February » 2012 » Living Lou

Oscar Recipe Roundup

We’re all ready to watch The Oscars here at Living Lou, we’ve got our recipes cooking away in the oven or chilling in the fridge, we’re rethinking our choices for our Oscar pool and gearing up to watch the hours of pre-Oscar fun. If you’ve been following along as we prepare for our big Oscar Party then maybe you have some of my recipes on your menu, but if not, there’s always next year! Here’s a roundup of my menu for The 84th Academy Awards.

Seafood Salad

Olive and Mozzarella Breadsticks

Shrimp and Vegetable Skewers

Appetizer Meatballs

Raspberry Lemon Fouls

Parmesan Popcorn

If you’re looking for some other ideas checkout

Parmesan Popcorn

Can you believe that there are only nine short days of Feburary left! Feburary is probably my least favourite month in the year; it’s cold, it’s busy and it’s just not really much fun. It’s one of those months where you have to take the fun into your own hands and make something out of the month. For me this means celebrating a year in some great, hilarious, sad and terrible movies. There were some beautiful movies like Warhorse, highly anticipated, childhood ending films like Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 as well as some wonderful performances like those in My Week with Marilyn, The Artist and The Help. We saw a year of entertaining films like Midnight in Paris and funny ones like Friends with Benefits. As always we had many romcoms, some wonderful like Crazy Stupid Love and others were not so wonderful. Who can forget the amazing laugh-out-loud hilarious film that was Bridesmaids? How about all the action movies, Captain America, Thor and Transformers 3 to name a few. I think all in all 2011 wasn’t too bad for film!

We’ve finally reached the end of our countdown: less than a week to go until The Oscars! This is the final recipe that I will be serving at my party - you can’t have a party celebrating movies without popcorn. This popcorn is on the savory side, topped with butter and Parmesan cheese means it’s a little decadent and so satisfying. I’m always looking for new ways to spice up popcorn since I watch so many movies.

Parmesan Popcorn
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

1/2 cup popcorn kernels, popped using your favourite method
1/4 cup melted butter
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
1/8 tsp black pepper

Directions

Toss the popcorn with the melted butter.

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and black pepper. Serve.

Who else is planning an Oscar Party? I’d love to hear what’s on your menu!

- Lou

Chicken Chili

I’m glad that today is another Secret Recipe Club reveal day because I’m suffering from major writer’s block. If I wasn’t going to talk about the lovely Angela from Angela’s Kitchen you might be stuck reading about how I’ve been listening to Carry This Picture by Dashboard Confessional on repeat all weekend. Or my obsession with Beatles cover bands. And donuts. And Carey Grant.

Anyways, Angela’s Kitchen is a wonderful site and a great resource for a variety of recipes for people with dietary restrictions. She has great sections for gluten free and dairy free recipes. I was inspired by her Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili, I’ve always loved chili but have never had a white chicken chili. I’m so glad that I tried this because it is one of my favourite comforting meals. It’s so easy and packed with flavor, I adapted mine to cook on the stove top, but I’m sure it would be just as good in a slow cooker.

Chicken Chili

Ingredients

1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
2 lbs chicken thighs, cut into bite sized chunks
1 onion, chopped or grated
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 12 oz can spicy diced tomatoes and red pepper or just plain diced tomatoes
1 4 oz can diced green chiles
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp coriander
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 28oz can white kidney beans
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/3 cup cheddar cheese

Directions

In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add diced chicken and cook for 5 minutes. Stirring occasionally.

Add onions and cook for 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another minute.

Next, pour in diced tomatoes, green chiles, oregano, cumin and coriander. Cook for another 1-2 minutes, stirring to coat.

Add in beans and chicken broth. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

Finally, add in cheddar and serve.

Give this Chicken Chili a try, it’s a nice change from your typical ground beef and beans chili.

- Lou

Raspberry Lemon Fouls

These Raspberry Lemon Fouls were definitely the star of the show. At something like an Oscar Party, your menu has to consist of a few luxurious items. These Raspberry Lemon Fouls did just that. The best thing about adding these to your menu for any dinner party is that they can be made the night before, cutting down on prep time the day of. I’m telling you, dishes that can be prepared ahead of time are a life safer. And, how cute are these served in an array of glasses?

Update on my movie count, it’s looking pretty good, with two weeks left until the big day, I’ve seen all of the best picture nominees, plus many of the other films in the remaining categories!

Raspberry Lemon Fouls (makes 8)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

3/4 envelope of gelatin, softened with boiling water as per directions
1/3 cup raspberries
zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon
3/4 tsp of sugar, or to taste
1 cup whipping cream
Assortment of berries for topping

Directions

Following directions from the package of gelatin, soften it.

In a food processor or blender, puree raspberries with lemon juice, zest and sugar. Once pureed, pour in gelatin in a steady stream. Continue to puree until the puree becomes slightly thicker. Taste for seasoning, add more sugar if necessary.

Next, whip cream using a stand mixer or hand mixer until soft peaks form. Gently fold in the raspberry puree.

Using a spoon, fill the glasses halfway with cream mixture. Top with assorted berries. Refrigerate overnight for best results.

Definitely plan on making these Raspberry Lemon Fouls for your party, or any dinner party coming up.

- Lou

Appetizer Meatballs

I know there are others out there like me, we’re the ones who are just not really into the Superbowl. Football isn’t really my thing. I’m more into figure skating, or soccer, or food. Which isn’t a sport, but it should be. So while North America is gearing up for the big game, I’m gearing up for the big night. We’re well on our way to The Oscars; The Critics Choice are a distant memory and The Golden Globes have come and gone, all that’s left is that coveted golden statue, Oscar. You see, there are tons of Oscar categories that unfortunately, go unnoticed. One of my favourite “under the radar” categories is the Best Original Score. Have you ever taken the time to listen to a score? They are beautiful, and they add so much to a film.

It’s only recently that I’ve begun to notice scores, but I’m so glad that I did. Not only are they stunning, they help me concentrate. Everyone has those times when things have to get serious. You throw your hair into a messy bun and set a plan to get all your readings done, or to reply to all of your emails or to write a couple of blog posts. It’s during those times when focusing is necessary that I turn to film scores to help me concentrate. One of my favourite websites, 8tracks.com has amazing playlists of movie scores. This is one of my current favourites as well as this playlist. Also, as you all know I love Harry Potter so naturally, I love listening the Harry Potter scores, they bring back so many memories.

Appetizer Meatballs (makes 40 small meatballs)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs minced pork
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 egg
1/4 cup flour
2 1/2 tsp paprika
3/4 tsp cayenne
3/4 tsp cumin
3/4 tsp oregano
3/4 tsp black pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients for the meatballs.

Using your hands, roll out 40 small meatballs. Place on a lightly oiled baking sheet.

Cook in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until fully cooked. Serve with toothpicks.

Have a great Superbowl Sunday everyone, I’ll be off listening to my film scores.

- Lou