Recap 2012

For Wonton roses:

48 square won ton wrappers

20 teaspoons (a little less than 1/2 cup) artichoke cream cheese 
egg wash - 1 large egg whisked with 1 teaspoon water
6-10 cups of oil for frying

Using round cookie cutters, cut 20 of the 3 1/2" rounds and 112 of the 1 1/2" rounds out of the won ton wrappers. While you work, you may want to cover the won ton wrappers with a damp towel, so that the wrappers don't dry out. 

Set one 3 1/2" round of won ton wrapper on work surface. Brush egg wash over entire surface. Spoon 1 teaspoon of flavored cream cheese in the center of the round. Bring two sides of the wrapper up over the filling pinching them together in the center. Bring the other two side of the wrapper up to meet in the middle and pinch all along the edges to seal the won ton shut. Brush egg wash over the top part of the wrapper (the areas of the wrapper that are not filled with cream cheese.) Pinch and twist the top of the filled won ton into a point. From now on in this recipe this will be known as the "base." 

Brush egg wash over one half of a 1 1/2" won ton round (from now on I'll call these petals.) Wrap the the petal around the pointed part of the base attaching the egg washed half of the petal directly to the base and leaving the upper half extended above the base forming a tube. 

Brush egg wash over the bottom of another petal and wrap it around the center petal  flaring out the outer edge of the petal and pinching the bottom edge (the half brushed with egg wash) around the base. Continue to add petals. As you add each petal you want to overlap the last petal you added. 

Continue to add petals until you have added 5 or 6. You will have enough petals to have some roses with 5 petals and some with 6 petals.  You could make some bigger with 7 or 8 like the flower on the far right and some that are smaller buds. It's up to you how full you'd like them. 

Preheat oil in a fryer or in a stock pot to 375 degrees. Place a few won ton roses in the hot oil and fry until crisp and golden brown. Continue to fry a few roses at a time, allowing the oil to come back to 375 degrees before each batch is fried. Once fried, place roses on a few layers of paper towels to allow the excess oil to drain. 

Beasts of the Southern Wild - Hushpuppies

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 quarts peanut oil, for frying

• 1 1/2 cups self-rising cornmeal

• 1 cup self-rising flour

• 1/2 cup chopped onion

• 1 (7-ounce) can diced jalapeno peppers, drained or 3/4 cup fresh jalapenos, seeded and finely diced

• 1 (15-ounce) can creamed corn

• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Argo - Canadian Capers

Prepare frozen perogis according to package directions.  Serve with Lemon caper sauce.

8 ounces low-fat sour cream
1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt, drained
1 tablespoon capers, drained and finely chopped
2 teaspoons fresh dill weed, snipped or 1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon lemon peel, finely grated

In a small, non-reactive serving bowl combine all the ingredients.  Cover and chill until ready to serve.
*Stir dip before serving. Garnish with some fresh dill weed and a few strands of lemon peel.


Django Unchained -  Spaghetti Westerns

Meatballs:

Ground Beef
Ground Pork
grated cheddar cheese
onion flakes
garlic flakes
BBQ seasoning
Breadcrumbs
Egg
Buttermilk

Combine all ingredients and incorporate with your hands until the mixture looks even. Make small meatballs, roughly the size of a small melon ball. Bake or pan fry the meatballs and then transfer to a crockpot and cover with BBQ sauce and heat until warmed through.

Cook up angel hair pasta-about 1/4- 1/3 lb. Drain and toss with BBQ sauce and cheddar cheese powder.

To assemble: Take a bamboo skewer. Place a meatball on the work surface. Insert the skewer into the meatball, so that it goes straight up. Take a couple strands of the angel hair pasta and wrap them around the skewer so that they rest on top of the meatball.

Les Miserables - Stolen Bread

For the Fruit:
1 cup mixed candied fruit
1 cup raisins
3 tablespoons dark rum or orange juice
For the Sponge:
1 scant tablespoon or 1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (about 110 degrees F)
2/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon honey
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

For the Dough:
1/3 cup honey
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground mace
1/2 cup chopped almonds, toasted
3 to 4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
Oil, for coating bowl

For the Filling:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
For the Topping:
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

