"national popcorn day" news and stories

Happy National Popcorn Day!

Popcorn is one of the oldest snacks around; in fact, dried corn has been popped for more than 6,000 years. The preparation might have changed a little, with today's prominence of stovetop and microwave varieties, but popcorn still tastes delicious standing alone, needing only a dusting of salt to boost its natural flavor.

The typical movie theater fare is standard -- butter, salted to taste -- but popcorn seems to work as a canvas for any flavor palate, be it spicy, sour, sweet or even exotic. Take a look at the popcorn photos featured in our Slashfood Flickr pool for inspiration -- or get adventurous with the spices and oils in your own pantry.

Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot at having your photos featured on the site.

Happy National Popcorn Day!

Enjoy a bowl of the (relatively!) healthful treat any way you like: air-popped or oil-popped; yellow, red, white or blue; and flavors that span the rainbow -- butter, kettlecorn and caramel are barely the tip of the iceberg.

Blogger Erin Cooks reminisced about a popcorn mecca by the name of Bean's Corner Popcorn, which served whimsical bowls of "super sugary, brightly colored and uniquely flavored popcorn varieties," divulging her favorite flavor to be watermelon bubblegum. In an equally visual rendition, pictured here, her "Pretty Pretty Princess Pink Party Popcorn" uses white chocolate and red food coloring to create this fanciful snack.

What's your favorite flavored popcorn? Place your vote and share your corn-based creations in the comments.

Apparently, this is different than National Popcorn Poppin' Month, which was back in October. That month you had to pop the corn yourself. Today I guess you just have to eat it.

Popcorn.org has a bunch of recipes and popcorn facts, while Kraft has a recipe for Chocolate Popcorn Trail Mix. Simply Recipes tells you how to make what they call Perfect Popcorn. If you want to make popcorn in your microwave (but don't want to just throw in a bag of microwave popcorn), All Recipes shows you how. If you don't feel like making popcorn, you can read about the history of Jiffy Pop.

And don't forget the Honey Popcorn Balls Marissa told you a few months ago.