Inside out caramel apples

Inside out caramel apples. This was a fun twist on a classic I stumbled upon; much easier to enjoy for the adults.

Ingredients:

Apples

Lemon or just lemon juice

Caramel squares

Directions:

Halve and core out your apples. Hollow them out a bit to make a nice area for your caramel to sit. Rub the apples down with lemon juice immediately! This prevents them from browning. Let them set a few minutes and then pat them dry. Melt your caramel up to pour into your apples. You may or may not want to add a touch of water depending on the consistency you would like your caramel to have. Now, you can eat these right away warm or you can refrigerate them for a bit so they can be sliced up as the caramel hardens.

Variations:

You can add a chocolate drizzle or even a chocolate coating to the outer side of your apples. I’ve seen granola sprinkled over these or you could even add a few chocolate chips to the caramel inside.

Jalapeño poppers

A friend turned me on to these at a get-together and they were so delicious I had to share them. If you don’t do hot or spicy these are for you!

Ingredients:

Jalapeños

Cream cheese

Maple sausage

Salt and pepper to taste

Shredded fiesta blend cheese

Bread crumbs

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Begin by coring and halving your jalapeños. Give them a rinse and pat them dry. Cook up your sausage and incorporate with the cream cheese. Follow by stuffing your jalapeño halves. Sprinkle the bread crumbs over the peppers and then top with your blended cheese. Cook the peppers in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until your cheese has melted.

Variations:

You can play with these any way you want. If you like spicy you can add your own blend of spices to the stuffing mixture. You can even substitute the sweet maple sausage for spicy chorizo sausage. I even tried out wrapping these in bacon. Delicious anyway you like it.

Taste of Cuba – Main dish

Following through with Cuban comfort food, I will share how to make an essential meal that I grew up with. It is not as intimidating as it sounds and in fact is so easy to throw together. It consists of grilled chicken breast, white rice and black beans, and maduros.

Pechuga de pollo a la plancha

This is a flattened, grilled chicken breast. The key ingredients in Cuban cuisine are onions, garlic, and lime and that’s all this chicken needs. Flatten out the breast and cook with a little lime juice and garlic. The onions are sautéed and caramelized and served smothered over the chicken.

Arroz con frijoles negros

Our white rice has a specific taste and is sticky, but not as sticky as Asian rice. I make my rice in a rice cooker, but you can use a pot if you don’t have one. I add a little salt, butter and a couple bay leaves to the cooking process to achieve the taste.

I keep things simple by just using canned black beans. There is a certain flavor we are aiming for here as well. I add a halved green bell pepper to the pot along with garlic, salt, and a little dry cooking white wine. I use a Sauvignon Blanc. At this point all you do is warm the beans through on a low heat for a while to soak up those favors.

Maduros

Plantains are a staple in Cuban food. We make chips, soups, and sides galore with them. A typical side made with plantains is maduros. These are caramelized plantains. They are sweet and savory. Now, I don’t know why, but these are tricky to make up here. You essentially fry them in oil, again canola or vegetable. I have found up here for some reason cutting the chunks smaller than normal proves the best results. You want a very ripe plantain. By that I mean black. Cut the chunks diagonally about an inch. If you slice them too small you will end up making crunchy chips, like mariquitas, or chewey chips, like tostones. (In that case add salt and enjoy!) Now, you will want to fry the plantains until they are a nice caramelized golden brown. Be careful not to burn these.

Here is a wonderful little video on cooking maduros.

Taste of Cuba – Snacks

I am a first generation Cuban American, born and raised in Miami. Living in Cheyenne, I get homesick a lot. Cuban food is one medium I frequently turn to in attempt to satisfy these blues. There are three staples in Cuban cuisine: our coffee, pastelitos, and croquetas. Cuban coffee is like a supped up espresso. It can be enjoyed as a shot, straight up, or with half and half as a cortadito. Pastelitos are pastries. The most typical are filled with guava, a tropical fruit, and cream cheese. Croquetas are little snacks or appetizers of a ham mash fried in saltine cracker crumbs.

