I was born nearly 58 years ago.

No microwaves, no computers, not even electronic calculators!!

We had black and white televisions. My one set of grandparents had a tv that got mostly snow with maybe a 7 inch diagonal screen in a big box! My other grandparents and one aunt and uncle had color televisions but getting people to not look green or pink was a constant adjustment process and sometimes just ignored.

Phones were wired into a wall outlet and they had rotary dials.

We made popcorn in a pan on the stove. It was a special thing as I remember. Sometimes we had Jiffy Pop which I just googled and is still made! It is advertised as being better than any microwave popcorn…that’s funny!

Last weekend, I visited a specialty vinegar and olive oil store to pick up more white balsamic vinegar: a new obsession. I highly recommend trying it if you like to cook. The store has some kitchen ware and various condiments and goodies. I picked up a package of some of the goodies: Funky Chunky Sea Salt Caramel Chocolate popcorn and cashews. It was good and not horrible ingredients. It got me thinking about popcorn.

I went through a time when I always had some microwave popcorn in the cupboard but have not had any lately…as in years. I remembered that a number of cooking blogs had various flavored popcorn recipes.

Can of worms.

One thing led to another.

I looked at air poppers and popcorn pans with handles and paddles and finally found instructions for making popcorn the way I remember we used to when I was a kid. Oil and a couple of kernels in the pan, heat the oil until the kernels pop, add the rest of the corn, shake a bit until the popping stops.

Guess what??

It still works.

It took maybe 8 minutes start to finish…10 if you count dithering about which pan and what kind of oil to use.

I used a 2 quart sauce pan, 3/4 T of clarified butter (ghee), 3/4 T olive oil and 1/3 cup white popcorn kernels.

I threw on some salt and started munching.

Better than any microwave popcorn.

Minimal clean up, too.

Huh.

Today, I decided to try the salted caramel chocolate version.

Yep, that works, too :)!

A little more labor and cleanup but not bad. I lightened up the amount of caramel and chocolate and salt – one of the benefits of making my own.

Overall, I’m more of a savory snacker and will probably stick to butter, salt and maybe a bit of cheese powder on my popcorn – which I will be making more often – but this makes a fun, sweet treat. And I think a bit healthier than a handful of cookies. It is supposed to last for several weeks in airtight containers.

I am easily entertained…this was fun!

*** I used this recipe except I substitued coconut oil for the butter in the caramel sauce and sprinkled sea salt over all after I drizzled the chocolate.

***the next day: I put the salted-caramel-chocolate popcorn in mason jars, in the refrigerator as even my coolest cupboard is a bit warm at the moment. A taste test this morning reveals that it is good cold and the flavor is even better than the fresh. I am pleasantly surprised!