Homemade Popcorn

Posted on by aurorameyer

Until I made this I didn’t believe it was just as easy as microwave popcorn. Seriously, it is. And tastes so much better! Not to mention, so much less expensive!

easy Homemade Stove Top Popcorn by Aurora Meyer on Dispatches from the Castle

Easy Homemade Stove Top Popcorn

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Ingredients
  

  • white or yellow popcorn kernels
  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 1-2 tbs butter
  • salt to taste

Instructions
 

  • In a saucepan, add the canola oil. Drop in one kernel. Heat over medium-high heat. When the one kernel pops, add more popcorn until it covers the bottom. Shake gently, put the lid back one and return to heat. When popping slows, remove from heat.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

My Opinion:
I was absolutely amazed at how easy this was. We put the hot popcorn into a metal bowl and drizzled melted butter and salt. It was as good if not better than movie theater popcorn!

Today’s food post is brought to you by#cookchat. My co-moderator, Matt LaCasse and I are excited about the first chat of the year Thursday, January 20, noon. CST. Join us for an hour of food-filled conversation.

Homemade Pasta Sauce

Posted on by aurorameyer

Last week J and I challenged ourselves to not go grocery shopping and use up the items in our pantry, freezer and fridge. That experiment led to some pretty creative meals. One of the best was our homemade pasta sauce.

Easy Homemade Pasta Sauce by Aurora Meyer on Dispatches from the Castle

Homemade Pasta Sauce

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Ingredients
  

  • small can pasta sauce plain, no seasoning
  • tomato paste
  • can whole or crushed tomatoes you can also use fresh! 2 cups of fresh equals about 14.5 ounces chopped tomatoes. When we use fresh we don’t peel, but you may want to!
  • Italian seasoning we used oregano, basil, marjoram, sage and white pepper. You can use whatever you like!
  • Burgundy wine
  • garlic

Instructions
 

  • Combine everything in one saucepan. Bring to a boil. Turn down heat to medium-low or low. Let simmer for about an hour. This will cook down.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

My opinion:
This was wonderful! Easy and filling. We actually originally used too much Italian seasoning, but by adding the wine and a can of tomato sauce, everything blended very well. In the future, we’ll add onions and maybe some green peppers to add variety as well as some red pepper flakes.

This week’s food posts are brought to you by #cookchat. My co-moderator, Matt LaCasse and I are announcing #cookchat’s triumphant return on Thursday January 20, a noon. CST. Join us for an hour of food filled conversation.