Browned Butter and Lemon Popcorn

There's a group in Park City that shows independent films almost every weekend at a local theater.  They're usually a little bit old and a little bit weird, but they're fun nonetheless.  And even if not, they're a lot cheaper than the regular theater.  So, there's that.

The best part of it is the butter though.

They pop their own fresh popcorn right there in the lobby (of the library usually) and next to it, they have a crockpot full of real butter!  It's about 1 trillion times better than the oil that you find at your regular old AMC or Cinemark (I know because I used to work at one of those).

I really can't ask for more.

Well, I could asked for browned butter, but that seems a little demanding on my part.

When I'm at home, I'll keep browning my butter and topping with fresh lemon zest, but when I go to the theater, I'm just going to be overjoyed with real butter made from real cream which came from real cows!

12 Superbowl Snack Recipes

This year, I have no vested interest in the Superbowl, but I do really like the idea of relaxing for a few hours on a Sunday, watching commercials and eating snacks.  Really, how can you be opposed to any of that?

Since we haven't had TV for the past year (we still watch TV, don't worry), we haven't gotten to watch any football all season.  I almost forgot about the game entirely.  But then I saw the new Budweiser #BestBuds commercial and that got me excited!...And teary.

If you're not sure what to make this Sunday, I've got some suggestions for you!  These are the kind of suggestions that will make you happy even if your team is losing.

13 Holiday Sides, Appetizers, Desserts and Cocktails

I really don't like when people call Thanksgiving 'Turkey Day.'

Part of this is because I think we should just remember that we're supposed to be thankful tomorrow (and every day), but more importantly, it's really not about the turkey. 

It's about the pie.  And the sides.  And the cocktails.

If you're at a loss for what to bring to your in-laws' tomorrow...well, you're quite the procrastinator, but I applaud you for taking the 'it-will-all-work-out' mentality to heart!  Here are some last-minute sides, appetizer, cocktail and dessert ideas for you.*

And remember to have a happy Thanksgiving!

*Click on the pictures for the recipes.

1. Chestnut Mashed Potatoes

2. Sweet Potatoes au Gratin

3. Confetti Quinoa

4. Artichoke w/Lemon Rosemary Butter Sauce

5. Jalapeño Popper Dip

6. Baked Brie

7. Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip

8. Apple Cider Moscow Mule

9. Cranberry Margaritas

10. Eggnog

11. Apple Butter Pumpkin Pie

*Or try Cream Cheese Pumpkin Pie or Sweet Potato Pie.

12. Cranberry Pecan Pie

13. Salted Caramel Apple Pie

*Or try Aunt Betsy's Apple Pie or Dutch Apple Pie.

Layered Taco Dip

Hey guys, guess what?!

I'm married!

That's a really weird thought.  After being someone's girlfriend for almost 10 years, 'wife' might be a hard word to get out for a while.

Austin and I have lived together for years already.  We literally graduated from college together...oh, and high school.  I'd say we know each other pretty well.

I've always wondered what it's like for people who get married so soon after meeting.  Or for people who don't live together first.  They probably have to figure everything out that first night or week or month.

I'm glad I don't have to do that right now.  The wedding was stressful enough :)

For example, I know that Austin hates olives and refried beans.  I also know that he's allergic to avocados.  So, I know that this app is not going to be his favorite.

Doesn't mean I can't make it anyway - so glad we're already past that stage of doing everything for each other ;)

Cucumber Fruit Salsa

For a few months this year, we lived with Austin's parents while I was looking for a permanent job.  And they were great.

No, really.  They were.

I'm not saying I'm not enjoying our own space, but as far as living with in-laws goes, it was probably the best possible scenario.

The point is, when we lived there, we ate a lot of chips and salsa.  A lot, a lot.

Austin's parents are big snackers.  I'm not saying all the time, but often, we'd all sit around a bowl of salsa and a bag of tortilla chips and that was dinner.

Even though I really like sitting down to a full meal, I miss the salsa dinner too.  There was literally no fuss.  Besides the one bowl, there was no cleanup.  No thought went into it.  There was no indecision when the questions started.

"What do you want for dinner?"  "I don't care what sounds good to you?"  None of that.

I know what I'm having for dinner tonight.

Caprese Picks

The first time I went to Europe, I ate a lot of caprese sandwiches.  Mostly because they're delicious and also because they're cheap.

We were traveling around for about a month and I needed to save my money for more important things than food.  Things like alcohol and Ritter Sport.  (I was 18 at the time, although I don't think my priorities have changed much.)

The nice thing about Europe though is that you can buy a very cheap caprese sandwich and it will still be on some of the best bread you've ever eaten.

And, I still like a caprese anything.  Caprese sandwich.  Caprese Salad.  Caprese on a toothpick.  It's all good.

Watermelon Baby Carriage

At this point you've all seen the 'Pinterest fails.' And, they're really funny, sure.

But they're also kind of sad.

Nothing upsets me more than spending a lot of time and energy on something and then having it look like a scary mess on the plate.  Not a hot mess.  A scary mess.

This watermelon baby carriage was a Pinterest find, but it actually worked!

If I'm being totally honest with you, I didn't actually make this.  My mom did.  But since my mom is a real person and not a Pinterest liar, I think you can still trust that it is doable.

Also, when you're hosting a baby shower, it's pretty much a must.  Every. Single. Guest will comment on it and say how amazing you are as a hostess.  Promise.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus Shooters

Everything is cuter when you serve it in a shot glass.  Well, except for shots.  Shots are very rarely cute or at least the people taking them are very rarely cute.  (Contrary to what you think while you're taking them!)