Cuban coffee

The most typical brand of Cuban coffee is Café Bustelo. It can actually be found now at Wal-Mart and the base commissary. To brew the coffee I use a Cuban coffee maker or an espresso maker. I brew it on high on the stovetop. Once brewed you add sugar to taste. This will be almost an equal amount of sugar to grounds.

This is a great little video on the steps of making Cuban coffee.

Pastelitos

Guava paste is the main ingredient needed for these pastries. I use Goya’s guava paste which can be purchased at the base commissary or you can hunt some down at one of the specialty shops in Fort Collins. The paste must be warmed up and have sugar added to taste. I have has success with Pepperidge Farm’s puff pastry sheets. The pastries can take any shape or size you would like. Allow the pastry sheets to thaw. Spread the guava paste on one side of your pastry sheet and cream cheese to the other. Fold the sides over each other. Brush an egg wash over the tops of your pastries and if you would like you can sprinkle large sugar crystals over the tops. From there just follow the baking directions as listed on the puff pastry box. Just keep an eye in the pastries for a nice golden color.

Croquetas

There are a variety of croquetas, but the ham stuffed are the easiest to make here and the most common. You will need a food processor or a food bullet for this recipe.

2 tablespoons of minced onion                                   salt

1 tablespoon of minced garlic                                    ground white pepper

¾ of a stick of butter               a splash of dry cooking white wine(I use a Sauvignon Blanc)

½ cup of flour                                                  1 ½ cups of ground ham

¾ of a cup of milk                                           Cracker meal

eggs                                                     vegetable or canola oil for frying

Begin with processing the onion and garlic. Separately process the ham. Sauté the onion and garlic in the butter. Add the flour a little at a time and incorporate well. Follow by adding the milk and cooking on a low heat until you have a thickened sauce. Now you will remove the pan from any heat and add in the salt and pepper to taste along with the wine and ham. Return the pan to low heat for just a few minutes combining all of the ingredients well until a meat paste has formed. Chill the paste. Now you can form the paste into the shape of short hot dogs. Next coat the formed meat in the beaten eggs and then the cracker crumbs and fry them to a nice golden brown. These can also be served with lime wedges and crackers.

Chocolate chip zucchini bread recipe

With the holidays around the corner, the festive baking season begins. This year I will be experimenting with different recipes to create gift plates of treats and goodies to present to our friends and family during holiday get-togethers. If you are on a tight budget this is a great way to stay frugal with your money and no one feels left out. I’m continuing with a zucchini bread recipe courtesy of Paula Deen.

What you’ll need

Tools:

• 1 or 2 5×9 loaf pans (depending on what size loaf you would like)
• sifter
• grater
• cooking spray, such as PAM
• whisk or electric mixer

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• ½ teaspoon of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• ½ teaspoon of cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon of nutmeg
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups of sugar
• 1 cup of vegetable oil
• 2 cups of grated zucchini
• 1 tablespoon of orange zest
• A teaspoon or 2 of vanilla extract
• 1 cup of chocolate chips
• 1 cup of chopped walnuts

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Begin by combining all of the dry ingredients, except the sugar, chocolate chips, and nuts, and sift them. Next, whip the eggs and sugar together and then begin to add the remaining ingredients, ending with the dry ingredients.

Spray your loaf pan(s) with cooking spray before pouring in the batter. Bake for 50 minutes. Allow to cool once done.

Variations

Feel free to play with this recipe. You can substitute different nuts or add a favorite baking spice. You can even add or swap differing types of chocolate chips or butterscotch chips.

Recipe for popcorn balls

With the holidays around the corner, the festive baking season begins. This year I will be experimenting with different recipes to create gift plates of treats and goodies to present to our friends and family during holiday get-togethers. If you are on a tight budget this is a great way to stay frugal with your money and no one feels left out. I’m starting off with a popcorn ball recipe.

