Americans consume approximately 17.3 billion quarts of popcorn each year. Sweet-and-salty kettle corn is the category’s fastest-growing flavor. Hot and spicy foods in general have been trending for some time.

So Hannah Kaminsky of Bittersweet Blog combined the two into a recipe for Sriracha Kettle Corn: sweet and salty plus a warm burn with each bite.

This whole grain snack couldn’t be easier or faster to whip up, whether for better snacking while you’re hanging at home this week, or when guests drop by. Adjust the sriracha to taste, depending on how hot you like it.

> The history of Sriracha sauce.

> The history of popcorn.

> The different types of chiles.

> The Scoville Scale, which ranks the heat levels of different chiles.
 
 
RECIPE: SRIRACHA KETTLE CORN

Ingredients For 8-10 Cups Popcorn

 
Preparation

1. HEAT the coconut oil in a large stockpot over medium heat, along with two or three kernels. Keep covered, and when the test kernels pop, add the rest, along with the sugar and sriracha. Stir well to coat before quickly covering with the lid once more.

2. SHAKE the pot constantly and vigorously to prevent the corn from burning. This is critical, both for even cooking and for fewer unpopped kernels. Once the popping has slowed to one every two to three seconds…

3. REMOVE the pot from the heat and uncover, continuing to shake for a few minutes until the popping has stopped. Pour the popcorn onto a sheet pan and sprinkle evenly with salt, to taste. Let cool and break up the large clumps, picking through to remove any unpopped popcorn kernels that might remain.

[2] Rooster brand Sriracha sauce from Huy Fong, the first Sriracha in the U.S. (photo © Steven DePolo | Wikipedia).

Kettle corn is sweet-and-salty popcorn. A Colonial invention, the corn was popped in iron kettles and then sweetened with sugar, honey, and sometimes molasses before adding the salt. It is less sweet than caramel corn and appeals to those who like a sweet-and-salty flavor profile.

Check out the history of popcorn.
 
 
WHAT IS SRIRACHA?

Sriracha, pronounced see-RAH-jah, is a Thai hot chili sauce. It is made from red chiles, distilled vinegar, garlic, sugar, and salt; and is aged for three months or longer.

Unlike American hot sauces such as Tabasco, which are vinegar sauces that are infused with hot chiles, sriracha is primarily puréed chiles, making it a much thicker sauce.

The sauce is named after the coastal city of Si Racha in eastern Thailand, where it was first made and marketed. Different brands can be found in the Asian aisle of many supermarkets and in Asian groceries.

According to multiple sources, including an article in Bon Appétit, the sauce was made more than 80 years ago in by a local woman, Thanom Chakkapak. She initially made the condiment for her family, and then for friends, to enjoy with the local seafood (think of it as a much hotter counterpart to American cocktail sauce).

As is a common story in the specialty food business, they encouraged her to sell it commercially—and it became the best-selling chile sauce in Thailand. In 1984, Ms. Chakkapak sold her business to a major food company, Thai Theparos Food Products.

What’s the correct spelling: sriraja, si-racha, sriracha or siracha?

According to Andrea Nguyen, who wrote the article for Bon Appétit: Since Thailand does not adhere to one romanization system for Thai words, many variants have emerged, chosen by manufacturers who have created their own version of the original sauce.

However, the most commonly accepted spelling is sriracha.
 
 

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

Bagna càuda, pronounced BON-ya COW-da, is a riff on crudités with dip. The name means “hot bath”; the dip is olive oil and butter, seasoned with garlic and anchovies and served hot. Bagna caôda is an alternative spelling.

A dish from Italy’s Piedmont region, bagna càuda is served during the autumn and winter months, often as part of a Christmas Eve buffet. Why not try it on New Year’s Eve?

Traditional dippers in Piedmont include artichokes, bell peppers, cardoons*, carrots, cauliflower, celery, fennel and green onions.

In some parts of Piedmont, cream is used instead of butter; and hazelnut or walnut oil is substituted for the olive oil. If you’re in Alba, lucky you: There may be some truffles added to to the oil.

Here’s the drill:

 
 
RECIPE: BAGNA CÀUDA DIP

Ingredients

 
 
Preparation

[1] Bagna cauda is a “hot bath” of seasoned olive oil for dipping raw vegetables. Here’s the recipe from Lucero Olive Oil.

[2] This bagna càuda is served in a regular dish, not a fondue pot. Photo courtesy FineDiningLovers.com; here’s their recipe.

2. BLEND the oil, butter, anchovies and garlic in a food processor until smooth. Transfer the dip to a medium saucepan, taste and season as desired.

3. HEAT over a low flame for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add to fondue pot or dish. Stir in the parsley right before serving.

