Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Vermont Cheddar Popcorn



I'm in love with popcorn!


Popcorn has always been one of my favorite snacks.  I mean what's not to love??  It's light, fluffy texture, and it's tasty goodness.  It even smells like Disneyland to me!!  Can't get much better than that!


So I pop it often as a snack.  We like to watch movies and eat popcorn.  But to tell you the truth I like it whenever...even cold!  I think it runs in the family, I've seen them all eating their share of popcorn too!


This is a quick, simple recipe.  But don't let that surprise you, it oh soooo good!


Vermont Cheddar Popcorn combines your favorite popcorn with the cheesy goodness of  cheddar.  The cheddar I used is from King Arthur Flour and it called Vermont Cheese Powder.  You can find it here.  If you recall, this is the same cheese I used to make my stovetop Macaroni and Cheese.  This product is excellent.  Make sure to pick so up.  There are so many uses for it!  This recipe is super simple to assemble, and the flavor?  Outstanding!


Let's make popcorn!




Vermont Cheddar Popcorn

6 cups of popped popcorn
3-4 T of melted butter
2 T. Vermont Cheese Powder (or more to taste)

Drizzle the melted butter over the popcorn, mixing to distribute evenly.  Sprinkle with cheese powder and mix well.  Serve!






Sunday, May 20, 2012

Southern Sundays





Happy Southern Sundays!


Summer is coming fast and the Memorial Day weekend is just around the corner.  Although this seems to be the unofficial start of summer, I think it's already started where I live.  The weather here is already hot, promising a scorcher of a summer, I think!  It's time to clean up the old grill and get to some outdoor cooking.


I love eating "alfresco".  Most summers that is where you'll find us.  Outside, enjoying the sunshine, long evenings, and food food.  I've already strung up some beautiful mercury glass outdoor lights I picked up the other day.  They provide a beautiful glow at night, just right for setting the mood for a outdoor dinner experience.  You can see my lights here.  Oh!  I just saw a beautiful monarch butterfly near my new flowers. Gold and black...just gorgeous.  Which reminds me that's another thing I do this time of year...planting.  My love of flowers comes from my mom.  Container gardening is such fun and easily decorates around our dining table...it brings a splash of color and freshness to the area.  What do you do to prepare for a season of outdoor living??




So, on to Southern Sundays!  Last week we had some excellent recipes that you all shared!  I'm overwhelmed by the creativity, and surely am gaining weight from all this!  The most popular recipes are being featured here today.  A great round of applause for these wonderful dishes and to their creators!  Excellent cooking!


Check out these wonderful dishes, and stop by and say hello to the artist behind the dish!

by Marguerite of Cajun Delights


by Alyssa of What's Cooking Love?


by Lisa of Flour Me With Love

I'm Hungry now!

So let's party...

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Link back to your specific recipe and not to your main site.
Link back to Southern Sundays either in your post, or grab my Southern Sundays Button located in the right side bar.
Please visit a few of the links in the post and say hello to your fellow bloggers!
Enjoy, have fun, cook lots of food, and relish your Southern Sunday!





Saturday, May 19, 2012

Spiced Meatballs with Saucy Tomatoes



Boy do I have a treat for you!


How about a dish that is nice and light and healthy!  Another plus is that it doesn't require many ingredients, and most you probably have in your pantry or refrigerator already.  


MGG and I love to go out to dinner and try different cuisines.  One we particularly like is Persian or other regional Middle Eastern food.  I love the kabobs, the rice with saffron, the blends of different flavors, YUM!  


A few weeks ago we were out running around in Westwood and decided to go to dinner.  MGG knew an area that they call little Tehran, a street lined with Persian restaurants.  YEA!  So off we went to dinner and a wonderful little restaurant that was romantic and quaint.  One thing that was so cool was that there was a guy in the back making bread by hand.  Rolling out this dough, and then throwing it, literally, in an open fire oven that was shaped like a cone.  The bread was tossed on to this cone shaped wall and cooked very quickly.  The next thing I know is that we are served a basket of this wonderful bread! Not really a Lavash, more like a flatbread.    I HAVE to learn how to make this.  Obviously I don't have a cone shaped oven....but I we'll figure something out.  The entire meal was wonderful!  A great evening, good food, and excellent company.  What is better than that?


So when I came across this recipe from Good Housekeeping I was intrigued.  Spiced Meatballs with Saucy Tomatoes had all the middle eastern flavor that we love. Flavorful meatballs served with feta topped tomatoes.  The dish is served with toasted pita, or flatbread.   So I promptly made this.


Hope you will try this, it is a quick weeknight meal and can also be made ahead.  The meatballs can be refrigerated overnight before cooking.  If you choose the do-ahead method, make sure to cook them an extra 5 minutes to ensure proper cooking.


The flavors in this dish are outstanding!














Spiced Meatballs with Saucy Tomatoes
by Good Housekeeping
Serves: 4

1 pound ground beef
2 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped, plus additional for garnish
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
Salt
Pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 pints grape tomatoes
2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (1/2 cup)
Toasted pitas, for serving



  • In large bowl, with hands, combine beef, garlic, parsley, cumin, 1/2 cup onion, 1 teaspoon oregano, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper until well mixed.
  • With wet hands, shape mixture into 12 small (2-inch-round, 1-inch-high), slightly flattened meatballs.
  • In 12-inch skillet, heat oil on medium-high until hot. Add meatballs in single layer. Cook 8 to 9 minutes or until they are browned and instant-read thermometer inserted in center registers 160 degrees turning once. Transfer meatballs to plate.
  • Drain fat from skillet and discard. To same skillet, add remaining 1/2 cup onion; cook on medium-high 1 minute, stirring. Add tomatoes and remaining 1/2 teaspoon oregano. Cook 5 to 7 minutes or until tomatoes soften and some burst, stirring mixture occasionally.
  • To serve, divide meatballs and tomato mixture among serving plates. Sprinkle feta and parsley on top of each. Serve with toasted pitas.

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