Good Old Fashioned (Microwave) Popcorn

Much to my dental hygenist's dismay, I love popcorn.  I grew up with the old aluminum Rival corn popper in which you added some corn oil and a couple of tablespoons of golden kernels and in minutes you had fluffy popcorn waiting for oodles of butter and salt...oh those were the days!  

Then sometime in the '80s Orville Redenbacher gave us what we thought was the next best thing to sliced bread...microwave buttered popcorn.  It was hot, buttery and nothing to clean up.  But here we are in the 21st Century and the thing that was too good to be true for every college student with a micro-fridge has been proved not to be so good.  Aside from the expense...have you priced the name brand popcorns lately...there have been a number of studies relating the dangers from inhaling the fumes produced by the food based chemicals released when you open the bag.  Not to mention the second degree burn you get when you just can't wait to rip open the bag!  Dupont and the companies that created or use the chemical (PFOA) that facilitates popping and flavor have agreed to remove the potential carcinogen from their process by 2015.  I have a simpler answer and you don't need to throw your Radar-Range away!  Pop your corn in a brown paper bag!

I have to admit that once I learned about the hazards of microwave popcorn, my consumption dropped way down.  I usually waited to inflict the hazard on myself when I had folks over for a big game or movie night...but no more.  My interest in popcorn was piqued just last week while I was on vacation with the hubby in Key West, Florida.  We went to an awesome restaurant called Fin, just off Duval St, in  a little alley. The chef is a cool guy who loves food...and he loves molecular gastronomy too.  Our server Adam, came over with a bowl of popcorn and told us this was the chef's take on the bread basket...the popcorn was airpopped and then seasoned with a dusting of pulverized lavendar buds and Carribean jerk spices.  The lavendar highlighted the floral notes of the chili peppers and offered a sweetness to the popcorn without being sugary...who woulda thunk that the flavor profile would be so addictively alluring.  I am pleased to say that I will be stealing this concept (if not the flavor combo itself) for future popcorn use.

So, don't waste your money and possibly health on costly microwave popcorn.  Invest in some brown paper lunch bags, some high quality popping corn and you can still use the microwave with the following method:

• Open and stand up a standard sized brown paper lunch bag. 
• Add 1/2 cup of popcorn kernels to the bottom of the bag. 
• Fold the top of the bag over and crease firmly, fold and crease again so the bag remains closed. 
• Caution:   DO NOT STAPLE or TAPE THE BAG!!  Doing this could start a fire in the microwave...so college students be warned...unless of course you need the fire alarm excuse to get out of a homework assignment...which I do not endorse btw!
• Stand the bag up on its bottom in the microwave...do not lay the bag on its side as the popcorn could blow open the bag.
• Microwave on high for 2 1/2 minutes and/or stop when the popping slows to 1 or 2 pops per second. 

There will be unpopped corn in the bag.  You can scoop out the freshly popped corn and try to re-pop the remaining kernels, but really it ain't worth the trouble.  You'll be saving so much money with this method that tossing a few old maids won't break the budget.

Once you've popped the desired amount of corn, you can add melted butter or flavored olive oil for a decadent treat.  If you are watching calories, a few spritzes from butter flavored sprays fit the bill or do like my new, creative chef friend and spice it up.

Some flavor suggestions:
A little spritz of buttery flavored spray helps the seasonings cling to the popcorn

• Grated parmesan cheese and fresh cracked black pepper
• Cinnamon sugar
• Garlic powder and a dried herb blend like Herbes de Provence (you can pulverize these in a spice mill and mix with the garlic powder for a more uniform seasoning)
• Use your favorite dry salad dressing seasoning packet  (Hidden Valley Ranch, Blue Cheese, etc)
• Toss in some chocolate covered raisins and or peanuts and some toffee bits...the chocolate melts onto the popcorn...you've got your own moose munchies!

There is nothing wrong with eating the popcorn straight up...in so doing, popcorn reclaims its spot among the healthy snacks your family can enjoy. 

Let me know what flavor combinations you've tried and liked.  Bon appetit!