VPWL

Popcorn 4 Ways

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 Here is a start for upgrading your snacks for Game Night! Let your imagination run wild.

Taco Night

Mix:

  • 2 Tab olive oil
  • 1 Tab chili powder
  • 1 Tab grated lime peel
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder

Toss with:

  1. 1 bag microwave popcorn, popped
  2. 1 c tortilla chips

Parmesan-Herb

Mix:

  • 3 Tab olive oil
  • 1 Tab chopped fresh rosemary
  • 1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Toss with:

  1. 1 bag microwave popcorn, popped
  2. 2/3 c finely grated Parmesan cheese.

Curry Butter

Mix:

  • 3 Tab butter, melted
  • 2 tsp curry powder

Toss with:

  1. 1 bag microwave popcorn, popped.

Black Sesame Mustard Popcorn

Mix:

  • 2 Tab butter, melted
  • 1 tsp dark sesame oil
  • 1 tsp yellow mustard powder

Toss with:

  1. 1 bag microwave popcorn, popped.
  2. 1 Tab black sesame seeds
  3. 1 tsp kosher salt (or popcorn salt)

Serves: Each recipe will serve 8

Source: Good Housekeeping, January 2014, The Popcorn Board 2013

Villa Park Women’s League – GOURMET – January 18, 2014

Gourmet January 2014

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VPWL GOURMET 2013-2014
January, 2014

Hors d’oeuvre

National Meat Month
National Slow Cooker Month
Meaty Chicken Dip

Fig Newton day – January 16th
Figgy Blue Cheese Bacon Bites

Popcorn Day January 19th
Popcorn Three Ways

First Course

National Soup Month
National Egg Month
Egg Flower Soup

Entreeʹ

Peking Duck Day – January 18th
20 minute Peking Duck with Quinoa Salad

Dessert

National Apple and Apricot Month
National Brandy Alexander Day January 31st
Apple and Apricot Crisp with Brandy Mascarpone

National Candy Month
National Fiber Focus Month
Fiber One® Chocolate Peanut Butter Haystacks

National Hot Tea Month
National Coffee Gourmet Month

Wine Suggestions
HDO & Soup: Raventos I Blanc 2011 Cava
Entreeʹ: Hahn 2012 Pinot Noir

January 

  1. Fat Free Living Month
  2. International Coffee Gourmet Month
  3. National Dried Plum Breakfast Month
  4. National Fiber Focus Month
  5. National Hot Tea Month
  6. National Retail Bakers Month
  7. Apple and Apricot Month
  8. Artichoke and Asparagus Month
  9. Shape Us Up Month
  10. Tubers and Dried Fruit Month
  11. Fat Free Living Month
  12. National Slow Cooking Month
  13. National Oatmeal Month
  14. National Soup Month
  15. National Wheat Bread Month
  16. Bread Machine Baking Month
  17. National Candy Month
  18. National Egg Month
  19. National Meat Month

VARIABLE DATE EVENTS

  1. Diet Resolution Week – January 1 – 7 (We missed it!)
  2. Fig Newton Day – January 16
  3. Peking Duck Day – January 18
  4. Popcorn Day – January 19
  5. National Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice Week – January 17-23
  6. Hot Heads Chili Days – January 17-18
  7. National Corn Chip Day – January 29
  8. Chinese New Years – January 31
  9. National Brandy Alexander Day – January 31
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Figgy Blue Cheese Bacon Bites

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Yes, really, Fig Newtons!
Ingredients:

  • 12 strips hardwood-smoked thickly sliced maple bacon
  • 24 fig cookies (like Fig Newtons)
  • 4 ounces Blue Cheese

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375°.
  2. Line rimmed baking sheet with foil. Place a baking rack on foil.
  3. Cut bacon in half crosswise so that the 12 strips become 24 shorter strips.
  4. Cut blue cheese into 24 approximate ½ teaspoon chunks.
  5. Top one fig cookie with blue cheese.
  6. Wrap with bacon, using tooth pick to secure.
  7. Place on prepared baking sheet.
  8. Bake for approximately 25 minutes or until bacon is crisped and cheese is bubbling.

