July 2020 Foodn'Flix Round Up

Spudguns!, it's that time when we see what's on the table, and who brought what to our Foodn 'Flix  movie and potluck.  The selection was Coyote Ugly from 2000, and first up is Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm. Inspired by a few different scenes and elements in the film,  She made a Breakfast Pizza.

Next up, we have Debra from Eliot Eats. She was inspired by a personal story to do with the film as much as the film being set in a bar, she made A Spiced Moscow Mule.

We're also joined by Amy from Amy's Cooking Adventures. She was as much inspired by the movie as she was with the fact it's based on a true life situation. And after digging for menus from the real bar, she created her Caprese Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms.

And lastly, we have mine. I made for you just a good old fashioned pizza. I was inspired by the opening scene of the lead character working in a pizza place, as well as remarks she makes later on when asked about some burn scars.

That's all that's on the table this time around. Don't forget  you can join in with Foodn'Flix every month. August 2020 is being hosted by Tina at Squirrel Head Manor, and she's picked the first Harry Potter film.

Until next time.

Foodn Flix Recipe July 2020

Spudguns!, it's that time again, when we watch a movie and make something to eat inspired by it. I hosted Foodn'Flix again this month, and my selection was the 2000 film Coyote Ugly. 

plot: Violet wants to be a songwriter like her mother had been, and moves to the city in order to do so. Only thing is, she's got stage fright. The first few nights she's in town, she is robbed. This forces her to look for a job, and ends up working at a popular bar in her neighbourhood. Along the way, she meets Kevin, who works at a diner. They quickly start dating, and he helps her attempt to get over her stage fright.

Notes: pizza, pop, meatball hero (mentioned) oil, sat, pepper, chili flakes, parmesan cheese, dried herbs, beer, eggs, sausage (mentioned) Lean Cuisine (mentioned) coffee, juice, toast, fish heads, celery, chili peppers whole, nuts, crackers, rum, burgers, fries, ketchup, apples, mustard, pie, sugar, hot sauce, milk, cake, cherries, lemons, limes, fried chicken, lettuce, melon, olives, oranges, taco shells, pickles, bananas, whiskey, bread, buns, ice, kabobs, Seafood Market, Chinese food, wine, turkey sandwich with sprouts, MacDonalds, martini (mentioned) breadsticks, sub sandwiches, pears.

So I went with the obvious on this one and made a pizza.  I started with a basic dough, which can be found in the Joy of Cooking on page 607. 

1/2 c warm water
1 package yeast
3 and a half cups flour
2 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon salt

now, I didn't have any yeast on hand, so I substituted that for a Tablespoon of Baking Powder.
Mix, then let dough rise for about a half hour.  Then roll out, or stretch to desired size/shape.
Bake dough on a floured tray for 30 minutes on 375 degrees depending on your oven.

While that was pre-cooking, I made my sauce.  I used  one can of tomato paste, half a cup of grated parmesan cheese, 2 teaspoons of garlic salt, 1 teaspoon of fresh ground black pepper, 2 Tablespoons olive oil, and water.    

I then topped the pizza with black olives, chopped onions, spinach, and cheese. I used both shredded mozzarella, and a nacho cheese blend. I then added another 3 Tablespoons of grated parmesan.

I then baked it at 375dgrees for another half hour.

That's about all I have for you guys, don't forget to come back at the end of the month to see what else this movie inspired people to make.  And don't forget, you can join in every month with each Foodn'Flix host.  Next month we've got Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone  if you live outside the states) hosted by Squirrel Head Manor. 

Till next time.
  

FoodnFlix May 2020

Spudguns!, it's been a few months...I've had nothing to say the last two months. But, I joined in for the May Foodn'Flix...literally just crawling in under the finish line with my offerings. The May selection was hosted by Debra over at Eliot's Eats and she picked the 2011 Midnight in Paris.  Now, I've mentioned this on the blog way way way back in the first year of the blog, Day 75.  But, here's a brief recap.

plot:  When a writer suffering from writer's block goes on vacation with his girlfriend and her parents, he finds himself in awe of the city around him. As he ends up spending his nights alone wandering the streets dreaming about his heroes, he mysteriously travels back in time to the 1920's. Inspiration begins to strike as the midnight hour engulfs him, leaving him wondering if it's just a dream.

