The Emporia Gazette

February 14, 2012

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It’s national popcorn month, and so the National Popcorn Board sent me a bunch of stuff in--what else--a bubble mailer.

I know a lot of these food columns are pretty fluffy, but this week it’s puffy popcorn providing the lighthearted take on eating.

Did you know that only popcorn will pop? There are four primary kinds of corn kernels, but only one has the magic stuff it takes to fly out of the pan and into your mouth. Not sweet, not dent, not flint. Popcorn.

Evidently, Native Americans believed that a spirit lived inside of each kernel. When the kernel was heated, the spirit became angry, burst out of its home and fled into the air in a burst of steam. Bet you never heard that one before! All kinds of popcorn knowledge is available through the “Encyclopedia Popcornica” at www.popcorn.org.

There’s also a “very cool” video of a kernel in the popping process. It’s in super slow motion. Popcorn is scientifically known as Zea mays everta, and is a member of the grass family.

According to the Popcorn Board, each kernel of popcorn contains a small drop of water stored inside a circle of soft starch, which is surrounded by the kernel's hard outer surface. As the kernel heats up, the water begins to expand. Around 212 degrees the water turns into steam and changes the starch inside each kernel into a super hot gelatinous “goop”. The kernel continues to heat to about 347 degrees. The pressure inside the grain will reach 135 pounds per square inch before finally bursting the hull open.  As it explodes, steam inside the kernel is released. The soft starch inside the popcorn becomes inflated and spills out, cooling immediately and forming into the puffy popcorn we all love to munch, at nearly 50 times its original size!

In this delicious Sugar and Spice Popcorn the caramel taste of brown sugar is complemented by a zesty hit of chili powder, paprika and cumin

SUGAR AND SPICE

POPCORN

2 quarts (8 cups) air-popped popcorn

2 Tbsp. brown sugar

2 tsp. chili powder

2 tsp. paprika

2 tsp. ground cumin

Butter-flavored cooking spray

Combine brown sugar, chili powder, paprika, and cumin in small bowl and mix well. Place cooked popcorn in bowl; spray lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle with spice mixture. Toss to mix until kernels are coated. Store in an airtight container.

Ms. Popcorn is a whole grain, low in fat and calories, and a complex carbohydrate with plenty of natural fiber. Now, adding things as we do in this recipe, will affect your caloric intake, but since you’re starting with a health base, it will be a whole lot better for you than a candy bar!

CHEESY PEPPERONI

POPCORN

12 cups air-popped popcorn

3/4 cup turkey pepperoni, cut into bite-size bits

Olive-oil cooking spray

1/4 cup nonfat parmesan cheese

2 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. dried oregano

1/4 tsp. dried marjoram leaves

1/4 tsp. dried basil leaves

1/8 tsp. dried sage

Black pepper, to taste

Combine Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, oregano, marjoram, basil, sage, and pepper in a small bowl; mix well. Place cooked popcorn and turkey pepperoni in a large bowl; spray lightly with cooking spray. Sprinkle popcorn and pepperoni with cheese mixture and toss to coat evenly. Serve while watching old Sophia Loren or Fellini movies.

This next recipe is perfect for a special treat. Maybe serve it July 4th in honor of George Washington, who, as we all know, may or may not have cut down a cherry tree in his youth.

Cherries — whether dried, fresh, juiced, or frozen — contain a number of antioxidants, and nutrients like beta carotene, vitamins C & E, potassium, magnesium, iron, fiber and folate.

APRICOT-CHERRY

POPCORN SQUARES

10 cups air-popped popcorn

3/4 cup dried cherries

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp. water

1/2 cup sugar-free apricot preserves

1/4 cup light corn syrup

1/2 tsp. lemon juice

Combine popcorn and cherries in large bowl. Combine sugar, water, preserves, corn syrup, and lemon juice in a small saucepan; bring to a boil and cook, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves. Cook until mixture forms thick, "ropey" threads that drip from the spoon. Pour slowly over popped popcorn and mix thoroughly. Spray a 9-x-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Press mixture into baking dish and cool completely before cutting into squares and serving.

Here’s another popcorn bar recipe for your summertime enjoyment. Perhaps your next luau?

TROPICAL FRUIT AND NUT POPCORN BARS

1 cup honey

1 1/3 cups peanut butter

1 (6 oz.) bag tropical dried fruit bits

1 cup sliced almonds

4 cups popped popcorn

Line a 9-x-13-inch baking pan with foil. Spray foil lightly with cooking spray; set aside. Heat honey in a large saucepan until boiling. Stir in peanut butter until well blended. Remove pan from heat and stir in fruit bits, almonds and popcorn until coated. Scoop and press mixture evenly into prepared pan. Refrigerate until cool. Cut into bars to serve.

It’s almost Murphy’s Menu Summer Cook-Off time. We’ve got four lined up for you this year: Pies on June 25, Barbecue Sauce on June 25, Jams and Jellies on July 19, and Salsa on July 23. Mark your calendars now. Fame and Fortune await! Let’s get cooking!