When it's cold outside, one of my favorite little luxuries is to curl up with a good book.
It's often a culinary mystery — a spicy tale of murder and mayhem against a backdrop of cooking, catering, baking and so on. And of course, the food is to die for.
I guess I am a die-hard multitasker; I like to think I'm learning more about cooking while I'm being entertained. I've also found culinary mysteries are less gory than a lot of today's fiction.
And there are plenty of quirky characters and humorous tidbits, such as PTA moms trying to one-up each other at a bake sale, a catering job that goes awry, or comments on food trends like "Nuts are the new broccoli." And when you think about it, the culinary world lends itself lots of hazards: the walk-in freezer, food poisoning, deep-fryers of sizzling oil — and all those kitchen knives.
Last week I read an advance copy of "Key Lime Pie Murder," by Joanne Fluke (Kensington, $22), featuring Minnesota bake shop owner Hannah Swensen. While judging the county fair's pie contest, she stumbles upon the corpse of one of her fellow judges. Suspects include a disgruntled contestant. The story is liberally sprinkled with recipes and cooking tips about how key limes differ from the larger, more common limes, and tips for juicing them.
Fluke has a series based on Swensen's character, with titles such as "Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder," "Blueberry Muffin Murder," "Cherry Cheesecake Murder."
Last fall I read "Bake Sale Murder," by Leslie Meier (Kensington, $22). The victim, late for the big bake sale, is found slumped over her faux granite counter while her pumpkin cookies burn.
One of the best-known culinary mystery writers is Diane Mott Davidson. Her most recent best-seller, involving caterer Goldie Schultz, is "Dark Tort" (William Morrow, $24.95). Others are "Chopping Spree," "One Tough Cookie," and "Double Shot." Davidson somehow manages to blend humor with serious issues such as her abusive ex-husband.
In the 1930s, Rex Stout wrote "Too Many Cooks," starring sleuth Nero Wolfe. In 1976, Nan and Ivan Lyons published "Someone Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe." But the majority of culinary mysteries have popped up in the past 20 years. It's a time when more people seem to be reading cookbooks and watching food shows but doing less actual cooking.
In 2000, I met two culinary mystery authors at a food editor's conference in Kansas City. Lou Jane Temple said she started writing books such as "Revenge of the Barbecue Queens," and "Red Beans and Vice," after her restaurant, Cafe Lulu, folded.
When Phyllis Richman retired from being restaurant critic for the Washington Post, she began penning novels such as "Murder on the Gravy Train" and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Ham?" Of course, her main character is a restaurant critic. She gives kernels of wisdom such as how to tell real scallops from surimi (the surimi fakes are stringy and perfectly identical in size and shape). And how salad bars are arranged to maximize profits: You load up with lettuce (the cheapest ingredient) first; vegetables are cut in ways to take up space in your salad bowl; expensive cheeses, bacon and seeds are at the end.
One drawback to culinary mysteries: All the lavish descriptions of entrees and desserts can really whet your appetite. Perhaps a good habit is to indulge in culinary mysteries while on the treadmill.
E-mail: vphillips@desnews.com