Okay, so as I mentioned, I've talked briefly about this movie before when it first came out, and I didn't care for it. I should have loved it. All the markings of my kind of movie was there. It's a Woody Allen movie, it's about a writer, it's about time travel, it's about art and magick.  Only, for me it missed the mark. Sitting through it a second time for group, I was halfway hoping I had missed something the first time around, that maybe since it's been almost a decade I'd discover something in it I liked. Nope. Still not doing much for me.

Notes: beer, baguette (mentioned) wine, bread, sauerkraut and frankfurters (mentioned) whiskey sour (mentioned) petit fours (mentioned) grapes, sweets, candied ginger, nuts, cheese, coffee, cake, Indian food (mentioned) pita bread (mentioned) jam, juice, melon, croissants, strawberries, blueberries, fruit plate, tea, cookies, chocolate, beef bourguignon (mentioned) pineapple, whipped cream, dates, steak, absinthe, honey, meat pie, pears, peaches, butter, lemon, pop.

Okay, so the food in this movie is sort of there but it's not a main concern, so it's pretty much in the far background most of the time.

There is a scene near the beginning of the film, where one of the characters mentioned the sauerkraut and frankfurters, and my mind right away went to that. So I went right out to the store and picked up a package of veggie dogs and ...could not for the life of me find any sauerkraut. It ended up being one of the crazy items that the stores in my city have not received since the whole isolation situation has been going on in the world.  Then I thought I would just go with it anyway.  I "assembled" my loaded veggie dog with cole slaw, mustard, mayo, cheese, onions and peppers.

But I wasn't happy with how it looked on camera. So, I started thinking about a second dish and my mind kept returning to the end of the film, where we see a very minor character who literally has two scenes near the end of the film, a detective who himself travels back into time to the Court of Louis XIV.  This seemingly unimportant character actually ends up being a key player. Through the whole movie till this point, you never know if the lead is daydreaming, or drunk or in a coma from a scene where he trips and hits his head or if he's actually traveling back and forth in time? That is until the detective finds himself trapped back in time.  The table of Louis XIV has a breakfast which consists of the pears, peaches and meat pie. So I decided to make a "mock steak and kidney pie".

Ingredients

1 can of kidney beans drained
two mushrooms chopped
half a carrot chopped
half a stalk of celery chopped
half a small onion chopped
ground black pepper
garlic salt
cornstarch
jackfruit
pastry
water

Drain the kidney beans, boiling them till soft.   Add mushroom, celery and carrots. Let simmer for about 15minutes.
Add onion, ground pepper and garlic salt. Stir and let simmer for another 10 minutes.

Add jackfruit, stirring in more water if needed.  Simmer for another 15minutes.

Prepare pastry.   I used a store bought ready made tart shell.
Fill pastry and cook at 350degrees for 35 minutes depending on your oven.

I've never used jackfruit before this. In fact, never even tasted it. I wasn't sure if the bitterness would work with the rest of the savoury ingredients so I only used three medium sized pieces. Thankfully it did.

There you go, two dishes inspired by very different characters. Don't forget to check out June's Foodn'Flix selection, being hosted by Culinary Adventures with Camilla. She's allowing the theme of Any Movie that is  Set or Made in Hawaii.

Till next time.

FnF Round Up

Spudguns!, it's that time of the time, when we offer up a potluck of groovy goodies. As I mentioned beginning of the month, I hosted Foodn'Flix once again, and my selection was not one movie but a whole genre of movies. Your choice of anything by Tim Burton.

Our first submission was Camilla, from Culinary Adventures with Camilla. She picked the movie Mars Attacks!  and made Blue Gummy Brains.

Next up, Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm,  gave us a Lebanese Salad inspired by the movie Big Fish. 

We then had an offering from Tina over at Squirrel Head Manor.  She pulled inspiration as well from the movie Big Fish, and made Pepin's Chicken and Mushrooms.

And then we had Pumpkin Apple Donuts from Debra at Elioteats. Inspired by the movie Sleepy Hollow.    

