Popcorn Pork Chops

Oddly enough, popcorn has been a big part of my marriage. I remember when my husband and I were first dating...

It was a cold and windy fall night up at WWU. Earlier that day, my husband had invited me to come up and join him for a movie night up in his dorm room after class. I was so nervous and excited!--A cute collage boy had invited me up to his room!--Since he was providing the movie, I thought the least I could do was bring something to snack on. So I grabbed the only thing I had in my room: popcorn. Quickly, its buttery aroma filled my room causing my roommate to perk her head up from her book.
"Where are you off too with that?" she asked, nodding her head toward my comically large red bowl of popcorn.
"I'm off to Joe's room. We're gonna watch a movie." I tried hard to hide my blushing face behind the bowl.
"Oooooooh! I see." She winked at me.
Laughing, I stuck my tongue out at her and dashed out the door. But in my excited and nervous state, I forgot to grab a coat...and my dorm room key. There I was stuck out in the cold wind wearing nothing but my short-shorts, a large pj t-shirt, and my big fuzzy slippers as I clung desperately on to the bowl of popcorn. Luckily my husband's dorm room was right above mine. So as fast as I could, I sprinted up the steps.

It was amazing how quickly the chill of the fall wind drilled deep into my bones. Loudly I banged on my husband's door, desperate to get out of the cold. When he opened the door, the warm glow of his room surrounded him like an angelic painting. He looked down at me and did little to stifle his laugh. There I was, fuzzy slippers and all, shaking like mad as I gripped my huge bowl of popcorn. "Come in!" he said as he wrapped his arms around me. "Let's get you warmed up."

The rest of that evening, we sat snuggled up on his bed under a pile of blankets as we munched away on popcorn. To this day, popcorn is still our go-to snack. But I will never forget that first bowl of popcorn we shared on that cold, windy, fall night.

Although this recipe isn't your classic buttery bowl of popcorn, it is a creative and delicious new way to jazz your dinner menu. I hope you enjoy!

Popcorn Pork Chops

Ingredients
Vegetable oil
Four 8-ounce bone-in pork loin chops
salt and pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon mustard seed
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce
1/4 green onion cut into thin rings
1 1/2 quarts freshly popped corn, slightly crushed

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Add enough oil to coat the bottom of a 10-inch saute pan. Heat over medium heat to the smoking point.

Season the pork chops with salt, pepper, cinnamon, and mustard seeds, rubbing the seasonings into the meat. Pan-sear both sides of the pork chops, 20 to 30 seconds on each side.

Brush the pork chops with the teriyaki sauce and place them on a wire rack in a baking pan. Roast to an internal temperature of 150 degrees, about 20 minutes. Flip the pork chop halfway through roasting and brush with teriyaki sauce at least twice. Remove from the oven and brush the pork chops a final time with teriyaki sauce. Sprinkle the green onions and popcorn over the pork chops. Place the baking pan back in the oven until the popcorn begins to brown slightly, about 2 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.

Vegan Lavender Scones with Lemon Glaze

Scones--sad, crumbly, unsatisfying biscuits that mask themselves in jelly, hoping that they can rival their sweet nemesis, the breakfast muffin. But with one bite they will rob you of all the moisture in your mouth leaving you choking for a glass of milk. They are the reject breakfast food that sits coldly in the display case, slowly turning from scone to stone with each passing day....

Okay, so maybe I'm being a little dramatic. But you get the idea: clearly I'm not a fan of scones. So why am I posting this recipe? Because, at long last, I have found a recipe for scones that I actually love! These scones were, by far, the best I have every tasted! They were actually moist and full of flavor. I came up with this recipe by combining a basic vegan scone recipe with one of my favorite flavor combinations: lavender and lemon. The end result?...Fantastic!

Vegan Lavender Scones with Lemon Glaze

Ingredients:
1 1/2 teaspoons egg replacer
2 tablespoons water
2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup nondairy butter
1 cup dried lavender buds
2-3 tablespoons nondairy milk for brushing tops
1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1-2 tablespoons lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Lightly oil a cookie sheet or line with parchment paper.

Whip the egg replacer and water together until thick and creamy. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the butter to the dry ingredients and cut it into small pieces with two knives or with a pastry blender (although, I usually just use a fork but it will give your arm a workout!). You're not creating a paste; you want a coarse crumbly batter that resembles small bread crumbs. (To make flaky scones, leave some of the butter pieces as large as peas.) Stir in the lavender.

Add the milk and egg replacer mixture, and keep the mixing to a minimum otherwise you'll get rock-hard scones. Mix just until the dry ingredients are  moist. The dough will not be completely smooth like bread dough.

