Part 32 (2/2)
”That all makes sense to me,” Andrea told them, finis.h.i.+ng her coffee and sliding out of the booth. ”I think your idea about the Midwest is right, especially since she doesn't have an accent. I'll try the Dakotas first and work my way around in a circle. Where will you be if I get a hit, Hannah?”
”I'm at the shop until six. We're closing at five, but I want to mix up a double batch of Fudge-Aroons to take to Sally's Christmas party on Friday night. You're going aren't you, Norman?”
”Yes. Will you save me a dance?”
”Absolutely,” Hannah said, hoping her smile wasn't slipping. Norman was a great guy, but he wasn't what anyone without steel-toed boots might call an accomplished dancer.
”How about Candy? Is she going?” Andrea wanted to know.
”Of course. I told her it was one of the biggest parties of the year and she's all excited about it.”
”Does she have a dress?”
”Not yet, but I talked to Claire and I'm taking her over to Beau Monde tomorrow.”
”Don't forget shoes. She can't wear tennis shoes with a fancy party dress.”
”I won't forget.” Hannah was grateful for the reminder, but she wasn't about to let her sister know that she hadn't even thought about shoes.
”So you'll be home at...what? Six-thirty?”
”That's about right.”
”Okay.” Andrea turned to go, but then she turned back. ”What do you want me to say when I find Candy's mother?”
Hannah thought about that for a moment, and she remembered what Mike had said. Some runaways had a very good reason for leaving home. ”If the mother's not too far away, see if you can get her to come here. Tell her that if I bring Candy back without resolving anything, she'll just run away again. And the next time she could get into big trouble.”
”Okay, but what if she won't come here?”
”Then I'll go there, wherever it is.” Hannah felt the same surge of fierce protectiveness she experienced when she held small kittens and puppies. ”Just make it clear that I'm not letting Candy out of my sight until I know she's going to be okay.”
FUDGE-AROONS.
Do not preheat oven-this dough must chill before baking.1 cup chocolate chips (6-ounce package)1 cup b.u.t.ter (2 sticks, pound) (2 sticks, pound) cup brown sugar1 cups white (granulated) (granulated) sugar sugar2 teaspoons vanilla extract teaspoon salt1 teaspoon baking soda2 beaten eggs (just whip them up with a fork) (just whip them up with a fork)3 cups flour (not sifted-pack it down when you measure it) (not sifted-pack it down when you measure it)Put the cup of chocolate chips and the cup of b.u.t.ter in a 4-cup bowl and microwave on high for 2 minutes. Stir until smooth and let the mixture cool while you do the next step.Combine the brown sugar and white sugar in a large mixing bowl. Add the vanilla, salt, and baking soda. Mix in the two beaten eggs.Check the chocolate chip and b.u.t.ter mixture. If it's cool enough to touch, add it to the sugar mixture and stir thoroughly.Add the flour in half-cup increments, stirring after each addition.Cover your bowl and refrigerate it. This dough must chill for at least an hour. (Overnight is fine, too.) (Overnight is fine, too.)The coconut (”aroon”) (”aroon”) filling must also chill. Mix it up now. filling must also chill. Mix it up now.COCONUT FILLING:2 cups shredded coconut1 cup white (granulated) (granulated) sugar sugar1 cup flour (not sifted-pack it down when you measure it) (not sifted-pack it down when you measure it) stick cold b.u.t.ter ( cup, 1/8 pound) ( cup, 1/8 pound)2 beaten eggsIn a food processor with the steel blade, zoop up the coconut with the sugar and flour. Pulse it several times so that the coconut flakes are no longer than a quarter inch.Cut the b.u.t.ter into four pieces and add them to your work bowl. Pulse again, until the mixture looks like coa.r.s.e meal.Crack the eggs into a small bowl or a cup and whisk them up with a fork. Add them to your work bowl and pulse until they're incorporated into the mixture.(If you don't have a food processor, you don't have to buy one to make this cookie-it's just a little messier when the coconut flakes are longer. To make this cookie without a food processor, just add all of the ingredients except the b.u.t.ter to a small bowl and stir them up. Then melt the b.u.t.ter and mix it in.)Cover and chill the coconut mixture for at least an hour. (Overnight is fine, too.) (Overnight is fine, too.)When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.Form b.a.l.l.s of chocolate dough, 1 inch in diameter, with your hands. Place them on a greased cookie sheet, 12 to a standard-sized sheet. Press them down with the heel of your impeccably clean hand.Form b.a.l.l.s of coconut just a bit smaller than the chocolate b.a.l.l.s you made. Place them on top of each squashed chocolate ball. Now squish those down.Make 12 more chocolate b.a.l.l.s, the same size as the first ones, and put them on top of the squashed coconut b.a.l.l.s. Press them down slightly to make little ”sandwiches.”Bake at 350 degrees F. for 9 to 11 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the sheet for at least two minutes. When they're cool enough to remove, use a spatula to move them to a wire rack to complete cooling.Yield: 5 to 6 dozen yummy cookies.If you have any coconut mixture left over, form coconut b.a.l.l.s, 12 to a baking sheet, put a milk chocolate chip on top of each ball and press it down slightly, and bake at 350 degrees F. for 10 minutes.Norman wants me to make these cookies even chewier-he says it'll provide more revenue for his dental clinic. (He's kidding...I think.)
