Fine Dining in the Desert

Be a diner, but don’t expect hotcakes in a silver Airstream. This trendy eatery, hidden away at Le Parker Meridien Palm Springs, is hip and happening. Dinner entrees include contemporary comfort food items, such as food like Matzo Balls Chicken Pho and Penne Pasta, but the real highlight for me is their all-day breakfast, including a fruit-filled, fruit-covered waffle with a crackly brulee top called “Was-Za?” For chocoholics, there’s the beyond-indulgent Chocolate Decadence French Toast – layered and saturated-with-chocolate pound cake covered in strawberries, pistachios and Valhrona chocolate sauce. Arrive early at LeDonne Cucina Italiano (72624 El Paseo, Palm Desert), because the place fills up after 6 pm, mostly with regulars who have been going there for years, and years. The clientele skews toward 55 and up, which made me and my fellow 40-ish dining companion feel like we were at the kids table. This is definitely a local hangout, tucked away in a strip mall, where folks know the owner and servers by name, and generous portions of good Italian food is served with a smile and strains of Sinatra. Voted the Best Italian Restaurant by Desert Sun for five years running, LeDonne offers a variety of risottos, spaghettis and many veal and seafood dishes among other Italian favorites. One stand out is their zesty salsicce arrabiata, a grilled Italian sausage sautéed in spicy arrabiata sauce. Also good is their chicken champagne, a chicken breast sautéed in a lemon Champagne sauce. If seafood is more your taste, try their large bowl of steamed mussels. Matchbox’s menu features a variety of inventive offerings, with creative twists on standard fare, that is anything but standard. Even a no-frills dish like mac ‘n cheese got a makeover, becoming “adult” macaroni & cheese,” with grilled shrimp & Andouille sausage, sharp white cheddar & smoked gouda. And while I’ve been to many California pizzerias with creative combos, Matchbox’s steak & gorgonzola pizza -- baked in an authentic masonry wood-fire oven and topped with parmesan & garlic béchamel and finished with arugula, red onion, garlic chip and pear tomato salad -- boasted the most perfectly crisp smoky crust and the freshest and most complimentary mixture of garnishes of any pizza I have ever had. While at Matchbox, it only makes sense to check out The Falls, the elegant fine dining restaurant next door owned by the same partners as Matchbox.

How to Make Colored Popcorn - HowToMakeStuff.com

Colored popcorn makes for a fun snack when watching movies in the theater, but you can have them in the comfort of your own home, too. Here’s how you can make colored popcorn for any occasion you have.

Making Popcorn

You can’t make colored popcorn without popcorn. Here’s how you can make a fresh batch of popcorn using a stovetop or a microwave.

When you’re using a microwave, you can simply follow the instructions in popping popcorn. (For more information on microwaves, read Microwaves: One hot appliance ) To pop popcorn in a stove top, use a pot and heat some oil in it. Pour some of the kernels in the pot and cover. Wait for the popping sounds and once majority of the kernels in the pot are popped, pour the rest in. Let the corn kernels pop for several minutes. Keep a lid on it but make sure you leave a little gap open to let the steam out. Trapping the steam in may leave your popcorn soggy. Pour the popped popcorn in the bowl and set aside for the colored sugar. Sugar Water Method Ingredients

1 cup granulated sugar 3/4 cup water 3-5 drops food coloring Popcorn Procedure Combine the granulated sugar and water in a small saucepan. Put on medium low and heat until the mixture is boiling. Let the water boil until all the sugar has dissolved. Add three to five drops of food coloring and stir for a several seconds. Turn the heat off. Pour the sugar mixture with the food coloring of choice on top of the popped popcorn. Stir the popcorn to bind with the sugar and until the kernels separate. Gelatin Method Ingredients 4 cups unpopped popcorn 1/4 cup butter 3 tablespoons light corn syrup 1/2 granulated sugar 4-serving size package flavored gelatin Marshmallows and peanuts (optional) Procedure

Pop around four cups of unpopped popcorn on a stove top or in the microwave. Set aside after popping in a big and deep bowl. Get a large cookie sheet and line with wax paper. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees Celsius. Combine the butter and light corn syrup in a small sauce pan. Put the heat on low. When the butter has melted, add the sugar and the package of gelatin. Stir the mixture until the gelatin has dissolved. Turn the heat to medium and bring to a boil. When it hits a hard boil, reduce back to low heat and let simmer for five minutes. Toss in marshmallows or peanuts in your popcorn if you wan to have more texture. Pour the gelatin mixture over the popcorn and toss to coat the kernels.

The Ladies' home journal

Then pour it over three pints of fresh popcorn and stir well ; make into small balls, not pressing the corn too tightly together. Parti-Colored Popcorn ...

Billboard

Cetinthe popcorn business now and CLEAN UP! '"Where can you make more money than in selling Popcorn? Everybody loves it — young and eld. ...

Harpy Thyme

If she closed her eyes, she would not be able to tell what color it was; it tasted exacdy like regular-colored popcorn, freshly made. ...

Billboard

The three glass sides are decorated with multi-colored popcorn selling signs. ... artists with skills and knacks that make them old masters in their field. ...

Missouri ruralist, with which is combined the Breeders special

A popcorn ball may be given as a prize to the one flipping the largest ... w COLORED BOWL With Purchase ol Q Pkgs. WHEAT FLAKES Just think) You get on* of ...