4. SERVE with crudités and bread.

________________

*Cardoons are relative of artichokes, and aren’t readily available in the U.S. they resemble celery.

This recipe was contributed by Tieghan of HalfBakedHarvest.com to EatWisconsinCheese.com. Check out the great recipes on both websites.

RECIPE: MINI EGGNOG STREUSEL BUNDT CAKES WITH EGGNOG MASCARPONE GLAZE

Ingredients For 12 Mini Cakes Or 24 Super Mini Cakes

For The Streusel

 
For The Mascarpone Eggnog Glaze

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F. Butter two mini 6-cake bundt pans or 2 mini 12-cake bundt pans.

2. MIX mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon in small bowl. Set aside.

3. WHISK together 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in another small bowl. Set aside.

4. BEAT the butter and sugar in stand mixer or with hand mixer beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition until completely incorporated. Beat another 2-3 minutes until light, fluffy and pale in color. With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry ingredients until fully incorporated. Add the eggnog, vanilla and rum. Beat until smooth.

5. FILL each mini bundt mold 1/3 of the way full. Sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture over the cakes and add the remaining batter, filling each cup to just under 3/4 full. Try not to over-fill the cups.

7. MAKE the streusel crumble: In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. With pastry blender or two forks, cut in 3 tablespoons of butter until mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Press the streusel into the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9-inch glass pie plate. Bake about 10 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Cool slightly. With a fork, break the streusel into small pieces. Set aside to cool completely, about 30 minutes.

8. MAKE the Mascarpone Eggnog Glaze: Add the mascarpone to a microwave-safe bowl and microwave 15 to 30 seconds or until the cheese is melted. Stir in the powdered sugar, eggnog and vanilla. Whisk until smooth.

9. ASSEMBLE: Spoon the glaze over the cakes and top with the streusel. Drizzle with more glaze.

 
MORE RECIPES WITH EGGNOG

 
PLUS

“Many early trending flavors in past reports have become favorites of today,” says McCormick Executive Chef, Kevan Vetter. “Take chipotle chile, for instance. When we first identified this chile pepper as a flavor to watch in 2003, many people couldn’t pronounce it. Today, it’s a household name.

“Pumpkin pie spice, sea salt, coconut water and cocktail-inspired flavors have seen similar success, taking over restaurant menus and grocery store shelves. The flavor trends highlighted within our 15th annual Forecast promise to do the same.”

This year’s crop of predictions don’t seem unusual to us: We’ve heard them before. But that’s because, after 15 years of predictions, it must be getting harder and harder for the McCormick experts to come up with things we haven’t already heard of!

8 FLAVOR TRENDS TO WATCH

Identified by a global team of McCormick chefs and flavor experts, these trends offer a taste of 2015 and beyond:

 
And for dessert:

 
Visit FlavorForecast.com and Pinterest.com for recipes that reflect these trends, and to learn more in general.
  

This recipe, from Driscoll’s Berries, adds rum and brandy, ingredients of eggnog; and creates individual portions in ramekins. The puddings get a festive finish with a topping of colorful, sweet-tart balsamic raspberries.

Prep time is 1 hour, chill time is 2 hours. Find more delicious recipes at Driscolls.com.
RECIPE: EGGNOG PANNA COTTA WITH
BALSAMIC RASPBERRY TOPPING

Ingredients For 8 to 10 Servings

For The Balsamic Raspberries

1. LIGHTLY OIL six 3/4-cup ramekins or custard cups.

2. SPRINKLE gelatin over 1/4 cup milk in a small bowl. Let it stand until the gelatin softens, about 5 minutes.

3. PLACE a fine mesh sieve over a heatproof bowl near the stove. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a second heatproof bowl until combined. Heat the cream and the remaining 3/4 cup milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until simmering.

4. GRADUALLY WHISK the hot cream mixture into the egg mixture. Return the mixture to the saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture coats the spoon (a finger run through the custard on the spoon will cut a swath) and an instant-read thermometer reads 185°F, about 3 minutes.

5. POUR through the sieve into bowl. Discard any bits of cooked egg white in the sieve. Add the gelatin-milk mixture and rum extract to the cream mixture and whisk until gelatin is completely dissolved, about 1 minute. Let stand 5 minutes to cool slightly.

7. MAKE the balsamic raspberries: Whisk the brown sugar and balsamic vinegar together in a medium bowl to dissolve the sugar. Stir in the raspberries. Let stand at room temperature for at least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours.

8. ASSEMBLE: To unmold each panna cotta, run a dinner knife around the inside of the ramekin to release the panna cotta. Hold a dessert plate firmly over the ramekin and invert the plate and ramekin together. Shake firmly to unmold the panna cotta onto the plate.

9. TOP each panna cotta with an equal amount of raspberries and their juices. Serve immediately.