Throw Back Snacks

I've been way up here in the White Mountains of New Hampshire for the past few days. It's absolutely beautiful and everyone is so friendly. I've also rediscovered one of my all-time favorite snacks from youth: Jiffy Pop! Some of you may not even remember this tasty treat. It's basically microwave popcorn for before there were microwaves. It looks kinda like a pie tin filled with popcorn kernels & oil with a wire coat hanger handle. You remove the cardboard circle (where the directions are printed) and place it over your burner (or campfire), wait for the oil to sizzle, and shake, shake, shake until the aluminum foil dome inflates with fresh, buttery popcorn.

I'm not sure why this got me so excited, but it was like Christmas all over again. You just don't see Jiffy Pop in stores like you used to. It's much more exciting-and dangerous-than the plain old microwave stuff. Looking back, I can't believe my parents let me shake the boiling hot oil over an open flame. It was really an accident waiting to happen. I remember when Jiffy Pop had a promotion (circa 1986-7) where there were baseball cards included on the back of the cardboard Jiffy Pop discs. My dad probably bought a minimum of 25 of them and left them unopened. Do you know how hard it is for a 4 year old to understand why we can't actually pop and eat the case of Jiffy Pop sitting in the kitchen? I can still hear my dad saying, "They're going to be worth a lot of money some day!" Well, they're probably sitting in a box in the attic.

I'm on a mission to bring Jiffy Pop back. Do you remember this snack?
taylor