The Food Matters Project: Seasoned Popcorn

Happy St. Valentines Day Eve!!  Today is Week 2 of the Food Matters Project and this recipe is brought to you by Kate from Cookie+Kate!  Please visit her website for the complete recipe.

I have not had popcorn in a long, long time and the last time was out of one of those microwaveable bags with "movie theatre" butter.  You all know what I'm taking about and you know it isn't real butter in there.  It's been about 4 years now.  I've also never made my own popcorn from scratch.  I was always a little scared :)  I didn't want popcorn flying all over my kitchen!  Needless to say, I had nothing to fear and it was super simple.  I made it in the afternoon, in-between baking Valentines Day treats.  It was a nice break and snack. 

My take - I wanted my popcorn to taste like Italian garlic bread.  I use this "infused" oil on flat bread and pizza instead of sauce all the time.  So yummy.

My Flavorings:

Butter & Olive Oil

Chopped Thyme & Rosemary

Red Pepper Flake

Garlic

Grated parmesan cheese

Salt

Heat all flavorings except cheese and salt in a small sauce pan over low heat while the popcorn pops.  Pour over popcorn and toss to coat.  Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and a pinch of salt (the cheese has a lot of salt, so be careful).  Now close your eyes, take a few bites and picture yourself in a pizzeria! 

See how the rest of us faired by visiting the Food Matters Project website.

P.S. - Found the cute popcorn tins at Target for $1.00!  Perfect for movie night ;) Enjoy!

xoxo,

Dominica

Valentine's Day Sweet Treats

I love baking and while I'm not the best nor are my treats always the prettiest, I love it.  I put on an apron and I am instantly transported back to sitting on the kitchen counter helping my mom bake.  Creaming butter and sugar together is just magical.  Today I made three different treats that I will be taking into work for my coworkers, whom I affectionately call "the boys" - because I work with all males. Yes, all males - not one other female all day.  Let's just say there is a lot of testosterone going on.  Having baked goods in the offices brings a little femininity to it. 

I made Almond Linzar Cookies, Soft Sugar Cookies and Marbled Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies.

A couple of comments on the recipes and how I did:  The red velvet brownie batter was very dry at first, but then it pressed into the pan okay.  After I baked it, the bottom brownie layer had a crumbly texture, not like a rich chocolate brownie.  Not sure if I did something wrong or if that's how they are.  They still tasted good and held together.  Love the top cheesecake layer.  As for the Soft Sugar Cookies, let's just say I will probably not be making these again.  The dough was not sweet at all and the buttercream frosting was way too sweet.  You would think the combo of the two would balance each other out, but they didn't.  I might tweak the recipe next time to fit my taste.  The Lizar cookies worked out perfect.....well, except for this.....

Bummer

I had a little kitchen mishap.  One of my linzar pans fell off the counter and completely shattered half of my cookies!  I was almost done with everything and not in the mood to make another batch.  Needles to say, there are less of those.

Hope you all have a fabulous Valentines Day.  Share some good food and treats with someone you love!

xoxo,

Dominica

Garlic Butternut Squash Fries

We've all had sweet potatoes fries - they're all the rage now.  You can find them now at hip & trendy restaurants.  Do you remember Brian Malarkey from Bravo's Top Chef?  Well he lives here is SD and has opened up a few new restaurants.  Of course one of the items on his menu is sweet potato fries.  I have to admit, they're pretty damn good. 

So I decided to do another spin on the "healthy" oven baked fry - the Butternut Squash!  I had a bunch leftover from the Butternut Squash Chipolte Glazed Skewers recipe.

So simple, here's the recipe:

Squash Strips - cut into 1/4" sticks

Oil Olive

Garlic

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss Squash Sticks with a few drizzles of olive oil and garlic.  Use as little or as much as you want of the garlic.  I used to heaping teaspoons, probably more like a tablespoon total.  Prep a baking sheet with foil and then place a "cooling" rack on top.  The key here is to cook the fries on a rack to have the air circulate around them.  Bake for 45-50 mins.  The longer the are in there the crisper they get, but be careful because they do burn easily.  Serve with ketchup mixed with sriracha!  Enjoy.

xoxo,

Dominica

When/How to break-up with your hairdresser?

Okay, so I need your help (that means you - all my fabulous readers out there!) - When our How do you move on from our hairdresser.  I am a very loyal person and hate difficult situations.  Which means I usually stay in relationships way to long, don't say exactly how I feel because I don't want to hurt the other persons feelings.  It being either a romantic relationship or professional/personal.  I have been with the same hairdresser since I moved down to San Diego.  Going on 8 years now.  While she isn't bad by any means, I just didn't realize what else was out there till I had to see someone else.  I had to schedule with someone else because my regular girl couldn't make my appointment last minute.  I love my hair now!  She gave me a cut I always hoped my other girl could give me.  Now I am at a crossroads where I think I need to break-up with my hairdresser.  How do I do it?  It's especially awkward since the other girl I saw is at the same salon.  Thoughts?  Suggestions? Please leave a comment! (again, you, my thousands of readers!)

xoxo,

Dominica