She pointed to the plate.
“Chocolate Cashew Marshmallow Bar Cookies,” Norman told her.
“Try one,” Hannah said, delivering a cup of hot coffee for her sister and gesturing toward the plate of bar cookies.
“They smell great!” Andrea said, inhaling the scent that filled the kitchen.
“And they are great,” Norman told her. “Go ahead, Andrea. Take a bite.”
“Do I want to ask how many calories these are?” Andrea asked them.
“I wouldn’t,” Norman told her.
“I have no idea,” Hannah added. “Besides . . . remember what Great-Grandma Elsa told us about cookies, pies, and cakes?”
Andrea looked at her blankly. “No, maybe I was too little to remember what she said.”
Hannah smiled. “I guess you were, but I’ll tell you. Great-Grandma Elsa said that all the calories baked off in the oven.”
“I’m going to remember that,” Andrea promised. “And I’m going to believe her. After all, would a great-grandmother lie to you?”
Hannah and Norman watched as Andrea took a large bite. A blissful smile spread over her face as she chewed and swallowed. “Perfect!” she declared. “And it’s so good to know that they don’t have any calories.” Andrea took another bite, and then she addressed Hannah. “Where’s your murder book, Hannah?”
“Right here.” Hannah retrieved the stenographer’s notepad that rested on the vacant stool next to her. “I was just about to go over my suspect list.”
“Well . . . you can knock off another two suspects,” Andrea told her.
“Two suspects?” Hannah asked.
“Yes, Bill cleared Denny Jamison.”
“Darcy’s fiancé?” Norman asked her.
“Yes, when Denny left the Double Eagle that night, he went into a ditch several miles away. It was too far to walk back to the bar, so he called his sister to come and get him, and he spent the night at her house.”
“So he couldn’t have gone to Darcy’s house with no transportation?” Norman surmised.
“That’s right. And his sister wouldn’t let him borrow her car because he’d had too much to drink. She didn’t let him leave until he sobered up in the morning, and then she drove him back to his apartment.”
“Good for her!” Hannah said. “She did him a big favor in more ways than one.”
“And you’re minus a suspect,” Norman pointed out.
“I know.” Hannah turned back to Andrea. “You said you cleared two suspects?”
“That’s right. My client, the one who wanted to buy Darcy’s house, was in North Carolina that night for his niece’s wedding. He flew out at eight that morning and didn’t get back until the following afternoon. And . . . in case you’re wondering. . . he came back to Lake Eden today and bought Darcy’s house from her brother.”
“How many suspects do you have left?” Norman asked Hannah.
“Just three, counting Lonnie. And they’re all long shots. This case is turning out to be the toughest I’ve ever worked on.”
“You’ll solve it,” Andrea said, and Hannah noticed that she sounded very confident. “It’s like Danielle said this morning. You always do.”
CHOCOLATE CASHEW MARSHMALLOW BAR COOKIES
Preheat oven to 350°F., rack in the middle position.
2 one-ounce squares unsweetened chocolate (I used Baker’s)
¾ cup all-purpose flour (pack it down in the cup when you measure it)
¾ cup white (granulated) sugar
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick, ¼ pound) salted butter, softened to room temperature
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup chopped salted cashews (I used Planters— measure AFTER chopping)
10.5-ounce package miniature marshmallows (you’ll use ¾ of a package—I used Kraft Jet Puffed)
2 cups chocolate chips (I used Nestlé)
Hannah’s 1st Note: This is a lot easier with an electric mixer, but you can also make these bar cookies by hand.
Before you start, prepare a 9-inch by 13-inch cake pan by spraying the inside with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray. Alternatively, you can line the pan with aluminum foil and spray that.
Hannah’s 2nd Note: If you decide to line your cake pan with foil, use the heavy-duty foil. Then, once your bar cookies are cool, you’ll be able to lift the contents right out of the cake pan and your pan will still be clean.
Melt your chocolate first so that it has time to cool. Unwrap the 2 squares of unsweetened chocolate and place them in a microwave-safe bowl.
Heat the chocolate squares for one minute on HIGH. Then let them sit in the microwave for another minute.
Take the chocolate out of the microwave and try to stir it smooth with a heat-resistant spatula. If the chocolate has melted, you’re through with this step.
If you can’t stir the chocolate smooth, put it back in the microwave and heat on HIGH in 20-second