Almond Marzipan Hearts by Ginger Bolton

5 ¼ oz granulated sugar
5 ¼ oz ground blanched almonds
2 teaspoons meringue powder
1 teaspoon orange blossom water
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon honey
Up to 2 tablespoons water
10 drops red food coloring

Process sugar in food processor until sugar is powdered.

Add almonds and process until sugar and almonds are blended

Add meringue powder and process until mixture is blended

Add orange blossom water, almond extract, and honey. Process until mixture is blended.

Add 1 tablespoon water and process until blended. If marzipan is too stiff to handle, add up to 1 more tablespoon of water and process until blended.

Add food coloring and process until color is uniform.

Mixture will be warm, which is good—it will be workable. Turn out onto a piece of parchment paper and shape into a ball.

Roll between two sheets of parchment paper to desired thickness.

Cut with heart cookie cutters.

Keep in refrigerator. Almond marzipan can be refrigerated for up to one month or frozen for up to two months.


Emily Westhill runs the best donut shop in Fallingbrook, Wisconsin, alongside her retired police chief father-in-law and her tabby Deputy Donut. But after murder claims a favorite customer, Emily can’t rely on a sidekick to solve the crime—or stay alive.

If Emily has learned anything from her past as a 911 operator, it’s to stay calm during stressful situations. But that’s a tall order when one of her regulars, Georgia Treetor, goes missing. Georgia never skips morning cappuccinos with her knitting circle. Her pals fear the worst—especially Lois, a close friend who recently moved to town. As evening creeps in, Emily and the ladies search for Georgia at home. And they find her—murdered among a scattering of stale donuts . . .

Disturbingly, Georgia’s demise coincides with the five-year anniversary of her son’s murder, a case Emily’s late detective husband failed to solve before his own sudden death. With Lois hiding secrets and an innocent man’s life at stake, Emily’s forced to revisit painful memories on her quest for answers. Though someone’s alibi is full of holes, only a sprinkling of clues have been left behind. And if Emily can’t trace them back to a killer in time, her donut shop will end up permanently closed for business . . .