Caramel Popcorn

Susan Clifford made this for a choir potluck in the fall, so when John wanted to bring treats to Young Men's, we got the recipe. It is yummy!

Caramel Popcorn
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup Karo syrup

Combine and boil for 2-3 minutes until light caramel color. This makes a soft caramel. If you want it harder, cook it longer. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 tsp vanilla.

Pour hot mixture over 4 cups (popped volume) popcorn. Optional: Add mixed nuts or peanuts to popped corn.

Monuments Men

Went to Riverpark Square and saw Monuments Men today. The movie was directed by George Clooney. Starred George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Bob Balabn, Hugh Bonneville and Cate Blanchett. "The Monuments Men" is a group of men (in real life around 350, and in this film 7) who are tasked with finding and saving the historically and culturally significant fine art, monuments and archives that had been stolen by the Nazis during World War II. I enjoyed the historical aspect of the film and the stories of the main characters. It was interesting to me as it was not something I was aware had happened during WWII.

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day was a Friday this year and also the start of a 4-day-weekend for many, so John and I decided to celebrate early and went to Black Angus on Wednesday 02/12 instead. Happy birthday Abraham Lincoln!

Audrey says I have a "problem" - - see below...they had a sale on my very favorite candy so I had to stock up!! Russell Stover Dark Chocolate covered marshmallow hearts are the best. At Easter, they have marshmallow eggs. The shape does not matter, but must be Dark chocolate (rather than milk). Yum!

Maraschino Cherry Cupcakes

Maraschino Cherry Cupcakes
10 oz maraschino cherries, drained (about #20)
1 box white cake mix
Reserved juice from cherries
Enough milk to make 1 cup liquid (I used about 1/2 cup)
1 stick butter, melted
2 tsp vanilla
3 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour cake pan or cupcake tins. Drain the cherries and reserve juice. Slice the cherries in half and set aside. Put the cake mix in a mixing bowl. Add enough milk to the cherry juice to bring the liquid to 1 cup. Pour that into the cake mix. Add all the other ingredients and mix until combined. Pour into prepared pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. After completely cool, frost with whipped topping.

Super Bowl 48

Super Bowl XLVIII was the first Super Bowl played outdoors in a cold-weather city (New Jersey) and the first game that I watched in its entirety.  The Seattle Seahawks played the Denver Broncos. The game featured the top offense (Denver) against the top defense (Seahawks), something that last occurred in the 2003 Super Bowl.

Here we are ready for the game and decked out in our Seahawks gear! Even the kitty has prepped herself by taking full control of the remote!

On the first play of the game, 12 seconds into the game, the Broncos snapped the ball, it flew past Peyton Manning into the end zone, where Seattle picked up a safety. The quickest score in Super Bowl history (2-0). Scoring results by quarter: Seahawks - 8|14|14|7 and Broncos 0|0|8|0 .  The Seahawks defeated the Broncos 34-8, the third largest point differential in Super Bowl history. This became the first Super Bowl victory for the Seahawks!!

I thought the game was enjoyable to watch, but true football fans felt it was a tad boring. However, it was the most watched television program in US history with 111.5 million viewers! The halftime show featuring Bruno Mars and Red Hot Chili Peppers was entertaining. And of course we had to have our snacks ready. We had chocolate football cupcakes, Ruffles with onion dip, Spinach Dip with French bread, Little Smokies in BBQ sauce, and Hot Cheese Bean Dip with tortilla chips.

Hot Cheese Bean Dip
1 can (16oz) refried beans
4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup green onions, diced
2 tablespoons taco seasoning
2/3 cup salsa (extra liquid drained)
1 can (4oz) diced green chilies (drained)
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated

Mix everything together. Place in a baking dish and bake at 350 degrees until bubbling on the sides and golden brown on top, about 45-60 minutes. Serve with tortilla chips.

Spinach Dip
1 package (10oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 (16oz) container sour cream
1 cup mayonnaise
1 package Knorr Vegetable recipe mix (the yellow package)
3 green onions, chopped finely

Make sure spinach is thoroughly dry. Mix all ingredients together and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Optional: can add diced water chestnuts if desired. Serve with French bread.

January Kitty

Oatmeal Cranberry Delights

These were truly "delightful"!! Sent them with John to Young Men's. The boys devoured them.

Oatmeal Cranberry Delights
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 cups oatmeal (I used old fashioned)
1 cup finely chopped pecans
6 oz dried cranberries
1 cup grated milk chocolate bar
1/2 cup melted white almond bark

Cream together the butter, sugars, eggs and vanilla. Mix flour, oatmeal, salt and cinnamon together and add to butter mixture. Mix well. Fold in pecans, dried cranberries and grated chocolate bar. Drop by rounded teaspoon onto greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown. Cool on rack. Drizzle melted almond bark over cookies.