Macarons at Midnight by M.J. O’Shea & Anna Martin

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance

Release Date: October 13, 2014

Buy Link: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5537

 

Tristan Green left his small English town for Manhattan and a job at a high profile ad agency, but can’t seem to find his bearings. He spends a lot of time working late at night, eating and sleeping alone, and even more time meandering around his neighborhood staring into the darkened windows of shops. One night when he’s feeling really low, he wanders by a beautiful little bakery with the lights still on. The baker invites him in, and some time during that night Tristan realizes it’s the first time he’s really smiled in months.

 

Henry Livingston has always been the odd duck, the black sheep, the baker in an old money family where pedigree is everything and quirky personalities are hidden behind dry martinis and thick upper east side townhouse facades. Henry is drawn to Tristan’s easy country charm, dry English wit, and everything that is so different from Henry’s world.

 

Their new romance is all buttercream frosting and sugared violets until Tristan’s need to fit in at work makes him do something he desperately wishes he could undo. Tristan has to prove to Henry that he can be trusted again before they can indulge in the sweet stuff they’re both craving.

Hi! This is MJ O’Shea and Anna Martin here:)

 

We are in the middle of writing three books about pastry chefs and the first one has just come out! Macarons at Midnight takes place mostly in the West Village of Manhattan and at a little bakery called Honeyfly that’s in a picturesque brick building on a side street in the middle of the village. In between every chapter is a recipe for a different treat. Some are classics in England or New York (where the two characters are from) some are family favorites that we decided they had to serve in our fictional bakery! We thought We’d share one of those recipes today and a bit out of our book!

 

This recipe is a classic in MJ’s family. She definitely wanted to include it in the book as something Henry, our baker, bakes for his customers and for Tristan. Her grandmother made it, and her mom makes it. Recently she’s been experimenting with using gluten free flours and coconut sugar instead of cane sugar. She’s getting there but doesn’t quite have it yet!

 

** This recipe is in US measurements/temperatures but you can usually convert online **

 

 

County  Kerry Apple Cake

A Honeyfly Tradition, our apple cake is fragrant and tender. It’s perfect on its own or with cream cheese frosting for extra sweetness. Delicious fresh out of the oven, even better the next day.

 

4 cups grated apples

3 eggs

2 cups white sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla (extract, not flavoring)

2½ teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

2 cups flour

 

First, peel and grate four large apples to make the four cups of grated apple. It might take five apples . You’ll want to err on the high side. If you have a little bit too much apple, no one’s going to complain. Golden Delicious apples bake the best for this cake.

After you have your apples peeled and grated, it’s time to start the batter. Mix the eggs and the sugar together. Then add the oil, vanilla, and cinnamon. Sift the baking soda, salt, and flour into the batter while stirring slowly until incorporated. Last, add the grated apple to the batter and mix that in as well. Make sure you scrape the sides of the bowl to catch any dry ingredients.

Pour the batter into a buttered baking dish. Once the batter is in the pan, you’d bake it at 350°F for 55 minutes. Check the center with a toothpick to make sure it’s done. If the toothpick comes out with batter stuck to it, you have to leave it in just a little longer. Remove the cake and let it .

 

If anyone tries that out, let us know what you think!! And here’s a scene from the book to go with the recipe

 

* * * *

 

Tristan sat on the thick stone slab counter in Henry’s very posh kitchen in his huge, posh flat. He wondered if it was going to become some sort of tradition with them, Tristan watching Henry bake, salivating over gorgeous smells and a beautiful man. That would be quite alright with him, thanks.

Tristan already liked it in Henry’s flat. Sure, it was a bit intimidating, so grown-up and decorated in a casual, comfortable, masculine way. But still, very grown-up. Henry didn’t have posters left over from uni, or some leftover sofa his friend’s mom’s aunt didn’t want after she got rid of all her vintage florals. It all looked so much like him. Three walls were this color between green and blue, pale but still noticeable, and his sofa brought out colors in the huge exposed-brick wall that went all the way along the far end of the massive room. His floors were wooden and pale, and the windows went from knee high all the way to the ceiling, which had to be close to ten feet. Tristan could imagine how beautiful they’d be in the morning, letting in lots of light through the long, gauzy white curtains Henry’d hung.

