I bought a box of 20 frozen pretzels and we made some last night for Finger Food Friday.  The instructions were to take the frozen pretzel and wet the surfacethen to sprinkle the salt on top.  Then the instructions said to bake them for 4 minutes at 400 degrees.  4 minutes wasn’t enough.  I wanted to try the pretzel with olive oil instead of water but nobody seemed interested.

Today Don and i did a trial.  I made one per the instructions with water, one using a butter substitute and one with olive oil.  Don and i both agreed that the butter one ended up the best.  The salt stuck to the pretzel the best, it didn’t feel overly oily and it was nice and moist.  The perfect frozen pretzel recipe.

One Finger Food Friday I decided to pour a shot of Kahlua into my Pint of Guinness. It was like drinking a dessert. It needs a little stirring but goes down quite well. I’ve since requested it in two bars (4100 in Los Angeles and Kito’s here in Petersburg, Alaska) and neither bartender had ever heard of it. I have looked online to see if anyone else has written this up and have not found anything. I know it’s a terribly simple drink but it really could be popular but it needs a name. So I’m thinking it should be called an “Alaskan Milkshake” ooohhh… maybe an “Alaskan Chocolate Milk” would be better. Any suggestions? Naturally trying out the recipe first is definitely preferable.

1 pint glass
Just shy of 1 serving of Guinness
1 shot of Kahlua

Pour the pint of Guinness. Sip a bit if you need some space in the glass. Add a shot of Kahlua and stir. Enjoy.

My Grandma Shirley always has a tub of fruit salad in the fridge.  The last time i was there i asked for her recipe.  Without measurements here are the ingredients…

Bananas
Peaches
Pineapple
Cherries
Orange juice

Last year i was in Valdez for the ARPA conference.  For the opening social there were bowls of small pretzels on the tables.  I reached for a handful of them but they were – sort of wet.  Closer inspection showed they had a oily covering with a greenish powder on them.  My friend just wolfed them down by the fistful.  I tried one hesitantly and agreed that they were good.  The woman that made them was kind enough to share her recipe…

3 pound bag of mini pretzels
1 bottle Orville Reddenbacher popping oil
1 packet of Hidden Valley ranch dip mix
1 tablespoon Johnny’s seasoning salt
2-3 teaspoons of lemon pepper
0 slices of bacon

Mix all ingredients and let sit for 3 days.

I don’t cook a whole lot but there are some specialties that i make. I will now spill my secrets.

Salsa
I took a salsa making class from Doc and Bev Lopez almost six years ago. I have fine tuned the ingredients a bit but no batch is ever the same. For the best salsa do not even consider a blender, food processor, or even a salsa maker. Cut all ingredients by hand. You’ll need:
6 firm roma tomatoes
1 head of garlic (not 1 clove – a whole head)
1 or 2 bundles of green onions
1 can of corn (drained)
1 or 2 bundles of cilantro (i always get two)
1-3 jalapeno or habanero peppers (be very careful with the habanero)
I really suggest using gloves or a plastic bag when cutting the onions and peppers. That way when your eyes are watering from the salsa taste you can actually wipe away the tears without scalding yourself more. Chop everything up and mix in a large bowl. Make sure the peppers are cut up tiny. Do not add bacon. Eat within 3 days by dipping tortilla chips into the bowl, scooping salsa, and inserting chip into your salivating orfice.

Chili
This one is easy and fast – especially if you have leftover meat from tacos or something around already. You need:
1 can of pinto beans (not drained)
1 can of kidney beans (not drained)
1 can of corn (drained)
1/2 pound of cooked meat (ground beef, moose, venison, caribou, chicken, etc.)
1 can of tomatoes (diced, sauce, paste, even tomato soup)
Lots of spices
Mix all ingredients in a pretty big pot. Stir while adding spice after spice. I add almost 15 and it never is the same amount. You want chili powder, garlic and onion powder, garlic and onion salt, freeze dried chives, all kinds of pepper, dill, oregano, parsley… you get the picture. Heat until it bubbles a bit, turn off the stove and eat. Cooked bacon may be added. Crackers (such as Saltines) go well with this. If you were a real cook cornbread would go well too. A dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of cheese on top helps cool the mixture down a bit. Best eaten when you have 24 hours that you can fart freely following the meal. Not advised for before big meetings, dates that may lead to sexual encounters, prior to pool parties, or right before any sort of physical exam where someone might be checking your bum.

Guinness Shake
Warm weather? Beer not cold enough? How about a beer milkshake? Obviously not any old beer will work for this. Newcastle might be alright. Having tried Guinness once i can suggest it. We used french vanilla but vanilla bean might be even better.
1 can of Guinness
0 strips of bacon
Vanilla ice cream
Don’t add too much beer to the mixture. Scoop out ice cream into the blender. In my case there wasn’t much ice cream and it was frozen solid so i poured the beer into the tub of ice cream. It looked like a beer float. Anyway, mix the two ingredients in a blender. Pour into a glass and enjoy using a straw. If you have a bendy straw that’s even better. Addition of Kalua and/or vanilla is a nice touch also.