Gather the dough into a ball (you may need to add just a teaspoon of nondairy milk or water, but you will be able to form it into a ball), and place on a lightly floured surface. Pat or roll the dough out into a 1/2-inch-thick round, and cut into 8-10 pieces--triangles are the traditional shape so cut it like you're cutting up a pizza. Place them 1/2 inch apart on the baking sheet, brush the tops with nondairy milk, and place into the oven.

Bake until the tops are golden brown, 10-15 minutes. Let cool on a rack.

While the scones are cooling, in a small mixing bowl, combine the powdered sugar, cream of tartar, and lemon juice. Only add the lemon juice in a little at a time as you stir until you reach a slightly runny but still thick consistency.--You want to be able to pour the glaze but not have it be too thin and runny.

Drizzle the glaze over the scones. Let the scone sit just long enough for the glaze to set and turn white (it will be clear at first when it hits the warm scone) and then serve.

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Wow, I am really embarrassed with how much I have let my blog go these past few months! But rather than feed you some lengthy and quite frankly boring excuse, I'm just going to jump right back in there as if no time has passed at all....

So this recipe comes from the vegan kick I was on a few months back. I have to admit I was surprised at how moist and delicious these cookies turned out to be. Unfortunately vegan foods have seemed to have acquired a bad rep amongst the average consumer. And, I'm ashamed to admit, I too was expecting lifeless bland cookies from a vegan recipe. How could it be rich and moist without butter, eggs, or milk? Oh boy was I wrong! These cookies were a wonderful surprise.

The only sidebar I can make to this recipe is: if you're expecting the classic taste of a chocolate chip cookie, you'll probably be disappointed. For those of you who have not had carob chips before (a chocolate substitute that I used for my chocolate chips), you'll realize quickly that they don't have the same flavor as a classic, full dairy chocolate chip. With that said; these cookies are still a sweet treat that can stand in as a great vegan friendly (and/or friendly to those with egg or dairy allergies) chocolate chip cookie. And regardless of their unique taste, I still think they're damn delicious!

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:
4 1/2 teaspoons egg replacer
6 tablespoons water
1 cup nondairy butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1-2 cups nondairy semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or use a non-stick cookie sheet.

In a food processor or blender, whip the egg replacer and water together, until it's thick and creamy.

In a large bowl, cream the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Add the egg replacer mixture to the wet mixture and thoroughly combine. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually beat the flour mixture into the wet mixture until it begins to form a dough. When it's almost thoroughly combined, stir in the chips.

Bake on the prepared cookie sheet for 8-10 minutes, or until golden brown. Let stand for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Vegan Chocolate Mousse

So I've been on a bit of a vegan food kick lately. Not that I am vegan but mostly I just like making healthier substitutions when I can. Since I love to eat a lot of rich and fatty foods, I figure I can try to shave off a few calories here and there, or at least give my comfort food a little more of a nutritional value, by making the vegan version instead.

I have never made chocolate mousse before so I can't exactly tell you how this version compares to a non-vegan version. But either way, this dessert turned out to be smooth and creamy! I even caught my dad sneaking a few extra spoon fulls from the leftovers after sharing some with my parents--which is really saying something considering the man almost never eats tofu.

Vegan chocolate mousse is surprisingly easy to make and, when garnished with a few fresh berries, it makes a fantastic cool dessert for those rare but wonderful warm and fragrant spring nights. I personally enjoy it with a cheesy romance novel and a glass of wine on the side, but that's just me.

Vegan Chocolate Mousse

Ingredients:
1 cup nondairy semisweet chocolate chips
12 oz silken tofu (soft or firm)
1/2 cup nondairy milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
fresh berries for serving (optional)

Put the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl, and heat it in the microwave for 1 minute. Give the chips a stir, and heat for another minute. They should be melted at this point. (You can also melt the chips by using a double broiler if you'd prefer.)

Place the tofu in a blender or food processor. Add the melted chocolate, nondairy milk, and vanilla. Process until completely smooth, pausing the blender or processor to scrape down the sides and under the blade, if necessary.

Chill the mixture in serving bowls--or in a graham cracker crust to make a chocolate mousse pie--for at least 1 hour before serving. Add fresh berries just before serving, if desired.

Vegan Ginger Carrot Bran Muffins

"Honey? Why does everyone keep calling me muffin top?"
The husband avoids eye contact with his wife who stands before him in a midriff shirt, her stomach and hips pooching out over her tight pants.
"Uh...well," he stutters, " it's because the muffin top is the sweetest part of the muffin--everyone's  favorite part. So really all those people are just saying you are so sweet."
The wife smiles proudly. "Oh! Well that's nice."
The husband sighs with relief.

That was actually from a KitKat commercial that aired years ago, but to this day it still makes me laugh. Oddly enough, despite my love for anything that is sweet to eat, I am actually rather picky when it comes to muffins (actual muffins, not blurby people that are wearing clothes that don't fit!). Blueberry muffins are okay but a bit over-rated in my opinion. Chocolate muffins are, let's face it, basically chocolate cake and way to sweet for the early morning hours. Lemon poppy seed muffins are a good mix of sweet and zesty so I'd have one if offered. But my favorite muffin hands-down is the bran muffin. I know, I know. Having a love for bran muffins and knitting marks me worthy of living in a retirement community. But there is a subtle sweetness and rich flavor that, in my opinion, only bran muffins can offer. As a powerhouse of fiber, it is a great way to start the day.

The other reason why I love bran muffins is because there is a large variety of twists you can do to enhance your muffin. For example: blueberry bran muffins, carrot bran muffins, or raspberry bran muffins. But today, I am posting a recipe for a delicious vegan option for all my vegan friends out there, or for anyone who wants a healthier option for their breakfast muffin--although, if you're already choosing to eat a bran muffin, kudos to you for already making a healthy choice!--Today's recipe is the twist I put on a basic vegan bran muffin recipe, giving birth to the amazingly delicious Vegan Ginger Carrot Bran Muffin.

Push aside the negative stigma that says bran muffins are only for the elderly and give this recipe a try. I think you'll be surprised just how delicious bran can be.

Vegan Ginger Carrot Bran Muffins

Ingredients:
6 teaspoons Egg replacer
1/2 cup water
2 1/2 cup wheat bran
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup nondairy milk
1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 cup grated carrots
1/4 cup chopped candied ginger

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Lightly grease your muffin tins.

In a food processor or using an electric hand mixer, whip the egg replacer and water together, until it's thick and creamy.

In a large bowl, combine the bran, flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In another bowl, whisk together the egg replacer mixture, milk, and oil until smooth. Stir in the grated carrots and chopped candied ginger. Add to the combined dry ingredients and stir just until blended. Do not overmix.

Spoon into the prepared muffin tins, filling each cup about two-thirds full. Make until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 15 minutes.

Cool in the tins for 5 minutes, then remove and cool on a wire rack.

Guinness Stout Chocolate Layer Cake

Alright my fellow foodies: if you're ready for a challenge and want to create one of the most rich and sumptuous cakes you'll ever make, than strap on your aprons and get ready for the greatest St. Patrick's Day cake known to man!

Guinness Stout Chocolate Layer Cake. The only cake suited for the holiday. Because unlike all of the other brightly colored sweets out there that claim to honor St. Patrick's Day simply because they're green; this cake actually has Guinness in it! Alcohol and chocolate you ask? Why yes! This cake is riddled with the bitter sweet combination of beer and chocolate making it perfect for your St. Patrick's Day celebration.

I haven't made this cake in years. In fact, the last time I made it was the year I met my husband up at college. Since we mostly ate at the college dining hall leaving me little chance to cook for him, I wanted to show off my baking skills and win him over with sweets. As the old saying goes: "the best way to a man's heart is through his stomach." So I busted out the dark chocolate and Guinness and started to create my "man catching" cake. To this day, I don't know if he was really all that impressed or if he just thought it was simply good cake. But considering that he scarfed down his piece and, 5 years later he's still raving about my baking, I guess the cake did its job.

So after you finish eating your classic St. Patrick's Day dinner of corn beef and cabbage with a side of potatoes (because that's what the Irish eat, right?), top off the evening with some Guinness Stout Chocolate Layer Cake and your taste buds will be singing!

Guinness Stout Chocolate Layer Cake

Ingredients:

Bittersweet Icing
1 ½ cups heavy cream
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
4 ½ tablespoon confectioners’ sugar
4 ½ tablespoons cocoa
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt

To prepare the Bittersweet Icing, bring cream to a boil. Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl, pour boiling cream over it, and whisk until chocolate melts and is thoroughly combined. Cover tightly and chill. Chill beaters from a hand-held mixture at the same time.

Up to 3 hours before serving the cake, whip chocolate mixture with a hand-held mixer. When soft peaks form, sift in confectioners’ sugar and cocoa and add vanilla and salt. Continue whipping until combined.

Drizzling Syrup
1/3 Cup Guinness Stout
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla

To prepare syrup, combine all ingredients in a small, heavy saucepan, whisking until smooth. Heat over medium heat, until sugar dissolves and syrup is smooth.

Cake
2/3 cup Guinness Stout (measured after foam has subsided)
2/3 cup currants
1/3 cup, plus 2 tablespoons, unsweetened cocoa powder
2 ounces semisweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
¾ cup buttermilk
1 ¾ cups, plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons, all purpose flour
Cooking spray
2/3 cup butter, softened
4 eggs
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup red currant jelly, warmed
Bitter Sweet Icing (seen above)

Preheat over to 350° F.

To prepare cake, pour stout over currants; cover and soak until plump.

Drain Currants, reserving stout. Add stout to a small saucepan. Whisk in 1/3 cup cocoa and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat; add semisweet chocolate, stirring until chocolate melts. Cool slightly. Stir in buttermilk.

Combine 2 tablespoons cocoa, 2 tablespoons flour. Coat two 8 or 9 inch square or round cake pans with cooking spray; dust with cocoa mixture.

Beat butter with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Gradually beat in 1 ¾ cups sugar until well blended. Beat in eggs one at a time. Beat in vanilla.

Combine 2 cups flour with baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add flour mixture to butter mixture with chocolate mixture, stirring until blended. (Batter may look curdled.) Stir in currants.

Divide batter between pans. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until a wooden pick inserted in the enter comes out clean. Cool pans on a wire rack 10 minutes; invert onto rack.

Poke tops of cake layers with a skewer or toothpick. Spoon Drizzling Syrup over tops. Place one layer on a platter. Spread warmed jelly over layer on the platter. Chill 30 minutes. Cover jelly with about a quarter of the Bittersweet Icing. Place second layer on top.

Ice top and sides of the cake with the remaining icing.



Milk Maker Bread

I was a week postpartum. After spending a week in the hospital recovering from a cesarean, we found ourselves sitting at home with an overwhelming albeit, adorable bundle of joy. My nights suddenly consisted of late-night feedings every two hours or more. And my days were full of dodging rockets of pee that came shooting out of my son diaper, soaking my clothes before I knew what had hit me. It was the most intimidating, wonderful, exhausting time of my life. But needless to say, as much as I love cooking, I wasn't about to bother with mucking about in the kitchen. I had a newborn to take care of and a wicked abdominal incision to tend to so cooking was the last thing on my mind.

Thank God for family and friends!

With the outpouring of love that came from our family and friends, our refrigerator was stocked for nearly two months! But the one dish that really stood out in my mind was the Milk Maker Bread. A couple of my friends came over just days after we got back from the hospital and they, like many others, came bearing food. I was beyond grateful that neither my husband or I had to cook so that we could put our efforts towards the baby and supporting each other. But during their visit, my friend presented me with the Milk Maker Bread that she had made for me. I had never heard of it before but as she explained to me, the bread is so packed full of nutrients that it helps to support the production of breast milk. Not only was the bread nutritional but it was absolutely delicious! On the side, my friend also made a cinnamon honey butter spread to go with the bread and the combination was mouth-watering.
Each time I eat this bread I am reminded of those beautiful, warm, sunny summer days where I first held my newborn son in my arms. After a long and exhausting night of midnight milk and diaper explosions, it was such a treat to be able to just slice off a thick chunk of rich bread, warm is slightly in the microwave, slather it in sweet cinnamon honey butter, and devour it in seconds. It was the easiest breakfast and snack to grab in my exhausted state making it the best meal I could've hoped for.

Now don't freak out. This bread won't make you suddenly lactate. Though its nutrients help encourage an increase in breast milk, that's simply because has lots of healthy goodies in it. Regardless if you are a breastfeeding mom or a rough and tough bachelor, this bread is good for you and makes for an easy grab and go breakfast or snack. So don't let the name make you shy away from giving this recipe a try. I'd hate for you to miss out on the great taste of this amazing bread!

Milk Maker Bread

Ingredients
2 cups boiling water
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup honey
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons salt
1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
4 cups bread flour
2 tablespoons honey, warmed slightly
2 tablespoons rolled oats
2 tablespoons flax seeds
2 tablespoons brewer’s yeast

In a large mixing bowl, combine boiling water, oats, 1/2 cup honey, butter and salt. Let stand for 1 hour.

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

Pour the yeast mixture into the oat mixture. Add 2 cups of flour, flax seeds, and brewer’s yeast; mix well. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 20 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and form into loaves. Place the loaves into two lightly greased 9x5 inch loaf pans. Cover the loaves with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Bake for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the bottom of the loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Remove loaves from pans, brush tops of loaves with 2 tablespoons honey and sprinkle with oats.

Serve warm with sweet cinnamon butter.

Sweet Cinnamon Butter
Butter (I buy the one made from yogurt), a drizzle of honey, and a bit of cinnamon, all whipped in the food processor.