The Princess and the Frog

By a cousin's request, here is a popcorn recipe fit for a frog!...er...princess!... frogcess? prin...og.... hmmm...

*awkward jazz hands*


Jazzy Gumbo Popcorn

3 T rendered bacon grease
1/2 c. popcorn kernels
Packet of Gumbo/Creole Seasoning to taste

OR

Make your own*!
*this recipe makes 1 3/4 cups (22 tablespoons) obviously you will not need all of this but you can put it in a jar and use it for other recipes... which I am sure you put together all by your smart self. 

2 T onion powder
2 T garlic powder
2 T dried oregano
2 T dried basil
1 T dried thyme
1 T black pepper
1 T white pepper
1 T cayenne pepper
5 T paprika
3 T salt
1 T celery powder
1 T savory

and then...
1 T butter (or more if you're crazy like that)
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp tabasco sauce/hot sauce (or more if...again... you're crazy like that)

Directions
Add the oil and popcorn kernels to a heavy 3- to 4-quart saucepan with a lid. Shake the pan to coat the kernels with oil. The kernels should cover the bottom of the pan in a single layer.

Cover the pan and place it over medium high heat. When the corn begins to pop, lift it slightly from the heat and shake the pan every so often (does not have to be continuous), holding the lid in place, until the popping begins to slow, about 3 to 4 minutes. Pour into bowl or bag big enough to toss further ingredients.

Melt the butter. Then mix in Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce. Sprinkle Gumbo/Creole seasoning to taste and toss. Now go kiss a frog, princess, you're ready for a movie!

Lilo and Stitch

This was another movie I actually had never seen. Thanks to Netflix, that has now been taken care of. It was pretty cute! I <3 Hawaii so I am really wanting to do this justice. SPAM flavor anyone?!? Just kidding ;-) Actually, we're going a bit more movie specific, not just Hawaii themed. Nothing against spam. I found a recipe that involves peanut butter and so incorporated that to create....

Popcorn for Pudge
Peanut Butter Coconut Popcorn

3 T coconut oil
1/2 c. popcorn kernels

2 or 4 generous tablespoons agave syrup*
1/4 or 1/2 C peanut butter*
pinch fine sea salt, to taste depending how salty you would like it

*You can range it from a light peanut butter flavor to super PB fan levels, just keep the ratios about the same and you're golden. If you want to be even more coconutty, sub coconut oil for the agave! I actually used honey and it worked out good, too. Even better, do 50/50 of honey and coconut oil. Now you're getting fancy pants.

Directions

For the popcorn, add the oil and popcorn kernels to a heavy 3- to 4-quart saucepan with a lid. Shake the pan to coat the kernels with oil. The kernels should cover the bottom of the pan in a single layer.

Cover the pan and place it over medium high heat. When the corn begins to pop, lift it slightly from the heat and shake the pan every so often (does not have to be continuous), holding the lid in place, until the popping begins to slow, about 3 to 4 minutes. Pour into bowl or bag big enough to toss further ingredients.

Heat the peanut butter and agave (or coconut oil or honey or both) on medium low heat in a nonstick pan briefly, just until melted and completely combined. Be sure to stir the entire time so the mixture doesn’t burn.

Pour this mixture evenly over the bowl of popcorn and immediately stir with large spoons and toss like a salad until the popcorn is evenly coated. Be careful not to crush the popcorn while stirring. Sprinkle on the sea salt to taste.

From the original recipe creator: "If you used the smaller quantities listed to produce a lovely peanut butter treat, but now decided you want to amp it up, it’s not too late to make another small batch of peanut butter agave on the stove and toss it again to intensify the flavor!"

Now go ride that Hawaiian roller coaster you crazy kids! 

The Avengers

Love this movie! And if you also love this movie, you know the epic, hilarious ending involving the team silently eating at a shawarma restaurant.


What better way to set this movie apart from the other superhero movie requests than to come up with a seasoning combo inspired by the tasty treat?

I recommend the use of a grinder, if you have one. I have one of those Bella Rocket Blenders and it has the grinder on it. You don't HAVE to, it's mainly because dill and parsley tend to be larger leaved and so if you want more spread from them you have to grind them down in some way. Also, instead of tahini I used sesame seeds, so those would also need to be ground. What I did was add all the seasonings together in the cup and then ground them all together. Worked great.





