Sweet & Salty Popcorn

Here’s another fun recipe that could be adapted to any holiday based on the food coloring chosen.  Since 4th of July is rapidly approaching, I attempted red, white, and blue popcorn.  The red & white worked, but the blue was a fail.  I’ll have to experiment with blueberries or something in order to get a good, healthy, natural blue food dye into my repertoire.  Though the blue didn’t work out, it was still delicious!!!

If there is a food that is near and dear to my heart, it’s popcorn.  My childhood is full of memories of my popcorn-freak-father having popcorn weekly and in as many different varieties as you could imagine.  One of my favorite “dates” with him was when we would go to the popcorn store to buy specialty popcorn.  He would always get something cheesy or spicy and I, a cool kid of course, would get the multi-colored popcorn.  Cuz that’s basically what kids do.  This is a fun, healthier version to make at home!

Sweet & Salty Popcorn

makes 6 quarts

1C popcorn kernels

1/4C high heat oil, I used Safflower

salt to taste, for salty popcorn

spray oil or butter, for salty popcorn

1T butter per colored, sweet popcorn

1C sugar per colored, sweet popcorn

2-3T water per colored, sweet popcorn

food coloring of choice, I used beet juice for red color (ignore the failed blue food coloring pictured)

Burnt popcorn is one of the most awful culinary tragedies.  It’s shameful, disappointing, and stinks up the house.  So don’t do that.  Make homemade popcorn with the most preparedness possible.

Heat the oil on medium-high heat and toss in 2-3 kernels.  Prepare the rest of the kernels.  (You may want to make this in 2 batches if your pot is small.)

Once the first 2-3 kernels pop, dump in the rest of your kernels.

You’ll want to get a splatter screen quickly, otherwise popcorn and oil will be filling your kitchen rather quickly!

Shake the pot occasionally so the popcorn doesn’t stick to the bottom and burn.  Then divide popcorn into respective number of colors desired. I divided my popcorn 3 ways for 3 colors, but since the blue didn’t work out, I ended up having 2/3 salty white popcorn and 1/3 sweet red popcorn – which actually was a nice ratio.

With the white, salty popcorn spray oil or butter onto it lightly and sprinkle salt to taste.  Toss well (or as I did, attach a lid and shake well.)  Then prepare the colored sweet coating for the remaining popcorn.  On medium-high heat combine butter and sugar

and water and food coloring.  Since my food coloring was natural and very liquidy I used 1.5T beet juice and 2T water.  (You couldn’t even taste beets!)

Bring to a slow boil.

It is ready when it is the consistency of a thick syrup.

Remove from heat for a moment to cool, then dump over reserved plain popcorn.  Mix well to coat and set aside to cool.  (I cooled mine in the fridge so the plastic bowl the popcorn was in wouldn’t melt.  The syrup is super hot!)  Once all colors are mixed, cooled, and dried, combine with salty, plain popcorn and serve!

Black Bean Hummus

Hummus is a staple in our household.  (If you didn’t already figure that out from my Garlic Hummus recipe.)  We eat it with pita chips & vegetables, and also use it as a spread on sandwiches or tortilla wraps.  Hummus is so versatile you can make it fit with whatever flavor food you’re preparing.  I make black bean hummus a lot because I always have black beans in the pantry and we eat Spanish food so much, that this is perfect!  I love this recipe because it can be made in less than 10 minutes.  Plus, with all the Puerto Ricans we know who are a little shy of chick peas, this is a great gateway hummus.

I call this my Latin Hummus!  For the first six months of marriage, my husband didn’t know what to cook in the kitchen because I didn’t have Adobo – a Latin staple.  I learned to change it, and learned why all the Puerto Rican and Dominican cooks that I know love it!  So for all you Latin food lovers and hummus lovers alike, here you have it:

Black Bean Hummus

makes about 1 cup

1 C cooked black beans (if using canned, drain and rinse well)

1/8 C tahini

3T water

1T lemon juice, or about half a lemon

2 cloves garlic

1/4t salt

1/4t Adobo

1 small handful of either parsley or cilantro

Put all ingredients in a food processor.  I started with the beans, parsley, and garlic.

