Skip to main content

Popcorn!

Craig likes his popcorn with butter, sriracha and nutritional yeast

Popcorn used to be one of my most favorite snacks. When I was a little kid in the 80's, everyone had one of those air popping machines at their house (do you remember those? They were always yellow and white, and they had a little compartment to melt the butter). I loved watching the popcorn pour out of the spout and then pouring melted butter over the whole bowl.

Then, of course, came microwave popcorn. No cubicle filled office is complete without the smell of artificial butter wafting from the kitchen area.

Unfortunately, we haven't had a microwave for years, so no popcorn for us. But! Did you know that you can make popcorn on the stove top, with just a big pan and a lid? Yeah, you probably did. I think everyone knew about this but me. We made it last night and I was giddy with excitement. Craig looked at me like I came from another planet.

Just in case you are the only other person who didn't know how to do this, here's what you do:

~Pour 3 Tbl of vegetable oil in a large pan. Place a few (3-5) kernels in the oil. Turn heat to high and cover with lid (preferably a clear one, so you can see the magic happen).
~when the kernels pop, pour 1/3 cup more kernels in.
~while your kernels are popping away, make sure to agitate the pan and shake it back and forth. This insures that you will keep your kernels moving and you won't burn the bottom layer.
~when it sounds like the kernels have stopped popping, remove from heat.
~BE CAREFUL when you remove the lid. Some of the kernels might be late poppers. I had one fly at my face last night when I removed the lid and peered into the pot. Also, there may be a bit of steam.
~gleefully pour melted butter, salt, nutritional yeast, parmesan cheese or any other topping your heart desires.
~make again tomorrow!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Bacon Makes it Better - Roasted Cabbage with Bacon

As I mentioned in this week's check in , roasted cabbage with bacon is one of my favorite dishes. The sweetness of the cabbage and onions with the smoky saltness of the bacon just can't be beat. There are a bunch of very similar recipes all over the internet, but I first saw it over at the kitchn . Roasted Cabbage with Bacon adapted (slightly) from Faith Durand 's recipe at thekitchn.com 1 head of green cabbage, outer leaves removed, cored and quartered (I've made this with red cabbage and it's just as good) 2 red onions, peeled and quartered 5 slices of thick bacon, cut into large pieces Salt and Pepper Heat the oven to 450. Place the cabbage and onion in a large roasting dish. Drape the bacon over the veggies. Please in the oven and cook 15 minutes. Flip the cabbage and onion and place back in the oven for another 15 minutes. Check your cabbage - if it's roasted to your liking, toss with salt and pepper to taste and serve. If it needs furth...

Red Wine Vinaigrette

If you are trying to get away from pre-packaged, processed foods, salad dressings are the easiest place to start. Any dressing can be made at home, from a simple vinaigrette to a creamy blue cheese. My current favorite is a red wine vinaigrette. This couldn't be easier to make and I always get a ton compliments on it when I serve it to guests. Here is a rough guide (it's not exact enough for me to really call it a recipe - adjust the amounts depending on how much dressing you need at the moment). Red Wine Vinaigrette garlic, one clove roughly chopped salt dried oregano dried basil fresh ground pepper red wine vinegar olive oil The trick to making a yummy salad dressing is starting with a garlic paste, using a mortar and pestle. Place the chopped garlic and a few pinches of salt in the mortar. Using the pestle, grind into a paste. It should look something like this: Once you have your garlic paste, put in whatever container you are going to use for storing and serving the dressi...

Mushroom Soup

It's been a while since our last post, as our friends Gabriel and Tracey were visiting from San Francisco last week.  They are two of our most favorite people; smart, funny and fun to be around. If you get a second, you should check out Tracey's blog, warm as toast . She writes tidbits about her life and things that inspire her. It's the first thing I look for when I log in to google reader. While you're at it (and while I am shamelessly promoting my friends), check out u-dot music to listen to some of the music Gabe has worked on. Gabe and Tracey love food as much as we do, so we spent the better part of the week drinking a bit too much and eating way too much. To counterbalance the week of excess, I was in need of something nutritious, earthy and easy. The answer: mushroom soup and green salad with red wine vinaigrette (if you are looking to move away from packaged/processed/pre-made foods, salad dressings are the easiest place to start....more on that later). I...