Welcome to my stop on the Great Escapes Virtual Book Tour for A Necessary Death by Terri Karsten. Stop by each blog on the tour for interviews, guest posts, spotlights, reviews and more!
A Necessary Death by Terri Karsten
A Necessary Death
Historical Cozy Mystery
Setting – A tavern in Colonial Pennsylvania (1764)
Publisher : Wagonbridge Publishing
Publication date : September 15, 2025
Print length : 272 pages
Paperback
With Penelope Corbitt in the kitchen, the tavern will never be the same.
Penelope Corbitt can turn a lump of meat and a bit of flour into a mouth-watering pie or make a tasty meal of cabbage and vinegar. But all her skill can’t save her family in the spring of 1763, when she loses everything to pay off her missing husband’s debts. Walking a tightrope between the freedom of poverty and the confines of propriety, she must accept her stingy brother-in-law’s reluctant charity to keep her family fed and her children close. The miserable journey north from Philadelphia is interrupted when the coach crashes in the mud. Penelope and her children are stranded at a run-down tavern. Penelope doesn’t think things can get worse.
Then she finds a dead man.
Orring Pills (Candied Orange Peels) Recipe
On her miserable coach journey, Penelope passes out sweet comfits to her children and fellow passengers. It seems humans have always had a taste for sweet things. First honey, and later, sugar. Sugar from cane was first cultivated in India, and was kept as a closely guarded secret until Darius of Persia invaded in 510 BC and discovered the ‘reed that gives honey without bees’. Then in 642, Arabs invaded Persia and learned about sugar. As the Arab empire spread through Africa, the Middle East and Spain, so too did the growth and cultivation of sugar. Crusaders in the 11th century brought knowledge of sugar to Europe, where sugar was regarded as another exotic (and expensive) spice.
When Europeans invaded the New World, they discovered the climate in the Caribbean was very good for growing sugarcane. Even though there were over a hundred sugar refineries in Great Britain by 1750, sugar was still a luxury item partly because it was so highly taxed. (The Sugar Act of 1764, which Penelope and Miles must deal with in the sequel to A Necessary Death, angered the Colonists so much that it was repealed in 1765.)
The earliest candies were comfits, which are seeds or nuts coated with layers of hardened sugar syrup. These first candies were medicines, prescribed by doctors or apothecaries to treat stomach troubles. Penelope would have purchased her comfits from an apothecary since the layering process took time and skill, but she would make other sweet treats such as candied orange peel.
Like sugar, oranges originated in India, though oranges were known much earlier than sugar cane. By the 1st century, Chinese farmers were cultivating orange groves. Romans brought oranges to Europe around the same time. But these were all bitter oranges which are good for flavorings, marmalades, and perfumes. The sweet orange was brought by Portuguese traders from the Tamil Kingdom in India to Europe in the 16th century. They were quickly brought to the New World. As early as 1513. Ponce De Leon planted orange trees in Florida to help prevent scurvy among the sailors. In today’s world, oranges are one of the most popular fruits, second only to apples. However, in the 18th century, oranges had to be imported from the West Indies and so, like sugar, they were a luxury for most American colonists.
Many of the cookery books from the 18th century contain recipes for preserving fruit. One very popular way was candying or boiling the fruit in a sugar syrup. In that way fruit could be enjoyed even in the winter when it was no longer in season.
A modern cook can find oranges year-round, but candying orange peels still makes them last longer:
To make Orring Peels:
Score three oranges in quarters and remove the peel. Use the inner orange for another purpose. Cut the peels into slices ⅛ to ¼ inch wide. Put peels in clear water and bring to a boil. Simmer 10- 15 minutes. Drain and rinse. Put 1 ½ cup water, 1 ½ cup sugar and the boiled orange peels in a saucepan. Simmer for 40-45 minutes, until the water is nearly gone, but before the sugar turns to hard crack stage. Lay the peels on a flat surface to cool and dry before eating.
I can’t guarantee that candied orange peels will aid digestion, but they surely are a sweet treat worth the effort.
Sources:
Hess, Karen (transcriber and annotator). Martha Washington’s Booke of Cookery. New York: Columbia University Press, 1995.
Townshend, John. The Universal Cook Or Lady’s Complete Assistant . London: S. Bladon, 1773)
About Terri Karsten
Living in the shadow of the Mississippi River bluffs, Terri Karsten has been a writer and educator for many years. She grew up in sunny San Jose, California, playing amid the cherry orchards that soon gave way to houses. In her search for education and adventure, she lived in Iowa and Wisconsin, Mexico and France, before settling into a hundred-year-old house in Winona, Minnesota. She spends most days in her tiny office, surrounded by books, papers, and good memories.
With more ideas than time, Terri writes a bit of everything, ranging from historical fiction novels to picture book folktales to dozens of short stories and articles in magazines, encyclopedias, and newspapers.
When she is not writing, Terri loves poring over old cookbooks and recreating dishes from long ago, especially medieval, Renaissance, and colonial foods. Always ready for the next adventure, she enjoys camping, hiking, and traveling. Her latest goal is to visit National Parks in every state. Only 13 states to go!
Author Links
- Webpage: https://terrikarsten.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terrikarsten
- Substack: https://historicalcookery.substack.com/
- GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7343260.Terri_Evert_Karsten
- Purchase Links – Amazon B&N
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A Necessary Death TOUR PARTICIPANTS
June 4 – Jody’s Bookish Haven – SPOTLIGHT
June 4 – Salty Inspirations – RECIPE
June 4 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 5 – Cozy Up With Kathy – REVIEW, AUTHOR INTERVIEW
June 5 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
June 5 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT
June 6 – Sarandipity’s – SPOTLIGHT
June 6 – @bibliophile_foodie – REVIEW
June 7 – Deal Sharing Aunt – RECIPE
June 7 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 8 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – RECIPE
June 8 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
June 9 – Boys’ Mom Reads! – SPOTLIGHT
June 9 – Books1987 – SPOTLIGHT
June 10 – Books, Ramblings, and Tea – SPOTLIGHT
June 11 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
June 11 – Baroness Book Trove – SPOTLIGHT
June 12 – View from the Birdhouse – REVIEW
June 12 – Angel’s Book Nook – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
June 13 – Elizabeth McKenna – Author – SPOTLIGHT
June 13 – Rebecca M. Douglass, Author – REVIEW
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