How to Make Your Own Homemade Microwave Popcorn: A Healthier, Cheaper Alternative

Popcorn is a crunchy, fun, popular snack. It can actually be quite healthy since it is full of fiber and whole grains, and is thus, very filling. However, sometimes microwave popcorn can be a disaster. It is heavy on the salt which is bad for our blood pressure. Not to mention, there was a recent controversy that the artificial butter flavoring fumes may cause an obstructive lung disease dubbed "popcorn lung". In addition, I've found that the new 100 calorie mini bags of popcorn burn ridiculously easily. Not to mention that in today's economy, buying bags of microwave popcorn can be quite costly.

It's much cheaper to buy a jar of popping corn and pop it yourself. But having to pop the kernels is inconvenient. Either you have to buy a popcorn maker or you have to dirty up a pan and heat up the kernels on the stove, which takes awhile. But guess what, I have another option for you. Did you know you can actually make homemade microwave popcorn?

It is super quick and easy to make homemade popcorn in the microwave! You do not need a fancy popcorn bowl or anything, either. All you will need is popping corn and a brown paper bag.

Purchase a jar of kernel popcorn like this kind found at Orville Redenbacher's website: http://www.orville.com/products_kernalpop.jsp#products.

Take 1/3 cup (3 oz) of popping corn kernels and pour them into your paper bag (the kind you'd put a brown bag lunch in, not the kind you'd get your groceries in). Fold the top of the bag over about 2 inches. Then lay the bag down sideways in your microwave, folded side down. Press the popcorn button or set your microwave as you would for any other bag of popcorn. Stand by and wait until the popping stops or the timer beeps. There you have it!

You can sprinkle salt on top of your popped corn, and take melted butter and pour it on top. Experiment with other spices to flavor your popcorn to your liking, purchase any of the seasonings at www.kernelseasons.com, or even mix in some parmesan cheese.

By the way, I have never burned a bag of homemade microwave popcorn. My bags do end up with unpopped kernels at the bottom, but unlike store-bought microwave popcorn, you can "recycle" these unpopped kernels . Just put them in a clean brown bag and repop!

Making your own homemade microwave popcorn is easy, inexpensive, and certainly tasty. And it truly is healthier than the store-bought stuff; in fact I originally got this recipe from my Weight Watchers leader. Enjoy, and try not to get any hulls stuck in your teeth!