In this tale of decadent desserts, murder, and everything in between, readers will want something sweet to snack on as they try to figure out the twists and turns of this newest addition to Sarah Graves’ Death by Chocolate series. Whip up this Chocolate Marshmallow Gingerbread treat, grab a fork, and settle in for an afternoon of solving mysteries in Eastport, Maine.
- 2 cups molasses
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup brewed coffee
- 4 McIntosh apples, peeled and thinly sliced
- 4¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
- 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 4 teaspoons ground ginger
- 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons ground mace
- 1½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 (16-ounce) container sour cream
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup miniature marshmallows
- Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, to serve
- Preheat oven to 350°. Coat the inside of a 13x9-inch baking pan with butter.
- In a large saucepan, combine molasses, butter, and brewed coffee; bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Let cool.
- Arrange apples in bottom of prepared baking pan.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, mace, baking soda, cloves, allspice, and salt.
- Stir sour cream into cooled molasses mixture. Add to flour mixture, stirring well. Stir in eggs until well combined. Stir in chocolate and marshmallows. Pour batter over apples.
- Bake until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 55 to 60 minutes. Let cool in pan for at least 10 minutes before inverting gingerbread onto a cutting surface, apple side up. Cut into pieces. Serve warm or at room temperature.
- Serve pieces, apple side up, plain or with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
Summertime in the quirky island village of Eastport, Maine, is full of delights—including delicious treats from The Chocolate Moose, the waterfront bakery run by Jacobia “Jake” Tiptree and Ellie White. But these amateur sleuths are in for a rocky road when a chocolate shop rivalry turns deadly in the newest Death by Chocolate Mystery from the bestselling author of the Home Repair is Homicide Series!
Summer in Eastport means lobsters and blueberries, though tourists and locals alike always leave a little room for baked goods from The Chocolate Moose. This year’s arts festival, featuring food, games, and rollicking local musicians, means even more sweet-toothed customers. But it’s also bringing competition from a new rival, Choco’s, that’s trying to slice into the action.
Choco’s owner, Brad Fairway, is pulling sneaky stunts to divert Moose patrons to his own shop, and Ellie finally confronts him about his tactics. But when Brad is found dead the next day—and the weapon is a gun that belongs to Ellie—it’s only a matter of time before she is charged with the crime.
Sifting through the victim’s connections, Jake and Ellie sense they’re getting close to the real culprit—a little too close. Can they serve up the solution before the killer dishes up another helping of murder?
Sarah Graves is the USA Today bestselling author of the Death by Chocolate Mysteries, the Home Repair is Homicide Mystery Series, and the Lizzie Snow suspense novels. Much like Jake Tiptree, the sleuth who stars in her cozy mysteries, she lives in a 200-year-old house in Eastport, Maine. When she’s not cooking or baking something delectable (or writing about it) she tends a huge garden or shovels snow, depending upon the season.