Serves: 24 pieces

Source: Living Litehouse, Good Eats and Healthy Living – By Jennifer Fisher

Apple and Apricot Crisp

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Comfort food on a dark and rainy day.

Topping Ingredients:

  • 1 c flour
  • 1 c old fashion rolled oats
  • 1 c brown sugar
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • ¾ c butter, melted

Topping Directions:

Blend flour, brown sugar, salt, oats and butter until mixture resembles coarse meal.

Filling Ingredients:

  • 1 orange grated zest and juice of
  • 1 ½ c dried apricots (7.5 ounces), coarsely chopped (use scissors)
  • 1/3 c brandy
  • ½ c granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
    6 large Granny Smith apples peeled, quartered and sliced thin crosswise

Filling Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees°.
  2. In a small bowl, soak the apricots in brandy and orange juice for 5 minutes.
  3. In a buttered 9×13 inch glass baking dish, toss together apples, apricots, brandy/orange juice, orange zest, sugar, and cinnamon
  4. Spread evenly in pan.
  5. Sprinkle oat mixture evenly over top.
  6. Pat topping down gently.
  7. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until apples are tender and topping is browned. It may take longer depending on the apples.
  8. Serve with Brandy Mascarpone on top

Serves: 10 -12

Source: Get Off Your Butt and Bake. Adapted from Sinfully Easy Delicious Desserts by Alice Medrich

Brandy Mascarpone

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb mascarpone cheese
  • ¼ c cream
  • ¼ c sugar
  • ¼ c Brandy
  • 1 Tab lemon juice

Directions:
Whisk together.

Serves: 1 ½ cups

Source: Sunset Magazine, November 2013

Comment:  In a pinch, you can substitute a mixture of 8oz cream cheese, 1/4 c heavy cream, and 2 Tab butter, softened for the mascarpone cheese.

 

 

Fiber One® Chocolate-Peanut Butter Haystacks

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Don’ tell me fiber cannot be tasty – chocolate on HAY would taste good!

Ingredients:

  • 1 bag (12 oz) semisweet chocolate chips (2 cups)
  • ½ c peanut butter
  • 3 3/4 c Fiber One® original bran cereal (1 pouch from a 16.2 oz box)

Directions:

  1. Line cookie sheets with waxed paper.
  2. In large microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips and peanut butter uncovered on high 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds.
  3. Microwave 30 seconds to 1 minute longer, stirring every 15 seconds, until melted and smooth.
  4. Stir in cereal until well coated.
  5. Drop mixture by small teaspoonfuls onto waxed paper.
  6. Refrigerate until chocolate is firm.

Serves: Yield: 4 – 5 dozen candies

Source: Fiber One® Favorites

Brandy Mascarpone

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This is the topping you use when you want something more impressive that just plain whipped cream.

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb mascarpone cheese
  • ¼ c cream
  • ¼ c sugar
  • ¼ c Brandy
  • 1 Tab lemon juice

Directions:
Whisk together.

Serves: 1 ½ cups

Source: Sunset Magazine, November 2013

Comment:  In a pinch, you can substitute a mixture of 8oz cream cheese, 1/4 c heavy cream, and 2 Tab butter, softened for the mascarpone cheese..

 

Quinoa Salad

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Works as a starch or salad side dish.  And it can be make the day before!

Ingredients:

  • 1 ¾ c red quinoa (12 oz package)
  • 2 c dried cranberries
  • 2 c small green beans
  • ½ c walnuts, chopped
  • ½ c green onions, sliced
  • 1/3 c balsamic vinegar
  • ¼ c olive oil
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp pepper

Directions:

  1. Cook quinoa according to package directions.
  2. Fluff with a fork and let cool.
  3. Blanch green beans for 2 minutes, then cut into 1 inch pieces.
  4. Combine vinegar, oil, garlic, salt, and pepper.
  5. Add quinoa, cranberries, walnuts, onion, and green beans and toss.