Up next we have  a Strawberry Moscow Mule from Amy over at Amy's Cooking Adventures. She was inspired by the live action version of Alice in Wonderland.

And next up is Heather from All Roads Lead to the Kitchen. She was inspired by Sweeney Todd to make a Peppered Shepherd's Pie.

And finally, my own offering. I went with the movie Dark Shadows, and made my vegetarian version of Mock Fish (Tofu) and Chips.

All in all, a fabulous potluck of ideas, treats, and movies. Don't forget you can join in next month as the Foodn'Flix group watches The Biggest Little Farm, hosted by Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm.

That's about all I've got for you this month. Until later.

2020 March FoodnFlix dish

Spudguns!, it's been a wacky month to say the lest. I hosted Foodn'Flix once again this month, and my selection wasn't just one movie, but a genre of movies. I asked everyone joining in to pick their favourite Tim Burton film.

Now, my original plan was to do a dish for at lest three films, but with the zombie apocalypse isolation situation shopping panic; well I was lucky to get one done. Shelves have been pretty empty around my city.

I ended up doing it backwards because of the shopping issues. I was able to find some tofu at the store, and tried to think what I could make with it. That's when I remembered a subplot in the 2012 Tim Burton/Johnny Depp film Dark Shadows.  They owned a fishing cannery.

I've covered this film in the first year of this blog (Day 281)  but for anyone who hasn't seen it here's a brief summary.

plot:  After rejecting his lover Angelique, who is a witch, Barnabas Collins, has a curse placed on him and his family. He is then turned into a vampire by Angelique and is locked in a coffin and buried for 200 years. When Barnabas is released by accident in the 1970's, he returns to his family home to find that the few remaining family members are still living under a form of the curse, and that Angelique has taken over the town. The two immortals end up in a battle of wills as each tries to gain control of the small fishing town they live in.

Notes: fish, pumpkins, pineapple, whiskey, ketchup, pot roast, carrots, potatoes, wine, salad, pop, McDonalds, milkshakes, pie, pizza (sign) grapes, waffles, cereal, syrup, juice, strawberries, coffee, sugar, milk, cherries, beer, melon, oranges, bread/buns, tomato juice, bacon, blueberries, mustard, crab (ghostly vision) canned seafood

Even though, there are a bunch of scenes where the family are eating, you don't see a lot of closeups of the food.  But, as I said, the situation we are currently in, caused me to work this backwards.  I ended up making a Mock Fish (tofu) and Chips.

Ingredients

1 egg
1 cups breadcrumbs
1/2 package of tofu
2 medium or 1 large potato
seasoning of your choice

I started by chopping the potatoes into large strips. I ended up keeping the skins on, and having a thicker cut. I then seasoned with salt, pepper, and a spiced seasoning mix. Then placed them in the oven for half an hour on 350 degrees.

 

While that was in the oven, I drained and sliced my tofu before dredging it through the egg and breadcrumbs. 

I then deep fried the tofu, carefully turning it every few minutes,  for close to twenty minutes, before placing it in the oven to finish cooking for another half hour.

At this point, I switched out the fries from the oven and finished them off in the deep fryer. 

After draining everything, I decided to add a basic bagged coleslaw of carrots, red cabbage and green cabbage. I tossed this with a simple dressing of Miracle Whip, vinegar and ground black pepper. 

I am surprised how well this ended up fitting together. It's not the way I had hoped to go with this month's movie selections, but in the end it worked nicely.  Okay, I'll be back at the end of the month with the group round up. 

FoodnFlix Jan 2020

Spudguns!, it's that time again. This month's Foodn'Flix selection was 2019 movie Always Be My Maybe, and is being hosted by Culinary Adventures with Camilla.

plot: A celebrity chef returns to her hometown to launch a new restaurant and reconnects with her childhood best friend/first love.

I didn't really care for this film. I've said before, I'm not a big fan of romantic comedies, and this really felt too formulaic for me. The highlight for me were the scenes with Keanu Reeves playing a hyped up version of himself.

Okay, so the amount of food in this movie is really high. I was not even ten minutes into this movie when I already had a half page of written notes.

