Sriracha Caramel Corn

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Jackie from domesticfits.com was absolutely right!

This caramel corn is twice as good as she said it was, and it's has perfect balance between sweet and spicy (I'm a sucker for anything spicy!).

About 7 cups of popcorn.

Roughly 1 hour to prepare.

Less than 10 minutes for 4 people to eat the entire bowl of corn.

Yeah, it's that good.

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup corn kernels (7 cups popped)
• 1 brown paper lunch bag
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon Sriracha
• Pinch of Cayenne

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
• Place the corn kernels in a brown paper bag. Place in the microwave (long side down), microwave on high for 4 minutes. When the popping starts to slow to about one pop per second, remove the bag from microwave. Measure out 7 cups of popcorn (if there's less than 7 cups, pop additional kernels in the same manner, if there's more than 7 cups, reserve the remaining popped corn for another use).
• Spray a large baking pan with butter flavored cooking spray. 
• Add the popped corn to the baking sheet in an even layer, place in the oven until the caramel sauce is ready.
• Add the brown sugar, butter, light corn syrup and salt into a saucepan over high heat. Stir until sugar dissolves, stop stirring. Allow to boil for 5 minutes, without stirring, or until dark amber color is reached. Remove from heat, immediately add Sriracha and cayenne.
• Spray a silicon spatula with cooking spray.
• Gently pour the caramel sauce over the popcorn, stirring to coat.
• Bake for 20 minutes at 250 degrees, stir and bake for another 20 minutes.
• Remove form the oven and spread evenly on a piece of wax paper. Allow to cool, break apart, store in air-tight container.

If you can wait that long.........

Spinach Lasagna Rolls

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Ingredients:

• 12 lasagna noodles, cook according to package direction, drain and set aside.
• 3 cups ricotta cheese
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 2 cup finely chopped fresh spinach (or 10 ounces thawed and squeezed dry frozen spinach)
• Salt and pepper 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
• 2 cups homemade quick marinara sauce (recipe below), or store-bought marinara sauce
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Pour one cup of marinara sauce into the bottom of a 9 X 13-inch lasagna dish. 
• In a large mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese, egg, chopped spinach, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Divide the cheese mixture into 12 portions, spread each portion onto lasagna noodle and roll up carefully. Place lasagna roll seam-side down in the lasagna dish. Repeat with the remaining noodles and cheese mixture. 
• Top the lasagna rolls with the remaining marinara sauce. Spread grated mozzarella cheese over the sauce and sprinkle with oregano. Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes, or until the cheese on top turned bubbly and golden brown. Serve immediately.

Quick Marinara Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes 
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

• Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook garlic until tender, then add crushed tomatoes, oregano and basil. Bring to boil and reduce the heat. Let the sauce simmer for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately or store in a refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Home Cured Applewood Smoked Bacon

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Should have done this a long time ago!

Curing your own bacon is not only easy, but the it tastes so much better that the store-bought one, it's not even fair to compare. 

The seasoning can be changed and adjusted to your liking.

Ingredients:

• 1 7-9 pounds skin-on pork belly, divide into 2 pieces
• 1 pound kosher salt
• 1 pound brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon pink curing salt (optional)
• 1/2 tablespoon pulverized bay leaves (from 2 leaves)

Directions:

• Combine salt, sugar and spices in a bowl. Place a pice of pork belly on a baking pan, rub the curing mixture onto the entire surface of pork belly. Transfer pork into a gallon bag, squeeze out the air and seal the bag. Repeat with the other pork belly. Discard the remaining curing mixture.
• Place pork in the refrigerator and let them sit for 2 days, skin side up. After 2 days, drain the liquid from the bags, squeeze the air out and reseal the bags. Return the bags to the refrigerator, flip the pork so now the skin side is on the bottom, and let sit for another 3 days.
• Take the pork bellies out of the bag, rinse off the salt very well under running water, then pat dry with paper towel. 
• If you choose not to smoke your bacon, you can place them on a lined baking sheet, and cook in 200 degree oven until the internal temperature reaches 150 degrees F, about 2 hours.
• If you choose to smoke the bacon, place a wire rack on a baking sheet, and place the bacon slabs on the wire rack. Refrigerate the bacon, uncovered, overnight to 24 hours. This process will help the smoke to adhere better to the bacon. Prepare your smoker per instruction, bringing the smoker temperature to 150 degrees (In this case, I chose to use applewood chips to smoke my bacon). Place the bacon on the smoker's grill. Cover and cook until the internal temperature reaches 150 degrees F, adding coals and wood chips if necessary.
• Allow bacon to cool down completely, then wrap and refrigerate until you're ready to cook. Slice the bacon and cook as you wish. Bacon will last for 3 months or so in the freezer.

Purple Gnocchi

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Ingredients:

• 2 pounds purple potatoes, washed and scrubbed
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

Directions:

• Cook the potatoes in a steamer for about 30 minutes, or until potatoes are cooked through. Steaming the potatoes instead of boiling them will  ensure that they retain the flavors without adding more moisture. Alternatively, you can bake the potatoes in a 400 degrees F oven for about 35 minutes.
• Transfer the potatoes into a large dish and cool down for about 10 minutes. Peel the skin off potatoes using a paring knife. Press peeled potatoes into a potato ricer. Spread them into a flat surface and cool completely. 
• Pile the riced potatoes together in a mound with a well in the center. Add egg and salt into the well, and begin to mix them together. Add four and parmesan cheese gradually, continue kneading until the dough is less sticky and form a ball, scraping with pastry knife if necessary.
• Take a handful of dough and roll it into a long 3/4-inch diameter dowel. Cut dowel into 1-inch long pieces. Roll each piece on the back of fork tines to make indentations. Continue the process with the remaining of the dough. Place finished gnocchi on a floured baking pan to prevent them from sticking together. 
• Bring a large pot of water to boil and add salt. Drop the gnocchi into the water, wait until they rise to the surface, and cook for about 90 seconds after that. Take gnocchi out using a skimmer, shake off the excess water, and place them in the individual bowls. Serve with the sauce of your choice (We like to serve them with this Italian sausage, roasted red pepper and tomato sauce).

Fisherman's Stew with Roasted Garlic Mayonnaise

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Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons roasted garlic purée (recipe below)
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper
• Salt and ground white pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 leeks, white and light green parts only, cleaned and thinly sliced
• 1 large carrot, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups fish stock, or bottled clam juice
• 2 cups dry white wine
• 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, with juice
• 1 pinch saffron threads
• Ground black pepper and salt
• 2 pounds white fish such as halibut or monk fish, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• Finely chopped fresh chives for garnish

Directions:

• In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, garlic purée, lemon juice, salt and white pepper to taste, and mix well to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• In a large dutch oven over medium heat, heat the oil. Add leeks, carrot, and fennel and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute longer. Add the stock, wine, tomatoes with juice, saffron, and salt and pepper to taste and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium low, cover partially, and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Remove from heat. Using a handheld or standing blender, coarsely purée the soup, making sure to leave some texture.
• Return the pot to medium heat. Add fish pieces and cook until the fish is opaque throughout, 6-8 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
• Ladle the stew into warmed deep bowls and top each serving with a spoonful of garlic mayo. Garnish with chopped chives and serve immediately.

* To make garlic purée, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Using a small sharp knife, cut off the top of each garlic head, exposing the cloves. Place the head in a small roasting pan, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil and roast until the garlic is very soft when pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool briefly. Squeeze the garlic cloves out of their skins and mash with a fork to make smooth purée.

Recipe is adapted from Williams-Sonoma Soup and Stew Cookbook