It's

Cozy Food Friday!

That means it's time to share a recipe from 

another great cozy mystery!

Today I'm featuring a recipe from

SWEET PEPPER HERO

by

J.J. COOK

Book 4 in the Sweet Pepper Fire Brigade Mystery series

Old rivalries heat up in the fourth Sweet Pepper Fire Brigade mystery from the national bestselling author of In Hot Water.

Fire chief Stella Griffin has been put in charge of judging the annual recipe contest, but Eric—her resident ghost and true culinary genius—has vanished. Before she can track down his latest haunt, she’s called in to investigate a local moonshine distillery that was set ablaze, making her realize there’s more than pies and cakes cooking in Sweet Pepper. 

As rumors of a revived whiskey war ignite, Stella turns to the town’s elders to help her find answers. The past might have some clues as to what has sparked the present fires. But when following a lead lands her in buried rubble, Stella realizes she must extinguish this case fast or she might be going down in flames.

MY REVIEW

Cozy mysteries for 2016 are off to a fiery start, and SWEET PEPPER HERO is the spark igniting the blaze!

While I enjoy every series written by J.J. Cook/Joyce and Jim Lavene, the Sweet Pepper Fire Brigade Mystery series is my very favorite, and hold a special place on my book shelves and in my heart.

I wait all year (not very patiently) for the newest Sweet Pepper book by J.J. Cook . . . It is ALWAYS worth the wait! Everything about this series, from the characters and setting, to the incredible writing style of the authors. Each installment consistently gets better and better. SWEET PEPPER HERO serves to prove that statement to be a fact.

Filled cover to cover with action, mystery, and fun, I was turning the pages faster and faster as I followed the solid plot and read my way to the explosive conclusion. I didn’t want this book to end!

SWEET PEPPER HERO is smoking hot, and is my first contender for best cozy mystery of 2016!

Check out the back of the book for pepper facts, and some yummy recipes! 

Here's a yummy recipe from the book that will spice up your Christmas/Holiday desserts! 

CHOCOLATE COOKIES WITH A BITE

From Joanie Lowder

Ingredients

1½ cups softened butter or margarine 

2 cups white sugar (or equivalent sweetener) 

4 eggs 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1 cup unsweetened cocoa 

1 cup chocolate morsels 

5 cups all-purpose flour 

2 teaspoons baking powder 

1 teaspoon salt 

6 finely diced habanero peppers

Directions

Cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl until smooth. 

Set aside.

Beat beat in the eggs, vanilla, cocoa, and chocolate morsels. 

Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt. 

Cut the pepper from the membrane and discard seeds. 

Mince peppers as finely as possible. 

Add peppers to the cookie dough. 

Chill the dough for an hour. 

Preheat the oven to 400°F. 

Roll out the dough on a smooth, floured surface until about ¼ inch thick. 

Cut into shapes or just make them round. 

Place cookies 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. 

Bake 6 to 8 minutes in the oven. Cool completely. 

Makes 2 to 4 dozen depending on the size of the cookies. 

Food photos are from Google Images. 

Your finished cookie make vary in appearance.

Sounds like a yummy way to heat up the holidays!

Please keep reading and check out my 

installments of 

Book Beginnings on Fridays

and

The Friday 56

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My Book Beginnings and Friday 56

 for this week are also from

SWEET PEPPER HERO

Book Beginnings on Fridays is a meme hosted by Rose City Reader

Share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading

My Book Beginnings...

Sweet Pepper fire chief Stella Griffin burned her hand on the cookie sheet she was removing from the oven. She shook it and stuck the injured digit in her mouth as she used the other hand to put the tray of chocolate and hot pepper cookies on the counter. 

The Friday 56 is a meme hosted by Freda's Voice

Rules: *Grab a book, any book. *Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader (If you have to improvise, that's okay.) *Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it) that grab you. *Post it.

My Friday 56...

They'd reached the top of the mountain. She parked the Cherokee in front of the cabin and shut off the engine. She'd put off saying it for a long time. This was a good opportunity since it was almost like they were starting over. 

As always, please leave a comment and 

let me know what you think!

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