Posts Tagged ‘food’

Chipotle Popcorn + Easy Paper Cones

June 25th, 2013
8 Comments

Last week I bought a popcorn popper! I’ve been doing it on the stovetop until now. It’s not terrible, but it is nice to avoid standing over the stove for 10 minutes at a time.

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Our neighborhood has this little tradition called “Street of Treats”. Each street is assigned a Sunday through out the summer and early fall months, and neighbors get together to provide and eat treats. Our street was up first for the summer! I wanted to do something fun, but I didn’t want to spend a whole lot of time preparing for it.

I also wanted to do something besides brownies and cookies as I knew mine would certainly not be the best nor the only ones out. So I did a popcorn bar!

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About an hour beforehand I realized I didn’t have enough paper cups for neighbors, so I had to get inventive. I certainly have enough paper on-hand, so I made cones:

Cut the 12×12 inch paper into fourths. Find some cute, but strong tape (this is masking tape from OHF).

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Lightly crease the corner.

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Overlap opposing corners.

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But don’t overlap too much.

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Secure with tape.

I believe I made about 50+ cones and about 10+ batches of popcorn last night. Neighbors and friends topped their own popcorn with cinnamon and sugar, butter, parmesan, Mrs. Dash Chipotle powder, Salt, Pepper and/or dill. The little kids loved dousing their popcorn in lots of butter.

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My personal favorite combination? Butter, Mrs. Dash chipotle seasoning, lots of parmesan and kosher salt.

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I’m pretty sure I need to host a movie night and do this kind of thing again. It was fun, easy, cheap and cute.

Does your neighborhood do any fun get-togethers like this during the summer months?

Food: Bacon-Wrapped Grilled Chicken

June 17th, 2013
5 Comments

 This post is sponsored by MADHOUSE Collection. Casual entertaining shouldn’t sacrifice style. You can find statement melamine serveware, cool paper products and the neatest twig utensils I’ve ever seen.

I first experimented this recipe on Mother’s day. We had 11 people to dinner that night so I wanted to make something tasty and easy. I also wanted to use our new grill for the first time! I based this recipe off a traditional Sunday dinner my mom used to slow cook in the winters with cream of mushroom soup. They’re good, but the cream of mushroom soup is a bit to heavy for spring and summer dining.

Since Mother’s day I’ve perfected the recipe. It’s delicious, easy to double or triple and makes for great leftovers. If you have any.

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Bacon-Wrapped Grilled Chicken

prep and cook time: 40 minutes, serves: 6-8

 

  • 1-2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 9 chicken tenders
  • 9 strips of bacon
  • 9 toothpicks, soaked

You can use fresh minced garlic, but I’ve found that the minced garlic from a jar works best. I get better flavor and the garlic cooks all the way through. I would also recommend using regular bacon. Thick country-style bacon is too fatty, we had issues with the bacon catching fire and charring the bacon while not evenly cooking the chicken. I use chicken tenders because they’re thin and small. You can certainly cut chicken breasts down to about the size of a chicken tender. Start with a clean surface and be sure to thoroughly clean all surfaces that have come in contact with the raw meat.

Pre-heat your grill to medium heat.

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Lay out 1 bacon strip, place one chicken tender in the middle, spread minced garlic on top of the chicken. Starting from one side, roll the bacon and chicken up neatly. Pierce the middle with a toothpick to keep the meats from unrolling. Set aside. Repeat for all 9 chicken tenders.

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Once your grill is preheated (I heat it to 450, clean the grill bars and cool it down to 300), place meat on grill bars, bacon sides down. Allow to cook about 10 minutes on each side, cook until bacon is medium brown and chicken is all-the-way cooked. This is about 20-25 minutes. Remove toothpicks (or tell guests to remove them). Serve.

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And if you already have the grill going, put a few ears of corn and slabs of sweet potatoes on the grill. You’ll have an entire meal without dirtying a ton of pans or heating up the house.

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How was Father’s Day around your house? We had a really relaxed, low-key day. Chris isn’t one to make a huge fuss out of holidays so it was easy to make him feel loved and appreciated.

On a personal note, I’m so grateful to have Chris as my man. He is a wonderful Father and husband. He is awesome with our kids and he’s so supportive of me and my adventures.

So supportive, in fact, that he recently quit his job so that we can work from home together. He’s been working tirelessly on a project that we’ve been dreaming about for almost for a year. When he’s not solving crazy dev problems; he’s playing with the kids, changing diapers and tidying up the house. He’s doing whatever he can to help me grow this little business of mine. Sometimes I get anxious thinking about being our own bosses, but then Chris comes to assure me that we’re doing the right thing. And he’s right. I wouldn’t have this any other way. We work really well alongside each other. I’m grateful that we have this opportunity to do that.

I’m also incredibly grateful that my kids get to spend so much time with their dad. Both Chris and I have wonderful dads. They’re strong, hard-working, faithful men. I cherished those quiet moments with my dad in the car enroute to Home Depot on Saturdays. I’m excited that Penelope and Felix will grow up with cherished moments with their dad as well.

