Pizza So Easy Even Sarah Could Make It -- Guest Sherry Harris

LESLIE: Some cozy protagonists love to cook, some not so much. But everybody eats, right? So it's great fun to see how the non-cooks among the characters we know and love manage on their own. Our friend Sherry Harris has a great solution, a fairly free-form pizza recipe that offers just the right amount of flavor and flexibility! And she's celebrating the release of I KNOW WHAT YOU BID LAST SUMMER, fifth in the Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mysteries, out February 27th from Kensington Books.

Sherry is offering a signed copy to one lucky reader! Leave a comment below for a chance to win. 

Pizza So Easy Even Sarah Could Make It 

Thanks Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen for being brave enough to ask me back. Apparently my earlier recipe for Fluffernutter Cake didn’t make anyone sick. Woo-hoo. I write the Sarah Winston Garage Sale mystery series. My protagonist, Sarah Winston, isn’t exactly known for her cooking. She either eats at her favorite restaurant, DiNapoli’s Roast Beef and Pizza, or she makes a Fluffernutter sandwich. But sometimes a girl has to do something other than that.

So for Sarah and all the other people out there who like an easy, delicious recipe, here is my husband’s Garlic Pizza. He came up with the idea because our daughter isn’t a huge fan of tomato sauce. It’s been a hit ever since.

My husband makes his own crust using the recipe that came with the food processor. You can either make your crust or use a store-bought one. (I still want to try it with a cauliflower crust.)  After the crust dilemma is decided you only need two ingredients – garlic and a decent mozzarella cheese, about 14-16 ounces. We’ve found through some unfortunate experiences that bagged pre-shredded mozzarella just doesn’t cut it for this recipe.

Preheat your oven to 430 degrees (Note from Leslie: I checked, and yes, Mr. Sherry confirms he bakes at 430 degrees!)

Shred the cheese.

We always use fresh garlic – a lot of it! My husband uses six to eight large cloves. Remove the skin of the garlic. We put it in a jar and shake it around but you can also squish it out with the backside of a garlic press or a large knife. (For Sarah, the fewer sharp object around the better.)

Cook the crust for five minutes. We use a pan with holes in the bottom. My husband cooks it for three minutes on the top rack and two on the bottom.

Put the minced garlic directly on the hot pizza crust, and then spread it around with your fingers.

Top with the shredded mozzarella – add as much as you like!

Bake for ten to fourteen minutes until the crust is golden brown (or GB as we call it) on the bottom and the cheese is nicely melted. My husband cooks it on the top rack for six minutes and the bottom for four.

Slice and enjoy! We often add fresh tomatoes on top or a bit of crushed red pepper. Anything works – we’ve tried everything from avocado to left over pork. But usually we eat it just as it is.

Pizza -- the all-American food! What's your favorite? Tell us in the comments for a chance to win a signed copy of I KNOW WHAT YOU BID LAST SUMMER. (U.S. addresses only) The winner will be chosen Tues morning, March 6.)

From the cover of I KNOW WHAT YOU BID LAST SUMMER:

FOUL PLAY IN THE GYM

When it comes to running a successful garage sale, Sarah Winston believes in doing her homework. She also believes in giving back. But when she agrees to manage an athletic equipment swap, she doesn't bargain on an uncharitable killer. The day of the event, the school superintendent is found dead in the gymnasium.

HAS SARAH PLAYING DEFENSE
Suddenly the murder suspects are the school board members—including the husband of a very difficult client who's hired Sarah to run a high-end sale and demands she do her bidding. In between tagging and haggling, Sarah studies the clues to see who wanted to teach the superintendent a lesson. But as she closes in on the truth, the killer intends to give her a crash course on minding her own business . . .

SherryHarris is the Agatha Award nominated author of the Sarah Winston Garage Sale mystery series. The fifth book, I Know What You Bid Last Summer, was released in February 2018.

Sherry is the Vice President of Sisters in Crime National, a member of the Chesapeake Chapter of Sisters in Crime, the New England Chapter of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, and International Thriller Writers.

In her spare time Sherry loves reading, is a patent holding inventor, and is a former model. (Okay, it was just the one time at Talbots last year, but it was fun.) 

Sherry, her husband, and guard dog Lily are living in northern Virginia until they figure out where they want to move to next.

Visit her website, join her on Facebook, or follow her on Twitter, @SHarrisauthor. Sherry blogs with the Wicked Cozy Authors.