Baked Alaska by Josi S. Kilpack Read Free Book Online Page A

the black and pink braids spilling over the side of the chair.
Crepes and Toppings
     
4 eggs
     
1 cup milk
     
1 cup water
     
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
     
2 cups all-purpose flour
     
1/2 teaspoon salt
     
1/4 cup melted butter
     
Put eggs, milk, water, and vanilla extract (if desired) into a blender. Blend until smooth. Add flour and salt. Blend until smooth, using a knife or rubber spatula to get all the flour off the sides of the blender. When blended, add butter and mix until combined.
     
To cook, heat a crepe pan or medium-sized frying pan on medium heat. Brush pan with butter or spray with nonstick cooking spray. Pour approximately ¼ cup of batter into pan (bigger pans will require larger amounts of batter) and tilt the pan until the batter covers the bottom of the pan in a thin layer.
     
Cook until top is dry. Flip crepe over with a rubber spatula or fork. Cook for an additional few seconds. (If you like darker crepes, increase heat.) Remove to a plate and add toppings as desired.
     
Serves 6.
     
Note: You can roll the crepe once it is filled, or fold it in half and then in half again, which is the traditional method.
     
Cream Cheese Filling
     
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
     
1 cup sour cream
     
1 cup powdered sugar
     
Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sour cream and powdered sugar; beat until smooth. For a less-sweet version, reduce the powdered sugar by 1/2 cup.
     
Vanilla Sauce
     
2 cups whipping cream
     
1 cup sugar
     
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
     
1/2 cup butter
     
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
     
Whisk cream, sugar, and flour in a saucepan. Add butter. Cook over medium heat until butter is melted and mixture begins to boil, stirring constantly. Cook an additional 3 minutes or until mixture is slightly thickened. Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla. Serve warm.
     
Additional Toppings
     
Lemon juice and powdered sugar
     
Jam
     
Pie filling
     
Fresh fruit
     
Whipping cream
     
Nutella
     
Cream cheese
     
Sour cream and brown sugar
     
Maple syrup
     
Bacon
     
Chicken gravy
     
Diced ham
     
Cheese
     

Chapter 6
     

     
    “Maybe my fingers are just cold,” Pete said, withdrawing his hand and raising his fingers to his mouth so he could blow on them.
    “That’s the...” Sadie was having a hard time forming words as she stared at the woman in the chair. The entire ship seemed to spin beneath her feet. “Pete, that’s the woman Shawn was talking to yesterday.” She placed her hand on the outside of her bag. “She’s the woman I chased tonight. I bought her photo.”
    “I know,” Pete said, sounding frustrated, as though he’d been trying to talk himself out of believing it. He placed two fingers on the woman’s neck, then shook his head and rolled the woman onto her back.
    Sadie heard a gasping breath come from the woman due to the change of position.
    “She’s breathing!” Sadie said. But the woman didn’t move, didn’t open her eyes.
    “And I found a pulse. It’s weak though, and... ” He lightly slapped the woman’s cheeks, but she didn’t respond and her head lolled to the side. He shook her shoulder. “Ma’am? Ma’am, can you hear me?” She still didn’t respond.
    “What’s wrong with her?” Sadie asked, relieved that the woman wasn’t dead.
    After a few more seconds, Pete dropped his hand to his side and looked up at Sadie. “Go get security,” he said. “She needs medical attention. Can you smell the alcohol?”
    Sadie was still staring at the braids; the woman’s face was turned away from her.
    “Sadie.”
    She looked up at Pete and blinked, not knowing what to say or what to think.
    Pete stared at her a moment, then guided her to another chair. “You sit. I’ll get security. Don’t go anywhere.”
    Sadie nodded as Pete took off toward the doors. Sadie hadn’t gotten a good look at the woman’s face. Maybe it wasn’t the woman Shawn had been talking to. Could there be two women with the same hair on this