Food: Texas Sheet Cake

June 10th, 2013
2 Comments

A favorite tradition of mine growing up involved driving to grandma and grandpa’s house (either one, both sets lived about 15-20 minutes away), hanging out with cousins and eating dessert. My parents and aunts and uncles would sit around in the front room, while us cousins would play outside (swinging from the rotating clothes dryer, despite my grandma’s scoldings) or whine at the kitchen table for something sweet to eat.

My grandma cooked the best desserts for us. Texas sheet cake being one of them.

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It’s been about 7 years since she passed, and I miss her still.

My grandpa Scott sends out weekly email updates to his kids and grandkids. He often leaves us with little stories about her, but this week it was a several-paragraphed tribute to her and her legacy. I’ve been thinking about her a lot and the things that she taught me.

She had a rough childhood, her parents both dying when she was only 14. She moved from one sibling’s home to another, ending up in Elko. Despite her misfortunes and poor circumstances she was well-educated, motivated and had amazing self-discipline. The kind that I wish I had when it comes to housework. She made dresses and suits for all 6 of her kids (I loved playing with her manual sewing machine – you know the kind with the iron push pedal on the bottom). She was stern, but oh so loving. Oh how I wish I could talk to her now and hear her stories about her childhood and her sewing. I’ll just eat some of her texas sheet cake instead.

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Grandma Scott’s Texas Sheet Cake

makes one 17×23 jelly roll pan
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 cup milk
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 teaspon soda
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • dash of salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 eggs, slightly beaten
  • cinnamon and chipotle powder, optional

Melt butter and cocoa powder in a sauce pan, slowly stir in milk and stir until smooth. In a small bowl dissolve soda, buttermilk, salt, eggs and vanilla (and spices). In a large bowl, sift together flour and sugar. Pour chocolate mixture and buttermilk mixture into the large bowl and mix well. Pour into a greased and floured jelly-roll cookie sheet. Bake at 375º F for 20 minutes.

 

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Frosting

  • 6 tablespoons melted butter
  • 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 6 tablespoons evaporated milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • cinnamon and chipotle powder, optional

Pour melted butter and cocoa powder and mix until smooth. Add remaining ingredients one at a time, stirring until smooth. Frost while the cake is warm. Add sprinkles.

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the original recipe calls for 1 cup boiling water instead of milk, the milk makes it really creamy. I also added cinnamon to this cake yesterday and it is divine. Next time I will be adding cinnamon and chipotle. Penelope will hate the spicy chipotle, but that just means more cake for me!

Do you have any traditional recipes that your parents/grandparents would make for you when you were little?

Food: My New Favorite Combination

May 20th, 2013
5 Comments

I’m obsessed with basil. Basil in sandwiches, on pizzas, mozzarella cheese, basically anything. Then there’s lemon basil. It’s even lovelier, but I haven’t been able to find a start anywhere (aka the grocery store, because I don’t venture out much these days).

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My mom gave me this lovely lemon basil plant like she was reading my mind. I’ve already harvested quite a bit from it and discovered my favorite of combinations. Lemon basil, strawberries and fresh cream. OH MY WORD. The lemon basil enhances the flavor of the strawberry 10 fold. It’s the funniest thing.

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I finely chopped basil and strawberries on French toast on Saturday and it was enjoyed by all. Even Penelope loved the leaves. So there you have it, the secret is out. Find yourself a lemon basil plant. Now.

Food: Grilled Salmon

May 13th, 2013
2 Comments

Buying a grill forever changed my life last week. Oh my word, I’m in love with our new appliance. We have a natural gas hook up on our back patio so we can fire it up and go at any time. I suspect I’ll be bringing a lot more grilled recipes to you from here on out.

Yesterday we had 12 people to dinner for Mother’s Day. We cooked everything on the grill. We had plenty of food, the house wasn’t an oven and my kitchen wasn’t a complete disaster area at the end of the night. So glad we bought one at the beginning of the summer rather than the end of it.

What did you cook (or not cook) for Mother’s Day?

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Saturday I had fish that needed to be cooked, so I fired up the grill and made probably the best salmon I’ve had in ages, if not ever. It was quick and easy. I suspect you could make the same kind of salmon in your oven, just bake at 450F.

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Smokey Grilled Salmon

serves 4
  • 1 filet of salmon (skin on one side)
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • liquid smoke
  • salt
  • pepper

Place the filet of salmon, skin side down on a large sheet of tin foil. Roll up the sides to make a little dish to keep juices from dripping. Put a couple of drops of liquid smoke on the filet (you don’t need much). Pour melted butter over top and season with salt and pepper. Preheat your grill (or oven) to 450 and place in the middle of the grill. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until cooked all the way through. Serve.

Fresh Summer Salad

serves 4-6
  • 1 English/armenian cucumber
  • grape tomatoes
  • 1 avocado
  • 1 bunch broccoli
  • mozzarella
  • green onions
  • 1/4 cup parmesan
  • olive oil
  • balsamic vinegar
  • salt
  • pepper

Chop into bite sized chunks and toss in about a cup of each of the vegetables and mozzarella. No need for cooking. Coat with a tablespoon or two of olive oil and a dash of balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. Serve cold. Bacon would be delicious in here, too.

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