Bundts n' Bowls

Friday, October 19, 2012

Caramel Corn

Caramel Corn

I made this recipe as part of the activities for October. I have never thought to attempt to make caramel or caramel corn. Let me tell you, if you like caramel corn you have to try this!! It is better than anything you could ever buy from a store. And very easy to make. I guess that's something that surprises me the most at times, how easy things are to make. Here, let me show you...

First you pop your popcorn. You will need 4 quarts of popped corn. This was 1 cup of the unpopped kernels, and it measured perfectly to 4 Qts.

Your ingredients:

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 c Karo Syrup (I used dark)

1/2 c Butter or Margarine

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp Vanilla extract

For the picture I had put the salt and the baking soda in the same bowl. Do NOT do this. You will need to add them at different times. Luckily I reread the recipe before I started adding ingredients to the pan.

Make sure you stir constantly like the instructions tell you. It took a few minutes for the butter to melt completely.

You get to relax and let it boil 5 minutes without stirring!

Now you add the baking soda and the vanilla extract!

This is what it looks like after you add the last 2 ingredients.

Now it's time to pour over the popcorn and stir to coat.

Looking good!

Bake in the oven at 250 degrees for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

You will note that I used a disposable aluminum pan. I followed the suggestions from some of the other reviewers on Allrecipes.com I am glad I did! The directions say to use a shallow baking pan. I just don't see how that would have worked out.

When it the time is up. Take it out of the oven. You are supposed to spread it out on foil sprayed with cooking spray. I left it in the pan, Added some dry roasted peanuts. As it cools it starts to harden up. You will end up having to break it up.

This is a pretty easy recipe to make. It tastes great. I am really looking forward to making this again.

Happy Eating!

I am an Allrecipes Allstar Brand Ambassador (a voluntary position) and I am not compensated for my work with Allrecipes.com. Products received from advertisers are only used for experienced-based reviews on Bundts n' Bowls. The reviews, content and opinions expressed in this blog are purely the sole opinions of T. Graham.

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Crescent Pizza Pockets

I decided to make 2 recipes this evening for my October activities. I chose Crescent Pizza Pockets and Chocolate filled crescents. Both recipes are simple and pretty quick to put together.

Crescent Pizza Pockets

This is my first time getting to post pictures using the new camera. Fingers crossed that they look good!

These are the ingredients. Simple, 4 ingredients.

Be sure to press the seam together well. Mine separated when I baked it.

I used one of my favorite pasta sauces.

Some shredded mozzarella cheese!

Gotta have the pepperoni. Thinking you could add some onion and bell pepper.

Fold it over and seal the edges. Top with some parmesan cheese.

Bake em. They smell good!

Be sure to let them rest for a minute before you bite into it! YUM!! Enjoy.

Okay. My husband, of course, refused to try this. I've pretty much given up on asking. My daughter like it. It tastes just like the biscuit pizzas I make, without the pepperoni getting crispy.

If you are looking for a quick and easy snack the kids will love. This is definitely a keeper.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Planning a Halloween Party!

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned to my husband that I would like to have a "Halloween party". Since, we don't really know anyone in the area it would be for just the three of us. I wanted to find some "spooky" foods and decorate, dress up and just have some fun!

Then I got the newsletter from Allrecipes Allstars about Octobers activities. And guess what! They want us to plan a Halloween Party! How awesome is that?

I'm excited that I get to plan a Halloween party. I haven't been to one in 20 years, at least. My daughter never really was one for dressing up or even wanting to go trick or treating. (that was the trick on me.. no candy for mommy to steal) BOO! Now she's 16 and too old, but we buy a bag of candy just for the fun off it. Love those little pumpkins. Pure sugar and I shouldn't be eating it this year. I was diagnosed Diabetic earlier this year. Another BOO!

Since it is October the activities all have something to do with Halloween. Our brands this month are Karo and Pillsbury Crescents. I'm still trying to decide which recipes to make, and I will post them and the pictures soon.

We are all planning on dressing up with handmade costumes. I will include pics of that too! I've yet to decide what I want to do, but I have an idea that makes me giggle every time I think about it. My daughter wants to be a cat, with a super long tail to mimic one of our cats. The husband.. who knows. He always the competitive one, will go over the top with whatever he chooses.

To be continued . . .

I am an Allrecipes Allstar Brand Ambassador(a voluntary position) and I’m not compensated for my work with Allrecipes.com. Products received from advertiser are only used for experienced-based reviews on Bundts n' Bowls. The reviews, content and opinions expressed in this blog are purely the sole opinions of T. Graham.

al Fresco Roasted Pepper and Asiago Chicken Sausage Fritatta

Al Fresco Roaster Pepper and Asiago Chicken Sausage Frittat

I'd like to say that I really do enjoy being an Allrecipes Allstar Brand Ambassador. It has opened up a lot of recipes that I would never think to make. Of course, my family is resistant as I have said before. It's like pulling teeth to get them to try something new.
The husband and the daughter did not like the texture of the chicken sausage. Luckily they ate enough to give me their opinions. I do not eat eggs. yuck!