“You think you’d be able to manage the apples?” Henry asked.

Tristan was skeptical, but he didn’t want to look like an incompetent mum’s little baby. “What exactly would I need to do with them?”

Henry chuckled. That low, sugary laugh did things to Tristan’s insides. Things. “Peel them.”

Oh. That was easy enough. Even he had peeled some things at home before. “Yes,” Tristan said with a slow, growing smile. “I think I can handle at least that much.”

“What about grating them when you’re done? Just try to keep the seeds out of it. And your fingers.”

“I think I can do that too.”

Tristan had to slither off the counter to deal with the apples. Too bad, really, because he liked to watch Henry work. Instead, he got Henry’s lovely hands at his hips and a soft, brushing kiss across the back of his neck. It was rather familiar for people who’d only kissed for the first time only half an hour before, two people who’d just met, really, but it felt good to Tristan. He liked having Henry’s nimble, graceful hands on him, and he liked the thought of Henry guiding him around and giving him intimate kisses and just being in his space.

“I could get used to this, you know. I like having you here,” Henry said. “I probably shouldn’t have said that,” he muttered after. He looked down at the ground for a moment. Beautiful Henry with his gorgeous bakery and perfect flat, Henry who had nothing at all to be insecure about, looked at the ground like a shy year nine with a crush. Tristan was hopelessly endeared.

“I like being here, if that makes you feel any better,” he said, crowding into Henry’s space a little. “I could probably get used to it too. Really easily.”

They kissed again, but kept it light. Tristan thought he might like the little familiar kisses just as much as the hot, gut-pounding ones. It wasn’t the same, of course; it didn’t get his heart spinning out in quite the same way, but it just felt good. Like he’d said, Tristan could get used to it.

He dealt with the apples, peeling and grating, probably quite lucky he didn’t manage to shave off bits of his fingers along with the fruit despite Henry’s warning because he couldn’t quite manage to keep his eyes off of Henry. Couldn’t stop watching him for a single second. There was something about him when he cooked, something about the sway of his hips when he danced around the island or the way he held the spoon when he stirred the batter; it was mesmerizing. Tristan pictured those hands on him, kneading and touching, peeling his clothes off layer by layer like he was unwrapping some delicious treat to eat. He wanted to touch and kiss back, feel Henry’s soft bits and the places where he was wiry and strong. Tristan couldn’t help it any longer.

He cupped a hand around Henry’s jaw, sticky apple juice fingers and all, and went in for a kiss. It had been long, long minutes after all, and Tristan’s lips had gotten lonely. Henry sank into the kiss with a smile and a shiver. Tristan smiled in return. He loved kissing Henry—that much he’d figured out in about two seconds flat up on the roof, although he was more than happy to do some more research into the subject. He loved how Henry got into kissing, seemed to lose focus on everything else around him, closed his eyes and reveled in the scents and sounds and feelings of it.

Henry bit at Tristan’s lower lip. “It’s not time for dessert yet,” he muttered.

“I think it is,” Tristan answered. Cake was nice. Henry was a lot nicer.

“Mmm, come here.” Henry turned in Tristan’s arms, keeping them wrapped around his waist. He leaned his head back against Tristan’s chest for a moment. Tristan couldn’t help himself. He leaned forward and nipped lightly at Henry’s neck. “Stop that. We have a cake to finish.”

Henry kept Tristan’s arms secured around his waist with one hand, as if Tristan were even considering letting go, and he dumped the grated apple in with the other before he stirred the whole thing together.

“Is it done?” Tristan asked.

“Yep. We just have to put the batter in this pan and into the oven. The whole apartment will smell amazing soon.”

