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July 17, 2014

Popcorn & Peanuts Challenge

It’s July when thoughts turn to baseball and two of baseball’s favorite foods: peanuts & popcorn. Kristen from Frugal Antics has challenged us to combine the two into one dish.ejpeanutspopcornFor this challenge I used air-popped popcorn & freshly shelled peanuts along with chunky peanut butter…ejpeanutspopcornSo, ummmmm, I don’t know if it’s the 106° or our elevated “monsoonal” humidity… but I’m afraid my #gf classification today stands for “gooey fail!” Don’t get me wrong -- they are quite delicious; but, alas, are just a little messy.

Mr. Pitt eats Snickers®

No problem ~ I just ate the bars with a fork & knife!ejpeanutspopcornHere’s my recipe:ejpeanutspopcornrecipeThe popcorn flour is easy -- just give it a short ride in the food processor & you’ll be all set. ejpeanutspopcornThe flour is unbelievable light. (So please, if you’re substituting any other kind of flour, do not use 4 cups!)

I thought of making the nougat & caramel “from scratch”; but upon considering the amount of time that would confine me to a hot kitchen, I opted for the much simpler mini marshmallow & Kraft® caramel  “cheat”…

When I realized the bottom crust was not going to hold up under the pressure, I decided to coat it with melted chocolate to try to keep it together.ejpeanutspopcornThe bad news was that it wasn’t very effective. But the good news was now it had CHOCOLATE. But the bad news was that it made it a little too sweet & took away from the popcorn flavor…ejpeanutspopcornNext time I attempt this I will 1) use a “binder” with the popcorn flour, and 2) use caramel corn to keep that popcorn layer a little more crisp. (That was a complaint I heard from my “testers” -- aside from it falling apart in their hands…)

If you’re looking for more peanut & popcorn recipes, I recommend you check out the links below: