perfect snack food?

one of Yahoo's top stories happens to be about today's post!  coincidence? prolly.   the article claims that popcorn contains more antioxidants than ANY other fruit or vegetable.  that's pretty big news, i'd say.  popcorn really is a great, whole grain, fibrous, healthy snack.

before you saturate it with butter, oil, salt and/or sugar, of course.  it's best to pop it yourself (on the stove or by air popper) so you are in control of the amount of toppings.  i don't have an air popper, so i whip out my pot.  never done it that way? keep reading.

no additives just plain ol' popping corn.

so, 3 tbsp = 3 cups and 1 cup = 25 calories.  i added 1 more tbsp to make it an even 100 calorie snack.

try to use as little oil as possible.  here's a tip though- both cooking spray and olive oil will have your kitchen smoking. it's best to use vegetable or corn oil.  i pour a little in the cap of the bottle and drizzle it in a medium heated pan.  you really don't need more than 1/2 a tsp.  toss in a few test kernels- once they pop, it's time.everybody in.

very important- cover the pan (preferably with the correct top) and shake it back and forth across the burner to keep the kernels from burning.  this also ensures that there are no kernels on top of one another and that they'll all get popped.  you'll need to repeat this shaking process until you don't hear anymore popping.  and yeah i know...i couldn't find the right top though.

keep shaking..almost done.

makes a nice big bowl.

now, add what you want, or eat it plain!  adjust the nutritional stats accordingly.  i normally do LOL butter and keep it at that.   this past time, i found a packet of truvia and made some kettle corn.

if you must snack while watching tv, reading, etc., munch on some homemade popcorn.  even bag it up and take it to work.

is during movie watching the only time you eat popcorn?

le