Real Snacks (15 page)

My version of this classic bar staple skips both the soaking of the dried hominy kernels and the frying. It depends on high-quality canned hominy, which is easily found in the Mexican food aisle of most grocery stores. I like to use Spanish paprika for a bit of smokiness, but if you prefer the more traditional flavor, simply season with sea salt. Note that these corn nuts aren’t the teeth-crackingly hard kind you may be used to. If frying is your thing, you can fry the drained, dried, and unseasoned kernels in 375°F vegetable oil and season as directed
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Rinse the hominy until the water runs clear. Spread the drained kernels onto a baking sheet to dry for about 30 minutes. (Dry kernels will bake up more crisply than wet ones.)

While the hominy is drying, preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with foil and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the paprika, salt, onion powder, and garlic powder. Add the hominy and stir to coat evenly.

Pour the hominy onto the prepared baking sheet and spread it evenly. Drizzle with the olive oil. To help keep too many kernels from escaping as they heat and pop, place another baking sheet across the top at a slight angle to allow steam to escape. Bake until the kernels are crisp, 20 to 30 minutes, stirring every once in a while so that they roast evenly.

A basket of hot, fluffy crescent rolls makes a perfect addition to any meal. These rolls freeze well, so make a double batch for a hot snack anytime. I also like to use this dough to create pimento cheese rolls: Simply roll the dough out into a large rectangle, cover it with Pimento Cheese (
this page
), roll it up and slice it cinnamon roll–style, and bake as directed
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In a heavy-bottomed pot, heat the milk just until it starts to boil, then remove it from the heat. Stir in the sugar, salt, and butter, and set aside to cool.

Sift the white spelt flour, oat flour, and baking powder together and set aside.

Place the warm water into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and sprinkle with the yeast. Let stand for 3 minutes. Stir in half of the flour mixture by hand. Mix in the cooled milk mixture and the egg. Continue to add the flour, ¼ cup at a time, until you have a soft, moist dough that just pulls away from the sides of the mixing bowl. You may need a little more or less flour.

Switch to the dough hook and knead on high speed for 2 minutes, adding a little flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking to the sides of the bowl.

Place the dough into a buttered bowl, turn it once to coat, and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 2 days.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment and set aside. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough in half. Keep the dough you aren’t working with covered with plastic wrap. Working with one piece at a time, roll the dough out to a large circle about ¼ inch thick. Slice the dough as you would a pie,
into 8 wedges. Roll each piece from the wide side to the point, pinch to close, and place on the prepared baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between each roll. Repeat with the remaining dough. If the points begin to loosen, brush a little water under them to help them reseal.

Cover and let rise for 1 hour in a warm, draft-free spot. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Brush the tops of each roll with melted butter. Bake until the rolls are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for a minute or two, and serve warm.

One of my favorite dinners when I was growing up was pasties—little pastry hand pies filled with stew, pizza toppings, or ham and cheese. We always customized the ingredients in our pasties and marked each pie with a letter so that we’d know whose was whose. The invention of Hot Pockets took most of the work out of making these savory little hand pies, but they are nowhere near as tasty as the homemade version. This recipe makes a simple ham and cheese pie, but the tender dough makes a great crust for just about any filling
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Prepare the Crescent Roll dough as directed, but instead of rolling the dough into 2 circles, roll it into two 9-by-6-inch rectangles about ¼ inch thick. Cut each rectangle into thirds, creating 3-by-6-inch rectangles. Place a piece of cheese and a piece of ham, folding as needed, on each of the dough pieces. Fold them over to create 3-by-3-inch squares. Press the edges with the tines of a fork to seal and place on parchment-lined baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between each square.

Cover and let rise for 1 hour in a warm, draft-free spot. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Brush the tops of each pocket with melted butter and bake until the pockets are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Cooled pockets can be frozen and reheated in a 375°F oven for 15 minutes for a great anytime snack.

These homemade Potato Sticks taste more like French fries than those straight out of the can, but with an addictive crunch. I like to amp up the flavor (and nutrition) by adding a sweet potato to the mix
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Place the julienned russet potatoes and sweet potato, if using, in a bowl of cold water and let them soak for 1 minute. Drain well through a fine sieve. Transfer the potatoes to a bowl and sprinkle with the salt. Pour the potatoes in an even layer onto a linen towel and cover with another towel. Gently press to remove the water. Transfer the potatoes back to the bowl, add the potato flour, and stir to coat.

Heat at least 2 inches of oil in a heavy-bottomed pot to 370°F. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.

Fry the sticks in 1-cup batches until golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the sticks with a slotted spoon and place them on the prepared baking sheet. Season with a pinch of the onion powder and salt and pepper to taste. Repeat with the remaining sticks. Bake until crunchy and deep golden in color, about 5 minutes.

Let the potato sticks cool on the baking sheet and serve immediately. Leftover sticks can be stored in an airtight container for up to 1 week. If they lose their crunch, reheat in a 400°F oven for 5 to 6 minutes.

Traditional tots are made from russet potatoes, but I like to grate in a little bit of sweet potato or yam. Keeping the skins on helps to preserve some of the nutrients, so give your potatoes a good scrub instead of a peel. This recipe, adapted from one by
Cooks Country
magazine, churns out light, fluffy tots with a crispy crust every time. The corn flour and ground millet flour give the tots a little extra crunch, but it’s OK to substitute whole-wheat flour if you prefer
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Place the russet potatoes and sweet potato into the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal cutting blade. Pulse 5 or 6 times until coarsely ground.

In a large bowl, combine the cold water and 2 teaspoons of the salt. Add the potatoes and stir to coat. Drain well through a fine sieve, pushing out as much water as you can.