Peanut Butter Caramel Popcorn with Mini Reese's Cups

When I retired from teaching last year, the fifth grade class was more than a little miffed with me. In fact, they flat out told Cynthia (the playground duty lady) that Mrs. Stoops had lied to them by leaving the school before they graduated out of sixth grade. I have no memory of any such promise but a number of the kids insist that I once stated I wouldn't leave the school until they did.

And as long as we're on the subject of broken promises, I did tell the kids that, while I wouldn't stick around for their final year at MMCS, I would certainly come back and watch them on graduation day. It seemed like an easy thing to commit myself to  - at least until my Number One Son decided to get married in Taiwan during the same time frame!

Whoops. On to Promise Three. Since I wasn't their teacher anymore and since I wouldn't even be showing up on their graduation day, I decided to start the party early by inviting that class to my home for a celebratory swim party.

Pizza was a definitely on the menu because that's what you serve when kids come your house but, what else would the graduates want to eat? Knowing that just about all kids like popcorn, I decided to up the ante a bit and make Amanda's Awesome Peanut Butter Caramel Popcorn, as seen on the Emandam site.

When I was shopping for ingredients, I breezed right past the honey, knowing I had plenty at home. Too bad it wasn't nearly as plenty as I had imagined. I don't believe I've ever scraped a container as thoroughly as I did the little plastic honey bear from Stater Brothers. With all my careful scooping up of every last bit of honey, as well as the addition of two Kentucky Friend Chicken honey packets, I managed to round up exactly the half cup needed. And not one bit more.

The recipe is easy and went together well though I did give up on the greased spatula and, instead used my own buttered hands to toss the popcorn around enough to get all the ingredients well distributed.

This stuff is seriously good!!! I had a lot of snacking foods lined up all along the kitchen counter but the bowl everyone kept returning to was the one filled with the popcorn. Amanda's recipe is definitely an easy crowd pleaser.

Peanut Butter Caramel Popcorn with Mini Reese’s Cups

8 cups plain popcorn (for me, this was one bag of the microwave popcorn)
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups mini Reese’s peanut butter cups (not the miniatures, which are individually wrapped, but the newish mini ones. I had to go to two stores before I finally found the mini ones.)
Butter or Pam for greasing the dishes
Fine sea salt (table salt would probably work fine)
Grease a large mixing bowl or large baking dish (e.g., a Pyrex).   Grease a spatula and set aside.   While you’re at it, grease the measuring cups you will use for the peanut butter and honey, so that you don’t waste too much of those ingredients.

Pour the popcorn into the bowl/baking dish.  Sprinkle a couple of pinches of the salt over the popcorn and stir well.

In a small saucepan, mix the honey and sugar together. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Turn the heat down slightly and let the mixture simmer for two minutes.  Remove from heat, or simply turn the burner off if you have a gas stove, and add the peanut butter.  Stir quickly until the mixture is thoroughly blended, then add the vanilla extract and stir for ten seconds more.

Pour the mixture over the popcorn and stir well with the greased spatula.  It will take a few minutes to stir it until the popcorn is evenly coated. (This is the part where I buttered up my hands and dug into the popcorn.)

Wait five to ten minutes, letting the popcorn cool a bit.  Add in the mini-Reese’s cups and stir until the mini-Reese’s cups are evenly distributed through the popcorn.   Again, this will probably take a few minutes, but work as quickly as you can, so that the Reese’s cups don’t melt too much.

Put the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl and nuke until melted, stopping the microwave and stirring well every thirty seconds.

Splash the melted chocolate over the popcorn – you will not need all of the melted chocolate, but it’s better to have extra than not enough, particularly because the chocolate sticks to the sides of the bowl.  Inspired by a powdered sugar trick my sister recently taught me, I took a spoon, filed it with melted chocolate, placed it in the air above the popcorn and tapped the stem of the spoon with my other hand while moving the spoon over the popcorn. You could also melt the chocolate in a glass measuring cup that has a spout, and pour the chocolate over the popcorn.  That’s probably easier but definitely less fun, and you also have to be careful that the chocolate isn’t pouring out of the cup too quickly.

