Homemade Microwave Popcorn

I heard it before-- that one could make his or her own microwave popcorn.   I wondered if it was true.  Well, it is. Today I had a craving for popcorn, but no microwave popcorn on hand.  Then I remembered that my dad left some popcorn kernels here from the weekend.  But I don't have an air-popper or a StirCrazy and I've never made it over the stove before so I didn't trust myself to do that.  However, my kids do pack their lunches and I have a plethora of large paper lunch bags.

1 large paper lunch sack
1/4 C un-popped popcorn
2 tsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
* Add 1 Tbsp Sugar to the oil first if you want a hint of sweetness

Place popcorn, oil, and salt into paper lunch sack.  Roll sack closed two times and shake well.  Leaving sack closed, place onto a paper towel in microwave.  Microwave popcorn 1-5 minutes until 5 seconds in between pops.  Add more salt or melted butter if desired.

NOTE:  I used my microwave "popcorn" setting and it worked perfectly. 

One nice thing is that there weren't nearly as many "blunts" (seeds) left in the batch than with certain brands of microwave popcorn.  I love that this doesn't have all of the preservatives as the store-bought microwave popcorn and also, it's way cheaper than buying the store-bought microwave popcorn!  I may never buy that again.

Cinnamon Spiced Nuts

I love these fresh out of the oven... It's almost worth burning my tongue over!  They are sooo good and make your kitchen smell sooo sweet and they are sooo easy to make!  I found this same basic recipe on a couple of different Internet sites each with a variation here or there.

These make pretty simple gifts with a big bang when added to small mason jars and tied off with holiday ribbon.  I love giving these as hostess gifts.  The only problem I have is one batch is never enough.  :)

1/3 C brown sugar
2/3 C granulated sugar
1 tsp kosher salt (I used my sea salt grinders and it worked great)
pinch cayenne pepper (some used 1/4 tsp smoked paprika instead)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 lb nuts (whole almonds, walnut or pecan halves, etc)
1 large egg white, room temperature
1 tbsp water

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. In mixing bowl combine sugars. salt, cayenne, and cinnamon, working out any lumps with a fork if needed; set aside.  In small mixing bowl, beat egg white with water until frothy (not stiff).  With rubber spatula, fold in nuts and turn to coat evenly.  Add coated nuts to bowl of dry mixture and continue turning with rubber spatula until candy-coating is evenly disbursed.  Spread evenly onto prepared pan.  Bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool, breaking apart pieces as necessary.  Store in airtight container.

Toasted Coconut

I love the way my kitchen smells when I am toasting coconut... mmmm!

Coconut Flakes, (I prefer sweetened)

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Line cookie sheet with parchment paper, or lightly spray with cooking spray. Spread desired amount of coconut flakes on baking sheet. Bake for 5 minutes. Stir and return to oven another 5 minutes or until desired doneness. It should look golden brown. :) Let cool completely; store in airtight container until ready to use.

Homemade Root Beer (for a crowd)

Ok, there are all sorts of root beer extracts out there. I've tried a few. And while one was sort of bitter tasting (wal-mart store brand), the others were all pretty good. My favorite bottle of extract is Big H. There is a local drive-in chain here in the SLC metro area called "Hires". Hires is known for their "Big H" just like McDonald's is known for their "Golden Arches", if that makes sense. Anywho... At Hire's they serve their own draft-style "Big H" Root Beer. Sooooo good! I realize they might not have this extract in other states, so I guess what I am saying is you get what you pay for :)

4 - 4 1/2 gal water

5 lbs sugar
1 bottle root beer extract

5 lbs dry ice

In a 5 gal cooler mix together the water and sugar till the sugar is somewhat dissolved. Add the bottle of extract and mix well. Using tongs, carefully place dry ice in cooler. Mix and let the dry ice do it's magic. Stir every once in a while to keep ice from sinking to the bottom and blocking the spigot.

*since it's hard to get exactly 5 lbs of dry ice, I usually tell them it's better to be a little over 5 lbs than under. No one like flat root beer... =D

Candied Pistachios

2/3 C cinnamon & sugar mixture*

3 Tbsp warm water

2 C pistachios, shelled

1 or 2 sprinkles of cold water

Line baking sheet with parchment or waxed paper. In saucepan over medium heat mix together cinnamon-sugar mixture and 3 tbsp warm water. Stir until combined. Add nuts and stir to coat. Bring to boil, stirring frequently, until there is no excess mixture left on sides of bottom of pan. Add splash of cold water with fingertips, give it another good stir and quickly spread on prepared baking sheet. Allow mixture to set and cool on nuts. Break into pieces.

Try this with other nuts too! Makes great holiday gifts!

*The first batch I made of this, I used just under 2/3 C sugar and made up the difference with cinnamon. I think next time I will use maybe only 1-2 tsp cinnamon and the rest sugar. It was still good and very easy!

Dad's Microwave Caramel Corn

I remember when my parents brought home our first microwave. We had a family lesson from my dad on how to operate the microwave too! It wasn't an el cheapo flimsy piece of kitchen gadgetry either. It was a nice microwave. I also remember that one of the first things my dad learned to "make" in the microwave was Microwave Caramel Corn. I was probably about 10 years old at the time and my dad still makes this same recipe today. Although my father has always popped his own popcorn for the recipe, I use the microwave popcorn (the fat free, as it is the most plain) and it turns out just fine.




