October is National Popcorn Poppin’ Month. We love popcorn, a whole grain snack that’s low in calories when seasoned simply with spices and herbs. You can also use your FDA-sanctioned two daily tablespoons of heart-healthy olive oil.

But chief among our kitchen foibles is burnt microwaved popcorn. It not only imparts a horrendous lingering odor; it also stains the inside of the microwave with yellowish blotches. We sought help from HowToCleanStuff.net.
 
 
BURNT MICROWAVE POPCORN SMELL

Want to get rid of it? Ready to begin? Gather your weapons.

For The Odor

 
For The Stains

 
Now get to work.

Because burnt popcorn is so ugly, we elect to show only beauty, like these heirloom kernels. Photo by Katharine Pollak | THE NIBBLE.

To rid your home of that burnt popcorn smell, there are two approaches: the coffee method and the vinegar method. Ground coffee absorbs odors, and vinegar neutralizes them.
 
The Coffee Method

 
The Vinegar Method

STEP 2: REMOVE THE STAINS

This method should remove most, if not all, of the discoloration of the inside walls of a microwwave.

 
If you have manicured nails, put on rubber gloves for the next step:

The original Noosa is a picturesque Australian resort town on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, the home of golden beaches. The name Noosa comes from an Aboriginal word meaning shade or shadows, a probable reference to the tall forests behind the sunny coast.

On a vacation to Noosa, company co-founder Koel Thomae—an Aussie ex-pat living in Colorado—came across a tub of creamy yoghurt and passionfruit purée.

It took just one spoonful for her to decide that she must bring this celestial style of yogurt to the U.S. Back in Colorado she found a partner, fourth-generation dairy farmer Rob Graves, who milked happy, pasture-raised cows. He took one taste of the Australian yogurt and agreed with Koel. America needed Noosa.

They began to make Noosa in small batches, from farm-fresh whole milk, local raw clover alfalfa honey and purées of the best fruits. The “Australian-style” texture is thick like Greek yogurt but oh-so-velvety, as elegant as any dessert. (Some of that texture comes from kosher bovine gelatin.)

The line is certified kosher (dairy) by OU, certified GMO free and made with rBGH-free milk from pastured cows.

Noosa Yoghurt is so silky, it’s like an elegant dessert. Photo courtesy ChooseCherries.com.

The four-ounce cups, for 140 calories or so, depending on the flavor, is a wonderful bit of fruity sweetness at the end of the meal, or as a snack anytime.

And for breakfast or lunch, well: What a treat. It’s worth seeking out.

Here’s a store locator and the main website. Scroll to the bottom of the home page for a link to print a coupon.

Instead of our favorite after-dinner coffee—a steaming cup of French or Italian roast with a shot of coffee liqueur, substituting for dessert—we celebrated with a Café Liégeois (lee-eh-ZHWAH). It’s a parfait with layers of iced coffee, ice cream, and whipped cream (called chantilly [shon-TEE-yee] in French).

We highly recommend it as an easy-to-make dessert for coffee (and especially iced coffee) lovers.

While the original recipe does not contain alcohol, no one stops you from adding a shot of coffee, chocolate, or vanilla liqueur.

If you don’t have parfait or sundae dishes, use what you do have—beer glasses, wine goblets, any tall glasses, or glass mugs. You can even make the recipe in conventional coffee cups, although part of the eye appeal is looking at the layers through the glass.
 
 
RECIPE: CAFÉ LIÉGEOIS

Ingredients Per Serving

A modern variation of Café Liégois (photo © Benoit Bistro | NYC).

 
Variation

1. MAKE the coffee and refrigerate. Also, refrigerate or freeze the dishes or glasses. When ready to serve…

2. FILL each dish or glass with ice cream and pour over the iced coffee and the optional liqueur. Add the whipped cream, garnish as desired, and serve immediately.