Notes: canned spam, rice, herbs, soup, kimchi, lemons, apples, green onions, bananas, melon (in painting) greens, potato-chip sticks in chocolate, pop, fries, jack'O'lantern, onion, beef, sauces, dumplings, dough, juice, potstickers, sugar, salt, pepper, beer, hamburgers (mentioned) oranges, grapes, ham, coffee, casseroles, parmesan cheese (mentioned) Burger King menu, wine, prawns, tuna, cereal, donuts, fish-sauce (mentioned) tea, roast beef sandwiches (mentioned) saffron (mentioned) limes, scallops, lettuce, garlic, oyster sauce, kale, popcorn,  a scene with a walk in freezer (at the 15 minute mark!) count chocula (mentioned) breakfast burritos, ginger (mentioned) cabbage, dragon fruit, carrots, mushrooms, chilies, asparagus, sesame seed mixture, hot dogs and spaghetti, ketchup (mentioned)  matcha (mentioned) rice paper (mentioned) goats, buffet, lemonade, chocolate, iced tea, spare ribs, chop suey (sign) chicken (sign) martini, lobster (screen saver) pineapple sandwich (mentioned) a scene at a farmer's market, beets, tomatoes, venison (mentioned) micro-greens, fish flakes, caesar salad, mango, lamb carpaccio, quail parfait, rice noodles (mentioned) scotch, fig (mentioned) daikon, red and orange peppers

I just gave up trying to take notes on the walk-in freezer and farmer's market.

I had a difficult time with this one. But the scene with the breakfast burrito sort of stuck in my mind. I've done one before though for the blog few years ago (one of my zombie recipes) so sort of didn't want to go that route again. Then I was thinking about the potstickers and I ended up going with a super simple snack. A deep fried wrapped banana.

Super simple, simple, simple dish (3 ingredients so can't really call it a recipe) with just sliced banana, chocolate and eggroll wrappers.

I just cut the banana in half, then cut each half on the diagonal, and rolled them each with two squares of the chocolate.  Then deep fried them for about five minutes, rotating the rolls constantly.

I drained them on a paper towel, letting them cool for another five minutes, and ate them while still warm.

I decided to use a heavy cream at the end instead of a dipping sauce, as the chocolate made the rolls a bit sweet already.

That's all I have for you this time around,  don't forget to check out Foodn'Flix  next month, as our selection will be Nina's Heavenly Delights, and it's being hosted by Heather at All Roads Lead to the Kitchen.

Till later.

Foodn Flix Dec 2019

Spudguns!, it's time for this month's Foodn'Flix recipe. This month was hosted by Heather on the FnF site, and the selection was your favourite holiday film.  I know, this was a difficult one for me, given I'm not a xmas person. I ended up settling on Christmas with the Kranks, for a few reasons. 1) it's one I've seen before 2) it's on Netflix Canada and constant rotation on tv, 3) I know it's got a ton of food scenes in it. 

Now, as I said, I've seen it before and briefly mentioned it back in year one of the blog but here's a more in depth recap.

plot:  After learning that their adult daughter is not coming home for the holidays, Luther books a vacation holiday for himself and his wife Nora. Knowing they won't be home themselves, they decide to not bother decorating their house, even though the entire neighbourhood is decked out trying to win the yearly lights contest. The neighbours then begin to pressure them into decorating as well. On the day they are supposed to leave for the vacation, their daughter calls and tells them she's changed her mind and is coming home. This sends Luther and Nora into a scramble trying to make everything like their daughter expects for Christmas eve.

Notes: water, white chocolate (mentioned) pistachios (mentioned) cheese, fruit baskets, coconut, tea/coffee, pears, apples, pop, steak, wine, salad, pasta, buns, salt, pepper, pumpkin seeds (sign in background) cheesecake, beer, yogurt, fish tacos (mentioned) milk, chicken (mentioned) brownies, carrot cake, cottage cheese and fruit, pot pie, pizza, ham, juice, candy canes, hard candy, eggs, butter, canned food, tomato sauce, bologna, bacon, prepared lunches, cookies, lettuce, onions, ice cream, chips, turkey, rice, spices, lemons, potatoes, maple syrup, cereal, smoked trout, bread, caramel pie, marshmallows, grapes (photo) strawberries (photo) alcohol, gingerbread house, cinnamon sticks, punch, icing, veggies and dip, cake, pumpernickel bread with salmon, tarts, cauliflower, radishes, cranberries, brussel sprouts, nuts, mashed potatoes