Tristan leaned forward and sniffed at Henry’s neck. “Smells pretty amazing in here already.”

Henry giggled and leaned back into Tristan. “That tickles.”

Tristan did it again. He sniffed at Henry’s neck, then nibbled and kissed it until he had Henry shivering against him. His belly melted, and he pulled Henry closer until they were plastered together. Henry’s spoon clattered to the counter, and he wound his arm backward around Tristan’s neck.

“Put the cake in the oven,” Tristan murmured. “I want to kiss you.”

“We’ll have about forty minutes until it’s done,” Henry said as he picked up the glass baking dish with shaky hands and slid it into his hot oven.

“Barely enough time.”

 

 

Henry had been right. Soon, the flat filled with gorgeous wafts of vanilla and cinnamon, baking apples and spice cake. It formed a backdrop, in a way, infused their kisses with the scents of autumn and sweetness. They’d laid out on his sofa; Tristan had thought it might be too soon to fall into bed, but bed or not, it didn’t matter. He had Henry’s kisses, and his skin where Tristan had slipped his hand underneath annoying fabric. It was everything he wanted in that moment. He’d have been happy to kiss Henry forever.

Tristan groaned when the oven timer went off. Henry stumbled to his feet, glassy-eyed, with puffy red lips and finger-combed hair. Tristan wanted to drag his clothes off bit by bit until there was nothing but lovely skin and limbs and touching. It was too soon. It had to be too soon.

“I’ll be right back,” Henry muttered. He swayed a little when he turned toward the kitchen. Tristan watched him walk, graceful and leggy for his height, to pull his cake out of the oven. He was only gone a minute. Soon he was sinking back onto the sofa and running seeking, shivery fingers up under Tristan’s shirt.

“N-no cake?” Tristan asked.

“Well,” Henry grinned. “It really is best the next morning.” He shrugged and tried to look innocent. Tristan smiled back.

“Am I going to get to taste it, you know, in the morning?” Tristan hoped Henry had been offering what he thought.

“I think that can be arranged.”

 

That’s it! we hope you guys liked the excerpt and an old family recipe from the O’Sheas:) You can find both of us on the internet!

 

Mj’s info

http://mjoshea.com/ Here’s MJ’s website. There are icons for all her social media networks right on there to click!

Anna’s Info

https://www.facebook.com/annamartinfiction?fref=ts   Here’s Anna’s Facebook Page

https://twitter.com/missannamartin Here’s her twitter

Buy Links:

Dreamspinner Press

Amazon

Amazon.uk

See everyone later <3

Xoxo

MJ and Anna

 

[1]

7/28/14 10:14 AM

 

Ginnifer Eastwick October 12, 2014 1:32 AM

Format recipe

 

[2]

Ginnifer Eastwick 7/28/14 10:14 AM

Per the style guide I’m following, since this is already given in the prep (ingredients step), it should be left out here and written above “4 cups peeled grated apples (approx.. 5 medium)”. That would also be the place to say Golden Delicious work best.

 

[3]

Ginnifer Eastwick 7/28/14 10:14 AM

This recipe is much more casual than the others and doesn’t seem to fit with the tone. Maybe revise one set or the other.

 

I altered the directions a bit. I’d actually stolen this off my old cooking blog that I abandoned a while ago. It’s more formal now.

 

MJ

 

[4]

Ginnifer Eastwick 7/28/14 10:14 AM

Let me know if you want to exchange some good GF recipes. My dad is GF and I’m always looking to swap. J Mom make some really good GF choc-chip muffins.

 

I’d be happy to! I went vegan about a month ago, so I’m learning how to alter everything to fit both of those things. Macarons are naturally gluten free for sure! But really are a massive pain to make lol. MJ

 

[5]

7/28/14 10:14 AM

 

Priyanka October 12, 2014 1:32 AM

Sounds delicious!

 

I stole my mom’s recipe:) it’s my favorite dessert in the world <3 (or was before the gluten free days sadly) MJ

 

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