Post World Saving Battle Shawarma Popcorn 
3 T olive oil
1/2 c popcorn kernels

1/2 tsp garlic
1/16 tsp cardamom

1/16 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp lemon pepper

1/16 tsp dill

1/2 tsp parsley
1/4 tsp sesame seeds 

Directions

Add the oil and popcorn kernels to a heavy 3- to 4-quart saucepan with a lid. Shake the pan to coat the kernels with oil. The kernels should cover the bottom of the pan in a single layer.

Cover the pan and place it over medium high heat. When the corn begins to pop, lift it slightly from the heat and shake the pan every so often (does not have to be continuous), holding the lid in place, until the popping begins to slow, about 3 to 4 minutes. Pour into bowl or bag big enough to toss further ingredients.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Released TODAY on blu-ray! what what! Which is why this request got bumped to the top. Fun times.

As I mentioned in the Captain America: The First Avenger post, the original suggestion was for The Winter Solider, but there was some playful banter over whether or not the popcorn would be American or communist :-) So as a continuation of that joking about, The First Avenger got the all-American recipe and Winter Solider is going to be influenced by Soviet Russian cuisine in honor of Bucky the brainwashed.

I seem to learn something new on a lot of these endeavors, which is fun for me. This go around I learned that Anya Von Bremzen is an authority on this area of cuisine (she has a book if you want to learn more). It is her recipes I referred to for this flavor combo, specifically her recipes for Kotleti and Borscht.

PS Don't be scared of the beet juice, it's really just for color :-) And it was part of the banter. Honestly! You can't even taste it. And it just made the popcorn pink, so if you want to leave it out feel free. 

Can you see the movie in he background?! 

The Winter Solider
1/2 c. popcorn
3 T canola oil OR rendered bacon fat

1 T butter
1 tsp sour cream

1 tsp beet juice

1/6 tsp mustard
1/8 tsp onion powder
1/16 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp dill

1/8 tsp parsley
1/8 tsp salt
1/16 tsp ground black pepper

Directions
Add the oil and popcorn kernels to a heavy 3- to 4-quart saucepan with a lid. Shake the pan to coat the kernels with oil. The kernels should cover the bottom of the pan in a single layer.

Cover the pan and place it over medium high heat. When the corn begins to pop, lift it slightly from the heat and shake the pan every so often (does not have to be continuous), holding the lid in place, until the popping begins to slow, about 3 to 4 minutes. Pour into bowl or bag big enough to toss further ingredients.

Combine dry ingredients (mustard, onion powder, garlic powder, dill, parsley, salt, ground black pepper). Dill and parsley are usually bigger, so I suggest grinding the seasonings down for better coverage. I just used my fingers and that worked well.

Melt butter then add sour cream and beet juice to it, mix well. Pour over popcorn and toss. Add seasoning and toss again.  

Murder, She Wrote

When my cousin and aunt first suggested a TV show, I wasn't sure it would work but if there is one thing constant about Murder, She Wrote (besides the whole murder thing) it's that Jessica Fletcher is proudly from Maine. So this one involved looking at a lot of Maine lobster recipes.

Like a lot.

Lobster isn't something they dress up much in Maine, it turns out. They don't need to, it's awesome as is. But lobster on popcorn? How would that work?

Ultimately, I went for a flavor profile that took both the lobster roll and lobster chowder concepts into account. Both very classic and somewhat similar in how they treat their lobster with creamy, zingy and savory elements. All-in-all, I think the lemon and vinegar make the most difference. It's a very subtle difference, but it's a tang that makes this recipe different from a typical salt and butter combo.

Cabot Cove Popcorn
1/2 c. popcorn
3 T canola oil
1T butter
1 tsp cream cheese
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/8 tsp vinegar

1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp garlic
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp dried tarragon
1/8 tsp cayenne

Directions
Add the oil and popcorn kernels to a heavy 3- to 4-quart saucepan with a lid. Shake the pan to coat the kernels with oil. The kernels should cover the bottom of the pan in a single layer.

Cover the pan and place it over medium high heat. When the corn begins to pop, lift it slightly from the heat and shake the pan every so often (does not have to be continuous), holding the lid in place, until the popping begins to slow, about 3 to 4 minutes. Pour into bowl or bag big enough to toss further ingredients. 

Combine butter, lemon juice, vinegar and cream cheese in a microwavable ramekin with a cover. Heat in microwave for 15-30 seconds, until the butter has melted. Mix with small whisk or fork (Fair warning: it might look like baby spit up...but it spread over the popcorn just fine). Pour over popcorn and toss or stir until covered evenly. 

Combine dry seasonings (salt, garlic salt, onion powder, dried tarragon, cayenne) and season to taste.