Homemade Microwave Popcorn. It's Cheap and As Simple As 1,2,3

My son McCann LOVES popcorn (notice the popcorn in his mouth; maybe it wasn't a good idea for me to ask him to smile).

Anyway, his love of popcorn started last Christmas, when my parents bought us this cool popcorn popper. While it is fun and makes loads of popcorn easily, it is not feasible for making a small, quick batch. Between the popping and the clean up, it's just not worth it. We experimented and came up with a microwave version.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

1/4 cup popcorn

1 paper bag/lunch sack

1 tablespoon butter, melted

salt to taste

First off, I recommend white popping corn. When I microwaved with the yellow kernels  they came out spongy. It might just be me, but that was my experience. 

Secondly, (is that even a word), anyway, I tried different methods for applying the salt and butter, like melting the butter and mixing it and the salt with the kernels before I put them in the paper bag.

 What I ended up with was a greasy paper bag and popcorn that was not buttery. So we finally resigned to adding the butter and salt at the end. Okay, here we go...

Add 1/4 cup popcorn kernels to the bottom of a paper bag/lunch sack.

Fold down top of the bag and put it into your microwave.

Push the popcorn button on your microwave and let the popcorn pop (NOTE: my microwave is pretty powerful, so I don't let it run the whole time. Otherwise, I end up with burnt popcorn and a smelly kitchen. Once I hear the popping start to slow down, I stop the microwave).

I dump the popcorn out of the bag and into a bowl and add 1 tablespoon melted butter and salt it to taste. 

This is a guaranteed crowd pleaser. All you will have left are the kernels at the bottom of the bowl. 

The Ultimate Sloppy Joe

This amazing recipe comes from an unlikely source, my mother. She's not known for her cooking skills, and she admits this openly. This is the recipe she made me as wee tot and all the way up through my teen years. When my wife tasted it for the first time, she about had cow, because it was so good. I didn't know any better. It's what I ate my whole upbringing. After my wife's reaction, I began to respect this recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 lbs hamburger

1 medium onion, chopped

1 1/4 cup ketchup

2 tablespoons mustard

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon vinegar

OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS:

1/4 cup water

1 can diced tomatoes (This is not part of my mother's original recipe. I love this addition. My wife hates it)

OPTIONAL TOPPINGS:

Chopped tomatoes

Swiss, provolone, or mozzarella cheese 

Cook hamburger and onion, then drain excess fat.

Stir in 1 1/4 cup ketchup, 2 tablespoons mustard, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1 tablespoon vinegar (and can of diced tomatoes if you choose).

You can put the sloppy Joe sauce on a hamburger bun or a deli sandwich bun. Which ever you choose.

Sometimes I like freshly chopped tomatoes on mine and/or...

Swiss cheese. Mmmm!

Perfect-O Italian Meatball Sandwich

I love Italian meatball sandwiches. Here is my recipe. It's  fast, simple and tastes great.

INGREDIENTS:

2 packages Italian meatballs

1 bottle Prego (or your favorite homemade spaghetti sauce.)

1 can diced Italian stewed tomatoes

1 package hoagie or sandwich buns. 

I buy prepackaged Italian meatballs. Go ahead, call me a cheater, but I say if it works, why go through all the work.  

Cook them in a large pan. 

I have a favorite homemade spaghetti sauce, but I use Prego for speed. NOTE: I don't use any other brand. I've tried Newman's Own, Hunts, and ...yuck...Ragu. I don't like any of them. Prego is the only bottled sauce I will use. Just my two cents. 

Put the Prego and a can of Italian stewed tomatoes (diced) in a medium sized pot and warm over medium heat while your meatballs are cooking. 

Mix in meatballs.

Put on a sandwich bun and eat. 

There are many choices for toppings. Parmesan cheese. 

Diced tomatoes. 

Swiss, provolone or mozzarella cheese slices.

 

And shredded lettuce. Hope you like it. 

Hot Chocolate Of the Gods. Step Aside Nestle and Swiss Miss. You Got Nothing On This

My sister sent me this message on Facebook this morning:

It's hot chocolate time! Paul loves your hot chocolate (think he had it last Christmas), can I get the recipe? Thanks, bro!

It certainly is hot chocolate time. It snowed all night and everything is cloaked in white. Beautiful. 

McCann's friend Clair came over... 

for a little romp in the snow. Even more of a reason to hot chocolate it up. Lucky for us my wife has the best hot chocolate recipe in the world. Here's the recipe the Gina:

4 cups milk

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup water

1 teaspoon vanilla

Warm 4 cups of hot chocolate in the microwave (or in a pot). While that is warming up...

In a medium sized pot, add 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup cocoa powder, and 1/8 teaspoon salt and stir it all together. 

Stir in 1/3 cup water, bring it to a boil, and let it boil for 2 minutes. 

Add the milk that you just warmed and heat. Add vanilla last. 

Drink and enjoy. Hope you love it. 

Oh! The snowman making was a success.