Hi, I’m Logan. It’s cold, so that means (for us in the US) sleepovers, parties, football games and binge-watching. To go with these events, I have some recipes.
HOT AND SPICY COCOA
Hot cocoa is one of my favourite drinks, especially at this time of the year. My recipe has a couple of tricks, like adding red chilli powder and toping it with foamed milk. Adding the spice makes it even warmer and the foamed milk gives it this incredible airiness. Combining the two creates this unbelievable warm fog effect.
Makes 2 cups
Ingredients: 4tbsp unsweetened cocoa, 4tbsp sugar, 1 cup milk, 1 cup water, dash of salt, 2tsp vanilla, ½ tsp cinnamon, ½ tsp red chilli, ¼ cup foamed milk to top.
Method: In a pot, mix together water and milk, add the ingredients and whisk till warm and just under a boil. Pour into cups, top with foamed milk and a sprinkle of extra red pepper.
ROSE CARDAMOM CARAMEL CORN
For binge-watching it’s always better to have something sweet and crunchy. Caramel corn is a good pick but it can be a bit lacking in flavour. This recipe solves the problem by using complementary flavours of rose and cardamom. They work together, right where the cardamom falls off, the rose picks up. This produces a smooth journey in the bite.
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients: 1 cup butter, 2 cups brown sugar, 1tsp salt, ½ cup corn syrup, 1tsp baking soda, 2tsp cardamom extract, a drop of hot sauce, 4tsp rose petals, 10 cups of popped corn.
Method: In a saucepan, melt the butter, add the sugar, corn syrup and salt and boil for five minutes. Add the cardamom extract and rose petals. Give a quick stir to mix together.
Remove from heat and add the baking soda, pour in the corn and stir till coated. I like an uneven coat but it can be mixed till it coats evenly.
Place on a baking sheet and bake for one hour in a low 200° Fahrenheit (100° Celsius) oven. Stir during baking to make sure it stays crisp and coated.
Sprinkle with a touch of extra salt and enjoy!
Hot Sriracha Wings
When I look back at my time in India, I think of all the wondrous sweets, each one vastly different from the last. It is strange that I think of the sweets first when traditionally they are only an afterthought. Even with India being a country of confections, the meal was always balanced out with a savoury dish. So it is time to add the savoury dish. My favourite American staple is hot wings; we simply cannot have football without them.
Ingredients: 10 chicken wings, cleaned and fried till finished.
For the sauce: ¼ cup sriracha sauce, 2tbsp malt vinegar, 2tbsp honey, 1/8tsp Chinese Masala, 1tbs corn syrup
Method: Mix the ingredients of the sauce together and toss over fried wings. Serve with a ranch-style dipping sauce.
HOT SRIRACHA WINGS OF CAULIFLOWER
Ingredients: ½ head of cauliflower; broken into chicken-size chunks and flash-fried till brown.
Sauce: Same sriracha sauce as Hot Wings.
Method: Coat cauliflower with the sauce and add to a frying pan to sear onto the fried cauliflower. Serve with the same ranch-style sauce.
Logan Guleff won MasterChef Junior Season 2 in 2014. His first cookbook is Logan’s Chef Notes and Half Baked Tales: Cooking Dreams. You can follow him on Facebook (@LoganJuniorChef), Twitter (@LoganJrChef) and Instagram (@logan.jr.chef)