Then added the lemon juice, water, seasonings, and tahini.

Process until smooth and at a consistency you like.  To get it more thin you can add more water, lemon juice, or a small amount of olive oil.

Viola! Delicious, healthy snack.  I like to refrigerate mine before serving.  Enjoy!

Guacamole

Chips are a staple in our house.  The first time I crumbled them up and sprinkled them over my husband’s breakfast omelet, he nearly fainted in joy.  To accompany chips, you need something good.  Guacamole fits the bill.

I did not like avocados or guacamole for the longest time.  Perhaps I just had bad experiences with both.  The first time I tried guacamole and loved it was in Manhattan at Mama Mexico.  They made it fresh right in front of you, and you got to pick the ingredients that went in.  I had an aha moment: Guacamole is only great fresh!  The canned, tubbed, bagged stuff you can buy at the store does not hold a candle to homemade guac.  This converted me to be an avocado lover as well.  I’m grateful that food buds evolve as adults!

Homemade Guacamole

Makes 4 cups

4-5 ripe avocados

2-3 tomatoes

½ C scallions I’ve also used Spanish onion & red onion before

3-5 cloves of garlic

1 jalapeno

1 lime

Salt to taste

Because avocados brown quickly after air exposure, I saved those for the end and diced all my ingredients.  A note on the tomatoes: remove the seeds and liquid parts- they will water down and discolor the guacamole.  Thankfully, guacamole doesn’t require precise measurements, so if you like yours more spicy or garlicky or whatever, you can adjust as necessary.

Roll the lime under your palm before cutting it open to release the juices.

Then cut your avocados open.  Ripe avocados should be soft to the touch, but not mushy.  It’s ok if the skin is black, so long as there isn’t mold growing out of the peel.  I cut them in half first,

then slice squares without puncturing the peel behind it.

Then scooped the flesh into the bowl.  This can be done with a spoon or fingers.  To get the pit out, you can scoop it out with your fingers as well, or smack a knife into it and wiggle it out of the avocado flesh.

Toss avocado into a bowl.  You can mash with a large spoon or potato masher, but I usually use a fork so I can get the guacamole to the exact consistency I like.  If you’re in a hurry, or don’t mind really smooth guacamole, you could always toss the ingredients into a food processor.

Add the remaining ingredients and mash until it is a consistency you like.  I usually keep a pit or two in the guacamole mix – it keeps the guacamole from browning!  (I learned this at a party, thanks Kim!)

Refrigerate (either with the pit in and/or in an air tight container with parchment paper pressed down onto the guacamole to remove all air) for 30 minutes and serve!  This guacamole is great for dipping, topping quesadillas, or stuffing in burritos!  You can always store extra guacamole the same way you refrigerated it, though in our house there are rarely leftovers.

Crispy Oven Fries & Bistro Sauce

This is the sequel to last week’s post!  The delicious, crispy, herb drenched fries and the sauce that cannot be described, only consumed.  This sauce is inspired by Nordstrom’s Cafe Bistro, who serves it with their own crispy, herb drenched fries.  My husband and I were introduced to Cafe Bistro years ago and have fallen in love with it.  They have great salads, sandwiches, pizzas, and desserts!  We seriously refer to this pink dip as “Heaven Sauce” in our household, and it has caught on with friends who love the Cafe as much as we do.

I loved this sauce so much I once asked for the recipe and though they sell cookbooks with their recipes, they so generously jotted it down for me.  Now, that was quite a while ago, so I’ve long forgotten where that little receipt has ended up.  Thankfully, my somewhat functional memory and my culinary instincts could reproduce it!  It’s amazing!  Also, I’ve learned a lot about baking fries since my last fry post.  From soaking the potatoes in water to cooking them on a rack with air circulation, it’s all good things I’ve learned.  I’m excited to share this recipe with you!

Crispy Oven Fries & Heaven Bistro Sauce

Serves 2-3, Fries inspired by thetalkingkitchen.com

3 small/medium potatoes

1/2 t garlic powder

1/4 t onion powder

1 small bunch of parsley, I used Italian flat leaf

4-6T mayonnaise, I used Vegenaise

2-3T Greek yogurt (optional)

2-3 cloves fresh garlic

8-12 Kalamata olives

Juice from 1/2 a lemon

4T olive oil

Salt & Pepper to taste

First, I washed and cut the potatoes to desired fry size.  I wanted skinny fries in the attempt to make them nice and crispy.  I also left the skin on and was not disappointed.

