk chocolate chips

1 12 oz pack white chocolate chips

Preparation

Step One:

Preheat oven to 350*F. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl; set aside. Combine the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar in a large bowl and beat with electric mixer set on high speed until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time; stir in vanilla.

Step Two:

Gradually add the flour mixture, beating well after each addition. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Step Three:

Drop the dough by rounded tablespoonfuls about two inches apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Flatten the dough slightly with the back of a fork. Bake the cookies until golden brown, about fifteen minutes. Transfer to wire cookie racks to cool completely. Makes five dozen.



Presentation Suggestions:

Serve warm with a glass of milk or top with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of chocolate sauce!

Excerpt:

The two women sat at the humble kitchen table and Glenda placed a plate of fresh chocolate-chip cookies between them. Sarah gratefully took a bite from one. She closed her eyes and savored the delectable sweetness. "These are great!"

Pride lit Glenda's features. "Thank you. They're my grandmother's secret recipe."

Sarah shoved the rest of the cookie in her mouth. She chewed slowly and stewed in her nervousness. She didn't have the slightest clue how to get started. Fortunately, Glenda broke the awkward silence.

"So, tell me about your trip."

Sarah swallowed and took a sip from her lemonade. "Well, it was quite an adventure. I really enjoyed the scenery and riding Sassy. She's a great horse." She paused to clear her throat.

"I almost had a pretty bad accident because I did something stupid." She forced a laugh. "But everything turned out okay."

Glenda raised her eyebrows. "What happened?"

Sarah recounted her encounter with the bull and how she'd been able to finally save the calf with Jim's help. Glenda watched her closely as she spoke. Sarah felt like the woman was looking right through her. Her heart beat furiously.

"Wow," Glenda replied when Sarah had finished stumbling over her story. "Seems like you did have quite an adventure."

"Yeah." Sarah lowered her eyes and willed the blood to stop burning in her cheeks. Then, gathering her courage, she decided to dive in head first. "Mrs. Wilson? I, well... let's see? Where to start?" Sarah said mostly to herself.

Glenda waited patiently for her to continue.

"Well, I'm afraid, first of all, Clark may have stronger feelings about us than I do." Sarah chewed on her lower lip and didn't meet Glenda's gaze.

"The thought did cross my mind."

Sarah cringed. Not the response she'd expected. Was she that transparent? "He's such a wonderful guy. He really is, and I really like him and respect him a lot. But, well, out on the trail I had some time to do some serious thinking, and I just don't think we are meant to be."

Her ears were burning now and she fixed her gaze on a blue and yellow placemat. Glenda didn't make a sound, but Sarah couldn't stop her momentum now.

"Clark wanted me to come here and meet you and Ronnie, and for us to spend more quality time together. We were hoping to deepen our relationship. Now, I just don't think that's a possibility." She drew a deep breath, and then ventured to look up.

Glenda picked up a cookie and chewed it slowly. They both sipped their cool, sweet lemonade for a few moments in silence. Sarah squirmed on the wooden chair.

Just when Sarah thought she couldn't take the tension any longer, Glenda said, "Y'know you should really talk to Clark about this. That would be the most appropriate thing to do." Her voice was calm, though her tone was corrective.

Sarah sighed, nodding. "Yes, and that's really what I want to do, but I'm afraid it's not going to be an option."



A Life Built on a Legacy – A Legacy Built on Lies

Sarah Sanders was always the reasonable sort, until she kissed a cowboy against her better judgment. Feeling strangely drawn to this mysterious ranch hand with a dark past, she finds herself swept up in an adventure that will force her to question everything she believes.

Jim Anderson’s cowboy gig is going pretty well. Except for one thing – he thinks he's going insane. Night terrors, hallucinations, and now a girl he has no business falling for. It’s better to keep his distance. But when Sarah is nearly killed, he will risk it all to save her.

When tragedy brings him back to the home he tried to escape, Jim will have to face the truth behind his strange circumstances and hope that Sarah will believe him. Digging up the answers to questions long buried, does he have the strength to face the dark family secrets that threaten to destroy them both?

Now Available at:

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Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/A-Legacy-of-Lies-ebook/dp/B007K1LS58/ref=la_B007P5NISY_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352752217&sr=1-1

ChristianBook.com: http://www.christianbook.com/a-legacy-of-lies-ebook/stephenia-mcgee/9781612521497/pd/28979EB?product_redirect=1&Ntt=28979EB&item_code=&Ntk=keywords&event=ESRCP

Launching Mysterious Mondays

A Legacy of Lies with Stephanie McGee.

