01-07-2014

Homemade Popcorn & Hot Cocoa

There’s a blustery frigid wind outside our house today. Makes me thankful for a snug home, warm mittens, and coats for my kids.

But I must tell the truth…my definition of cold is anything below 40 degrees. So waking up to a whopping 19 degrees…that’s cold for me! I should feel bad thinking this is cold when so many of you are dealing with subzero temps right now. But I’m just a warm weather girl, and apparently so are the school district officials here. We are on a 2 hour delay right now because it feels like 6 degrees outside. Seems pretty chilly to me if I were sending my 5 year old out to wait for the bus. But I’m sure if you woke to 0 degree temps, you’d gladly take 19 right now!

During the last cold snap, the kids and I spent a perfect afternoon indoors making homemade popcorn and hot cocoa. Is there anything more enjoyable on a cold winter day?

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Alton Brown makes perfect homemade popcorn. His secret is making a tinfoil lid with slits for the steam to escape. After numerous attempts that failed every time, I was thrilled when I came across his recipe.

Hot cocoa is so easy to make at home and once you try it, you’ll wonder why you’ve ever used the instant stuff. There really is no comparison for homemade hot chocolate. And all you need to do is follow the directions on the back of the cocoa box.

Trick of the trade…if you are making an individual serving in the microwave…mix the cocoa & sugar in bottom of mug and then pour just a tad (a few tbsp) of milk into the mug. Stir this mixture really well so that it’s completely mixed prior to pouring the remaining milk in. It isn’t pretty when you try to mix the cocoa & sugar in with a full glass of milk…trust me!

I hope you & yours stay warm and dry! And if you have snow…lucky you! With weather this cold it should be white outside.

~ Jess