Let the popcorn sit until the popcorn has hardened and then serve it up or divvy it up into airtight containers.

Avocado, Cream Cheese, Salsa Bites

This is another recipe I did for our recent mexican theme small group party.

I wish I was more like my daughter and could come on here describing the homemade chips I cranked out, after growing the corn and doing whatever else it is that those kinds of cooks do when they create amazing things in the kitchen. Literally - I am sometimes in awe of the stuff Emily makes, marveling at her creativity and skills in reading complex recipes and following through on them with fabulous results. 

If Emily were making these you can bet she wouldn't be using a store bought puff pastry! Or a can of salsa. Hey, she'd probably make her own home churned cream cheese. But, this is me so you get what you get. In this case, you get a fairly easy (though kind of messy) appetizer that went over well at our dinner guests.

Avocado, Cream Cheese, and Salsa Bites

1 large sheet puffed pastry, thawed (I used Trader Joe’s)

1 ripe avocado, halved and mashed (approximately 1 tablespoon of avocado per pastry square)

1/3 cup cream cheese (approximately 1 teaspoon of cream cheese per pastry square)

1/3 cup salsa (approximately 1 teaspoon of salsa per pastry square. I used a combination of Trader Joe’s Salsa Verde and Trader Joe’s Mango Red Pepper Chutney)

salt and pepper, sprinkled to taste

1 egg, beaten (OK - I confess. I forgot to do the egg wash. They browned nicely anyway.)

Preheat oven to 400F and prepare two baking sheets with either parchment paper, Silpat liners, or spray them well with cooking spray. (I used Silpat)

Thaw one large square of puffed pastry for about 10 minutes. Flour your countertop or working surface and roll out the pastry square as thinly as possible.  With a pizza cutter or knife, slice the puffed pastry into approximately 2-inch by 2-inch squares.  From the one thinly rolled large sheet of frozen puffed pastry, I created 18 squares.

On half the squares, place a dollop of avocado, then cream cheese, then the salsa mix, season with salt and pepper.  Use the remaining squares as the lids and place one lid over the filling mounds. Seal the pastry packages by pressing the edges with a fork, taking care to seal the edges well, pressing the fork in repeatedly, so no filling escapes during baking.

In a small bowl, beat an egg with a fork, and apply an eggwash to each of the pastry packages. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until desired browning and puffing has occurred. Watch them closely after 10 minutes in case your oven is hotter or your brand of puffed pastry cooks faster.

Remove from the oven and serve.  Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and if desired, reheat leftovers in the microwave for approximately 45 seconds before serving.  Or, store extras in an airtight container on the countertop for a day or so, using common sense because of the cream cheese filling, and reheating in the microwave if desired.

Taco Soup

Last night was our last meeting of small group for this year - at least until the fall, when we start all over again. I admit to having a small feeling of relief at the idea of no longer having to make sure my house is presentable every Tuesday night and, even more, knowing I can get in my pajamas whenever I want on those nights when I would otherwise have to be dressed for company.

Which is not to say I won't miss the Bible study time, the fellowship with other believers, the sense of community among my friends...and most of all, a ready group of people who will actually eat the foods I make and even say they like what I've cooked up!

Our final session was a potluck meal with a mexican theme. Not that I chose an ethnic food group - the idea came from Dave S. who also promised to bring a bulk of the main dishes. He and Elgie cooked all day, arriving at my house laden with casserole pans filled with enchiladas, refried beans and rice.

Based on the other foods I knew people were bringing, I decided a soup would round out the menu. I wasn't about to go really authentic with something disgusting like menudo but figured a nice taco soup would do the trick. The easy recipe I chose came out looking more like a chili than soup, but it tasted good and was well received by all members of the small group not related to me by marriage.

