Make Movie Night Special with These Homemade Popcorn Seasonings

Movie night has actually has become one of my family’s favorite traditions. We love the cozy blankets, dim lights, flickering candles, and a wonderful movie to snuggle up to.

Maybe for your family it’s a fire in the fireplace, warm slippers, and charades. Regardless of what it is you’re doing; a beloved food ritual – like homemade popcorn - can be such an important component to wonderful family memories.

A regular bag of microwave popcorn surely will suffice, but I always encourage my clients to cook a little bit more from scratch at home. It forces us to explore every part of the meal from start to finish.

The process of cooking from start to finish helps us connect to our food and feel a greater sense of satisfaction from it, a key to intuitive cooking and eating.

Plus, the more we cook at home, the more we can identify what exactly we are hungry for, and properly nourish our mind, body, and soul.

I created three healthy popcorn seasonings to invite a little extra exploration into your family time. There’s something every palate: savory, spicy, and sweet, and each flavor combinations specifically works together to create a unique flavor profile.

Savory Popcorn Seasoning: Nutritional Yeast + Dill + Garlic Salt

Spicy Popcorn Seasoning: Sriracha + Nori + Pink Salt

Sweet Popcorn Seasoning: Maple + Vanilla Bean + Flaked Salt

A few things to make this recipe easier:

For the dry shake-ins:

• Both can be made ahead of time and sealed in airtight containers. Each batch makes plenty!
• Be generous when you’re sprinkling, but remember you can always add more.
• If the topping isn’t sticking to your satisfaction try adding a bit more butter or spray the popcorn with a butter cooking spray, then add more seasonings.
• The nutritional yeast recipe was inspired by a local Maine company, Little Lad’s Popcorn. Little Lad’s is one of my toddler’s favorite snacks, and I hope this copy-cat recipe reaches those who live outside the state that can’t get this scrumptious treat.

For the caramel corn:

• Unlike the shake-ins, this recipe is designed to be made per batch.
• If you find that the corn isn’t hardening up to your satisfaction, put it in the refrigerator or freezer until set.
• I prefer a lightly coated sweet popcorn, and I designed this recipe to have plenty of flavor with a little less sugar. If you prefer a heavily coated corn, double the recipe.
• Feel free to swap vanilla bean paste for pure vanilla extract if it’s all you have.