Munchy Monday ~ Garlic Popcorn

Popcorn is a staple in our household. We eat it during movie nights, we take it as snacks for the elementary kiddos we mentor and sometimes I put it in cookies (another recipe for another day)! But the other night, as I was cooking up some plain corn during my viewing of Gilmore Girls Season 2, I added something that will revolutionize my popcorn consumption from now on; GARLIC. 

Learn to make your own garlic popcorn in a few easy steps. 

Gather these simple ingredients-

2-3 TB Spoons Olive Oil (Other options: Canola oil, grapeseed oil, or your choice of oil with a high smoke point) 
1/3 cup popcorn (Any will do, but we like the Ruby Red Archer Farms popcorn from Target) 
Salt to taste (I like to use Kosher salt) 
1 TB Spoons Minced Garlic (freshly minced or store-bought. Adjust to taste) 
Medium-Sized Sauce Pan with Lid 

First, heat your oil in the pan over medium high heat, just like your grandma used to do. While the oil is heating, put 1-2 kernels of popcorn in, cover and wait til you hear them pop. Then you'll know the oil is hot enough. 

When your kernels have popped, pour the rest of the popcorn into the pan. It should be one kernel deep and covering the bottom of the pan. Cover. 

Once the pan is covered, remove the pan from heat and count for 30 seconds. Or you can watch this: 

Waiting insures that the oil is the correct temperature and heats the kernels evenly so they will all pop at the same time. No burnt kernels for us! Watching Ketchup Bot insures that you laugh today and thus, live longer. Your welcome. 

Third, return the pan to heat and move it in a circular motion and back and forth over the burner, keeping the kernels moving so that they don't stick to the bottom of the pan. If you want drier, crunchy popcorn, keep the lid slightly ajar to let the steam escape. Popping should begin almost instantly. Once popping slows to several seconds between pops, remove from heat. 

This is when I like to sprinkle in my salt and add the garlic. Once it's in the pot, put the lid back on and shake it like a Polaroid picture. Or, you know. Like a pot of popcorn. 

Pour your garlicky goodness into a bowl and enjoy! If you want butter, feel free to add it at this point, but I find when I use olive oil, I don't really need the butter.

Now that you've made yourself a nice, tasty bowl of popcorn, sit down and enjoy some fun facts! Or re-watch that Ketchup bot! (Don't judge me. I have simple tastes.) 

• Popcorn is a good source of fiber! But let's be real. If I was interested in my fiber intake, I'd be drinking a glass of Metamucil every day. Popcorn is just plain delicious. I don't need to sell it to you.

• Compared to most snack foods, popcorn is low in calories. Air-popped popcorn has only 31 calories per cup. Oil-popped is only 55 per cup. 

• Most popcorn comes in two basic shapes when it's popped: snowflake and mushroom. Snowflake is used in movie theaters and ballparks because it looks and pops bigger. Mushroom is used for candy confections because it doesn't crumble.

Do you have any clever popcorn add-ins that I should know about? Do tell, friends! Do tell.