Pampers and Paklava

Hippie Popcorn: Popcorn with Nutritional Yeast

by

Nutritional yeast My writing group and our neighborhood ‘Mom’s Night Out’ group both meet at the Central Cinema, a small indie film and dinner joint that happens to be conveniently located just around the corner from where I live. You can watch a flick while filling your tummy with a lovely selection of homemade pizzas, salads, soups, desserts, wine and beer…or you can hang out in the café and just eat and chat.

The Cinema is a fun place to rendezvous with friends. But truth be told, the main reason we always go there boils down to one thing: popcorn with “brewer’s yeast.”*

Oh take me back to my college  days during the late 1970s, in Ithaca, New York, where I was first introduced to the hippie way of making popcorn with nutritional or brewer’s yeast. I lived in a “co-op,”  hippie speak for a household where we shared in the cooking and household chores. Many nights, after dinner, we’d pop a batch of popcorn, sprinkle it with yeast and sit together on the couch to watch a movie or just shoot the breeze. The nutty flavor and cheesy texture is out of this world, and I love how the yeast floats like a yellow cloud atop my bowl of crunchy popcorn goodness.

*First a disclaimer: nutritional yeast and Brewer’s yeast are not the same thing, though you can (and I have) use either on popcorn or other foods. Personally, I like the flavor and texture of nutritional yeast tastes better; Brewer’s yeast comes off as a bit bitter to my taste buds.

Second: don’t confuse nutritional yeast, which is deactivated, with active forms of yeast, like the kind of yeasts bakers, winemakers and beer makers (who, yes, use a “brewer’s yeast but it’s an activated rather than deactivated type of yeast) use.  Whereas nutritional yeast is actually good for you, these other yeasts are not and can even rob your body of nutrients.

Back to the yeast you DO want to use: Nutritional yeast has a pleasant nutty-cheesy flavor and is packed with protein and B vitamins.  It comes in flakes or powder and is popular with vegans and health buffs who use it to make cheese substitutes, gravies, and many other dishes.  And, as I’ve mentioned, it’s also a great topping for popcorn.

Brewer’s yeast, which is also used as a nutritional supplement, is made from the same strain of yeast as nutritional yeast.  The difference is that brewer’s yeast is a by-product of beer production and retains some of the bitter flavor of hops.  It is more granular in texture and darker in color.  You can find both types of yeast at most health food grocery stores.

Aside from tasting delicious, nutritional yeast is…well, nutritious. It is a powerhouse of B-vitamins, including B-12, and it is also rich in folic acid, amino acids and 15 minerals including iron, magnesium, phorphorus, zinc, and chromium, and selenium. B-vitamins are helpful for stress reduction and sleep. Minerals such as chromium assist in regulating regulate sugar which is important for diabetics and people with a tendency toward low blood sugar. Plus, nutritional yeast also contains a high amount of fiber, which eliminates constipation, assists in lowering cholesterol, reduces the risk of colon disease, and protects against high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes.

These are all valid reasons to sprinkle a healthy dusting of yeast on your popcorn. But mostly I like it because it tastes so darn good, addictive in fact. It is so yummy that once I munch my first mouthful, I simply cannot–stop–myself.

Popcorn with Brewer's yeast Popcorn with Nutritional Yeast

Ingredients

  • Popcorn
  • Oil
  • Nutritional Yeast (I use Red Star) or Brewer’s Yeast (both can be found at most health-food grocery stores, Whole Foods, etc.)
  • Salt (I use kosher salt)
  • Butter or similar substitute

How to:

  1. Drizzle about 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large, heavy pot
  2. Add about 1/2 cup of popcorn kernels
  3. Raise the heat to high until you hear the oil start to sizzle.
  4. Cover the pot with a lid and use potholders to lift it and shake it over the heat (you don’t want the bottom to burn).
  5. Resist the urge to lift the lid to see if it’s popping — you’re likely to get hit with a flying kernel.
  6. Listen for the pop-pop-popping to slow down and then remove the pan from the heat, leaving it covered for another minute.
  7. While the pop corn is popping, melt a little butter, margarine or soy butter melting in pan. Pour the popcorn into a big bowl; drizzle with the melted butter or margarine; sprinkle with kosher salt and lots and lots of nutritional yeast.

That’s all there is to it. Munch away. Just remember that it’s nearly impossible to stop. Please don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Want more deliciousness popping in your life? Check out Wanderfood Wednesday!

Firsts

by

As a mama-in-waiting, I’ve started attending a few local moms groups. I thought they would be good opportunities for me to meet other moms who share my interests and also a chance for me to develop a network of support that I’m sure will come in handy once I become a mom “for real.”

For the past six months, I’ve faithfully attended the monthly ‘Moms Night Out’ hosted by my neighborhood moms group. We get together to drink, nibble and gab. It’s great fun and there are some really cool mamas who live within a few-mile radius of our home.

I’m also a member of ‘Mamas with Cameras,’ another monthly gathering that offers moms a chance to learn more about photography and practice their skills. Each month there is a ‘learning portion’ of the meeting with a speaker and then a ‘sharing portion’ of the meeting where we sit in a circle and pass around our “homework” for the month. Our monthly assignment might ask us to capture one aspect of our child’s personality, take a few flash photos, or try out the different settings on our camera. I love this part of the meeting: there are so many talented and creative mamas!

Usually the mamas will tell a bit about why they took a particular picture or share something about their child. At this month’s meeting, as we were passing around photos, one of the mamas proudly said: I was so thrilled to get this picture. I managed to capture the first time my daughter smiled.

Her comment highlighted something I’ve thought about for a long time. As an adoptive mom, of a child who will not be a brand-new infant, I will miss so many firsts. Missing first moments is not universal amongst adoptive families. I do have several friends who have adopted domestically and were even present at the birth of their child.  But for those who adopt internationally, it is a virtual given that the child you bring home will be older than six months. Between the red tape, waiting lists and bureaucracy kids available for adoption internationally typically spend the first months – and sometimes years – of their lives in an orphanage.

In our dossier, Big Papa and I requested a child who is 18-months or younger in age. Considering that we will be raising our kiddo for at least the next eighteen years, a year or a year-and-a-half is just a drop in the bucket of a lifetime.  Still those months are very significant, at least when it comes to firsts. The first time a child smiles or laughs. The first time they hold their head up on their own or roll over. The first time they stand or take their first steps. The first time they notice their hands, say their first word, or celebrate a first birthday.

Many of the adoptive mamas (and papas) I know will miss those first moments. It is one of the things that is particularly challenging about being an adoptive family. First moments are a time when families bond and create shared memories: a history of stories that connect you as a family. “Your sister was walking before she was talking too.” “Did you know your first word wasn’t mommy or daddy; it was kitty?”

Plus, many of these moments are just so much fun to watch. Parents feel proud seeing their child do something or experience something for the first time. We don’t remember many of our own early childhood firsts and so seeing our child’s gives us a window into these brief but miraculously life-changing milestones where a child who was crawling yesterday, is walking today.

I think it’s going to be pretty darn cool to watch my child go through life. And being able to see the world through the eyes of a child is one of the reasons I wanted to be a mom: from their innocence and absolute joy in the wonder of it all to the endless questions, and from the throw-yourself-on the floor tantrums to the side-splitting hilarity.

There will be many years filled with first moments that Big Papa and I will share with our little one, and I am very grateful for that. But I’d be lying if I didn’t say it’s hard not to feel sad when I think about missing out on her first year of firsts.