May be served cold or at room temperature.

Serves: 10-12

Source: Donna doesn’t remember

20-Minute Peking Duck

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Your Chinese grandmother will be rolling over in her grave, but this does taste pretty authentic.

Duck Ingredients:

  • 2 Tbs dark sesame oil
  • 3 ½ -4# boneless duck breast halves
  • 10 thin flour tortillas (10”) cut in half
  • 2 cucumbers pealed, halved lengthwise, seeded, and cut lengthwise into 20 strips
  • 5 green onion tops, cut into thin strips
  • 2 Tbs sesame seeds

Hoisin Sauce Sauce Ingredients:

  • 1 hoisin
  • 2 tsp grated orange rind
  • 1/3 c orange juice
  • 1 Tbs Sriracha (hot chile sauce, such as Huy Fong)

Hoisin Sauce Directions:

Combine hoisin, orange rind, orange juice, and Sriracha.

Directions:

  1. Score duck breast skin 3 – 4 times.
  2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
  3. Add duck to pan, skin side down;
  4. Brush flesh side with hoisin sauce mixture.
  5. Cook 2 minutes.
  6. Turn and brush skin side with sauce.
  7. Cook 2 minutes more.
  8. Reduce heat to medium; cover and cook an additional 3 minutes on each side o until done.
  9. Cut duck diagonally across grain into thin slices.
  10. Heat tortillas according to package directions.
  11. Spread about 1 tablespoon hoisin mixture down center of each tortilla half.
  12. Divide duck, cucumber, onions, and sesame seeds between the 20 tortilla halfs
  13. Roll up and serve 2 on each plate

Serves: 10

Source: Cooking Light September 2004

 

Egg Flower Soup

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For meat lovers, you can add a ½ cup of diced leftover barbecued pork, cooked shrimp, or ham lunch meat.

Ingredients:

  • 6 c Swanson’s low fat chicken broth
  • 2 medium carrots
  • 1 c snow peas
  • ½ c frozen chopped spinach
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 nori 8-x-7-inch sheet
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp white pepper

Directions:

  1. In a medium soup pot, bring the chicken broth to a boil.
  2. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
  3. Julienne the carrots into match stick size pieces ½ in long.
  4. Snap off the snow pea stem ends and remove fibrous strings. Slice to 1/2”pieces.
  5. Add carrots and cook for 2 minutes.
  6. Add snow peas and spinach.
  7. Dissolve the cornstarch in 2 teaspoons of cold water.
  8. Add cornstarch solution to broth and cook, stirring, until the soup comes to a boil.
  9. Cut the nori into 1/8-inch strips.
  10. Stir in the nori. Turn off the heat.
  11. Crack the egg into a bowl and lightly beat it with a fork or whisk.
  12. Slowly pour the egg into the pot, stirring with a chopstick in a circular motion until long threads form.
  13. Stir in the sesame oil, salt, and white pepper.

Serves: 4-6

Source: Chinese Cooking for Dummies by Martin Yan

Meaty Chicken Dip

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Another good use for blue cheese!

  • Ingredients:
  • 3 c diced or shredded cooked chicken
  • 1 c mayonnaise
  • ½ tsp. garlic powder
  • ¼ c Frank’s hot pepper sauce
  • 1 c shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
  • 4 Tab green onions, minced
  • 1 Tab. freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • ½ c crumbled blue cheese
  • ½ c sour cream
  • 2 Tab diced chilies
  • 2 Tab chopped fresh Italian parsley
  • corn chips

Directions:

  1. In a small slow cooker combine chicken with all ingredients except blue cheese.
  2. Cook on medium for 2 hours, siring occasionally.

Alternately use a an oven proof dish in a 375° oven for about 20 minutes until cheese is bubbly.
When ready to serve sprinkle blue cheese over the top.

Serve warm with corn chips.

Serves: 10

Source: COOKS.CO, CrockPotGirls.com