Popcorn is a favorite snack for many families and comes in a few different colors, including red, blue, yellow, and white. It is easy to eat while playing cards or board games. Most people know popcorn is a favorite snack at sporting events and movies.
What makes popcorn a great snack? It is a whole grain, which means it contains the germ, endosperm, and pericarp (also known as the hull) and it is low in calories. Air popped popcorn has 30 calories per cup. Oil-popped popcorn has 35 calories per cup. It also can be flavored with different herbs and spices to fit your taste, or mixed with dried fruit, nuts and cereal for a quick trail mix. To keep popcorn as a healthy snack, be careful when adding salt and butter, as they will add sodium, fat and calories.
Kicked-Up Popcorn
- Popcorn (air-popped, microwave, etc.)
- Topping Options: 2 teaspoons of one of the following (taco seasoning, flavored gelatin, Parmesan cheese, cinnamon-sugar, or herbs such as rosemary or oregano)
Directions:
- Wash hands with soap and water.
- Prepare popcorn either in an air popper, in a microwave according to package directions or on top of the stove. Measure 6 cups.
- Let popcorn cool a little and then add one of the toppings of your choice.
- Shake the popcorn in a bag or bowl to coat the popcorn. Popcorn can be sprayed with cooking spray to help the topping stick. Enjoy!
Nutrition analysis used air-popped popcorn and taco seasoning.
Nutrition Information:
Fun facts about popcorn:
- According to the USDA, Nebraska and Indiana grow most of the popcorn.
- Nebraska produces an estimated 250 million pounds of popcorn per year—more than any other state.
- Americans eat around 17 billion quarts of popcorn every year. This amount would fill the Empire State Building 18 times.
- Popcorn can pop up to three feet in the air.
- If you made a trail of popcorn from New York City to Los Angeles, you would need more than 352,028,160 popped kernels.
Popcorn is not just for eating, check out the following ideas for other ways to use popcorn.
- Stringing Popcorn: These can be hung outside for birds to eat or hung on your Christmas tree.
- Popcorn Air Hockey: Use a straw to blow the kernels back and forth, or your hands as paddles to "volley" the kernel back and forth 20 times without letting it fall.
- Popcorn Relay Race: In teams, use spoons to transport popcorn back and forth.
- Popcorn Basketball: Flick a piece of popcorn into the basket (muffin tins, small cups or your own mouth).
Source:
The Popcorn Board - https://www.popcorn.org
This newsletter has been peer-reviewed. It was reviewed and updated in 2023.
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