by Cynthia Chow & T.C. LoTempio

This week we are reviewing the latest Food Blogger Mystery by T.C. LoTempio, and we also have a fun recipe from T.C.! Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a $15 Amazon gift card and a link to purchase the book from Amazon.

A Crust to Die For: A Tiffany Austin Food Blogger Mystery By T.C. LoTempio
Review by Cynthia Chow

Former professional chef Tiffany Austin only recently assumed full-time status as food writer for Southern Style magazine, so she didn’t expect that her proposal for a home cooked pizza contest would come to fruition. But Branson, Georgia’s first Bon-Appetempting Pizza Bake-Off is about to take off, with a $10,000 prize as an incentive for the competing home cooks.

Putting a damper on Tiffany’s excitement is the news that one of the celebrity food critic judges has a health emergency and is bowing out, and their sponsor is replacing him with food reviewer-turned-restaurateur Bartholomew Driscoll. It’s going to make for an uncomfortable working situation, and Tiffany wonders why Driscoll even agreed to participate. When she only had a few weeks of experience as a food critic Tiffany gave out her first negative review, which happened to be for Driscoll’s opening restaurant Ambrosia. Tiffany regrets not giving the place a second tasting, especially since it went on to become a four and five-star reviewed restaurant. Driscoll has neither forgiven nor forgotten, but she’s not the only one to feel his wrath. The handsome, rather predatory Lothario has left a wake of unhappy women and former business partners, and Tiffany overhears someone having an extremely aggressive argument with him. So when he is found stabbed to death with an expensive chef’s knife early in the competition, there is a surplus of suspects who wanted the foodie dead. And despite Tiffany’s initial promise to stay out of the investigation and instead focus on ensuring that the contest continues, suspicion falling on her best friend Hilary’s sister makes that impossible.

Former teen beauty queen Arleen Hanson is a finalist in the pizza bake-off, and her knife being the murder weapon unsurprisingly has her called in for questioning. Wanting to give Arleen the benefit of the doubt and especially needing to support Hilary, Tiffany makes the dubious choice to hide – or at least delay in reporting – incriminating evidence. It’s not going to make her relationship with Detective Philip Bartell go any smoother, since after a kiss he went M.I.A. and Tiffany is more than a little surly about it. Perhaps that’s why she blatantly ignores his warning and questions suspects, shares info with a reporter, and doesn’t disclose pertinent information to the authorities. The discovery of another body doesn’t slow her down at all, and the pressure to make her cooking contest a success adds a timer on closing the case and finding the real murderer.

This second in the series is at its best when depicting the fun details involved in the cooking competition and the resulting creations. Equally compelling are the descriptions of Tiffany’s talents as she prepares linguini and other delights in her kitchen while mentally working through her list of suspects and clues. Bakery treats also serve to help her bribe a gossip columnist into spilling rumors about the late restaurateur and his endeavors in the publishing world. Tiffany is rather impulsive and crosses legal boundaries as she investigates the crimes, but this is probably due as much to her irritation with Bartell as it is to deliver justice. Her furry “kids” Lily and Cooper, a Siamese cat and King Charles Cavalier spaniel, are always around to soften Tiffany and are sure to please animal lovers. Fans of cooking competitions, spirited characters, and mysteries with unpredictable resolutions will be left hungering for more as they turn the final page.

Cynthia Chow is the branch manager of Kaneohe Public Library on the island of Oahu. She balances a librarian lifestyle of cardigans and hair buns with a passion for motorcycle riding and regrettable tattoos (sorry, Mom).

Pizza Burgers
By T.C. LoTempio

One of the reasons I enjoy writing the Tiffany Austin food blogger series is the recipes I get to try out!

T.C. LoTempio

So below I’m going to share with you- and Tiffany-one of my favorite recipes for a pizza burger!

Ingredients
• 1-1/2 pounds ground beef
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 can (15 ounces) pizza sauce
• 1 can (4 ounces) mushroom stems and pieces, drained
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 6 hamburger buns, split and toasted
• 1-1/2 cups shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Directions
1. In a large cast-iron or other heavy skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink, 3-5 minutes, breaking beef into crumbles. Drain. Stir in the pizza sauce, mushrooms, sugar and oregano; mix well. Spoon onto buns; sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
2. Place on ungreased baking sheets. Broil 4 in. open faced from the heat until cheese is melted, 2 minutes.
3. Eat and enjoy!

To enter to win a $15 Amazon gift card, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “pizza burgers” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen March 16, 2024. U.S. residents only, and you must be 18 or older to enter. You can read our privacy statement here if you like.

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You can also click here to purchase this book.

T. C. Lotempio is the author of the Tiffany Austin Food Blogger series as well as the popular Nick and Nora mystery series and the Urban Tails Pet Shop Mysteries. She and her cats, ROCCO, Chazz and Leah Maxine reside in sunny Phoenix Arizona where she is busy writing the next pet shop mystery. Cat-ch up with them on ROCCO’s blog, catsbooksmorecats.blogspot.com or TC’s website, tclotempio.net.

Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.