Colorado Foodies

No more hours spent hovering over the stove; use a pressure cooker to speed up the process for making sweet, buttery, Caramelized Onions in the Instant Pot. Personally I find it works best for me when it can actually make something delicious and save some time and have results that are much like those I would expect if cooking from a standard recipe, like these Caramelized Onions. After the five minutes of cooking at High Pressure, the pressure valve is released to let out steam and the cooking stops; for the quick version, it’s just a couple of minutes of final sauteing and you’re done and they can be used at this point… When I’m asked what I think is the best reason for an Instant Pot, I’ll often cite that I use it regularly as a rice cooker, it makes beautiful hard boiled eggs, it’s the only way I make pulled pork, and now…I can share that it makes the easiest and quickest Caramelized Onions.

Preparing caramelized onions in an electric pressure cooker (i.e. often the Instant Pot brand), results in the same deliciousness in a fraction of the time it would take to do them on the stove-top. After the five minutes of cooking at High Pressure, the pressure valve is released to let out steam and the cooking stops; for the quick version, it’s just a couple of minutes of final sauteing and you’re done and they can be used at this point… After the onions have been sautéed for a few minutes and turn a nice golden brown color, I add a quarter cup of water to them, cook it down until the water evaporates and a crust forms on the pan, then do that a second time being sure to scrap the bottom. When I’m asked what I think is the best reason for an Instant Pot, I’ll often cite that I use it regularly as a rice cooker, it makes beautiful hard boiled eggs, it’s the only way I make pulled pork, and now…I can share that it makes the easiest and quickest Caramelized Onions.

I thought the entire process of making Boozy Hot Chocolate Bombs fun, but not without it’s pitfalls. While this post concentrates on how to make a Boozy Hot Chocolate Bomb with a liquid filling, if you want to go non-alcoholic, it’s easy. Proceed to seal them as instructed or for a bit quicker method since there is no liquid to worry about, simply place the bottom section on a warm plate for a minute to melt the edge, fill it with the marshmallows and hot cocoa mix and then repeat with warming the edge of the 2nd half and seal the two together. Boozy Hot Chocolate Bombs are a fun and creative venture and a delightful drink to boot; once you start you’ll find all sorts of ideas that would require the perfect boozy hot chocolate bomb!

Chef Jay Gust opens great restaurants, so it’s no surprise that Homa Cafe and Bar inside the newly opened Kinship Landing hotel is outstanding. When it came time to try a sandwich, I walked in deadset on ordering the Amiko sandwich, made with a miso short rib. I decided that while I really wanted to taste the short rib, I’d let Jay makes the calls, and he was pretty adamant that I would love the North Park sandwich, made with roasted pork, caramelized onions, banana peppers, and a black garlic aioli. While the food is outstanding, the gorgeous space of this hotel is perfect for relaxing and truly enjoying the menu Jay has put together.

Located off Nevada, just north of Loyal Coffee, they will open at 5PM all weekend, close Monday, and will open beginning at 11AM daily on Tuesday. I’d love to point out how impressed I am with the commitment to Colorado Springs other restaurant owners from Denver have shown as they shift their focus to building concepts in our city. Jason of Dos Santos/White Pie & Pariza Mehta and Kelly Morrison of Ambli are just a few who stand out to me as not only elevating the culinary scene in Colorado Springs, but taking the time to actually live and work here daily. I love a hometown hero, but if we’re going to get restaurants moving here from up North, I love seeing them actually embracing COS and helping us grow in a positive way.

Things change and today an egg yolk is often added to aid in the emulsification (blending) of those ingredients as the original recipe was very prone to break, where the suspension has separated and you’re left with something less desirable; a separated and oily mess! Fast forward and today aioli means something different; it really is simply a fancy mayonnaise with egg, olive oil, garlic, and often some additional favors. I made this Roasted Garlic Aioli as part of a series; I’ll follow soon with a recipe for Grilled Onions in the Instant Pot, yes you read that right…an AMAZING discovery, all leading to this main course Veggie-ish Burger (some bacon in the onions that are optional for true vegetarians). This month’s theme is about making homemade condiments, and our host is Lauren who blogs at Healthy Delicious.

What’s old really is new again, with the help of fresh oranges instead of canned and a dressing made with a great local safflower oil Interestingly enough, it’s not just the clean flavor that was perfect in this Mandarin Orange Salad or the fact that it does a great job at high heat, but it’s their whole thought process behind growing safflower. Based on a simple crop water need equation, for every 3 acres that are taken out of corn, alfalfa or potatoes and put into safflower production there is a savings of a million, yes a million, gallons of freshwater. At The Oil Barn they realize that agriculture is the nexus between humans and our ever important resources and strive to bring healthy safflower oil to our communities, support regenerative agriculture and build economically viable crop selections for farmers.

These teriyaki air fried snap peas have become my new healthy snack to have on repeat. I like to line my air fryer basket with a small piece of foil before using cooking spray and adding the snap peas. Ingredients you can pronounce with as little additives as possible I love to use Target’s Sesame Teriyaki Sauce. There are great gluten-free options too such as Primal Kitchen’s No Soy Teriyaki Sauce or G Hughes Sugar Free Teriyaki Marinade.

You are here: Disaronno Velvet Espresso Martini CocktailDisaranno Velvet Liqueur is a cream version of Disaronno’s famous amaretto liqueur. Mixed with vodka and coffee liqueur in this Disaronno Velvet Espresso Martini Cocktail, it makes a delicious after dinner cocktail for special occasions; like the weekend! While I’ve blended this liqueur that was just released in 2020 with both vodka and coffee liqueur for this Disaronno Velvet Espresso Martini, it’s equally fantastic served over the rocks as a evening beverage all summer long. Melt chocolate (I used Baker’s German’s Sweet Chocolate), in a small microwave bowl on medium heat for 15 second increments, stirring between each increment, until melted.

Learn how to make the perfect Valentine’s Day Charcuterie Board for your sweetheart, galentine, or family. This beautiful board is filled with all the good stuff like cheeses, meats, dips, fresh fruit, vegetables, and sweet treats. You get to pick and choose which cheeses, meats, dips, fresh fruit, vegetables, and sweet treats you use. Try to use mostly red, pink, and purple fruits and vegetables to add to the valentine’s feel.