Popcorn!

As you're reading this, you're thinking about that horrible disco song that you were probably forced to dance to at some point in your life. You're welcome.

I've recently gone into a wild spree of making gourmet popcorn. It sounds silly, but it's so simple and easy that it's really quite a game changer at the ever-popular movie night. I do need to make a disclaimer and say that I have a movie-theater style kettle popcorn machine. I fucking love that thing and up until recently, I was entirely a butter'n'corn type of gal. Now I'm more of a black truffle n' corn type of gal.

For the most part, the concept is simple: melt butter, add spices. The combinations are really endless. And if you don't have a theater-popper, just microwave or airpop some plain popcorn and have at it! Here are my current blends:

Truffle Popcorn: pop corn, melt butter and add black (or white) truffle oil, salt & pepper. Drizzle & toss over popcorn before serving.

Churrocorn: pop corn, melt butter and vanilla extract. Create a cinnamon/sugar/salt blend (easy on the salt, heavy on the sugar) Toss vanilla butter over popcorn and sprinkle on the cinnamon sugar.

Black and White: pop corn, set on wax paper. Melt down white chocolate in a double broiler and add butter and milk if too thick. Drizzle over popcorn. Melt down dark chocolate in double broiler. Drizzle over popcorn. Let cool completely. Break up into pieces.

Currycorn: Pop corn, melt butter and siracha hot sauce. Drizzle/toss srirachabutter over popcorn, dust lightly with curry powder.

…Even as I type this, I'm thinking about making a parmesan/rosemary popcorn or wasabi popcorn. (I might actually make that wasabicorn tonight, now that I think about it…) So gentle readers… what do you wanna put on your popcorn?

EDIT: (5/8/12) Don't do wasabi corn. It's pretty gross.

Apathy & Lotus Root

I was reading an article (http://chronicle.com/article/Tools-for-Living/130615/ ) and the statement about people not knowing how to cook made me grimace a bit. time and time again I find myself surrounded by people who can't cook and I often find myself confused as to why this is such a lost art. Food is an every day occurrence- it's not like it's hard to obtain ingredients, nor do we lack the space to do such magic within our homes. Also, one can get an recipe anywhere and follow it with good success. To me, and I admit it's entirely speculation, the problem lies in apathy. Why cook when I can just buy this burger? Why spend the 30 minutes in the kitchen when I can watch the latest episode of Always Sunny in Philadelphia? There is a harsh lack of priority in today's society that we've been growing since the dawn of microwaves and the mighty corporation. Our reward systems are out of whack. And I will be the first to admit, I have no idea how to fix it. I've preached to friends forever about the joys of cooking and the kitchen revolution of healthier, green eating but most can't be bothered or simply get frustrated by the initial learning curve of what it essentially tasty form of chemistry and give up. I've also have several people ask me to teach them cooking, to which I'm always thrilled and eager to help, but it just seems like it's not enough.

So I guess what point I'm trying to reach is… how do we help more people learn about cooking? Do we teach in in colleges? How do we teach it in the home to families? How do we make people enjoy cooking again?

This weeks recipes:

* Kale salad: http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2011/11/kale-and-brussels-sprout-salad

* Crispy lotus root with black truffle oil (sautéed sliced lotus root in olive oil until brown and crispy, sprinkle with parmesan reggiano cheese and drizzle with black truffle oil) A very fancypants appetizer when trying to impress folks without really doing much in the kitchen! I'm starting to develop a deep love for lotus root and may start posting a lot of recipes about this tasty vegetable... It's super earthy and sweet, not to mention beautiful and exotic!

What I want to try next week: http://www.canyoustayfordinner.com/2011/10/03/slow-cooked-sweet-potato-chili/

Coming up next: I bought a food dehydrator. I'm dehydrating EVERYTHING. :D