 
THE HISTORY OF CAFÉ LIÉGOIS

According to Wikipedia, Café Liégeois did not originate in Liège, Belgium; it was initially known in France as Café Viennois (vee-en-WAH), Viennese Coffee.

Following the Battle of Liège in World War I, in which the city of Liège put up a resistance to the advancing German army with its Austrian-made guns—Paris’s cafés changed the name of the dessert from Viennois to Liégeois. Curiously, notes Wikipedia, in Liège itself, the dessert continued to be known as Café Viennois for a while.

In the U.S., both ice cream desserts are made from the same ingredients. The difference is in how the ingredients are presented.

CHECK OUT WHAT’S HAPPENING ON OUR HOME PAGE, THENIBBLE.COM.

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. When it gives you spilled food, make art.

That’s what Italian artist Giulia Bernardelli does. She’s become a specialist at turning spilled coffee, honey, jam and other foods into wonderful canvases that look as if they were created by accident.

Animals, landscapes and portraits art so beautifully crafted that they really look like an accidents.

Giulia doesn’t plan her work in advance but develops the ideas as she eats the food. At one breakfast, for example, she imagined the footprints left by a cat who walked into the jam.

You can see that and other images at BoredPanda.com. For more images, go to Google Images and search for Giulia Bernardelli.

The grilled pizza combines the ingredients of Caesar salad—romaine, olive oil, anchovies, garlic, citrus juice, egg—with pizza crust standing in for the croutons. And the dough incorporates garlic and basil, like seasoned croutons.

It’s a bit of work, but well worth the effort. You can save time with premade crusts and tomato sauce.

RECIPE: GRILLED CAESAR SALAD PIZZA

Ingredients For 4 Servings (2 Oblong Pies)
 
For the Dough

 
For The Pizzas

Preparation

1. MAKE THE DOUGH: Put the water in a bowl, stir in the yeast and sugar, and let sit until frothy, about 10 minutes. Add the salt, olive oil, and 2½ cups of the flour and mix until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth, about 8 minutes, adding up to ½ cup more flour if the dough seems too wet.

Put the dough into a well-oiled bowl and cover a damp cloth. Set aside to rise until doubled, about 1 hour. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead in the garlic and basil. Put it back in the bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

2. MAKE THE DRESSING: Put the egg yolks, mustard, chopped garlic, and anchovies into a blender. Blend until smooth. With the motor running, pour in the oil in a slow, steady stream, then pour in the lime juice and blend until emulsified, about 1 minute. Scrape the dressing into a bowl, cover, and refrigerate it until you need it. It will keep for about 3 days.

3. MAKE THE PIZZA: While the dough rises, preheat the oven to 250°F. Put the tomato on a small rimmed baking sheet and toss with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, the black pepper, and the sugar. Bake until the tomatoes have dried, about 1 hour. Put the remaining ½ cup olive oil in a small bowl. Add the minced garlic and microwave for 30 seconds.

4. PREHEAT a gas grill to high heat. Punch down the dough and divide in half. Shape each half into a ball and pat down on a lightly floured surface. Use your fingers to stretch the dough into 10-inch oblongs; it is nice if you leave a slightly thicker rim.

5. TURN half the grill down to medium heat. Brush 1 piece of dough with the garlic oil and place it, oiled side down, on the high-heat side of the grill. The dough will begin to puff almost immediately. When the bottom crust has lightly browned, use two spatulas to turn the dough over onto the medium-heat side of the grill.

Working quickly, brush the garlicky oil over the crust and then brush with half of the tomato sauce. Scatter with half of the roasted chopped tomatoes, half of the black olives, and half of the roasted red peppers. Sprinkle with 1 cup of the mozzarella and half of the basil. Close the lid and cook the pizza until the cheese melts. Remove the pizza from the grill and set it aside while you prepare the second pizza with the remaining ingredients.

6. MAKE the optional poached eggs. Toss the arugula, romaine, and some of the Caesar Dressing together. Cut the pizzas in half, pile the salad and eggs on top, and serve right away.