As in- a joke? Well, yes, sort-of. This whimsical concoction was dreamed up by the Kitchen Divas In Training over the Holiday Weekend during our Back to the Future marathon. They had dug up from the recesses of some cabinet a box of Gluten Free Ice Cream Cones and decided they’d like their movie popcorn and ice-cream rolled up into one.
I hesitated at first, but then thought- what the heck? The worst that can happen is they don’t taste that great. So we popped our corn and went Adventuring! They were delicious! If you like the salty/sweet combo, or like chocolate chips on occasion in your popcorn, you will love these. It’s a good thing we ran out of ice-cream and cones, because I easily could have enjoyed several more! This is the kind of item that should be sold at the Iowa State Fair this summer! 
Now- a word about the popcorn: Do NOT- waste your money on microwave popcorn, or that premade junk you get at the store. First of all, it’s filled with all sorts of yucky stuff- partially hydrogenated oils- usually soy or cottonseed (Yuck…do you know that the cotton industry is the most egregious user of petrochemicals? 5lbs of chemicals for 1lb of yield. I do not want that stuff anywhere near my body, let alone in it!) Or, if it’s a “good for you” brand- it uses Palm Kernel Oil, which thanks to its rocketing demand as people give the heave-ho to the partially hydrogenated stuff, is a food responsible for millions of acres of rainforest deforestation. And the corn? If it ain’t organic- it’s GMO. No ThankYou, I’m a stovetop popper these days.
Now, some of you may say that pulling out the bag and popping it in the microwave is faster, but is it really? I can have an enormous bowl of popcorn ready in 6 minutes or less, made with real oil, real salt (if you like salt) and real corn- and instead of costing 2.99/bag- it costs me pennies. Do you know how much a pound of bulk organic corn costs? About 1.50, or less. Do you know how much corn is in 1 pound? A LOT of servings!
Here’s all you do for stovetop corn- it’s so easy my 10 year old cooked it this weekend (I documented!)
1. 3 tbs oil with a high burning point- I use grapeseed oil. You could use corn, canola, or something else. As much as I like the flavor of olive oil, its burning point is too low. (btw the black flecks in this picture are not burned bits, but seaweed pieces from my fancy sea-salt)
2. Place oil in pan with a few kernels and some ground up salt (if you choose). Alton Brown turned me on to putting salt in the pan 1st. It flavors everything and you use way less. However- don’t add other seasonings first. I learned the hard way there, and burned my herbs and spices.
3. Place the lid on your pan (I use a medium sized one) and wait for the kernels to explode against the lid- peek if you need to. When the kernels explode add a generous 1/2 cup of popcorn kernels, slap on the lid and set your timer for 3-3 1/2 minutes.
4. Now comes the tricky part. Do NOT Walk Away! Agitate the pan continuously- you will hear the popping, and somewhere between 3 3 1/2 minutes the popping will virtually stop. Pull the pan from the heat- open the lid to let out the steam, and place it back on again for a count of 5- this will allow the last kernels to pop.. Give one last good shake and turn out into a bowl.
5. Flavor- add butter, olive oil, herbed garlic powder, parmesan cheese, nuts, whatever….let your imagination run wild.
6. Enjoy!!!
Now- for the corny cones- grab a cone and fill the bottom with popcorn. Add a nice scoop of chocolate ice-cream on top and then take a handful of popcorn and gently smoosh onto the ice cream. Eat fairly quickly because the hot popcorn does speed up the melting of the ice cream.
Delicious! I kid you not. Happy Start of Summer, Everyone!
