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Happy Opening Day!
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This afternoon and evening, after ballplayers spent the past month and a half coaxing their muscles into shape at Spring Training, MLB stadiums unlock their gates for Game 1 of 162. Jade green grass, stark white bases, and plenty of peanuts and hot dogs wait for the fans to arrive. Ā
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And for the first time in my life, I get to be one of them!
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At the same time that I proclaimed to my dad as an 11-year-old that I wanted to visit all 30 ballparks with him, I also added watching an Opening Day game to my baseball bucket list. Although weāve crossed off 22 stadiums since then, we still havenāt sat through the first game of a season.
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We nearly did it in 2002. That year, my family had driven all the way from Northern California to Arizona to meet my grandparents in Phoenix for our Spring Break vacation, which happened to fall on the same dates that the MLB season began.
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However, because of an important work meeting the very next morning, Dad scheduled his flight home for the same afternoon as Opening Day. We managed to snag two standing room only tickets for the Diamondbacksā game at the box office, but we could only walk around the stadium for a couple of innings before Dad caught a taxi to the airport.
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So I didnāt quite count that.
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Then we nearly did it last year in 2014. My parents purchased a half-season ticket package to the Oakland Aās (our favorite team) for the first time, which included Opening Night. I planned out the details for weeks: when to drive home, what to wear, what snacks to packā¦
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And then I caught a nasty cold that I couldnāt shake for the entire week and weekend before. With rain in the forecast, Dad convinced me it was better to stay home and get healthy, so I spent Opening Night on the couch cheering on my team with hot tea and a blankie instead.
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But this year is different. This is our year! (As long as the weather cooperatesā¦ Pray for no rain!) And in honor of my first Opening Night, I combined two of my favorite ballpark snacks into one healthier recipe: Skinny Churro Kettle Corn!
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I know, I knowā¦ Most people think of hot dogs, peanuts, and cracker jacks before kettle corn and churros. Yet the families in the rows behind our seats almost always order a round or two of sweet, buttery kettle corn from the vendors walking up and down the aisles, and my mom never leaves a game without a cinnamony churro. Gotta stick with tradition!
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This recipe is really easy. You just need 5 ingredients, most of which should already be in your pantry! Weāve already talked about how to make homemade kettle cornĀ before, but letās go over a few of my tips as a quick refresher.
1) Use a really large pot. Not your biggest Dutch oven, but not the teensy tiny sauce pot either. It should hold about 6-8 cups. And no, the melted coconut oil or butter will not cover the bottomābut thatās okay! We mainly need heat and pressure to pop the kernels, and both of those are created once you cover the top with the lid.
2) Test the heat with 3 kernels. Once they pop, enough heat and pressure have built up, so itās time to add the rest. But make sure you remove those 3 pieces before pouring in the other kernels!
3) Shake, shake, shake! This is REALLY important. You must shake the pan every 2-3 seconds to prevent the popcorn and the sugar from burning. Be patient; it may take a while for the kernels to pop. And keep shaking even after they start to burst!
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As soon as you pour the freshly popped kettle corn into a bowl, sprinkle the cinnamon on top, and toss with tongs or two spoons until all of the pieces are fully coated. The cinnamon sticks better when the kernels are still hot. However, youāll want to wait a little longer before eating any so you donāt burn your tongue. I know itās pure torture, but itās worth it!
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Just a few hours left until I can dig into mine at the ballpark tonight!
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| Skinny Churro Kettle Corn | | Print |
- Ā½ cup (70g) popcorn kernels
- 3 tbsp (36g) granulated sugar
- Ā¼ tsp salt
- Ā½ tsp unsalted butter or coconut oil
- 1 Ā½ tsp ground cinnamon
- Set aside 3 popcorn kernels. Combine the remaining popcorn kernels, sugar, and salt in a small bowl.
- Add the butter to a medium pot, and melt over medium-low heat. Once melted, add 3 popcorn kernels and cover. While holding the lid, shake the pot back and forth every 3-5 seconds until the kernels have popped. Take the pot off of the heat, and carefully remove the popped kernels.
- Add the remaining popcorn kernels, and stir with a spatula until theyāre evenly coated with the sugar and salt. Return the pot to the heat, cover, and continue shaking it every 2-3 seconds until you can count 5 full seconds between pops. Immediately pour the popcorn into a large bowl, and sprinkle the cinnamon on top. Toss the popcorn until itās completely coated. Let the popcorn cool for 5 minutes before breaking apart any large clumps.
If using butter, itās especially important to shake the pan while waiting for the first 3 kernels to pop to avoiding burning or overly browning the butter.
{vegan, gluten-free, low fat, low calorie}
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More fun popcorn recipes from other food bloggersā¦
ā„Ā Ā Ā Samoas Popcorn by Something Swanky
ā„Ā Ā Ā Peanut Butter Cup Popcorn by Mom On Timeout
ā„Ā Ā Ā Birthday Cake Popcorn by Bake at 350
ā„Ā Ā Ā Banana Split Popcorn by Inside BruCrew Life
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My boss was at the A’s opening night game too! I hope to go one year!
The recipe looks delicious. I have a whirly pop and a microwave air popper. Do you think it would work with either of those?
What a small world Natalee! š I haven’t worked with either machine, so I’m not entirely sure. I’d suggest reading the manuals to see if it’s possible to add sugar along with the kernels. It’s crucial to add them together, but I don’t want the sugar to ruin your appliances!
I’m not sure what I did, but something went terribly wrong and I ended up with burnt popcorn. š The kind of burnt popcorn whose stench lingers for days. I’m sure it was operator and would like to try it again because it sounds heavenly, but maybe not for a couple weeks.
I’m so sorry to hear that Mindy! That must have been disappointing. If you describe what happened, especially when the popcorn appeared to burn, I’d love to work together to figure out what went wrong so your next batch turns out better!