A solar eclipse doesn’t happen every day. For any given area, the “total” variety — the ones where the moon scoots between the Earth and the sun at just the right distance and the right time to leave a bright halo around it — is a once-in-a-few-centuries kind of event. In North America, one will happen April 8,with prime viewing in the North Atlantic region.
That’s reason to party.
While breaking out your eclipse glasses or building a pinhole viewer to safely enjoy the spectacle, let’s not forget the snacks.
A party like this has a built-in theme — one that can be as elaborate or easy as your time or budget allow.
If you want to do it up big, embrace the fun of colors and shapes. Use white or yellow to represent the sun and black or dark colors for the moon. Circles and crescents are simple to embrace even without cutting tools.
A round pumpernickel bread is a perennial favorite hollowed out and filled with dip. For a themed twist, cut out a crescent moon and replace the spinach dip it might normally hold with a bright, sunny cheddar spread. Toast the chunks you removed with a drizzle of olive oil and seasoning for dipping.
Quesadillas are easy half-moons. Fill them with cheddar and a taco-y filling of beef and black beans. When you fold them, make them just a little offset, giving you a thin wedge of color on the side that plays to the idea.
What’s a party without pizza? A little herby crust topped with mozzarella gets a lunar twist with a halved meatball in the center. A bright yellow corn muffin gets a similar look with a black olive baked in the batter.
Desserts are easy to give an eclipse look. Cupcakes with sun and moon candy decorations sell the theme in a snap.
But maybe you don’t have time to bake sweets or carve up a bread bowl. Don’t worry. You still have a simple, store-bought route to take. Focus less on the shapes and more on the names.
There are plenty of celestial-themed foods out there. Sun Chips. Moon Pies. Cosmic Brownies. Wash it all down with some Sunny D? What about a Capri Sun for the kids and maybe a Blue Moon for the grown-ups?
Whether you’re having a real watch party at 2 p.m. on a Monday or you’re taking the inspiration for a fun-packed lunch or an out-of-this-world dinner, it’s all about changing how you look at everyday items or how you present them. Just like the eclipse.
Pumpernickel cheese dip
1 round pumpernickel bread
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon minced onion
1 teaspoon dried dill
8 ounces softened cream cheese
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
8 ounces shredded cheddar
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon salt
Preheat oven to 350. Slice the top inch or two off the bread so you have a flat, even top. With a knife, carve out a crescent shape in the loaf, leaving about an inch of crust as a wall. Cube the removed bread and the top.
In a small bowl, mix the oil, garlic powder, onion and dill. Brush some on the inside of the pumpernickel loaf. Toss the remaining oil mixture with bread cubes. Place both the loaf and the cubes on a cookie sheet and bake 10 minutes or until cubes are lightly crisped. Be careful, because the dark color of the bread will hide over-browning. Set aside.
In a bowl, mix cream cheese, mayo and sour cream until smooth. Add cheese, cayenne, white pepper and salt, mixing completely. Fill in crescent cavity in bread. Serve cold or room temperature for spreading, or bake 10-15 minutes and serve warm for dipping.
Quarter-moon quesadillas
8 ounces ground beef
1 can black beans, drained
1 package taco seasoning
10 flour tortillas
8 ounces shredded cheddar
Optional: jalapeno slices, salsa
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a skillet, brown ground beef. Add black beans and taco seasoning. Heat about five minutes. Mash beans slightly. Build quesadillas by covering two-thirds of a tortilla with cheese and spreading the beef and bean mixture in the middle. Add jalapeno slices, if desired. Fold the remaining third of the tortilla over, creating a visible crescent of cheese.
Place quesadillas on a greased sheet pan. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted and tortilla is crisped. Serve with salsa.
Lunar meatball pizzettes
3 cups self-rising flour
2 cups Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
4 ounces shredded provolone
4 ounces shredded mozzarella
2 ounces Parmesan
12 ounces frozen meatballs, thawed
Marinara
Preheat oven to 400. In a bowl, mix flour, yogurt, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper to form a dough. Knead with additional flour until no longer sticky. Allow to rest about 10 minutes.
Cut dough into 24 portions. Stretch or roll into flat rounds, about 4-inch to 6-inch diameter. Mix cheeses together and sprinkle over dough. Cut meatballs in half and place one half, cut side down, on each round. Place on sheet pans and bake for about 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve with marinara.
Lori Falce is the Tribune-Review community engagement editor and an opinion columnist. For more than 30 years, she has covered Pennsylvania politics, Penn State, crime and communities. She joined the Trib in 2018. She can be reached at lfalce@triblive.com.