Honestly, I think one of the secrets to the success of this dish involved the side garnishments I had on hand. Sure a chili-looking bowl of soup is good stuff but how much more fun is it when you can throw in some fritos, grated cheese and sliced avocado? When I looked around the room that's what I saw in people's bowls - a colorful mix of soup to fixins, based on individual tastes.

Martin may have turned up his nose at my soup but he sure lit into the fritos. "I'll have my wife's tasty soup with fritos...hold the soup!"

Taco Soup


Ingredients:
2 pounds ground beef
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 can (28 ounces) tomatoes
1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
1 cup water
2 cans (15 ounces) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 to 16 ounces) whole kernel corn, drained
1 envelope taco seasoning
Shredded cheddar cheese, sliced avocado, chopped tomato and corn chips, optional
Directions
In a large saucepan, brown beef and onion; drain. Puree the tomatoes in their liquid; add to pan with tomato sauce, water, beans, corn and taco seasoning. Bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Top each serving with cheese, avocado and tomato, and serve with chips if desired. Yield: 10 servings (2-1/2 quarts).

Eclair Cake

It seems to me that using Cool Whip in a recipe isn't exactly culinary genius but, let's face, folks like the stuff. And when I say "folks" I mean me.

This cake is.....yep, you guessed it....something you can put together the night before and have ready for a gathering. While it takes no time at all to assemble, it's the overnight "marinading" that lets everything set up and gives the graham crackers a moist, cakey taste.

Eclair Cake

2 (3.5 oz) pkgs instant vanilla pudding mix
1 (8oz) container of Cool Whip
3 cups milk
2 packages graham cracker squares
1 tub chocolate frosting  (or, much better, use homemade frosting)
(Variation: Use chocolate graham crackers with white chocolate pudding.)

Homemade Frosting

2 squares Bakers semi-sweet chocolate
6 T. margarine
2 T. white Karo syrup
1 tsp. vanilla
1 ½ c. powdered sugar
3 T. milk
Melt chocolate with margarine and syrup.  Bring to a boil.  Remove from heat.  Add vanilla, sugar, and milk.

Directions
Mix pudding mix, milk and Cool Whip together. In a 9x13 dish, arrange a single layer of graham cracker squares on the bottom.
Spread half the pudding mixture on top of the crackers. Repeat graham cracker, pudding layers. Top with a layer of graham crackers.
Put plastic wrap over the dish and let it set in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to an hour.
When ready, put the tub of chocolate frosting in the microwave for about 30 seconds to soften. Stir frosting. It should now be easily spreadable. Or use the homemade frosting which will spread nicely.
Spread chocolate frosting over all the top layer of graham crackers. Replace plastic wrap and place back in the refrigerator. Let set overnight so the graham crackers can soften. Serve the next day.
When ready to serve, slice into squares.

Ham and Cheese Bites

When I said I had a mess to clean up after making Overnight Breakfast Pie, I wasn't kidding because, in addition to the next day's brunch at my house, I was also in charge of food for small group that same night. Since I was on a night before kick, I decided to whip up another Iris recipe. This one I've since seen, with various modifications and variations, all over the internet, but I'm going with the version I know and trust, mainly because it's from a cook I know and trust.

Once again, you can make and assemble everything for this dish the night before and then pop it into the oven for your event. And here's how good these are: we have a woman in our small group who is very, very diligent about watching her weight. One of those kinds who if they let themselves put five extra pounds on their quite lean frame, immediately set about losing that same five pounds. Such is the case with Lori. She came that night to small group loudly proclaiming that she wouldn't be eating anything but the healthy (probably disgusting and tasteless) energy drink she'd brought. 

Then she saw the gooey, shiny glory of the ham and cheese bites. (By the way, that's what Iris calls them on the recipe card. I think of them as sliders - a term she wouldn't have used since this recipe predates the slider craze.) 