But food in shot glasses?  Adorbs.

Pretty much every party, gathering, or event I've gone to, at least 3 people bring hummus with them.  Maybe that's just the crowd that I run with, but either way, it must mean that people like it.

What I don't like about hummus is that everyone reaches into the same bowl with their veggie sticks or pitas or whatever.  It takes about 6 seconds for that nice little swirl of hummus to be destroyed and then it looks completely unappetizing.

So, put a little dollop in a shot glass, drop your veggie sticks into it and problem solved!  Everyone gets to eat it and no one has to share or wonder which kid poked their finger into the bowl!

Hamburger Sweet Potato Hand Pies

It has been so nice out the past few days which is giving me the itch to get out on my bike.  Of course, tomorrow (aka my day off) is going to be cloudy and rainy, so I probably won't get out anyway, but I like to plan my snacks just in case.

A while ago, Austin got this cookbook called, "Feed Zone Portables," on a recommendation from a friend and it's all about food that you should eat when you're out doing endurance sports.  Austin made a few of the recipes, and this one was by far the favorite.

Problem is, we usually just eat them sitting in front of the couch.  Really, I think we only packed them with us on a ride once or twice, so I'm sure that defeats the purpose.

My point is, you can eat these whenever you want, wherever you want.  I won't judge you.  And the best part is that you don't have to be starving and hot and sweating for these to taste good!

Fried Pickles

You know how your facebook feed seems to go through phases.  Like, at one point all your friends will be getting married; then, they get puppies; then, they have kids...and you get to see the whole process?

Well, I seem to be in the baby part of that timeline.  Everyone must think I want to know about their stomach's growth progress and their nicknames for their unborn children.  And before you say anything (Mom), I know that all I post about is Dingo and yes, I am a hypocrite and if I ever have kids, I'm sure I'll do all the things I'm annoyed by.

So anyway, as an apology for offending all of my facebook friends, here's some stereotypical pregnant woman cravings!  And even better, they're fried!  Still friends?  Great.

Parmesan Pepper Popcorn

The Oscars are this weekend which is something that quite frankly I'm a little surprised I even know about.  Even when I worked at a movie theater, I never knew anything about what movies and actors were nominated.  Now, I've managed to know even less about them.

This year, all that I know about the nominations, I learned from reading the Skimm this morning.  Do you get their daily email?  If not, you definitely should.  Most of the time, it's the only reason I know anything about the news (Utah's not so into reporting on the world...or the facts).

If you watch the Oscars and the nominated movies every year, then you're probably much more apt to have a viewing party, in which case, you need some food.  And what movie-centered event would be complete without popcorn?

Jalapeño Popper Dip

You know what I like?

Instant gratification.

I like mixing up some ingredients, putting them in the oven, and then eating it.  There's very little waiting around.

In my 26 extremely wise years, I've learned that not everyone's as into this as I am.  Some people like to procrastinate.  Well, I don't know if they like to, but they do it anyway.  In some ways maybe that's a good thing.  You get to do what you want.  Now.  I just couldn't deal with the stress of putting things off though.

It's already stressing me out that I haven't done my taxes yet.  I got my W2s like 3 weeks ago now!

So, if you're like me, this recipe is for you.  Jalapeño popper dip won't leave you hanging.  You'll know exactly what's going on as it starts to heat up and brown in the oven.  The smell will tell you when it's getting close to being done.  You'll know the whole process from the very beginning all the way to the end.  And that whole 'process' only takes about 35 minutes.  Plus, in the end, you get the reward!

Salted Honey Popcorn

I don't remember if I told you this already or not, but my first job in high school was at the local movie theater.  I had to wear XXL t-shirts that advertised upcoming movies (like Fat Albert, just as one example).  I had to wear a baseball cap inside always.

And, I had to upsell.  If you don't know what upselling is, basically it's when the little acne-ridden kid getting your popcorn asks you if, "for just $0.25 more, you'd like to make that a large?"  You give in, walking with your tub of popcorn and bucket of Coke to your seat.  Then, you eat all of that popcorn and drink all of that soda and leave the theater with a tummyache :)

I pretty much hated that job.  The perks were minimal, the hours were not conducive to having a social life, and every night I left smelling like oil, popcorn, and "butter."  There was a pretty long period when I just couldn't eat any more popcorn.  Looking at it kind of made me sick to my stomach.

Things have changed though.  Now, I could eat it as a replacement for meals.  Now, I'm trying to find new ways to dress up the stuff just in case I ever get sick of good ol' butter and salt.  Salted Honey Popcorn tastes a lot like kettle corn but it's a little easier to make and it tastes more like honey, less like sugar (duh!).

Superbowl Sunday Roundup

The Broncos are going to the Superbowl!  I'm convinced that my sister is rooting for the Seahawks just to be contrarian.  I guess that's good to have opposition in something like this though.

More importantly than who wins or what happens to Bruno Mars' shirt during the halftime show is what you eat.  There have to be lots of snacks that can be thrown into your mouth without looking away from the TV for more than 1/2 a second and there has to be lots of beer.  That's it.

Of course you could just go to the grocery store, pick up a jar of salsa and bust open a bag of chips, or you could make your own corn salsa.

It's also probably a good idea to have some warm food.  Nachos with big pieces of tri-tip - can't really go wrong with that.

Homemade onion dip is kind of a wow factor.  Kind of like how people don't know you can make your own whipped cream ;)

Whatever you do, enjoy the game and make sure you're rooting for the right team!  Go Broncos!
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