Then soaked them in ice water for about 5 minutes to let some starch out.  At this point, I pre-heated the oven to 400 degrees.

I then rinsed and drained the potatoes, and dried them out on a towel.  I rubbed the towel back & forth over them to ensure they were fully dry.

I then mixed the powders, salt, & pepper together.

Side note: I used a chimichurri sea salt that I picked up at a farmer’s market recently.  Bless the Lord, it’s good!  Recipes like this are a fun time to experiment with new seasonings or different flavored salt & peppers.  Also, if you’ve never had chimichurri sauce…get on that.  It will change your world.

Then added the olive oil.

And added the fries.  At first I tried to toss them with a spatula, but they weren’t getting sufficiently coated, so prepare to get your hands a little dirty.

I lined a cookie sheet with aluminum foil, just to make clean up a little easier.  And since I don’t own a cooking rack, I used an all metal cookie cooling rack to put the fries on.  Apparently, air circulation makes the fries crispier, and you don’t need to flip them half way through the cook time.  I’m not sure how I feel about that since I got some crispy fries, and some softer ones.  Good thing I like both kinds.

I made so many I had to cook them in two batches because they didn’t all fit on the pan!

I baked them for 30-35 minutes, or until nicely browned.  Meanwhile, time to roll up your sleeves, bust out the food processor and make the sauce of Heaven!!!

I first tossed in 4T mayo.  I subbed out some mayo for Greek yogurt to cut down the fat and up the protein in this dip.  This is optional of course.  You could go mayo all the way if you’re not as vain as I am.  I use Greek yogurt as a sub for mayo and sour cream often in recipes.  The kind I buy by Fage has 0 fat and 20ish grams of protein per serving.  This is fantastic news to my heart!

Then added the garlic.

Oh, yes, I used my mini food processor since I’m not making but 1.5 cups of this goodness.

Then added the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, and some salt & pepper.

Add the olives.

And blend it!  This would be the time to adjust seasonings to taste.  You’ll know when it’s right for your taste buds.  The consistency you’re looking for will be slightly more runny than mayonnaise.  Place in the fridge until the fries are ready.

While the fries are finishing in the oven, chop the parsley finely.

When the fries are ready, pull them out of the oven and allow to cool for 1-2 minutes.

Toss with parsley, and serve with Heaven sauce immediately.  So delicious!!!  Enjoy!

I used the sauce throughout the week as a sandwich spread and dip for pita chips.  It’s just that good.

Fruit Pizza

I love fruit.  I dig pizza.  Combine the two and it’s magic!  We’re headed to an Easter party this weekend and I decided this would be a winner.  When my husband found out, he said I should make it look like an Easter egg.  This man is a genius.

Most fruit pizza recipes call for a sugar cookie crust, but between that and the sugary sauce, it’s a sugar overload.  So I made mine how my mom made it when I was little – with a crescent “roll” crust.  I also reduced the amount of sugar that is typically called for in the sauce.

You’ll need:

1 8oz package of cream cheese, room temperature

1 can of crescent rolls

3/4 C powdered sugar

Any variety of fruit you want (I used strawberries, kiwis, grapes, mandarin oranges, blueberries, and cherries)

1/2 C white chocolate chips optional

1t vegetable oil optional

I preheat the oven to 375, per the crescent roll instructions.  You could use either type of crescent rolls, I just chose the jumbo kind so I’d have fewer seams to worry about.  Roll the dough onto a sprayed cookie sheet.

Pinch all the seams together.  You’ll want to pay extra attention to the outer seams.

Then flatten the pinched seams to make a smooth surface.

To make my easter egg shape, I cut the corners off.

Then I rolled all the corners together into a ball, divided the ball in two, then stretched them out and added them to the side of the former rectangle to give it some width – like an egg.  Don’t worry if it’s not perfect, eggs aren’t either.

Be sure to pinch the seams of these new additions, too.

