Chase, Cooking, and a Non-goopy Salad for Mark

by Tempeste O’Riley

Good morning everyone! Today I thought I’d share a little about some of the food you’ll find within the pages of Desires’ Guardian. You see, Chase has a hobby that most people outside his immediate circle of friends doesn’t know about, but is put to good use by one of his bosses during the story. Chase loves to cook! Now, if you’ve read Designs of Desire then you knew this already, lol, but did you know that Chase loved to make more than snarky comments and desert? Yep, who knew 😉

When Chase is asked to help with a dinner for his boss Mark, he goes all out. But, what does our favorite sweetie plan for the menu? Steak and potatoes? A simple casserole? Oh, no! Not Chase. When he does a dinner, he does it up right. So let’s take a peek at the menu before I share a little snippet from Desires’ Guardian.

• A winter fruit salad with lemon poppy seed dressing,
• Stuffed pork tenderloin,
• Honey roasted baby carrots,
• Parmesan-garlic mashed cauliflower,
• Crusty bread,
• Red and white wine (because some prefer red and some white with pork), and
• Apple raisin crisp with vanilla bean ice cream

And no, that fruit salad isn’t the goopy kind with marshmallow stuff in it (Mark hates goopy, lol). Here’s the recipe (from allrecipes.com) for 6 servings that Chase used as his base—though we all know he would have added his own special touches…

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon diced onion
• 1/2 teaspoon Dijon-style prepared mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1-1/2 teaspoons poppy seeds
• 1/2 head romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces
• 1/4 cup baby spinach or mixed wild greens
• 2 ounces shredded Swiss cheese
• 1/2 – 1 cup slivered almonds, cashews, walnuts, and/or pistachios,
• 2 tablespoons dried cranberries
• 1/2 – 1 apple – peeled, cored and diced
• 1/2 – 1 pear – peeled, cored and sliced

Directions:

1. In a blender or food processor, combine sugar, lemon juice, onion, mustard and salt. Process until well blended. With machine still running add oil in a slow steady stream until mixture is thick and smooth. Add poppy seeds and process just a few seconds more to mix.
2. In a large serving bowl combine the romaine lettuce, shredded Swiss cheese, cashews, dried cranberries, cubed apple and cubed pear. Toss to mix then pour dressing over salad just before serving and toss to coat.

Excerpt of Desires’ Guardian

“How’d you learn to do all this, anyway?”

“My mom loves to cook, and James was raised in a B&B. He learned to cook a lot of things and taught me after we met in college. It’s no big, honest.” Chase stopped to think through everything planned for the evening, not wanting to mess up Mark’s big meet-the-parents thing. “Oh, Aurora said for you to set up the bar but not to worry about appetizers. So, from here forward, it should be super easy. I will stay in here, out of the way, and just serve. Once I deliver the main dish, I’ll head out. All you’ll need to do is serve dessert and then clean up. And, Mark?”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t let Aurora clear the dishes if you want to impress her folks.” Chase smiled, fussing with his cuff. “Show them you can take care of her, not that you expect to be taken care of.”

Mark nodded as he again looked at the dishes and cookware in use. “I don’t know how I’ll repay you for this, but I swear I will, Chase!”

Chase waved away his words, unconcerned about “paybacks.” They were friends: what else would he expect?

“Okay, so, what all are we having? I don’t want to look like an idiot when her mom asks me about the food,” Mark asked, scuffing the toe of one boot back and forth.

About Desires’ Guardian

Most people see Chase Manning as the party-boy twink he seems on the surface. Only James, Chase’s BFF, knows the depth of his loyalty and the extent of the wounds Chase carries inside. When Chase meets Rhys Sayer, things don’t go well, but he can’t shake his attraction to the huge, sexy man.

Rhys is a man of contradictions and fear—a strange combination for a PI and bodyguard. He’s in a bad place emotionally when he sets eyes on Chase for the first time. When Chase puts the moves on him, Rhys insults him, thwarting any possibility of a relationship. Rhys doesn’t see himself as a complicated man, but he dreads the very kind of connection he desires.

Just as they’re trying to overcome their uncertainties, Chase is put in harm’s way. Luckily Rhys and their friends have all the right talents to help Rhys save the man of his dreams.

Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble

Other Books in the Desires Entwined Series:

About Tempeste O’Riley

Tempeste O’Riley is an out and proud omnisexual / bi-woman whose best friend growing up had the courage to do what she couldn’t–defy the hate and come out. He has been her hero ever since.

Tempe is a hopeless romantic that loves strong relationships and happily-ever-afters. Though new to writing M/M, she has done many things in her life, though writing has always drawn her back–no matter what else life has thrown her way. She counts her friends, family, and Muse as her greatest blessings in life. She lives in Wisconsin with her children, reading, writing, and enjoying life.

Tempe is also a proud PAN member of Romance Writers of America®, Rainbow Romance Writers, and WisRWA. You can find Tempe at these sites:

Website ♥ Goodreads ♥ Twitter ♥ Facebook ♥ Google + ♥ DSP ♥ Blog

As part of Tempe’s blog tour for Desires’ Guardian, she’s doing a tour-wide giveaway where you get a chance to win either an ebook copy of Designs of Desire, a $10 gift certificate to Dreamspinner Press OR a $10 gift card to Amazon/All Romance eBooks! To enter, just click the link below!

Rafflecopter Giveaway

Please be aware that the only way to enter the giveaway is to click the Rafflecopter link above.  Any comments on this post will not count towards entering the giveaway but will be welcome anyway.

Don’t forget to check out Nikyta’s review of Desires’ Guardian to see what she thought of it!

Good luck!