Prepare Fruit: Combine the mixed fruit, raisins, and rum. Cover and set aside. Shake or stir the mixture every so often to coat the fruit with the rum.
Prepare Sponge: In a large bowl, sprinkle the yeast in the water to soften. Heat the milk to 110 degrees F and add it to the yeast along with the honey and 1 cup flour. Cover the sponge with plastic wrap and let rise until light and full of bubbles, about 30 minutes.
By Hand: Add the fruit mixture, honey, egg, butter, zest, salt, mace, almonds, and 2 cups of the flour to the sponge. Beat vigorously for 2 minutes. Gradually add the remaining flour 1/4 cup at a time until the dough begins to pull away from the side of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface. Knead, adding flour a little at a time, until the dough is smooth and elastic.
By Mixer: In the mixer bowl, add the fruit mixture, honey, egg, butter, zest, salt, mace, almonds, and 2 cups of the flour to the sponge. Using the paddle, beat the mixture on medium low speed for 2 minutes. Gradually add the remaining flour 1/4 cup at a time until the dough begins to pull away from the side of the bowl. Change to the dough hook. Continue to add flour 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough just begins to clean the bowl. Knead 4 to 5 minutes on medium-low.

First rise: Put the dough in an oiled bowl and turn to coat the entire ball of dough with oil. Cover with a tightly woven towel and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Shape and Fill: Turn the dough out onto a lightly oiled work surface. For 1 large loaf, roll the dough into a 9 by 13-inch oval. For 2 loaves, divided the dough in half and roll each half into a 7 by 9-inch oval. Brush the melted butter over the top of the oval(s). Combine the cinnamon and granulated sugar and sprinkle over one lengthwise half of the oval(s). Fold the dough in half lengthwise and carefully lift the bread(s) onto a parchment-lined or well-greased baking sheet. Press lightly on the folded side to help the loaf keep its shape during rising and baking.
Second rise: Cover with a tightly woven towel and let rise for 45 minutes.
Preheat oven: About 10 minutes before baking, preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Bake and cool: Bake for 25 minutes until the internal temperature of the bread reaches 190 degrees F. Immediately remove from the baking sheet and place on a rack to cool. To serve: Sprinkle heavily with confectioners' sugar just before serving.

Lincoln - Railsplitters

*** winner of the nom-nom-nom award for best appetizer

Egg roll wrappers
Flank steak
Bulgogi marinade
sliced onions
julienned carrots
Amercian cheese

Shave the flank steak nice and thin. Combine in a bowl with the onions carrots and marinade and let sit for several hours. Then grill up the meat and vegetables and set aside.

Brush an egg roll wrapper with an egg wash. Place a small piece of american cheese and then a small handful of the meat mixture on top of the cheese and roll up as you would a regular egg roll.  Deep fry the egg rolls and let sit slightly. Split the egg rolls lengthwise. Garnish with cheese sauce and sesame seeds.

Silver Linings Playbook - Game Day Nachos

In a Pyrex dish, layer from the bottom up: 
Cream Cheese 
No-bean chili 
Salsa 
Grated Monterey Jack Cheese 
Grated Cheddar Cheese 
Sliced Black Olives 
Sliced Jalapenos 

Warm thoroughly in oven or microwave. Serve with tortilla chips.

Zero Dark Thirty - Al Quesadillas (with Waterboarding sauce)

flour tortillas

chicken breast

red bell pepper

Shredded cheddar cheese

Cook chicken with desired Mexican spices.  Cool and shred.  Arrange flour tortillas on baking sheets. on one half of each tortilla round, layer shredded cheese, chicken and sliced peppers.  Fold each tortilla in half, press and bake at 400 degrees until golden brown - approximately 15 minutes.  Slice into triangles and serve with guacamole.

Notables:

Argo makes history - and not so much in a good way - by being the very first movie to win best picture without a Director nomination but with a Director's Guild win.

The director/ picture split becomes less and less rare, splitting again this year with a win in direction for Ang Lee (life of Pi) and Argo for picture.

Daniel Day-Lewis made Academy history for winning his third lead acting Oscar.  No  other actor has more than 2.

Emmanuel Riva becomesthe oldest Best Actress nominee, whereas Quvenzhané Wallis is now the the youngest ever Best Actress nominee.

The "Susan Lucci of sound," Greg P. Russell, continues his losing streak, losing for his 16th nomination for sound mixing Skyfall.

The Pool:

And the Oscar Cup goes to....

Jami

with  13 out of 24 correct

And the rest of the pool looked like this

Sean, Susan, Nathaniel - 12

Gianna, Sarah - 11

Mike, Tom - 10 

Jay, Dan - 9

Joanne - 8

Nikki, Nicole, Anne - 7

Karen, Lynn, Ursula, Stacey, Erika -6 

Jason, Tracy -4

Jess - 3