Skip to main content

The Blue Ribbon Jalapeno Society Jubilee Launch!

Today is The Blue Ribbon Jalapeno Society Jubilee EVE because tomorrow morning or tonight at midnight if you’ve got it preordered for your E-reader, it will be either in my reader’s hands, on the way to their hands, or sitting on a shelf in the bookstores waiting on their hands to pick it up! It’s as exciting as New Year’s Eve and the countdown begins right now. Only a few more hours and a dream is coming true!
 
I’ve wanted to write women’s fiction since I first picked up a pencil…and I do mean pencil because when I first started writing we’d just had our third child in less than five years and there was no way we could afford a typewriter. And now after many rewrites, lots of visits with the awesome Deb Werksman, it’s almost here! Excitement is in southern Oklahoma!
 
Reviews have just been awesome:
Ruthless gossip, philandering husbands, flawless makeup, hunky bartenders and true friendship bring Cadillac, Texas, into vivid focus. Brown (Just a Cowboy and his Baby, 2012, etc.) brings her cowboy-romance writing talents to bear on this hilarious tale of women in a gossipy small town. Fast-paced, the intertwined tales collide along a bumpy road toward a surprising calamity at the jalapeño jubilee. A high-spirited, romantic page turner…KIRKUS

This is an excellent book. I loved every bit of it. The relationships that Cathy, Marty and Trixie have along with their friend Jack, are heartwarming. Each of the main characters go through a life altering time. Cathy breaking her engagement and then finding true love. Trixie in letting go of Andy and coming to grips with her mother's Alzheimer's. Marty in revealing that she is the erotic romance author that both Cathy and Marty love to read. Aunt Agnes is a funny yet endearing minor character and I also loved the sub story of Pastor Darla Jean helping abused women. This is Ms. Brown's first book in the women's fiction genre and I for one can not wait for the next installment. I'm sure I will be reading this one over and over again…FRESH FICTION

Humor and down-home charm make this a first-place prize winner. All the character quirks and small-town appeal are used to the fullest advantage. This is one book that you won’t want to put down for anything and wish would never end... RT REVIEWS, 4 Stars

Brown takes her expertise in writing top-notch cowboy romance novels to stir things up in her first work of women's fiction, which is not by the lust of a rootin', tootin' cowboy, but rather by the love among four female friends, proving that, no matter what, friendship matters most...Booklist
 
WELCOME TO CADILLAC, TEXAS!!
 
Come on in to Miss Clawdy's Cafe and meet everyone. Marty and Cathy, the twin sisters who grew up in the old two story house that now houses Clawdy's (as the locals call the cafe), Trixie, their friend who bought into the partnership; Jack, the fourth friend who lives next door; and Darla Jean, the preacher who used to be a hooker, who lives across the street. If you are lucky you'll get to meet Agnes, Marty and Cathy's eighty-year-old great-aunt! Shhh...don't mention Violet Prescott's name. It always sets her into a cussin' hissy fit.

Get a plate and help yourself to the at the all-you-can-eat buffet. Be sure and scoop up some pepper jelly for your biscuit or cornbread and put a little of their special salsa on your red beans. A touch of salsa will help those greens, too, while you're dipping. Save some room for a pecan tart or a piece of chocolate cake.

Speaking of food, one of the items sold at the Jubilee is banana jalapeno muffins with cream cheese frosting...want the recipe?
JALAPENO BANANA MUFFINS
2 jalapeno peppers, diced
4 ripe bananas, peeled
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs, beaten
1 ½ cups sugar
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cups cream cheese frosting
Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a separate bowl, combine eggs, banana, jalapeno peppers, sugar and oil. Mix well.
Add in dry ingredients and mix well.
Transfer to muffin tins and bake 12-15 minutes, or until muffins are thoroughly baked (slightly moist in the center, not wet). Cool and frost! Serve!
Cream Cheese Frosting
4 ounces unsalted butter, softened
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions: In a large bowl, beat together the butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer. With the mixer on low speed, add the powdered sugar a cup at a time until smooth and creamy. Beat in the vanilla extract.
 
Got those made and a glass of iced sweet tea poured up? How about a short excerpt to read while you are enjoying them? (Great Aunt Agnes is convinced that there's a man in Trixie's room trying to kill her so she's coming to the rescue.)