It was cold.

Too cold.

The eerie silence of a moonless, starless night engulfed him.

Jim shivered. It had been high noon only a few minutes ago. Had he fallen asleep? He didn't remember being tired. He shook his head and tried to focus his groggy mind. He peered around cautiously. Where was his horse?

A rustling sound in the bushes startled him. His eyes darted to investigate. Nothing.

No, wait. There it was again. Off to the left. His eyes strained, searching for the slightest movement or shape. Something. Anything.

Silence.

He felt like a kid afraid of the dark.

Get a hold of yourself, man.

Fingers of fear teased along the back of his neck. The hairs stood on end. He shivered.

Where was that horse?

"Ciervo!" His voice sounded weak even to his own ears. He tried again. Now he was completely hoarse.

Swallowing the panic rising from the pit of his stomach, he took a cautious step forward.

He heard stirring in the woods behind him. Squirrels? He listened intently.

The noise came again. No. Definitely not a squirrel. Something was pacing in the woods. Deliberate. Stalking. Jim's mouth went dry.

Mountain lion.

His heart raced and he looked desperately around, scanning the darkness. Blackness blanketed the meadow. Jim hoped Ciervo hadn't wandered too far. He started to walk. Slowly. Calculating. He couldn't tell in what direction he moved.

His cell! He could use it as a light source. Jim's hand brushed at his hip. It wasn't there. He frowned. It always stayed on his belt. He never left the ranch without it.

Jim's eyes strained, but he could barely make out his surroundings. The farther he walked, the darker it got. His breathing came in quick, rapid intakes.

A shrill sound broke the silence. His heart leaped.

"Ciervo?"

Where was he? Was the mountain lion after him?

Hoof beats. Thank goodness.

They were pounding quicker than his rapidly drumming heart. A shadow appeared about thirty feet in front of him.

It wasn't his beloved horse. It looked like something galloping up from Hell.

The horrid creature ran wildly toward him. The cold air caused the hot breath to billow from its nostrils like a smoking dragon.

The monster's eyes looked like no earthly thing he had ever seen. The bulging orbs had a luminescent shine that came from deep behind the pupils. In the pitch black they glowed like a ghostly beacon.

The horse-shaped beast lowered his head. The creature was preparing to slam into him.

Jim threw himself out of its path and landed sharply on his hip. His right thigh slammed into a large, extruded boulder. Fire shot down his leg. Ignoring the pain, he jumped to his feet, eyes probing the darkness for the crazed brute. The ghostly version of Ciervo had vanished.

Despite the cold, he began to sweat. Jim felt eyes boring into him. Someone or something watched him. He was exposed. Unprepared. His heart hammered in his chest. His body refused to move.

Another sound. Different. It wasn't rustling limbs or bushes, and it certainly wasn't the horse's wild hoof beats. It was quiet, like a soft whisper. Crying? No, calling out for something.

He strained to catch the garbled words. The voice grew louder. More urgent. Still he couldn't make out the woeful tone. Then, as if his brain finished translating some cryptic code, the word became clear.

"James!"

Again. Louder this time. "James... James..." The voice rose and fell in the darkness. Its eerie sound slithered into his ears.

"Hello?" His voice echoed hoarsely. He held onto a feeble hope the voice came from someone nearby lost in the dark along with him. No one here knew him by that name. He stood holding his breath, listening.

Suddenly, a freight train of frigid air knocked him backward. Terrified, he dared not to move. The voice came again.

"You must help. Soon it will be too late--"

An insidious roar erupted around him. Hot, musty breath bathed Jim's face. He struggled backward. He couldn't quite make out the figure standing over him. The silhouette was enormous. Its shoulders spanned at least four feet. An odd-shaped head swayed from side-to side.

It growled.

Paralyzed with fear, Jim lay helpless. The creature rose to stand upright. Seven. Eight feet tall. Jim gasped for air. His feet tore into the soft ground, trying to gain footing. Desperately trying to get away.

The creature came crashing toward him.


Buy links:
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/A-Legacy-of-Lies-ebook/dp/B007K1LS58/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1332042156&sr=8-1

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Desert Breeze Publishing: http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-273/A-Legacy-of-Lies/Detail.bok