This + That: Bizarre Snacks

I don't always color coordinate my snacks, but when I do, you'd better believe I'll be reaching for Crunchy Cheetos and Odwalla Orange Juice. This post may go down as the weirdest edition of This + That ever! There may be other, more obvious, choices for This + That foods - milk and cookies, donuts and coffee, McD's fries and soft serve - wha, did I just say that??

Look, I eat Cheetos, maybe 3 or 4 times a year, mainly because my mom always buys them or I am in need of sustenance on the drive to/from Vegas. I actually like the puffy kind that gets stuck on your teeth, but as I said, my mom is the Cheetos purchaser in our family and she clearly prefers crunchy. For some reason, one day I paired Cheetos with OJ and it was a transcendent experience. The salty, fake cheesiness combined with sweet, tart orange juice was a great combination. I can see Flaming Hot Cheetos also pairing well with orange juice!

I also need to quickly mention my love for Odwalla orange juice. To me, it tastes fresher and less acidic than other orange juices. I remember reading a taste test where tasters felt Odwalla was sweeter than other brands. Maybe that's what I like about it. In any case, definitely give Odwalla a try. It can seem pricey if you are the type to chug gallons of juice in a week, but you can usually find it on sale at Safeway, sometimes a whole gallon for only $5!

Friday Favorite + Fail #1

Fridays I'm going to feature a weekly favorite and a fail. Can you guess what today's favorite is?? Yes - Downton Abbey! I just started watching DA around New Years and I'll be honest, it took a few episodes before I really felt committed. But now I'm super excited for Sunday nights and can't wait for the latest episode. Unfortunately, season 3 (or series 3, rather) is coming to an end already and who knows when there will be more! All of the characters have moments when I love them and when they get on my nerves. In general, I can't stand Mary and O'Brien and I think Cora looks creepy sometimes. I love Mrs. Patmore, Mrs. Hughes and Anna and Branson and I have an on/off relationship. OH and the Dowager!! Maggie Smith can do no wrong, she is so amazing! You can catch all three seasons on Amazon Prime.

This week's fail is sadly, PB2. PB2 is a powdered peanut butter than you can "reconstitute" with water or add to smoothies or other recipes. I was super excited to try this and bought a two pack of regular and chocolate off of Amazon. They smell really good and very peanutty, but in the end both flavors were a total fail for me. I put two spoonfuls into my breakfast smoothie and I couldn't taste anything! There was a slight bitter, burnt taste, but no peanut butter at all. I believe two tablespoons of PB2 have 35 calories, compared to over 200 calories for two tablespoons of real peanut butter. That's a huge calorie savings, but I feel like you end up using a ton of PB2 and will go through a jar really quickly. And considering it's almost $5/jar, I would just skip the PB2 and stick to small amounts of regular peanut butter. 

Mardi Gras King Cake

Image from Wikipedia.com

Today brings us the first edition of Tasty Tuesday. And since it is Mardi Gras, what could be more appropriate than King Cake! I remember going to a Mardi Gras themed party several years back where they were serving King Cake. My first reaction was disgust because honestly, look at the monstrosity above - it just doesn't look very appetizing! King Cake is basically a ring shaped cake with multi-colored (usually yellow, purple and green) icing or sprinkles. The ones I've eaten tasted of cinnamon and cream cheese which gives it a flavor very similar to cinnamon rolls. 

The only reason I took a piece at the party in the first place was the chance to get the baby. Yes, a baby. See that little flesh colored, worm looking piece of plastic in the middle? It is a plastic baby that is inserted somewhere into the cake (not sure why he's hanging out in the center in the pic). If you get the baby you are the King (or Queen) of the party! Well, I didn't get the baby, but OMGz I fell in love with the cake. I went back for a second (and possibly third) piece of cake. No baby either time, but I had a new obsession - KING CAKE!! Unfortunately, I don't get to eat it every year, but I still have fond memories. I'd really love to visit New Orleans one day - talk about a foodie city! Beignets, muffalettas, po' boys, I'm drooling as I write this!

Curry (kare) or Cream Stew Pan

And now for something completely different... a recipe!

My mom said she was making Japanese curry the other day and then suddenly I got a hankering to try and make homemade curry pan! Pan means bread in Japanese (from the French, pain) and curry (or kare) pan is commonly sold in bakeries across Japan. Usually it is fried, so it's really more like a donut stuffed with curry. I don't really like to fry things at home, so I thought I'd attempt an easier, healthier baked version. It was actually super simple if you have left over curry. I love curry pan, but I actually like cream stew more than curry, so I thought I'd try and make a bun version of that too. It was delicious! Both are best eaten fairly quickly as the outside doesn't stay crispy for long.

Curry (kare) or Cream Stew Pan

1 package refrigerated biscuits (I used Pillsbury Grands - Original)
1 1/2 cups (approx.) refrigerated, left over curry or cream stew
1 egg, beaten
panko bread crumbs
Pam or other oil spray
flour

Pre-heat over to 350 degrees.

Lightly flour your workspace and roll out each biscuit to about a 6" diameter circle.

Spoon 2-3 tablespoons of curry or cream stew into the center of each dough circle.

Fold over dough and pinch edges together to close. Pinch well to keep curry from leaking out.

Brush with egg wash and dredge in panko crumbs.

Spray cookie sheet and each pan with oil.

Bake for approx. 15 minutes until golden brown.

Enjoy!

I was really surprised by how crispy these turned out considering they aren't fried.  It's a great way to use up leftovers. If you're not familiar with Japanese curry, it's much milder and sweeter than Indian or Thai curries. At out house, we just make both curry and cream stew with the roux blocks that you can buy at any Asian store. In a pinch, if you just want to make the bread, you could probably also use the single serve instant packets.