Lori started out saying that the sliders looked good but there was no way she was going to have one. That lasted about five minutes and then her resolve began to crumble. Surely one of those itty, bitty ham rolls wouldn't do too much damage, right? Or maybe just a taste of one tiny roll? 

That "taste" morphed into eating two of the sliders and then proclaiming them the best thing ever. At least in that moment! So, if they can make a strong-willed person like Lori break down and chow down, they must be good!

Ham and Cheese Bites

SAUCE:

2 sticks butter, melted

2 T.  wet mustard

2 T worcestershire sauce

3 T poppy seeds

1/4 cup brown sugar

Mix the above ingredients together. Bring to a boil. Boil one minute. Pour the mixture over the ham/cheese sliders

SLIDERS:

1 pkg. 24 small party rolls (Iris uses Hawaiian sweet rolls)

24 slices of ham

24 slices of swiss cheese

Slice buns open. Put ham and cheese slice on the roll and then put the top back on. Place in a 9X13 inch baking dish. (You can squeeze them close together). Spoon the sauce over the buns, using the entire mixture. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Next morning, uncover the rolls. Bake for 15 minutes in an oven preheated at 350 degrees. 

Iris' recipe card has a note at the bottom: "Bet you can't eat just one!" Lori proved her right. 

Overnight Breakfast Pie

I am never going to have my own cooking show for oh so many reasons, not the least of them being, I don't like people watching me cook. There are very few recipes I feel so comfortable making that I can tolerate folks watching me as I put all the ingredients together. Maybe this is because I'm not a tidy, picture-ready cook - when I'm preparing a dish I do try to clean as I go but, somehow, it always manages to look like a family of chimpanzees were set loose in my kitchen. Really clumsy chimpanzees.

So, it kinda goes without saying that my favorite recipes are often those that can be made ahead of time or, at the very least, assembled a day ahead so the ready-to-be baked product can be whipped out and thrown into the oven when company arrives.

This recipe has two things going for it - you make it the night before and it came from my friend Iris. Everything she recommends is always a hit and when you have one of her recipe cards that also includes her handwritten editorial comment saying, "Barbara, I really love this overnight breakfast recipe!" you know you have a winner on hand.

I made this recently for my women's bible study group. Since our brunch started at 10 am, preparing the breakfast pie the night before meant I didn't have to feel rushed that morning, before the ladies came to my house. (This is where we get back to my beginning point...I make a huge mess cooking and that would've had to be cleaned up before opening my home to nice, genteel Christian ladies who would probably have suffered a stroke when they saw the state of my kitchen in cooking mode.)

One of the ladies at the brunch liked the recipe enough to request a copy - so she could hand it over to her children in time for them to make her a breakfast pie for Mother's Day. I wonder if they cleaned up the kitchen after they took their mom breakfast in bed????

Overnight Breakfast Pie

8 slices bacon, fried crisp
1/2 c. crushed corn flake crumbs (you can also use potato chips, according to Iris' notes)
1 T. bacon grease
5 eggs
2 and 1/2 cups frozen hash browns
1 and 1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1/3 cup milk
2 green onions, chopped
salt, pepper

The Night Before: beat eggs, add hash browns, cheese, cottage cheese, milk and green onion. Pour into lightly greased (or sprayed) 9 inch pie pan.

Toss corn flakes crumbs into 1 T. of remaining bacon grease. Chop bacon and mix with the crumbs. Sprinkle on top of pie. Cover and refrigerate.

Next Morning: Bake 1 hour in a 325 degree preheated oven. Let set 5 minutes. Serves 6. (Iris notes that it can take up to an hour and 15 minutes, depending on your oven.

(I have become lazy with my camera so no pictures of the actual pie were taken. Instead, you get to see the women who ate it.)

