Category: Caridad’s News!

It’s National Espresso Day and there’s no better way to enjoy your cup of coffee than with friends! So please join me and my friends at the wonderful The Categorically Romance Podcast. It was such fun to sip my coffee and chat with interviewer Bree, Harlequin editor Emma Cole, and fellow Harlequin Intrigue authors Katie Mettner, KD Richards, and Juno Rushdan. Join us for this behind the scenes chat on what inspires us to write, how we get ideas, and so much more! Pour yourself an espresso, put your feet up, and meet us at https://bit.ly/3OlfCgg. P.S. There are only 3 days until the release of KILLER IN THE KENNEL and barely a month until DANGER IN DADE (and Christmas Eve)! Grab your copies today at https://amzn.to/4dt8sk3.

Writing the K-9 romantic suspense stories has been a blast but before a dog can be used to assist law enforcement and the South Beach Security agency to solve cases, someone has to train them. That’s where Sara Hernandez comes into the picture. Sara is a K-9 trainer and expert on search and rescue operations. She’s a perfect candidate for SBS when they decide to expand their operations to have a K-9 division. Sara is strong and independent and her K-9 Bongo is a bloodhound who is great at cadaver searching and tracking. Both will come in handy when SBS discovers that the abandoned greyhound kennel they just purchased to use as a new K-9 training center is also the dumping ground for a serial killer. I hope you’ll love Sara, Bongo, and reluctant hero Jose as they race to stop the killer from killing again. Grab your copy of KILLER IN THE KENNEL today at https://amzn.to/3V3sYBw.

I’m so excited to be visiting the Coffee, Cupcakes, & Contemporaries Facebook Book Club today! I’ll be sharing a little bit about me, some behind the scenes info on my new release, KILLER IN THE KENNEL, and having a little giveaway. If you’re in the mood to have some fun, hang out with me, and meet some new people, please come and join us. You can find the Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/1426474880768003. Grab your copy of KILLER IN THE KENNEL at https://amzn.to/3ZagaeV.

You always want to bring something different to each book that you write and in KILLER IN THE KENNEL, that the hero Jose “Pepe” Gonzalez. Jose isn’t your regular action hero. He’s the opposite of that. A real estate agent, he’s always avoided involvement with his cousin’s South Beach Security agency because he wants to build his business on his own and because he knows that danger seems to follow them around. But when Trey Gonzalez, the new acting head of SBS, calls and asks for his help in finding a location for their new K-9 Division training center, Jose can’t refuse. He finds the perfect spot except for one thing: it turns out it’s a serial killer’s playground. Now it’s up to K-9 trainer Sara Hernandez and Jose to work with the rest of the SBS crew to find the killer and stop him before he takes another life. KILLER IN THE KENNEL will be available on November 26th but you can preorder your copy today at https://amzn.to/3ATDvbq. And if you love this and the other SBS K-9 Division series books, DANGER IN DADE will be out on December 24! Preorder your copy today at https://amzn.to/3Oa8wLv.

On this Veteran’s Day, please take a moment to thank the men, women and families of our military who sacrifice so much to keep this Nation free. Without them we would not be able to enjoy the liberties that we do. It’s the reason why my friends and I banded together to support the Stop Soldier Suicide organization by releasing our Strength & Honor anthology (no longer available). Thank you, veterans. We appreciate all that you have done for us and I hope our government will do a better job of taking care of you in the future. As for me, I regularly contribute to various veteran organizations and have now started a monthly donation to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation which is doing an amazing job at helping homeless veterans and those who have been injured in combat. I know times are tough, but if you can contribute to any of these organizations, please help them make our veterans’ lives better.

One of my fav things about colder weather is having soup for dinner. I love a good bowl of hearty soup with a nice slice of homemade bread. Hubby makes great bread! During the fall and winter, we usually have soup for dinner once a week, sometimes more because we love it so much. Bean and kale soup is one of my favs and it’s easy to change up by adding chicken, chorizo, Italian sausage, or potatoes to the mix. It’s also easy to make and keeps our little townhouse warm when I let it simmer for several hours. Today I’m sharing that recipe for you! P.S. If you love books with tasty food, grab a copy of SOUTH BEACH LOVE for 99 cents (https://amzn.to/4ekotta) or get it free for signing up for my newsletter (https://bit.ly/CaridadsNewsletter)!

Ingredients

1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped onions
2 cups dried white beans (or 2 16 oz cans white beans, drained and rinsed)
32 oz box vegetable broth
1 tsp chicken bouillon (optional)
1 tsp white miso (optional)
2 cups chopped kale (or any other greens)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 bay leaf
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

Heat oil in a stockpot. Toss in carrots, celery, and onions and saute until softened. Add the broth, bouillon, bay leaf, and miso (optional) to the vegetables. If you’re using dried beans, add them now. It will take at least 2 hours for them to soften, maybe longer depending on the bean’s age and size. In the last hour of cooking, add the sliced carrots and the chopped kale. Simmer until carrots and kale are soft. If you’re using canned white beans, add them now and simmer for another 15 minutes or so to heat the beans. Salt and pepper to taste now. I don’t like to do it too early because the celery, bouillon, and miso could add enough salt on their own. Serve in big bowls with a slice of bread!

As I mentioned before, you can change it up by adding meat or potatoes to the soup. Turnips are another good addition. You can also add some tomato paste if you like. If you don’t have kale, try using spinach, escarole, swiss chard, or turnip greens. This is a versatile formula.

Happy National Donut Day! I love a good donut and am sad that my favorite donut is no longer made at my area Dunkin’ Donuts, namely buttercrunch. But honestly, chocolate iced or those delicious glazed donuts at Krispy Kreme are fabulous. What about you? Are you a donut lover? Also, I’m having another VIP newsletter giveaway! If you’d like to know how to win one of my fun coasters and an autographed copy of SABOTAGE OPERATION, sign up at https://bit.ly/CaridadsNewsletter. You’ll also receive a free e-book of SOUTH BEACH LOVE for signing up!