Here’s a bit of trivia for you. What snack food has a 5000 year history and accounts for over $2 billion in sales annually? It’s popcorn, a snack food that appeals to all ages. Historical references tell of documented discoveries of popping corn found in ancient caves in New Mexico. The American debut of this popular finger food is credited to the Wampanoag Indians who treated the Pilgrims to some popped corn on the very first Thanksgiving. Legend goes on to claim that the Pilgrims served the popped corn the next day with cream and sugar and voila, the first puffed cereal was born.

Popped corn has gone through several transitions since then, most notably, in the 20th century. The creation of movie theatres fueled the craze for popped corn, not to mention the addition of melted butter, which served to bolster the popularity of the snack food. By the 1950’s, television brought popped corn into the home in a big way. Then, the 60’s and 70’s saw the rise of the microwave oven, and popping corn almost immediately became one of the main uses for the magic cooking box on almost all kitchen counters. To this day, popcorn has remained one of the most popular American snack foods and each of us eats about 60 quarts of the stuff a year.

Through all the transitions of actual cooking methods for good popcorn, I find the stovetop method to be my favorite. And, my current favorite apparatus for making a big bowl of corn is The Whirley.Pop. My son gave us a Whirley.Pop for Christmas last year, and the thing is a blessing. Constructed of aluminum with a simple crank that circulates the kernels in the pot, it’s fool proof and has consistently offered the most complete pop ratio of anything I’ve ever used to make the puffy white snackable. Check out their web site at www.popcornpopper.com for the basics for home as well as a full line of gift ideas for the popcorn lover in your world. This year the company is offering a red Whirly.Pop.

Oh, one more thing. I love real, melted butter on my popcorn. And, instead of salt, I sprinkle ours with Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, which seems to bolster the flavors and make this addictive munchy even more desirable. Whip up a batch, settle in and enjoy a simple treat that’s sure to satisfy.