This recipe is very easy to make, my teenager could make it and it's pretty quick.

I realize my posts always seem so negative. I really don't mean them to be. It's not always easy to find a recipe that is new and using products that I normally don't or would use.

"This was okay. The family ate it but wouldn't care to have it again. Neither the husband or daughter cared for the texture of the chicken sausage. I don't eat eggs so I can't give a personal opinion. " - opinion posted on Allrecipes.com

Friday, October 12, 2012

Baked Ziti Casserole

Baked Ziti Casserole

"I will say the only thing I was surprised about when it came to any of the recipe starters was how thin they are. While they have good flavor, it is very light. I over cooked the pasta, I had never made a baked anything pasta, so the ziti didn't hold its shape and turned to mush. I did not have sausage so I skipped it. My family was not impressed but I believe it have been my alterations and not the recipe itself. I had to open a jar of pasta sauce to try to salvage the dish and it was still a flop. BUT... like I said the flavor of the recipe starter was good! I would definitely try this again, make sure I have all the ingredients and cook the past appropriately!"

What can I say about this dish. I have never cooked ziti in my life. I have since tried to make it again, and still had the same results of over cooking it. I feel like I can't really give a review based on my inability. Flavor was good, very light as I have said before.

I think I might try this again, just using a different type of pasta. I need something not so delicate, maybe some of those tri colored spirals my daughter likes.

Smothered Pork Chops and Potatoes

Smothered Pork Chops and Potatoes using Progresso's creamy portabella mushroom Recipes Starters Cooking Sauce.

"I made this last night and it was a huge hit with the family. I did not use the potatoes but I did add mushrooms and sauteed onions. The recipe starter has a nice but extremely mild flavor. I would make this again."

Smothered Pork Chops with Potatoes

Here is the review I left on the Progresso website.

Not the best pic, got a new camera now, better pics for future recipes! I should have waited to take the pic until I had added the rest of the sides. It just looks so blah.

This would have to be my favorite dish I've made using the Progresso Recipe Starters Cooking Sauces. Not a lot of tweaking to be done. I did thicken the sauce, leave out the potatoes, and add some garlic and onion powder. I left out the potatoes because we prefer mashed potatoes that putting potatoes in dishes.

I would make this again and pass the recipe to friends and family. Super quick and easy. The onions and mushrooms completed the dish, I think.

The husband and daughter loved it and had no idea that I had used one of the products for the Allstar program. They are usually not so keen on trying new things.. but they really liked and said they would like this if I made it again. That makes it a winner in this house.

Chorizo Con Queso

I am an Allrecipes Allstar Brand Ambassador(a voluntary position) and I’m not compensated for my work with Allrecipes.com. Products received from advertiser are only used for experienced-based reviews on Bundts n' Bowls. The reviews, content and opinions expressed in this blog are purely the sole opinions of T. Graham.

I am a little late posting about the dishes that I made in September for the Allrecipes Allstar Brand Ambassador program. eek!
For the month of September we had two brands to do activities for. They were al Fresco All Natural Chicken Sausage, and Progresso Recipe Starters Cooking Sauces. I'd used the al Fresco Chicken Sausage once before and knew pretty much what to expect. The Progresso Recipe Starter was completely new to me and I had mixed reviews about it.

Progresso Recipe Starters creamy three cheese cooking sauce is the base for their Chorizo Con Queso dish.

https://progresso.com/Recipes/Recipe-Starters/chorizo-con-queso/3c4ffec9-bb55-44f5-8283-db31ef6c3f78

(Again, sorry for the crappy quality of the picture, have a new camera now so they will be better!)

"This was delish! I ended up added a pinch of chili powder and some cayenne pepper. My chorizo was spicy but just didn't give it enough kick. Overall this is a keeper! It was so good, we even used it as a topping for baked potato. I would not use the chorizo next time for the potato. Excellent!"

Okay, so this was the review I posted on the Progresso website. I'd like to expand a bit. This was surprising good. I would like to note you will hear me mention this when I talk about the Progresso Recipe Starters Cooking Sauce.. it is a bit thin, and the flavors are very light, but a very good base and just needs a little tweaking.

The only thing I did not like about this product was that it is not so tasty to reheat. Of course, this could have been contributed to the cheese that is added to it. It was a little gritty and had an almost bitter taste that lingered on the tongue.

I'm not sure I would run out and buy this product every month, but it will be kept as an option to cut down on some prep.