Chapter Nine.
When the phone rang at seven in the morning, Hannah grabbed it. She'd been on pins and needles all night, wondering if Andrea would be successful in her phone search for Candy's mother.
”The Cookie Jar. This is Hannah speaking,” she said, hoping it was her sister and not another customer with a big cookie catering order they couldn't possibly fill before Christmas.
”She's there, right?”
It was Andrea and it didn't take sisterly telepathy to know that she was talking about Candy. ”That's right.”
”Meet me in the back booth at Hal and Rose's in fifteen minutes. Say you have to deliver some cookies or something. I've got big news!”
Hannah frowned as the line went dead. Andrea was p.r.o.ne to play drama queen, but if she'd managed to find Candy's mother, Hannah would be the first to applaud her performance.
”Is something wrong?” Lisa asked, noticing Hannah's frown.
”Just another emergency cookie order. I have to run out with three dozen, but I'll be back before we open. Will you bag them up for me, Candy?”
”Sure.” Candy grabbed one of their distinctive bags, snapped it open, and slipped on a food service glove. ”What kind do you want?”
”Anything we can spare. You must have heard that old saying: ”Baggers can't be choosers.”
”I love these cookies! What do you call them again?” Andrea rooted around in the bag to find a sibling to the three she'd just eaten.
”Fudge-Aroons. Are you going to tell me, or not?”
”I'm getting to it.” Andrea glanced around, but no one was paying the slightest attention to them. The regulars were at the counter, downing mug after mug of Rose's strong coffee, and there were faint sounds of sweeping as Hal prepared the banquet room for the day's poker game. Only one other booth was filled, and it wasn't within earshot. Cyril Murphy and Father Coultas were eating fried eggs and double orders of bacon for breakfast, something Cyril's wife and Father's housekeeper wouldn't let them have because they were supposed to watch their cholesterol.
”So you found the vet clinic?” Hannah prompted.
”Of course I did. It's in Des Moines, Iowa. I left my number with the answering service, but the vet didn't get back to me until eight last night.”
”And he gave you Candy's home phone number?”
”No, he didn't have it. But he told me the name of the last vet. Candy's dad was Dr. Allen Roberts. He died last year, so Candy didn't lie about that.”
”I didn't think she was lying.” Hannah shook her head when Rose held up the coffee pot. Her mug was almost empty, but now that Andrea had finally started to tell her about the phone calls, she didn't want anything to interrupt her. ”So Candy's last name really does start with an R R.”
”That's right. I called information for her home phone number, but there was no listing for Allen Roberts. I figured that Candy's mother must have put it in her name after her husband died, so I got a list of every Roberts in Des Moines.”
”Were there a lot of them?”
”I'll say! I never thought of Roberts as a common name before, but the operator gave me dozens of numbers. I started calling right away, but I had to stop when Bill came home.”
”But you managed to find Candy's mother?” Hannah asked, cutting to the chase.
”Right before I called you this morning. She cried on the phone, Hannah. She's been worried sick about Candy and she was so happy to hear that she's all right.”
Hannah couldn't even begin to imagine the stress Candy's mother had been under. ”Did you ask her to come here so we could help work things out with Candy?”
”Yes, and she agreed. I put her on hold and called Sally at the inn to see if there were any vacancies. When Sally said there were, Deana told me she'd throw some things in a suitcase and they'd get on the road right away.”
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