If it were up to Isabelle, she would eat constantly. She has 3 meals a day and yet is always asking for a snack - she is a total machine when it comes to packing away food. I've mentioned in the past that I am really fussy about what Isabelle eats as I don't like her to have processed food or junk food.The two places I have always struggled most are with lunch and with her snacks. Mostly for snacks she just gets fruit, however it's nice to have other things to give her as well. I despise buying the toddler snacks you can get in supermarkets (the oaty bars etc) from the big name brands as, not only are they a rip off, but I just don't feel comfortable allowing her to have them. I am a bit more relaxed with what she can have now she is getting older and those types of snacks are fine when we are at other people's houses, however when we are at home I like he to have something which I know is totally healthy and which I know has only the added ingredients which I would like it to have.
Isabelle loves popcorn - my dad is a big fan so when they have their days together while I'm at work, it is a snack they regularly share. I'm not at all comfortable, however, with Isabelle having shop bought popcorn as it is either covered in sugar or covered in salt, and I can't honestly decide which is worse!
I've been thinking of popping my own for a while, but one of our lovely friends mentioned she had popped some corn for her little girl using coconut oil, and since I love coconut oil and am a big fan of how healthy it is, I decided to do the same. It gave Isabelle some great popcorn, with a hint of coconut taste and nothing else added. The coconut oil is a healthy fat, so I am absolutely OK with her having it.
To make:- tablespoon of coconut oil
- 100g popcorn kernels
Melt the coconut oil over a medium heat in a saucepan, then add the popcorn kernels. Ensure the kernels are coated in the oil before placing a well fitting lid on top. Wait. Give the pan a shake every few minutes to ensure nothing gets stuck. It takes around 5 minutes for the popping to begin and once the popping has subsided empty the popcorn out and enjoy! I store the popcorn in tupperware boxes to keep it crunchy for when we need it.
Even better, I then made some sweet popcorn for Simon and me. While I am very particular about ensuring Isabelle eats healthily, I don't apply the same stringent food intake to myself! The sweet popcorn was so easy to make, I can't believe I had never done it before and I will definitely be doing it a lot more!
To make:
- 60ml vegetable oil
- 120g popcorn kernels
- 60g icing sugar
Heat the oil over a medium heat and then stir in the icing sugar. You can use normal sugar, however I found it 'clumps' and doesn't coat as well as finer icing sugar. Add the popcorn kernels and ensure they are well coated. Place the lid onto the saucepan and wait for the popping. Make sure you give the pan a good shake, or even a stir, every 30 seconds - 1 minute, or the sugared kernels will stick and burn. Once the popping stops, empty the popcorn out VERY CAREFULLY. The sugar coated popcorn is EXTREMELY HOT and can burn your fingers (trust me), so use a spoon to help tip it out, and leave it to cool. Totally delicious, and takes less time than going to the shop to buy some!
Enjoy!
