Here’s a super quick and easy way to make home-made kettle popcorn (link is at bottom of post), from Angela at the Home Cooked Healthy blog. I tried it this past weekend, with rave reviews from everyone in my family. She uses grape seed oil, which tastes great, and according to Maximized Living, is a healthy oil with a high smoke point, but occasionally I see mixed reviews on the health benefits. I absolutely love using it, so I have not made a definite decision yet. Coconut oil, from what I have found, gets amazing reviews from everyone who cooks with oil and who knows anything about truly healthy fats.  The only down side is a slight coconut taste in some foods, which many do not consider a “down side” at all. The other plus for me is that I can grab ORGANIC coconut oil from Trader Joes, but I do not think their grape seed oil is organic. You decide what’s best for your family, but see the link on bad oils below and do not use those!

You can also make this popcorn without the ingredients that flavor it like kettle corn, and just have it plain with a little sea salt. OH my. SO good. Be warned: once you move to stove top popcorn with grape seed or coconut oil (if you don’t know the billions of benefits, you must click that coconut oil link now and be amazed), you will never feel the same way about that nasty bagged stuff you used to put in the microwave. And you know the inside of the bag is lined with plastic, right?! Not a good idea for the microwave. A big bag of organic popcorn seeds is about a $1.50 at Trader Joes. Organic coconut oil is $6 there, and you get a zillion more servings than a box of 6 microwave bags. OK, maybe not quite a zillion, but a LOT. Organic is not always more expensive, y’all. And I’m sorry if you don’t have access to a Trader Joes near you. My local grocery (Harris Teeter) has organic seeds in their store brand; hope you can find something similar. And do NOT use these oils, but stick with the healthiest choices for high heat, extra virgin organic coconut oil or grape seed oil. Now go on and click the kettle corn link below and enjoy her wonderful blog!

Organic Kettle Popcorn and Wonder Woman | |.

Remember: all stevia products have a different sweetness level, so add your stevia brand according to your taste, unless you are using the exact same brand as the recipe’s author. Do not just “blindly” add what the recipe calls for, ever, in any stevia recipe. Every single brand is different.  Lastly, if you want this 100% organic, every product you use in making it needs to be organic as well: organic oil, stevia, seeds, salt and butter.

Encouraging Health,

Organic Eater

PS: yes, I do consider corn a grain, so, for me, it’s a treat. My kids eat it more often than I do.