Perfect Popcorn 4 Delicious Ways!

I just love popcorn. It takes me back to watching movies on the VHS with my friends and family back in the day. My Dad was the popcorn master. His specialty was just the standard – popcorn with melted butter. Gosh it was delicious. Lately I find myself on the quest for popcorn with other flavors. I’ve found many supermarkets are carrying specialty popcorn brands with interesting flavors. Then it dawned on me, why not make my own?

Low and behold I found this recipe in my inbox from Nutrition Stripped! I hope you find these as delicious as I do!

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Cinnamon & Sea Salt
Cinnamon is delicious but it’s also great to combine with carbohydrate or starch rich foods, such as corn or popcorn because of it’s ability to help your body balance blood sugars that naturally rise when we eat sugar or carbohydrate containing foods. So think of giving yourself a little boost of blood sugar balance by adding cinnamon to your popcorn.  You can also add a drizzle of honey on top just before serving to increase the sweetness.

What you’ll add to the “Perfect Popcorn Every Time” recipe below: 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (I love Ceylon variety) + 2 teaspoons coarse sea salt, adjust each spice to taste. Toss to combine and adjust seasonings to your taste.

Turmeric Spiced
Anti-inflammatory popcorn? Adding ground turmeric, which you all know is an obvious favorite of mine, mixed with warming spices and sea salt to give this popcorn a Indian and Moroccan vibe with a boost of anti-inflammatory and antioxidants. The combination of sweet drizzled honey on top of a pretty robust flavored popcorn is heavenly! Just get ready for sticky fingers and have a damp paper towel nearby…oh, and don’t rub them on your clothes or the turmeric will stain.

What you’ll add to the “Perfect Popcorn Every Time” recipe below: 2-3 teaspoons ground turmeric + 1 teaspoon ground cumin + 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander + 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes + 2 teaspoons sea salt. Adjust all seasonings to your taste; I prefer a lot of turmeric and red pepper flakes so I normally add more. Add these ingredients right after the popcorn has popped, I find stirring these ingredients into the same pot very easy and helpful for evenly coating all the popcorn. You can always use a little extra coconut oil to help the spices evenly coat. Lastly, drizzle honey on top right before serving.

Herb & Cheese
I had to share a classic everyone will love and that involves cheese coated popcorn…sans cheese! Nutritional yeast is the star ingredient here making this cheesy yet flaky popcorn. Added bonus, it’s full of protein and B vitamins. Also remember, nutritional yeast isn’t an active form of yeast, so those of you with any yeast overgrowth of yeast allergies can most often get away with using this without any issues.

What you’ll add to the “Perfect Popcorn Every Time” recipe below: 1/2 cup nutritional yeast + 2 tablespoons olive oil + 1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley, rosemary, and chives + 2 teaspoons sea salt + top with red pepper flakes. Nutritional yeast loves to stick to things, so adding more oil will help this process and note it’s completely normal for some not to stick and fall to the bottom of the bowl. Just scoop it up with your hands! Add these ingredients right after the popcorn has popped, I find stirring these ingredients into the same pot very easy and helpful for evenly coating all the popcorn. You can always use a little extra coconut oil to help the spices evenly coat.

Matcha Dark Chocolate
I confessed my love of matcha tea last week, so it’s no surprise it’s showing up in a completely unique way, in popcorn! The flavor is nutty, sweet, and slightly bitter from the combination of dark chocolate and tea, a really lovely combination though.

What you’ll add to the “Perfect Popcorn Every Time” recipe below: 3 teaspoons matcha tea powder + 1 teaspoon sea salt. Add these ingredients right after the popcorn has popped, I find stirring these ingredients into the same pot very easy and helpful for evenly coating all the popcorn. You can always use a little extra coconut oil to help the spices evenly coat. For the chocolate sauce: 1/2 cup cocoa powder + 1/4 heaping cup coconut oil + 1 tablespoon maple syrup melted in a small saucepan just to combine. Lastly, drizzle melted raw chocolate on top right before serving.

PERFECT POPCORN EVERY TIME
Prep time: 5 mins
Cook time: 7 mins
Total time: 12 mins

Learn how to make the perfect popcorn every time, four ways including herb and cheese, matcha dark chocolate, turmeric spiced, and cinnamon sea salt. GF VGN

Author: McKel Hill, MS, RD, LDN
Recipe type: snack
Serves: 4 servings
Ingredients
•    1 cup popcorn kernels (use organic, non-GMO)
•    2 heaping tablespoons organic coconut oil
•    Pinch of sea salt

Instructions
1.    In a large and deep pot on high heat, make sure the pot is hot before adding coconut oil, then allow the coconut oil to heat (about 30 seconds), then add popcorn kernels into the pot.
2.    Immediately cover with a tight lid and vigorously shake back and forth over the stove/heat source. This will ensure you’re distributing the heat evenly, not burning any kernels and allowing the already popped kernels float to the top.
3.    Continue moving the pot back and forth (to and away from you) quickly and constantly until all kernels have popped.

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