The crescent instructions will say something like bake 14-16 minutes.  Since we’re using it in flat formation, rather than rolled up like a crossaint, we actually need less time.  I baked it about 11 minutes.

While your crust is baking, cut all the fruit.  You can make the fruit as big or small, thick or thin as you’d like.  I chose just to cut the strawberries in half, slice the kiwi, halve the grapes, and I left the blueberries and cherries the size they were.  I found it easy to get the skin off the kiwi with a potato peeler.

Normally, I’d use only fresh fruit, but I didn’t have any cherries or clementine oranges.  Thankfully, I found mandarine oranges that were packed in juice, rather than syrup.  I also rinsed and drained the cherries and let them dry while wrapped in a paper towel so the red juice doesn’t run all over the white sauce.

After the crust is finish baking, allow it to cool completely.  You don’t want the sauce to run off the crust.  Notice some seams came apart.  Don’t fear!  Cream cheese covers a multitude of mistakes!

While the crust is cooling, time to make the icing.  You could use a hand-mixer, but I got to use my baby…the KitchenAid.

I love my KitchenAid.  I registered for one in three different stores for our wedding but we didn’t get one.  Much to my surprise, my husband gave this to me last Christmas.  I actually cried when I tore off the wrapping paper.  He’s so thoughtful.

Isn’t it beautiful?

On the lowest setting, begin to mix the cream cheese,

add the powdered sugar,

and mix on high to ensure everything is thoroughly combined.  Don’t over-mix.

Yummmm.

Once the crust and the cookie sheet are cool to the touch, spread the sauce on top and smooth it out.

Add the fruit in whatever pattern or random order you’d like.  For the Easter egg, I did a stripey chevron-ish pattern.

The last step, which is really more for looks and only a little for taste is the white chocolate topping.  In a small glass ramekin microwave the white chocolate chips for 30 seconds.  Mix well.

Add the oil which will make it thin enough to use for decorating the pizza.  Stir well so the oil is incorporated.

I didn’t have a pastry bag, so I used a sandwich size ziploc bag and barely snipped the corner.

The hole was tiny and could have been made larger, but I liked how thin the lines turned out.  Drizzle to your heart’s content.  Or until you run out of chocolate.  Chill until ready to serve.  Enjoy!

Garlic Hummus

Hummus.  It’s so delicious and in my mind it’s so healthy.  That’s probably why my husband and I will eat the whole batch within a day or two of it being made.  Yes, stores sell hummus, but you can make your own just as good and totally fresh so you know everything that’s in it.  And it’s super easy!

This recipe is one that I actually created by accident.  Back in my early days of cooking, I didn’t know if “cloves” of garlic meant the individual pieces or if a whole bulb of garlic was considered a clove.  This misunderstanding led me to put a TON of garlic cloves (now I know better) into my first hummus recipe and it was so garlicky that it was spicy.  And surprisingly delicious.  In my own mind this recipe is legend.  So legend a friend has asked for it during her last two pregnancies.  What?!  Craving my crazy garlic hummus?!  So garlic haters be ware.  This is only for the brave…and maybe the pregnant.

You’ll need:

1 can chickpeas (or garbanzo beans, same thing)

3 T tahini paste (ground sesame seeds, found near peanut butter)

4-6 T extra virgin olive oil

1-5 garlic cloves (your preference)

1 lemon

½ t ground cumin

salt & pepper

paprika for garnish

Drain and rinse the chickpeas

and put in a food processor along with the garlic and tahini paste. I didn’t have a big enough food processor, so I used a blender. It worked perfectly. Blend until it is very smooth. Add the salt, pepper, juice from the lemon, and cumin.

Be careful with the cumin! I let a little too much fall in, and it was way too kickin’! I had to mellow it with more tahini since I didn’t have any more chickpeas. So, don’t do that. Blend the mixture for another 2-3 minutes.

Taste to see if it needs more salt. Mine did, so we threw a bit more in, then blended once again.  And if you like it a little thinner, add 1T water at a time until it’s a good consistency for you.

Plate and garnish with the paprika. We used blue corn chips, but you could also eat it with vegetables, or crackers – or use it as a spread! However you eat it, enjoy!