Popcorn Day?

Apparently, this past Thursday (January 19) was National Popcorn Day.  While someday in the future this will be a part of my articles about holidays, that's not why I'm remarking on it.  At one of my jobs, we get free popcorn on Thursdays.  So this past Thursday, I find out it's National Popcorn Day and get a bit excited thinking we'll be getting free popcorn.  Ironic, huh?  Well, if you think the reason I'm typing about it is because it didn't happen, you'd be right.

Apparently, according to the guy in charge of making the popcorn on Thursdays, the popcorn machine really did not want to make popcorn.  He got it going and before the first batch has gotten started popping, the agitator stopped working.  If you've ever worked a popcorn machine, even at home, you know that the popcorn cannot just sit still in the oil as it's get heated because the kernels closest to the bottom (furthest from being able to pop out of the heat) will burn, if not the entire batch.  So, he immediately stops making the popcorn and calls maintenance to hopefully get it fixed.  Maintenance believes it's fixed and the guy managed to make a few batches of popcorn.

When he goes to make more, the agitator is once again not working.  This time he hasn't even added the kernels or oil so it doesn't need to be cleaned out from the only partially used popcorn and oil as he'd had to do previously.  So maintenance gets called again.  After the supervisor takes a look at it, they realize they have to order a new motor for the machine which means no more popcorn.  The popcorn that was previously made was gone before noon with an "Out Of Order" sign on the machine.  Go figure, right?

Did you get any free popcorn on National Popcorn Day?  What about other funny anecdotes about things going wrong?  Feel free to leave a comment about it!

Cooking, TV, and Writing

Maybe I should make this a bi-monthly blog?  I mean, I can't seem to keep up with making a weekly post right now.  I think of posts during the week, but never record them and then forget to post.  I mean sure, I redid the hamburger patties I mentioned in Microwave Cooking, Week 1.  They were definitely better with the horseradish included.  I must admit though that I might rather call them mini meatloafs.  (Yes, I am very aware that the previous sentence is likely grammatically incorrect and that there are likely to have been spelling mistakes.)  

I've been trying to catch up with The Voice, but not paying as much attention currently.  I keep seeing interesting things on my friend's Facebook wall from DWTS (Dancing with the Stars) and possible celebrities for it.  Sadly I need to actually look at who they are since I missed the GMA (Good Morning America) reveal.

Also, I've been working on a few different fanfictions and an original work that's part of a series that I have on my computer, but may have to redo almost all of that work thanks to that Windows 10 update back in, what was it, September of 2015?  Here's my advice: Do not get Windows 10 as an update.  If you want Windows 10, by a new computer with it already installed.  Well, I'm off to work some more on writing and getting some of my work straightened out.

Cookbooks: Microwave Cooking, Week 1

So in 2016: It's A New Year!, I mentioned doing a weekly synopsis to help me go through a number of cookbooks to try and cut back the number of them that we have.  I randomly chose a cookbookfrom our large stash.  It's Betty Crocker's Microwave Cooking.  The version I have was printed in it's format in 1986.

The first two recipes I tried out of it were Hamburger Patties on page 10 and Broccoli Italiano on page 50.  The hamburger patties were actually really good.  I did forget the prepared horseradish and brushed homemade ketchup over the top.  Disappointingly, we didn't have buns to put them on, and using regular sandwich bread just wouldn't cut it.  I, however was not a huge fan of the broccoli.  They were easy to make though.  If I had tried a bit better to time it right, I probably wouldn't have had as many frustrations, even if I had read both recipes a few times before starting.

The only real hiccup I ran into was not having ketchup and not wanting to go out to buy it, so my husband found a recipe online and we made our own using vinegar, sugar, cinnamon, and tomato paste.  The ketchup turned out really well.

When it comes to the broccoli italiano, I personally felt that it had too much breadcrumbs used rather than a flavorful mix of crumbs and parmesan cheese topping broccoli.  Perhaps it's just the grittiness that I had an issue with.

These were the only recipes I managed to try out of the cookbook, and it was an easy start.  Would I try to make them again?  We both enjoyed the hamburger patties, and yes, I plan to make them again.  Maybe this time I won't forget the horseradish.  If I choose to ever try the broccoli dish again, I hope to alter it so the breadcrumb topping isn't quite as disappointing.  The broccoli was good, however so there were redeeming qualities to it.