“Cadillac police. Open this door right now, or I’m coming in shooting.”
Trixie groaned. “Agnes?”
Andy groaned and fell back on the pillows. “Dear God!”
And that’s when flashing red, white, and blue lights and the mixed wails of police cars, sirens, and an ambulance all screeched to a halt in front of Miss Clawdy’s.
Trixie grabbed her old blue chenille robe from the back of a rocking chair and belted it around her waist. “Agnes, is that you?”
“It’s the Cadillac police, I tell you, and I’ll come in there shooting if that man who’s molesting you doesn’t let you go right this minute.” Agnes tried to deepen her voice, but there was just so much a seventy-eight-year-old woman could do. She sounded like a prepubescent boy with laryngitis.
“I’m coming right out. Don’t shoot.”
She eased out the door, and sure enough, there was Agnes, standing in the hallway with a sawed off shotgun trained on Trixie’s belly button.
The old girl had donned her late husband’s pleated trousers and a white shirt and smelled like a mothball factory. Her dyed red hair, worn in a ratted hairdo reminiscent of the sixties, was crammed up under a fedora. Enough curls had escaped to float around the edges of the hat and remind Trixie of those giant statues of Ronald McDonald. The main difference was that she had a shotgun in her hands instead of a hamburger and fries.
Trixie shut her bedroom door behind her and blocked it as best she could. “There’s no one in my bedroom, Agnes. Let’s go downstairs and have a late-night snack. I think there are hot rolls left and half of a peach cobbler.”
“The hell there ain’t nobody in there! I saw the bastard. Stand to one side, and I’ll blow his ass to hell.” Agnes raised the shotgun.
“You were seeing me do my exercises before I went to bed.”
Agnes narrowed her eyes and shook her head. “He’s in there. I can smell him.” She sniffed the air. “Where is the sorry son-of-a-bitch? I could see him in there throwing you on the bed and having his way with you. Sorry bastard, he won’t get away. Woman ain’t safe in her own house.”
Trixie moved closer to her. “Look at me, Agnes. I’m not hurt. It was just shadows, and what you smell is mothballs. Shit, woman, where’d you get that getup, anyway?”
Agnes shook her head. “He told you to say that or he’d kill you. He don’t scare me.” She raised the barrel of the gun and pulled the trigger. The kickback knocked her square on her butt on the floor, and the gun went scooting down the hallway.
“Next one is for you, buster,” she yelled as plaster, insulation, and paint chips rained down upon her and Trixie.
Trixie grabbed both ears. “God Almighty, Agnes!”
“Bet that showed him who is boss around here, and if you don’t quit usin’ them damn cussin’ words, takin’ God’s name in vain, I might aim the gun at you next time. And I don’t have to tell a smart-ass like you where I got my getup, but I was tryin’ to save your sorry ass so I dressed up like a detective,” Agnes said.
 
I'd just love to hear your comments and I'll even give away a copy of The Blue Ribbon Jalapeno Society Jubilee Cookbook booklet (it's a cute little companion to the book that has several of the jalapeno recipes in it that are mentioned in the book) to three people ... that's right to three folks...who comment on the post today. Mr. Random will draw three names from the famous red boot at noon tomorrow to celebrate the official publication day!



 
 

Comments

  1. Carolyn, congrats on your almost-launch day! :) Great excerpt--and those jalapeño banana muffins don't sound too bad!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Good luck on your brand new series, Carolyn! :) Wishing you every success!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Tracey: Thank you!! I'm so so excited to break into a new genre.

    Terry: Thank you! My cowboys aren't pouting too much since Marty (one of the five friends)REALLY likes cowboys!

    ReplyDelete
  4. The book looks fantastic. I think it's going to be a huge hit. I might even try that recipe :-)

    ReplyDelete
  5. LOL! You had me at jalapeño! Congrats!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Shana, Thank you and I do hope you are right! The muffins are always served at the Jubilee and are a big hit!

    ReplyDelete
  7. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Cheryl, got to give Deb and the SB staff credit for the title but I loved it when she first took a deep breath and said it outloud!

    ReplyDelete
  9. traceytax: Welcome to Cadillac...happy reading! Agnes does speak her mind and often.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Aunt Agnes is a pistol....eh, or should I say, a sawed-off shot gun! What a fun excerpt and I can't wait until tomorrow!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I CANNOT wait to get started on this book!!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. So thrilled for you, Carolyn and so deserving of the fabulous reviews! And the muffins sound delicious! Oh, just sit down and smile!
    Amelia

    ReplyDelete
  13. That excerpt is hilarious! And thanks for sharing a recipe. I adore spicy food but have never considered putting jalapenos in a sweet.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I cannot wait to start this series.
    love your books.
    Natalie's mama
    lovesthemets@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  15. Congrats, Carolyn! I'm gonna have to try those muffins!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Tracey: Agnes says to tell you that she's very proud that you recognize her talents for what they are!

    Kelly Jo: Thank you, ma'am! Happy Reading and feel free to drop a line my way when you finish it. I'd just love to know what you think of Agnes and Violet as well as the main characters.

    Amelia: As per your instructions, I shall do just that...smiling at your advice even as I type!

    Lil: Me, neither until I researched the book...and until my daughter's neighbor who grows all peppers, hot, sweet or otherwise, told us about what all you could do with jalapenos.

    BrooklynShoeBabe: My momma was fearless. When she got out her rifle the devil shivered!

    Natalie's Momma: THANK YOU! So glad that you have enjoyed my books! Hope that you get just as involved in this one!

    Melissa: Take the seeds all out if you want them flavorful but not really, really hot! It's the seeds that put the fire in the recipe.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Congrats! Thanks for the recipe. Looks tasty.

    bn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  18. Thanks. Would love to win.
    patoct@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  19. bn: Hope that if you make the recipe that you really enjoy them.

    Pat: Thank you for stopping by. Your name is in the boot!

    ReplyDelete
  20. I love the Southern feel to this story, similar to Southern cooking. Very comforting to eat and the people fun to meet,

    Cambonified(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  21. WINNERS!!
    Mr. Random has spoken...the winners of yesterday's Cook Booklets are Shana Galen, Tracey Reid and Melissa Landers! If you all will mail your snail mail address to ccbrown66@att.net I will get those right out to you! Happy Cooking!

    ReplyDelete
  22. I enjoyed the post and the recipes looked good too.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment