The Super Bowl is only hours away. By now you probably have the chili cooking, made the final beer run, and are contemplating what else needs to be done before the gang gets there to watch the game. You’re probably also rethinking the beer situation and trying to decide if you should pick up another case or not.

Well, if you have just a few minutes, I have another great addition to your Super Bowl bash. This popcorn snack is the perfect Super Bowl snack. Light, and not overly greasy, a good thing with all else you have planned to eat, this snack is also a great match with beer. The Wasabi Peas give it just a hint of a spicy kick, but also makes this mix rather addictive.

Asian Popcorn Mix

12-14 cups popcorn, popped
1 cup chow mein noodles
1 cup wasabi peas (can be found in many supermarkets asian (Japanese) section)
1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1/2 Tbsp. sesame oil
3 Tbsp. butter, melted
1/4 tsp. granulated garlic
1/4 tsp. ground ginger

Preheat oven to 275F. Combine the popcorn, chow mein noodles and wasabi peas in large bowl. Mix together the remaining ingredients and pour over popcorn mixture. Stir well to coat and then spread out on 2 cookies sheets. Bake for 15 minutes, remove from oven and allow to cool completely.

I have a confession to make. I’m not much of a sports fan. Sure I love to go catch an occasional Major League Baseball game, and I can, occasionally, be found spending a Sunday afternoon watching football, but that it about it. I can’t spout off each players statistics. Heck, I usually don’t keep up with who is even playing for what team. When asked my opinion I usually just BS my way through and hope I don’t say anything too stupid. It’s not that I don’t like sports, I’ve just got better things to do with my time than sit around watching them, and have way too much going on to try and bother with keeping up with all the players stats.

That being said, I do jump on the Super Bowl bandwagon. It is the one televised sporting event that I really look forward to watching. First of all more often than not, I can expect a great game, then there are the commercials, and yes I am one of those that pays attention to the commercials during the game as much as the game, but mostly I love Super Bowl for the parties and the food. Where else can you overindulge in cheese, bacon, pork fat, fried foods, more cheese, spicy foods, more fried foods, and beer and not be considered a glutton?! Yes, it is a beautiful thing! I’ve been to upscale Super Bowl parties, and they just don’t seem “right.” Sure I love crabcakes, smoked salmon, and carpaccio, but that’s not Super Bowl food. When I’m watching the Super Bowl, I want artery clogging and tongue burning, and don’t even think about serving me vegetarian or chicken chili!!!!

This dip is perfect for a Super Bowl party as it mets at least 2 of the qualifications for being good Super Bowl food; it’s spicy and loaded with cheese. It can be served with tortilla chips or I’ll even allow celery to grace the platter, as I’m sure any health benefits provided by celery are more than negated by the rich cheesiness of this dip.

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2 pounds chicken breasts, boneless
1 cup 1/2 & 1/2
12 oz. cream cheese
6 oz. blue cheese crumbled
1/3 cup of hot sauce (or more if you like it really spicy)

Gently poach the chicken breasts in seasoned water until just done. Cool and then either dice finely or shred the chicken. Meanwhile heat the 1/2 & 1/2 in a sauce pot over medium heat. Add the cream cheese and stir until completely melted. Add the hot sauce and blue cheese. Gently heat until the the cheese is melted, stirring regularly so that the sauce doesn’t burn. Do not allow the sauce to boil. Add the chicken meat and heat through. Place into a small crock pot or warmer and serve warm with tortilla chips and celery sticks.

I’ve been having fun playing with my new food dehydrator, thanks to Chef Talk. I don’t know that the infatuation will last but it is fun right now, and, at the very least, I think it is something that I will pull out occasionally and play around with, even if it never becomes a “vital” appliance in my kitchen.

This weekend I got a chance to play around with making jerky, and I have to say, I was rather pleased with the results. It sure beats out most of the big name brand jerkys out there and is a heck of a lot less expensive than buying any of those “gourmet” jerkys you see at fairs and festivals. I made both a Spicy Asian jerky, marinating it in soy sauce accented with Chinese 5 spice powder and Siracha (a spicy chile garlic sauce). I also made a Southwestern Chipotle Lime jerky, using ground chipotles to add a nice light smoky accent to the jerky. Of course you can always smoke your jerky before drying it in the dehydrator. I can be smoked afterwards but the meat will take up more smoke, more readily if you smoke it while still raw.

A couple of things to remember, if you are making jerky. First off you will yield about 1/4-1/3, by weight, of the original amount of meat you purchased due to the drying process so purchase accordingly. Secondly, it’s very important to remove as much outer fat as possible and choose meat with as little interior marbling as possible as the fat as a tendency to go rancid sometimes. For longer term storage I suggest placing in the refrigerator. I did not use any curing salts (nitrates or nitrites) in the making of these jerkys so long term storage, at room temp might be problematic. I wouldn’t worry about leaving it out for a day or 2 but for longer storage, play it safe and refrigerate.

Spicy Asian Jerky

1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. Chinese 5 spice powder
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tsp. Sriracha (chile garlic paste)
1 lb. lean beef (I used an Inside Roast roast)

Chipotle Lime Jerky

1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. chipotle powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
1 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. lime juice
1 lb. lean beef (see note above)

For each recipe, combine all the ingredients except the beef. Slice the beef so it is approximately 1/4″ thick then into strips about 1 1/2″ wide. Toss the beef in to the marinade and mix to coat. Because the Chipotle marinade is more of a paste you will really need to work at getting it distributed evenly. Tightly cover and allow to marinate for 10-12 hours in the refrigerator, stirring it every few hours.

Spicy Asian Jerky in marinade

Chipotle Lime Jerky marinating

Place meat in dehydrator, blotting off excess moisture from the Asian Jerky. Dry following the manufacturer’s directions. You will want to dry somewhere between 140F and 160F.

Drying time will be anywhere from 3 1/2 to 10 hours, depending on several factors, but if you made sure to cut your meat 1/4″ thick it should take 3 1/2 – 5 hours. To test for doneness remove 1 piece of jerky and let it cool to room temperature. It should crack along the grain when bent but it shouldn’t break apart. When done remove to a cooling rack, blot off any excess fat that rendered out and allow to cool completely before packing it way.

I’ve recently be playing around with dehydrating as a form of preserving food, and making tasty treats thanks to my new dehydrator from Chef Talk. In the past, dehydrating hasn’t held a lot of allure for me, but I am the curious sort (for both better and for worse) and am always looking to try new things and experiment with new, at least to me, techniques.

Of course, one of the first things I’ve tried is fruit leather (beef jerky will be this weekend) as I have always loved those fruit roll ups. I wanted something a little more sophisticated, flavor wise and remembered the numerous bags of cranberries that were sitting in our freezer. Cranberries alone weren’t going to make a good fruit leather so I decided to pair them with apple, a classic paring and to spike it with just a hint of cinnamon. The resulting leather reminded me of those classic fruit roll ups but with a more complex, less overly sweetened flavor that adults would enjoy.

Apple Cranberry Leather

1 pound cranberries, fresh or frozen
4 pounds apples, peeled, cored and roughly chopped (choose apples that are both good baking and eating apples, I chose Braeburn this time)
Apple juice, or cider
corn syrup
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Puree the cranberries, in a blender, until smooth, adding just enough apple juice to get the cranberries blending. Repeat this process with the apples, again using just enough juice to get the puree started. You want it to be thick enough still that you will need to stop the blender occasionally and push the contents down. Combine the cranberry and apple purees, stirring to combine. Add the cinnamon and just enough corn syrup to sweeten the puree to your liking. Use corn syrup as opposed to sugar as sugar tends to recrystallize making the fruit leather brittle. Flow the manufactures suggestions for making fruit leather in your dehydrator, making sure that the puree is no more than 1/4-3/8″ thick. Do yourself a favor and lightly oil the tray you make the leather on. It will help in removal when done. Dry at 130F for approximately 6-9 hours. The length will depend on a lot of variables including humidity, ambient room temperature, how much juice you added, etc. The leather is done when it is still pliable, but no longer tacky to the touch. Remove trays from dehydrator and allow to cool slightly. Remove fruit leather from trays and roll in plastic wrap.

Halloween is only a few days away and I am excited!!!! Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays and now even more so since my daughter was born on Halloween. Our day will be booked solid with her birthday party in the morning and afternoon and trick or treating in the evening. Of course, party preparations started weeks ago as we finally cleaned and organized the garage, but last night was the start of the fun. It was pumpkin carving night. I only did 2 this year, while the wife carved one. Not as many as in some past years, but I still have time if I feel like carving a couple more. One of the benefits of carving pumpkins is the seeds. I really enjoy toasted pumpkin seeds. The problem is that I usually over do, snacking on them so by the end of Halloween I’ve seen enough pumpkin seeds until the following year.

I usually just make the regular, salted variety of pumpkin seeds but this year I wanted to spice it up a bit so I made three different flavors. Besides the regular pumpkin seeds I also made a Harissa inspired one, spiced with chile, coriander, caraway, garlic and cumin, and a Sweet, Smoky Asian one scented with Chinese 5 spice and chipotle pepper.

Over the years, one key I have learned to making good pumpkin seeds is a slow oven. I like to bake mine for almost an hour at about 275F. I think that it makes for a crisper seed that is less tough (an important consideration if using larger pumpkins with bigger seeds).

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

2 cups Pumpkin Seeds
1 1/2 tsp. Salt
1 1/2 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil

Preheat the oven to 275F. Clean all the pulp from around the pumpkin seeds, removing all the strings. Rinse and blot dry with a towel. In a bowl drizzle the oil over the pumpkins and toss to coat. Sprinkle on the salt while tossing the seeds, making sure the salt is evenly distributed. Spread seeds out, in a single layer, on a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Stir the pumpkins seeds and bake another 20 minutes. Stir again and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Seeds should be crispy and just lightly browned. If not done place in oven for 10 more minutes.

Harissa Accented Pumpkin Seeds

1 cup Pumpkin Seeds
1/2 tsp. Coriander seed
1/2 tsp. Caraway seed
1/2 tsp. Ground Cumin
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/4-1/2 tsp. Cayenne Pepper (depending on how hot you like things)
1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder
1 Tbsp. Vegetable oil

Grind the coriander and caraway seeds in a mortar or electric grinder. Add all other seasonings. Toss pumpkin seeds with oil then with spice mixture. Place on a cookie tray and bake like the Toasted Pumpkin Seeds above. (continue reading…)