What you’ll need

Tools:

• Long handled spoon

• Deep pot

• Butter, lard, or oil to grease your hands

• Saran wrap

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup of butter

• ¼ cup of light corn syrup

• ¼ cup of brown sugar

• Good sprinkling of salt

• ¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract
  

• 10 oz bag of mini marshmallows

• ½ bag of M&Ms ≈ about 1 cup

• Approximately 5 cups of popped popcorn ≈ about 1 ½ bags of popped popcorn
  

Directions

Pop your popcorn first and allow it to cool.

In a deep pot, combine all of the ingredients except the popcorn and M&Ms. Cook them over a medium – low heat, stirring continually. Once smooth and melted, remove the pot from heat and add the popcorn. After the popcorn has been coated with the mixture fold in your M&Ms.

Now, you can grease your hands to handle and shape your popcorn balls and finally, wrap them in saran wrap to keep them fresh and from drying out.

Variations

Change it up:

• Holiday or seasonal  M&Ms

• Chunks of dried fruit

• Reese’s pieces

• Nuts

• Toffee or other candies

• Different flavorings such as peppermint or coffee

Miller Farms’ Fall Harvest Festival

Who they are, what they do, and event detail

Miller Farms, located near Longmont Colorado, sells their produce at their own roadside market and attends farmers markets along the Front Range, including our own Cheyenne farmer’s market. Over the years they have incorporated agricultural tourism. As a result their annual Fall Harvest Festival has become the farms’ most popular festival to date. The festival gives the public a behind the scenes look at what happens on a real working farm; not only can you explore the farm, but you also harvest your own vegetables from potatoes, carrots, onions, beets, Indian corn, squash, peppers, pumpkins and more. In addition, there are a variety of great activities you can enjoy while visiting the farms such as:

• Petting zoo
• Giant jumping pillow
• Corn maze
• Antique tractors
• Fire truck
• Hay pyramid

If you decide to stay after the sun goes down the farms offer a haunted hayride. The corn maze becomes a scary thrill and leads to a haunted house. Limited details are given on the haunted attractions as they regularly change throughout the season to keep patrons guessing and coming back for more.

When and where

The farm is located at: 13912 CR 19 Platteville, Colorado 80651

Hours of operation for the festival are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily and it runs from September 3 – November 15.

The haunted hayride operates from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. nightly from October 12 – October 31.

Pricing and contact information

For tickets or more information contact the farms at: 970-785-6133

Harvest admissions:

Children 3 and under: Free
Individuals: $15.00 per person
Family of 4: $55.00 ($13.00 per additional person)
Groups of 10 or more: $13.00 per person
Public School Tours (10 student minimum): $ 8.00 per person
Home Schools, Boy Scouts, and Girl Scouts: $10.00 per person
Active Military, Policemen, EMT’s and Firefighters: $13.00 per person

Haunted hayride admissions:

$7 per person or $5 per person if you’ve spent the day harvesting and have already paid general admission.

Entertainment and special guests at Cheyenne Zombie Fest II

Music to raise the dead

Local artist Forrest King working on his Cheyenne project

The Cheyenne Zombie Fest II will be hosting an array of special guests, DJ’s, and live bands.

DJ’s, live bands, and genres include:

• DJ XS
• DJ Hollow
• It Gets Worse (Ska)
• Horse, featuring KBPI‘s Uncle Nasty (Hard Rock/Metal)
• Arcanium (Hard Rock/Metal)

 Local guests

Our very own local artist Forrest King will be showcasing and painting more of his works of art. His style can be explained as dark and grungy or, for portraits, more of an airbrushed look. For a peek at some of his pieces visit Fine Art America’s website. Other locals joining consist of Doctor Wendy Braund and Larry Green from Public Health and Homeland security. They will be providing their input on “what if” hypothetical situations during the event of a zombie apocalypse.

