I made my first batch of Caramel Corn several months ago for Girls’ Night. Then I made some again for the holidays. Then I got hooked and have made several more batches. I can’t help myself its delicious. I’ve tried trimming this recipe down several times with less butter and sugar but its never as good and frequently results in the popcorn getting a bit burnt due the lack of buttery goodness; dry popcorn pieces in the oven for 45 minutes = not tasty. So after much testing, this is what I arrived at. Its tasty! I typically use 94% Fat Free Butter Popcorn since there’s extra buttery sugary goodness that gets poured all over it. Makes me feel not so guilty 
The super bowl is coming up which is the perfect excuse to whip up a batch of this popcorn! So go get busy!
Caramel Popcorn
1/2 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 bags microwave popped popcorn (~12 cups)
Preheat oven to 250°F . Place popcorn in a very large bowl.
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
Boil without stirring 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in soda and vanilla. Pour in a thin stream over popcorn, stirring to coat.
Place in two large shallow baking dishes and bake in preheated oven, stirring every 15 minutes, for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely before breaking into pieces.
Source: Adapted from Good Things Catered
The first time I saw this recipe, I knew it would be a winner. For starters, one of my favorite bloggers Elly blogged about this delish meal. Second, you really can’t go wrong with this blend of ingredients. I love ancho chile powder!! I actually stopped buying regular chile powder about a year ago. Ancho chili powder has a rich, smokey flavor. I also like that it doesn’t pack much heat. Even with my love of ancho chili powder, I prefer to scale back the chili powder when making this. Elly uses 2.5 Tbsp but I wanted a milder flavor that would accompany the salsa so I use more like 1.5 Tbsp, but more is good too!
I love how quick and easy this dish is. Its perfect for a week night, especially since its a one pot dish!
Red Chile Chicken and Rice with Black Beans
2 Tbsp. canola oil
1.25 – 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast
1-2 Tbsp ancho chili powder, divided
1 medium onion, large dice
1 cup rice
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup chopped green onions, or 1/3 cup cilantro
1/2 to 1 cup salsa, such as Roasted Tomato Salsa
Cut the chicken breast into 1″ pieces. Heat the oil in a medium-large heavy pot (with a lid) over medium-high heat. Season chicken chunks with with salt, pepper and 1 Tbsp of the ancho chili powder. Place the chicken in the hot oil and brown, 5-6 minutes . Remove to a plate, leaving behind as much oil as possible.
Add the onion and rice to the pot. Stir for several minutes, until the rice turns from translucent to opaque. Add the garlic and the remaining ancho chili powder. Cook one minute, and then add the broth and salt to taste. Stir well. When the mixture comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover, and cook for 10 minutes.
Add cooked chicken along with drained beans. Re-cover and cook 10 minutes longer.
Sprinkle the green onions (or cilantro) and test a kernel of rice. It should have no more than a hint of chalkiness at in the center, in which case you place the cover back on, remove it from the heat and let it stand 5-10 minutes. If it’s not cooked, cook for another 5 minutes or so.
Source: adapted from Elly Says Opa, originally from Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless
Its the start of a new year which means everyone is ready for a fresh start. Everywhere you turn its about eating healthy and losing weight! I figured I’d chime in with a healthy side dish! Well leaving off the sour cream would be the way to go. I like a little sour cream with my beans though if I’m going to use it as chip dip.
But really, we *LOVE* tex-mex. We eat enchiladas, nachos, tacos, etc all the time at home and I’m always looking for side dishes to serve with mexican food. It tooks months but I finally figured out a good recipe for pinto beans! We love these. Hubby requests them all the time now. These are great served as a side dish or even as a dip with tortilla chips (my personal favorite way to eat them). You can even add 1/4 – 1/2 cup of cheese to make the cheesy gooey which is even better with chips! Or a little sour cream as previously mentioned
p.s. – I hate photographing beans! its so hard! its kinda like pot roast… i’ve been trying to photography my pot roast for two years now. it never looks all that appetizing! but they’re tasty so give them a try! Enjoys!
Non-fat “Refried” Pinto Beans
2 (15 0z) cans pinto beans, drained & rinsed
2 (4 oz) cans Hatch green chiles, diced
1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp white pepper
salt & pepper, to taste
In a skillet over medium heat, add drained beans, green chiles, broth, cumin & white pepper . Heat for 10 minutes until broth has mostly cooked off (you still want a little for good mashed consistency!). Using a masher, mash beans until desired consistency is achieved. Season with salt & pepper as desired. Simmer for 5-10 more minutes. Serve hot.