4 qts popped corn (about 1 C unpopped, or 3 microwave bags popped)

1 C brown sugar

1 stick butter (1/2 C)

1/4 C light corn syrup

dash salt



Place popped corn in brown paper grocery sack. (You can also use a big Tupperware with lid if it will fit in your microwave.) In microwave-safe dish cook brown sugar, butter, syrup and salt 3-5 minutes on HIGH, stirring every minute. Once brown sugar has dissolved, pour over popcorn, roll bag shut and toss well to coat. Place closed bag in microwave and microwave on HIGH another 1 1/2 minutes. Remove and shake well. Return to microwave another minute, and remove and shake well again. Place bag outside or in other cool, dry place until caramel is set. Break into pieces and store in airtight container. The nice thing about this is it's easy clean-up! Simply throw the bag away and only 1 dish to clean!

Simple Salsa Fresca (mild)

So, back when I was visiting my old college roomie, Ardis, during Spring Break we ate and ate and ate and ate! Did I mention that we ate? Tee hee...


Anyway, she is one FABULOUS cook! And one night we had these DIVINE Creamy Chicken Tacos and she whipped up some of this HOMEMADE Salsa Fresca as well. I could not eat enough! That visit was about a month ago, and I've made this recipe at least 4 times since. It tastes great, and I think it tastes even better the next day, after the flavors have had a chance to "share" a little bit with each other. Here is Ardis's recipe for fresh salsa, or what I am calling Simple Salsa Fresca! Enjoy!




6-8 roma tomatoes (or garden tomatoes)
1/2 bunch cilantro
1 bunch green onions
3-4 garlic cloves, more or less
1 jalepeno pepper, seeded
juice from 1/2 lime (optional)
salt, to taste


Coursely chop veggies and place in blender. Pulsate until well blended. Add salt to taste. Chill until ready to serve. Best if eaten within 5 days of making. Keep refrigerated in airtight container.



For medium or hot salsa you can experiment by adding a few of the jalepeno seeds or by using other peppers, such as a habenero.

Magic Bars

Ok - so I was over visiting A Duck in Her Pond recently as she was posting her version of these...what she calls "Hello Duckies". She knew that I have been sort of feeling down in the dumps lately, so she said I should make myself some of these little bars of ooey-gooey-goodness. That is one smart duckie, I tell ya!


I think almost everyone has their own variation of these bars. Some are called 7-layer bars (7 ingredients), other call them "Hello Dollies"/"Hello Dollys", and some - like me - call them "Magic Bars." Some people use walnuts, some peanuts, others pecans, whereas I prefer slivered almonds or chopped macadamias. You could substitute peanut butter chips instead of butterscotch, etc. And finally, the other main difference I notice is that some recipes call for the milk to be spread over the crust while others are poured on last.

No matter how you make these luscious little goobers, they are ALL good. Really - you can't go wrong - as long as you don't burn them! lol!

Okay, Okay... enough torture. Without further adieu... Magic Bars!




1 pkg Graham Cracker Squares, crushed (about 20 squares), a little more if desired
1/2 C butter, melted (1 stick)
1 C chopped nuts
1 C flaked Coconut
1 C Chocolate Chips
1 C Butterscotch Chips
1 - 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk



Preheat oven to 350. Spray 9x13 lightly with cooking spray or line with parchment paper. In bottom of pan mix together graham cracker crumbs with melted butter. Work and spread to form crust. Then add a single layer of all remaining dry ingredients, spreading them evenly throughout. Finally, top with sweetened condensed milk; spread evenly and press down with fork. Bake at 350 degrees 20-25 minutes or until top is slightly golden. Let cool before cutting into squares. Store in airtight container.



*For thin bars (as seen here) use 9x13 pan. For medium bars use 8x10 and for thick bars, 8x8.

Sticky Halloween Crunch

Yesterday I remembered that tonight is our neighborhood recipe group. This month the theme is "Fall Favorites". I was like - "Crap! (yes - it's one of my fav words) What do I have on hand that I can whip up???" Viola! My "Sticky Halloween Crunch". Boo-ware...it's Verrrrrry Sticky!!! You may need to wash it down with some Ghoul-Aid......hahaha! (ok - bad joke)

1 box Corn Chex cereal
1 Box Corn Pops cereal
2 bags candy corn
1 C coconut
1 C nuts (optional)
2 C Sugar
2 C Karo light corn syrup
3 Tbsp Butter

In large stock pot or paper grocery sack, combine cereal, candy, coconut and nuts; set aside. In saucepan combine sugar, corn syrup and butter. Bring to boil, turn heat down to med-low and continue to boil 5 minutes stirring frequently. Pour over cereal mixture and toss well (if using paper sack, roll shut and shake vigorously). Spread on waxed paper to cool. Break apart into pieces. Store in airtight container.

*can also substitutes M&Ms or raisins for the candy corn or coconut or nuts.