Lemon Curd

When we were planning our menu for the tea, Sherry and I got this brilliant idea to use an eggless lemon curd. Cheaper, easier...what could be wrong with our plan? We'd researched a recipe that called for corn starch and...I don't remember what else. Except that eggs were not involved.

I made up a batch of the recipe. I know that you have to stir a long time to get the creamy consistency of lemon curd...but really!? After an interminable amount of time swishing my gloppy, disgusting mixture back and forth the result still looked like school room paste gone bad. You know what one of the functions of egg must be in a lemon curd recipe? Giving it that nice creamy yellow color that makes you anticipate the lemony goodness of your first bite, that's what! The eggless batch had a sickly off-white color, and stayed runny, except for the seemingly unmixable lump of sticky cornstarch at the bottom.

The internet tells me women have made this type of lemon curd and had amazing results worthy of touting to fellow cooks all over the wide world of webdom. I am clearly not one of those women. After a most frustrating session and tired arms from so much stirring, I headed to the store, bought lots of eggs and made version two of lemon curd.

YUMMMMMM. This new batch was everything I'd dreamed of in a lemon curd. Easy, nice to look at and very, very tasty. One of the reviewers online said something about the mild taste that was so good she used it to make lemon meringue pies. I didn't do that (yet) but in tasting the mellow and smooth lemon flavor, I could definitely see what a nice pie filling it would produce.

And one side note to clearly reveal how not too slick I can be in a kitchen. I've always zested lemons for the peel. No big deal but for all the "work", zesting seems to produce not as much product as I'd like. Or to put it simply - you run that zester back and forth over the lemon and only seem to get a measly amount of peel scraping off into your bowl. Looking at this recipe and noting that it said GRATED lemon peel, I decided to do just that - whip out my micro-grader and run that over the lemon. Whoa, talk about a big difference. For no effort at all, I had tons (relatively speaking, when you're discussing little shavings of lemon rind) of the peel to add to help color up my curd and keep it from looking like an unsavory glob.)

LEMON CURD

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice  (You can also use the bottled lemon juice. I know this because I was making this late the night before the tea and I ran out of the fresh lemons for my second batch so used the lemon juice. Both variations tasted great.)
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
Directions

In the top of a double boiler, beat eggs and sugar. Stir in lemon juice, butter and lemon peel. Cook over simmering water for 15 minutes or until thickened. (I had to stir mine WAY longer than 15 minutes but I was doing two different batches of tripled recipe.)

Devonshire Cream

We did a women's tea at our church recently and one of my jobs was to make devonshire cream for the event. I've made this many times but never for a large crowd - that was always Cindy's job.

Not that the recipe is difficult! The Emilie Barnes "cheater" version is ridiculously easy though it's one of those kind of recipes that allows a bit of creativity in proportions as you stir up a batch. I never consider myself good at this kind of manipulation of ingredients beyond what is written on a recipe page - and, fact is, I never had to be when Cindy was around to happily use her gifts to whip up batch after giant batch of devonshire cream that sang with just the right proportion of ingredients, one to another.

 The actual recipe calls for making the choice between using sour cream or cream cheese in the mixture. When Sherry and Martha grocery shopped for our tea they didn't call me and decided, on their own, to buy the cream cheese. Wrong move. I've ALWAYS used the sour cream and even the thought of substituting with cream cheese made me sick to my stomach. Doesn't mean it can't be done - just means it WON'T show up in any of my devonshire cream batches.

 My first mega batch of the cream turned out fine. Amanda G. said it was just the right amount of not too sweet...I think that was a compliment! Many women asked me for the recipe - a rather laughable request, considering how very easy it is to make this wonderful spread for scones.

Mock Devonshire Cream

 1/2 c heavy cream OR 8 ozs cream cheese (NOT)
2 T powdered sugar
1/2 c sour cream
 Beat cream in a chilled bowl until medium stiff peaks form, adding sugar the last few minutes of beating. If using cream cheese, just stir together with sugar. Fold in sour cream and blend.