I love popcorn. I’m pretty sure it’s my favorite snack. I am never too full for it, its crunch makes me think of so many things, from movies to people to my dogs I’ve shared it with. It soothes me. Is it weird to have an emotional attachment to popcorn? And how my love of it has evolved from the buttery mess at the movies (yes I used to stop them half way to add butter to the middle) to a light and healthy version today. Ahh, popcorn. I love thee so.
I learned about making it on the stove out of necessity. Of course we did jiffy pop on the stove when I was little before microwave popcorn. But then it was always microwave. Until I spent a semester of college in England. I couldn’t find microwave popcorn anywhere!!
What to do?!? Then a flat mate told me to just make it on the stove. Interesting. A little oil. Pop pop pop. Salt. Add a little sugar – what?!? Boom, magic. This was nearly 20 years ago. From then on, it was stovetop or bust. Of course, as I aged, so too did the gourmet spin I would put on it. A few years ago, I was popping a small bowl of perfection nearly every night with a pinch of sugar and a generous dash of truffle salt. This is my favorite popcorn. I share the magic now with you. Enjoy!! If I’m feeling really indulgent, I’ll toss a few dark chocolate or white chocolate chips into it while it’s hot so they melt ever so slightly.
But in a pinch, when I don’t want to pop myself, I turn to Skinny Pop popcorn.
Tonight, I tried the Dusted Dark Chocolate Popcorn from Skinny Pop and paired it with a Coffee Cream Stout from Starr Hill. The popcorn is perfectly sweet and salty, not too much of either. The beer is the black coffee variety, not a latte or macchiato by any means. A very nice pairing!!
Eat, Drink, and Go! 