Okay, so after staring at my notes for a few days, I finally came up with the idea of a brussel sprouts dish. Now, I watched this on Netflix Canada the day I decided to do this film and took all my notes. And as I was at the grocery getting the ingredients arguing with myself  on if it was enough of a dish, something happened. The grocery I was at has a $5 movie bin and as I was making my way down the produce area the stock guy was refilling the bin, causing a stack to fall to the floor. I helped him pick them up, and there in the middle of the mess was a copy of the movie. Dude. I mean, dude come on how much clearer of a message is that?  So yeah, not only did I make the dish, had to get the dvd.

Ingredients

2 cups brussel sprouts
2 cups cauliflower chopped
1/2 cup onion chopped
salt to taste
ground pepper to taste
1 Tablespoon butter
2 Tablespoon parmesan cheese
handful of chopped/slivered almonds

Mix the brussel sprouts, cauliflower, onion and butter. Bake at 325degrees for 45 minutes, stirring at the midway mark.

Add salt, pepper, and parmesan cheese stirring again, and bake for another 15 minutes.

Add the almonds and return to oven for another 10 minutes. 

It's a simple side dish that works in a pinch. Much like how the characters manage to bring together a last minute xmas dinner/party for their daughter in the film. This was literally inspired more by the way my list of seen foods in the film were written down and less of any real scene in the film.

And that's about all I have for this time. Foodn'Flix will be back in 2020 kicking off another year and a new decade with the January selection Always Be My Maybe  which is going to be hosted by Culinary Adventures with Camilla.

FoodnFlix 2019 RoundUp

Spudguns!, it's time to see what my ghoulfiends dug up for our kooky spooky October FoodnFlix selection. This month we watched The Addams Family and Addams Family Values.

First up is a deadly delicious looking offering from Camilla, of Culinary Adventures with Camilla.  She brought to the table "Creepy Crawlers and other Ghoulish Gobbles."  The main of which was a plate of Squid and Peanut Dipping Sauce. Inspired by a few scenes of Grandma Addams's cooking.

Next up was actually myself, with my offerings of Wednesday's Lemon and Poppy Seed Ghoul Guides, and Uncle Fester's Poisoned Pineapple Punch. I was inspire by the lemonade scene in the first movie, and more than a few scenes from the second movie.

From there we went to Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm, for her Monster Brains and Witches Brew.Who was inspired by her love of her family's own spooky Hallowe'en dishes.

Then we have Amy from Amy's Cooking Adventures, with her Addams Family Pancakes. Her inspiration came from not just Wednesday Addams in Addams Family Values, but also the fact the new animated movie is trending on breakfast menus everywhere.

Then from Heather at All Roads Lead to the Kitchen, we have her Fester's 3 Week Anniversary Meatloaf   She took her inspiration from a scene in Addams Family Values, where Uncle Fester is cooking dinner for his new bride.

And then to Debra from Eliot Eats with her Frog Eye Salad.   She was inspired by the vintage feeling of  the 1990's, and a scene in Addams Family, where Grandma tells Fester to "start with the eyes" when serving him a meal.

This was a fun table this month. Don't forget to join Heather from All Roads Lead to the Kitchen for November. Her selection is the movie What's Cooking? (2000)

FoodnFlix Recipe Addams Family

Spudguns!, this month, I am hosting Food'nFlix. My selection was not one but both The Addams Family (1991) and Addams Family Values. (1993)


In the first film, we see a depressed Gomez on the anniversary of his brother Fester's disappearance; and as every year before, they hold a seance to try to contact him from beyond the grave, no results. Meanwhile, their lawyer who has gotten himself into debt, has hatched a plan with a loan shark to get their hands on the Addams' money. The son of the loan shark posses as Fester in order to gain access to the safe. The "fake Fester" then takes control of the estate and throws the rest of the family out. The Addams's must then work together in order to get back their home.

