This is our third blog post in the new format. We’ve decided to move our Lavender CottageCore here, and we’ll be posting the second and fourth Tuesday every month. Thank you for joining us!

Today’s Recipe

We want to share another recipe from our Burrows Bay/A San Juan Islands Series that we think you’ll enjoy! Here is a very lovely and slightly mysterious photo of the San Juan Islands courtesy of Pixabay.

When it’s cold outside, what could be better than a big bowl of macaroni and cheese? Warms you up, makes you feel better…what Gabbi calls comfort food. She’s a chef, and along with her cousin Moira, they inherit their grandmother’s mansion in the San Juan Islands. The two women learn a lot about each other in the process, since they hadn’t spent much time together in the past several years.

Gabbi has a lot of specialty dishes, but this one she learned from her dad a long time ago. Find out what makes it so magical.

Magical Macaroni and Cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 9 x 13-inch pan.

• 4 to 6 cups of boiling water
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 16-oz of elbow macaroni

Put water into large pot, add salt and bring to boil. Add macaroni and stir. Cook for 7 to 8 minutes until done to satisfaction. Drain and set aside.

Cheese Sauce

• 3 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 ½ cups milk
• ½ cup cream or half and half
• 2 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• ½ cup grated parmesan cheese

Melt butter or margarine in large pot. Whisk in flour and stir constantly over medium heat until mixture thickens into a roux. (Heated flour and butter or margarine mixture.)

Slowly add milk, still stirring constantly, then cream or half and half. Continue heating until sauce thickens and is the consistency you want. Better too thick than too thin because you can always add more milk.

Stir in grated cheddar cheese until melted, then mozzarella. If too thick, add a little more milk.

Add macaroni and stir until all combined. Turn off heat and pour entire mixture into greased 9 x 13-inch pan.

Place in oven and cook for 20 to 25 minutes until heated thoroughly.

Sprinkle with shredded parmesan cheese and add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Author Spotlight

Today, we’re sharing a FREE ebook from Author A.L. Hawke. This is a stand alone story with a little more steamy content than our books. However, we love magical stories…and we love FREE! So we thought this would be a good match. A.L. says this ebook is available at most retailers (and free) through April 14th.

I absolutely adore Halloween. I love the vibrant fall colors and the fun and revelry. And Samhain (Sa-win) is a major holiday for witches because it represents our new year. It’s the time when the spirit world meets the living.

So I wanted to throw a Halloween party for my students at Hawthorne University. Since the Billington frat house wasn’t available, I planned a party at my place. But as Maddie sat smiling in our circle, planning pumpkin carvings and costume contests, a visitor from my teacher’s past appeared, in tears, beside our bonfire. She said she had been terrorized by a haunted house, and she was looking for the Hawthorne Witch. Find the story here!

Lavender CottageCore

It’s time for planting the garden. Many of you have probably already started, but we have to wait until the snow finally melts here in eastern Washington. We’re planning to move the arches around in the garden and use them for climbing beans. Our favorite combination is Emerite beans with purple pole beans…and there is a reason! The first has lavender flowers and the second has dark purple. You can see why this is particularly appealing to Lavender Cottage Books.

The other fun and slightly magical thing is that the purple beans turn green when you cook them. A wonderful dark green that goes very well with the lighter green of the Emerite beans. It’s so much fun to walk under the arches and pick the beans, so we’re going to do it (with more arches) this year. What are your favorite vegetables in the garden?

We had planned to post some garden photos, but it keeps snowing…so when we found this on Pixabay the other day, it seemed perfect. A pretty little cottage garden where flowers and vegetables can grow together.

Once Upon A Rose – Chapter 3

Finally, we want to include a chapter for everyone to read at the end of each newsletter. Here’s the next part of Once Upon A Rose, the first story in our Enchanted Fairytale Series. Action, adventure, romance…and maybe a little magic. (If you missed the first two chapters, we have a link at the bottom of the story.)

Over the next few weeks, Celsiana’s friends came to visit several times. They spent most of their time in the gardens, but they also enjoyed their afternoon snacks with lemonade or tea. As she spent more time with them, Celsiana could see that they had worries she had never considered.

“My mother wanted me to thank you again for the plants,” Avaleen said as they sat down to tea. “She hopes they’ll make a difference this harvest, and she appreciates you taking such an interest.”

“Do you think you’ll make enough money to repair the roof?” Janine asked.

“I hope so,” Avaleen replied. “And my father hopes to get more work in the next village in a few weeks.”

“What does your father do?” asked Celsiana.

“He’s a fletcher, but there hasn’t been much call for bows or arrows lately. He also makes lovely furniture, which he hopes to sell in the next village.”

“Why not here?” asked Celsiana.

“The Chancellor is very strict about craftsmen, and my father cannot afford to join the guild right now.” Avaleen shook her head. “It’s been difficult, but Mother says such challenges make us stronger.”

“Your father makes such wonderful things,” Laurena said, glancing over at Janine. “Didn’t he build a bench for your mother?”

“He made one as a wedding present for them years ago,” Janine replied. “She has it in the garden, and it’s lovely.”

Celsiana just nodded. She decided to speak to her father about this after dinner.

“But I don’t understand,” said Celsiana, pacing back and forth. “Why do we care if a man sells furniture from his own home?”

“It’s not the way things are done,” her father replied. “Not the way things have always been done.”

“But you are the king,” Celsiana said. “You can change things.”

“Why should I?” her father asked.

Celsiana took a breath to calm herself. “If a person creates beautiful things, it seems a shame not to let others enjoy them.” She smiled and added, “I would like to buy one of his benches for the garden.”

“I cannot allow…” her father began, then stopped and smiled back. “Very well. I can see you have your heart set on this, but I warn you…I will expect a bench worthy of being in our gardens.”

Celsiana simply nodded and hoped her friends had been right about Avaleen’s father.

The next afternoon, the girls came to the castle after school. When Celsiana said the king had agreed to commission a bench for the garden, Avaleen was overjoyed.

“Celsiana, this is wonderful!” she exclaimed. “You are a true friend” she added, hugging her and twirling them both around. Avaleen paused and let go of her, taking a step back. “I am sorry.”

“I’m not,” Celsiana replied, hugging her back. Then the others joined in and they all laughed until they were almost crying.

As the other girls started walking down the hall, Janine took Celsiana’s hand. “You did a very good and noble thing today, Your Majesty.” She smiled, then added, “And I am very happy to call you my friend.”

Celsiana smiled back as they followed the other girls out to the garden.

School ended, and the girls spent more time at the castle. They had fun working in the gardens, going riding, walking in the meadow, and they even spent a few nights in the castle. Everywhere they went outside of the castle walls, they were followed by at least two guards. The girls soon got used to it, but Celsiana wished it wasn’t necessary.

One day, Avaleen’s father brought the finished bench to the castle. It was indeed beautiful, carved with ivy leaves winding around the edges and even had a few small birds hiding in the leaves along the back. Celsiana was very happy when her father paid him a bonus and stated that perhaps it was time to re-examine the rules for independent craftspeople.

She asked that the bench be put in the garden, near the Celsiana rose bush. The queen had said there was a legend that the flowers changed color because they gained wisdom as they aged. Celsiana always liked that legend and hoped she would live up to her namesake. Looking at the bench, she decided there was more she could do to help her friends.

Thank you for joining us today. If you miss a newsletter, please visit our Lavender Cottage Blog, where we’ll show every post. Have a wonderful Tuesday!