Whether she's writing a bestselling Romantic Suspense novel or baking up a storm in her Richmond, Virginia kitchen, New York Times bestselling author Mary Burton doesn't do anything half-heartedly-and that includes her Holiday recipe, Sooner’s

Predictably Delicious Pumpkin Pie Cake.


2 cups gluten free or white flour
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
¼ teaspoon ground/powdered cloves
2 cups sugar
1 cups vegetable oil
4 eggs
1 can of pumpkin (15 ounce)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Shift together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. In another bowl mix together sugar, vegetable oil, eggs and pumpkin. Slowly mix the dried ingredients into the wet until smooth. Scoop into mini cupcake pans and a 10 x 10 baking pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes.

Cream Cheese Icing

½ cup butter
8 ounces cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 box confectioner’s sugar

Cream together the butter, cream cheese, and vanilla. Add in the confectioner’s sugar and blend until smooth and creamy. When cooled, top off the mini cupcakes with a large dollop of icing, then spread the remainder over the cake.

“I don’t have to be a psychic— or play one in a carnival—to know how quickly my Sooner’s Predictably Delicious Pumpkin Pie Cake and Cupcakes will disappear. This year I’m making them twice—my usual and then a batch for family and friends who prefer gluten-free treats. I like them both and I always hide a few away to enjoy with a cup of tea after a hard day pursuing killers. Enjoy!”

Let the holidays roll merrily along with this Holiday Recipe from New York Times bestselling author and baker supreme Mary Burton. It’s for Sooner’s Predictably Delicious Pumpkin Pie Cake & cupcakes and they are yummy! Delicious any time of the year, it’s one of Mary’s festive favorites, and it can also be prepared gluten free.

Mary is as passionate about baking as she is about writing and has been creating and sharing holiday recipes with readers for the last few years. And, a while back, the then-food editor of the Richmond Times-Dispatch printed a recipe of Mary’s along with a brief piece about her culinary expertise and the connections she sees linking the creativity of writing and baking. Not only does this romantic suspense novelist feed readers’ appetites for solving crimes, she feeds their appetites for sweets as well.

Coming February 2012, Before She Dies

Mary's website
   


In death, they are purified. Holding his victims under water, he washes away their sins as they struggle for their last breath. Then he stakes their bodies to the ground, exposing them for what they really are. Witches, sent to tempt and to corrupt. . .

Jury. . .

No one knows about defense attorney Charlotte Wellington’s murdered sister, or about her childhood spent with the carnival that’s just arrived in town. For Charlotte, what’s past is past. But others don’t agree. And as a madman’s body count rises, she and Detective Daniel Rokov are drawn into a mission that’s become terrifyingly personal. . .

And Executioner

At last, she is within his reach. All his victims deserve their fate, but her guilt is greatest. And with every scream, he will make her see what it means to suffer and repent–before she dies. . .



About Mary Burton:

Mary Burton’s southern family has always enjoyed tall tales and a good yarns. Early on, MB realized that Story had tremendous power to inspire strong responses such fear, laughter, love and even sorrow. It didn’t matter if the tale was found in the pages of a book, spoken in hushed tones around a Girl Scout campfire, or spouted at an old fashioned southern family reunion. This appreciation of story motivated MB to earn an English degree from Virginia’s Hollins University.

After decade of working in marketing and sales, MB became convinced she could write and sell one of the many stories buzzing around her brain. Fingers crossed, MB left the marketing profession and devoted all her spare time to writing a novel. Soon after, she sold her first manuscript to Harlequin Historicals. Since that initial sale, MB had written twelve historical romances for Harlequin Historicals, four short romantic suspenses for Silhouette Romantic Suspense and a non-fiction book The Insider’s Guide to Direct Marketing. Her first single title romantic suspense for Zebra I’M WATCHING YOU was a December 2007 release.

In 2005, THE UNEXPECTED WIFE was a finalist in the Romance Writers of America’s RITA contest and WISE MOVES was 2006 nominee for Romantic Times’ Critics Choice Award. Her romantic suspense titles have received critical acclaim from New York Times Best Selling authors Carla Neggers, Brenda Novak and Lisa Jackson as well as Library Journal and Publishers Weekly.

MB resides in Virginia where she enjoys yoga, cooking, hiking and the occasional triathlon.