This Sunday night is the Oscars, the night when millions of Americans will tune in to see which actress is wearing the ugliest gown. Since this event will drag on for hours, you'll need lots of snack foods, like my Maple Walnut Popcorn. This New England inspired popcorn is everything a snack food should be: sweet, salty, sticky, and crunchy. Since the Oscars are at least three hours long, you might want to make a double batch.
Maple Walnut Popcorn
Yields 10-12 cups
3 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 cup popcorn kernels
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Coat two large rimmed baking sheets with cooking spray.
2. Pour oil in a large saucepan over high heat and cover. After 1-2 minutes, toss a couple of kernels inside. Listen for the shimmering oil as it heats up, then drop a couple of kernels in the pan. When they start sizzling and spinning, the oil is ready. Add remaining kernels. Cover the pan, and give it a couple of shakes so the kernels get coated with oil. Now listen for the popping. Once it really starts popping quickly, listen carefully. Remove the pan from the heat once the popping slows down to every few seconds, or it could burn quickly. Pour popcorn into a big bowl coated with cooking spray, and add nuts.
3. In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring maple syrup, butter, and salt to a boil. Cook 1 minute. Lower to a simmer for 2 minutes. Pour syrup over popcorn and nuts, stirring to coat. Transfer popcorn mixture to prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool. Break into small clusters.
– Recipe courtesy of Food Blogga
There is nothing quite like the intoxicating smell of a bowlful of Meyer lemons. A cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange, the Meyer lemons have a slightly orange skin, a very thin rind and a heavily perfumed flesh. I picked up over a dozen at the market this past week to make this Meyer Lemon Coffee Cake. 
I always take inspiration from the restaurants where I dine. It's
fascinating to see what chefs create especially when it comes to
dessert. Last summer I had the opportunity of visiting a number of D.C.
Restaurants thanks to 
The beginning of a new year continually fills me with a sense of renewal, a longing to de-clutter my life and an overwhelming desire to live more simply. My effort and elbow grease spent on creating and
implementing holiday meals are behind me now and it’s time to move
forward with new plans, goals and ideas for the future.
The morning began with a three hour power outage....a transformer exploded down the street. I had just started to heat up soup for school lunches. With an electric stove, that was no longer going to happen. Since Oregon mornings, especially this one, can be very dark and dreary.