Notes: apple, bagged lunch, coffee, juice, milk, cereal, Chinese food, pop, hors d'oeuvres, tuna (mentioned) salt, bread, wine, Vegemite, creamed eels, brandy, salmon, tea, carrot (costume in background) pineapple (costume in background) salad, root vegetables, pears, limes, soursop, yams, onions, punch, mushrooms, lettuce, sugar, lemonade, lemons, cookies, Tombstone pizza, peanuts, chicken noodle soup, candy, potato chips, cupcakes, chocolate truffles, pumpkin

In the second film, Morticia and Gomez have just had a new baby and need to hire a nanny. After seeing a magazine article on how rich Fester actually is, Debbie, a serial killer poses as the new nanny in order to marry Fester and kill him, stealing his money. But the kids don't trust her, and Debbie sends them off to summer camp.

Notes: watermelon, chocolate, martini, olive, punch, wine, bread, salad, pie, coffee, fish, clams/mussels, goat (mentioned) cookies, hors d'oeuvres, cocktails, celery, cake, jello, roast, vegetables, cutlet (mentioned) dairy (mentioned) egg, vodka, tabasco, pop, vending machines, corn, turkey, pumpkin, meatloaf, grapes, milk (mentioned) mashed potatoes, apples, squash, beer, black olives, peppers, pineapple, herbs, ketchup, soup

I made "Wednesday's Lemon and Poppy Seed Ghoul Guides" inspired by the first movie, and "Uncle Fester's Poisoned Pineapple Punch" inspired by the second movie.

Once again, I used The Joy of Cooking, for my base recipe for the cake. The lemon pound cake found on page 716.  I doubled the recipe and left out the glaze.

I used:

6 eggs
6 Tablespoons milk
3 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
6 Tablespoons poppy seeds
zest of one whole lemon
1/2 a teaspoon baking powder
1/2 a teaspoon salt
1 cup butter 
juice of one lemon

Mix all together, bake at 350degrees for 65 minutes, let cool.

I then used a store bought icing and covered the cake, and added roughly 1/2 cup of icing sugar to the top, patting it into the icing which gave a nice marble effect


For the punch:

Ingredients :

one can pineapple juice
1/2 cup ginger ale
1/2 cup cranberry juice
handful of pineapple chunks

I started by freezing the cranberry juice into cubes
Then placed a few of the pieces of the pineapple into the bottom of the glass, adding some of the juice. Then added the ginger ale.  Once the cubes were frozen, I added them to the glass.

I was going for a slow blood in the water effect as the iced cranberry juice began to melt into the warmer mixture.

The lemon poppy seed bars were inspired by a scene later on in the movie, where Wednesday and Pugsley are selling lemonade and are talking to a girl guide. She asks if they used real lemons, and they ask her if the cookies she's selling is made from real girl guides.

The pineapple punch was inspired by a few elements in the second movie.  There is a scene where the family are at an event and everyone seems to have a punch glass/cocktail in hand. As well, after Fester is married, there are a few scenes where a pineapple is used for decoration. There is also a scene where Wednesday is talking to the boy she's got a crush on, and comments about if she ever decided to murder her husband, she'd use poison that was undetectable.

One big common theme I found in both movies, is the fact Fester is the weakest link.  It's his desire to be loved in both movies that causes the predators to invade the family. In the first film, Fester falls prey to the loan shark who makes him believe she is his mother. In the second film, he becomes seduced by a serial killer we come to learn is called the Black Widow.  Both cases, it's Fester's need for female attention that opens the door for trouble.

In case you blinked and missed it; Mercedes McNab is the actress playing the girl guide in the first film as well as the main mean girl at camp in the second film.

In the first movie, Gomez comments that it's been 25 years since Fester disappeared. This is a nod to the fact the original television series aired from 1964-1966. With The Addams Family  movie being released in 1991.

That's about all I have for you this time around. Don't forget to come back at the end of the month for my round up as we check out what my ghoulfiends created. Next month, Foodn'Flix is being hosted by Heather at All Roads Lead to the Kitchen, and the selection is What's Cooking?