Spicy Chili Cheese Popcorn

How about a snack? So everybody loves popcorn, right? Plus, it's a healthy snack! It's a good source of fiber, it satisfies your craving for something salty and crunchy, and it's low in calories and you can eat a lot of it without feeling guilty! Um... yes please!

My friends at Virtual Potluck and I teamed up with the good people at Savory Spice Shop and we were lucky enough to receive a sampling of some of their spices to play with and create recipes with.  I was able to choose the spices I wanted, so I of course got things like ancho chile powder, chimichurri marinade seasoning, etc...  stuff you would expect me to get, but I also thought this would be a great opportunity to get a good cheese powder for popcorn.  Why?  Because Mark makes AMAZING popcorn.  He loves popcorn and he often likes to spice it up with not only salt, but things like cheese powder, chili powder, herbs, cayenne, etc...

So I ordered the Cheddar Cheese Powder and asked Mark if he would create a special popcorn using this powder.  Well he did, but he also stepped it up a notch and used several more spices to create a delicious, spicy, addicting popcorn that you will LOVE!

He ended up using the following spices - all of which you can purchase at Savory Spice Shop:

Cheddar Cheese Powder

Ground Ancho Chiles

Smoked Spanish Sweet Paprika

Powdered Garlic

Ground Cayenne

French Organic Thyme

... as well as sea salt and black pepper.  

Before I show you how Mark made this popcorn...

How would you like to win some of your own Savory Spices!?
The folks at Savory Spice Shop is offering a special gift set called the Fire Eaters Gift Set especially for FOODIE readers!  Their gift sets are the BOMB.  You get 4 full-sized jars of spices and it's packaged so super cute with little bonus things like a star anise, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, a chile, and bay leaves.  If you're a true FOODIE fan and love the type of cooking I do, then you will love it!

Check out Savory Spice Shop on Facebook

About the Fire Eaters Gift Set:  

This gift set contains: 

Extra Hot Cajun Style Blackening Seasoning Piri-Piri Style Spice  

Extra Hot Jamaican Jerk  

Hot Chili Powder

From the website: 

There is a theory that if you are a habitual chile eater you can develop immunity to the heat. We’ve created this set to test that hypothesis. These four selections are not only hot but quite flavorful. And if that is not enough, we packed this set with super hot Chinese red peppers that rate between an 8 and 9 on a heat scale of 1 to 10. If you can prove the theory true, then come see us for our scorching hot habanero powder, which rates a 10 or maybe even an 11! Remember, the best relief for a burning mouth isn’t water; it’s a mild yogurt or sour cream. Be careful! The additional spices used to pack this set are also of excellent quality and should be stored in a container for future use.

Fire Eaters is a 4 jar gift set made up of our 4 fluid ounce glass jars.

The Fire Eaters spice gift set is the perfect gift for someone that wants more than a little spice in their life!   Available exclusively at Savory Spice Shop. 

Ways to win:

1. Leave a comment on this post telling me what spices you would like to try from Savory Spice Shop.
2. Visit the Savory Spice Shop Facebook page, click the Virtual Potluck link, choose a spice from the Chile Blends section, then leave another comment on this post telling me that you've done so.
   
3. Share this post on Facebook, then leave another comment on this post telling me that you've done so.
4. Tweet about this post on Twitter, then leave another comment on this post telling me that you've done so.
5. Follow Savory Spice Shop on Twitter, then leave another comment on this post telling me that you've done so.

This contest will run until Saturday, April 21st.  On that day, after 3pm, I will choose a winner using Random.Org.  Please do not comment anonymously because I will have no way to contact you if you win.  This contest is open to U.S. residents only.  Good luck! 

This contest is now closed.

Congratulations to Amy! 

You've won the Fire Eaters gift set! 

See how to make this popcorn after the jump!




Popping the corn:
In a heavy bottomed pot (8 quart or more), combine the popcorn kernels and the vegetable oil. Spread the kernels into a single layer and apply over medium heat. Popping will take 5-10 minutes depending on the pot. Remove the heat as soon as the popping kernels slow (about 2-3 seconds between pops). If you are using a cast iron pot, be careful to not overheat as this will scorch the popped corn.







Combined seasoning:
Combine the cheddar cheese seasoning, ancho chile powder, smoked Spanish paprika, granulated garlic, black pepper, salt, and cayenne pepper in a small mixing bowl and mix thoroughly. As soon as the corn is finished popping, sprinkle the combined seasoning onto the popcorn about 1/3 at a time and then toss after each application to ensure a good distribution of the seasoning.








Separate seasoning:
Drizzle the extra virgin olive oil over the popcorn about 1 tablespoon at a time and then toss after each application to ensure an even coating of the spices and olive oil. Finally, sprinkle the thyme leaves onto the popcorn and toss once more.




...and you end up with this!

If you're a spicy food fan and you have an ice cold beer within reach... MAKE THIS POPCORN IMMEDIATELY.  You're welcome.  ;-)


Make sure you check out the other Virtual Potluck bloggers' sites to see the creations they came up with using their Savory Spice Shop stashes!  Our host for this event, Cookistry, made it super easy by putting together a round-up post so you can launch from her page to see all the other recipes.  This also means MORE CHANCES TO WIN!!

Check out the Virtual Potluck round-up here!

Now go enter to win the giveaway and good luck!!!