They wrote the book on it

Author Jonathan Maberry and paranormal folklorist Doctor Bob Curran will be holding a book signing following with discussions on zombie folklore and zombie pop culture. Jonathan Maberry has won multiple Bram Stoker Awards and written many New York Times bestsellers on paranormal subjects. Doctor Curran has written an abundance of successful works in history, culture, and of course his passion, all things undead and mystical.

For more information and a listing of location and times of the day’s events and activities visit The Cheyenne Depot Museum’s website or Cheyenne’s Little Theatre website.

Cheyenne Zombie Fest II

Local artist Forrest King and family at Zombie Fest

What on earth?!

If you have ever wondered what a zombie apocalypse would look like or are a zombifile who can’t wait until Halloween to indulge yourself, hang on to your limbs; the Cheyenne Zombie Fest is back for a second round to celebrate all things zombie! Zombie Fest II has Cheyenne’s downtown area overrun with activities from The Historic Atlas Theatre, The Cheyenne Depot and Plaza, The Hynds Building, and The Plains Hotel on Saturday, September 29th. This is an event for all walks of life; so feel free to have the little ghouls tag along for fun and games at Zombieland for kids.

Events to raise the dead

Kicking off Friday evening and repeating on Saturday evening, there will be a showing of Troll 2 with the film’s star, George Hardy, at The Historic Atlas Theatre. Saturday from 10am until midnight there will be an array of events and activities including:

• Brain eating contest
• Comics and video games hosted by Heroes Only Comics
• Zombieland for kids
• Live music and food vendors
• Zombie face painting
• Indy horror film fest
• Scavenger hunt
• Zombie walk
• Zombie fashion show
• Zombie prom
• Prizes

Craving more details?

If at any time during the day of the event you need more details visit the information booth in The Plaza. Registrations and the box office will be held in The Atlas lobby. There will be two zombie walks beginning at noon and following at 12:30pm. The walks are free of course, but if you are feeling generous a $25 pledge will land you a Zombie Fest t-shirt and bracelet and a can of Monster. You can register and pledge online at cheyennelittletheatre.org. As for fun for the kiddies, Zombieland for kids will be held at The Historic Hynds Building. Tickets are 10 for $5. Dance the night to and end at the zombie prom, from 9pm until midnight at The Plains Hotel Ballroom. Tickets are $5 in advance or $8 at the door. Zombie attire is required and zombification is available on site for $10. For event tickets contact The Cheyenne Little Theatre at 307-638-6543.

For more information, a listing of activity and event locations, and a schedule of the events visit The Cheyenne Depot Museum’s website or Cheyenne’s Little Theatre website.

Introduction of an eclectic girl

Emma M. Fontana-Cain

WHO AM I – EMMA M. FONTANA-CAIN

I was born and raised in Miami, Florida. I have always encompassed a deep love of animals, which was apparent growing up with an array of pets. My brother also fed my passion for animals being the former director of Miami Metro Zoo. I had the pleasure of handling animals of all types throughout my childhood. I am a previous body builder from Central High School, where I attended and competed. I was the bantam weight champion and took third place overall in 2006. I have held a number of employment positions from florist, customer service, insurance claims, and serving. My husband, Kevin, and I just welcomed our first and only child, Mia, this past May. I have been a student of Laramie County Community College for a couple years and am now wrapping up my associates in general studies. In the spring I will be moving on to the University of Wyoming to pursue my bachelors degree in micro and molecular biology.

WHAT I’M ABOUT

As I have just recently acquired the position of full time mom and homemaker, in addition to full time student, leisure and interests have modified.  I am also in the process of physically recovering from my cesarean section and the recent pregnancy in general. I now read up on child development and parenting and health and fitness and am more versed on tricks to maintaining a household. I enjoy cooking and experimenting with new recipes to add to my repertoire. As a lover of the arts I still squeeze in time here and there for movies, music, literature, and theatre.

WHAT I’LL CONTRIBUTE

This semester I will be covering a variety of topics as eclectic as my interests. My pieces will consist of information based on my own experiences and opinions in addition to any researched information I find in relation.