Tag: popcorn
A popcorn machine that pops just one kernel at a time
For ECAL’s “Low-Tech Factory” exhibition, design students Laurent Beirnaert, Pierre Bouvier and Paul Tubiana created Oncle Sam, a popcorn machine that pops just one kernel at a time. At the final stages of the process, this contraption even butters and salts the single piece of popcorn that was produced. Watch the video below to see the machine in action.
Thanks, Ursarodinia
The more things change, the more they stay the same
People wearing 3D glasses watch “Titanic 3D” at a theatre in Taiyuan, April, 2012
People wearing 3D glasses back in the day
Cinema Rage in Latvia!
A man has been shot dead at a cinema in Latvia after a fellow movie-goer objected to the volume at which he was eating his popcorn.
The assailant, 27, reportedly had a brief argument with the man, aged 43, who was sitting next to him during a screening of Black Swan in the Forum cinema, one of the largest in the city of Riga.
When the credits rolled, the younger man pulled out a legally registered firearm and shot the other man dead. Other audience members then phoned for the police and an ambulance.
The younger man – a graduate of the police academy who holds a doctorate in law from the University of Latvia – waited to be arrested.
I guess he thinks he’s got a case.
Whole grain cereals, popcorn are rich in antioxidants
In a first-of-its kind study, scientists reported today at the 238th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS) that snack foods like popcorn and many popular breakfast cereals contain “surprisingly large” amounts of healthful antioxidant substances called “polyphenols.”
Polyphenols are a major reason why fruits and vegetables — and foods like chocolate, wine, coffee, and tea — have become renowned for their potential role in reducing the risk of heart disease, cancer, and other diseases.
Until now, however, no one knew that commercial hot and cold whole grain cereals — regarded as healthful for their fiber content — and snack foods also were a source of polyphenols.
“Early researchers thought the fiber was the active ingredient for these benefits in whole grains, the reason why they may reduce the risk of cancer and coronary heart disease,” said Joe Vinson, Ph.D., who headed the new study. “But recently, polyphenols emerged as potentially more important. Breakfast cereals, pasta, crackers, and salty snacks constitute over 66 percent of whole grain intake in the U.S. diet.”
Vinson, a chemist at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania, said “We found that, in fact, whole grain products have comparable antioxidants per gram to fruits and vegetables. This is the first study to examine total phenol antioxidants in breakfast cereals and snacks, whereas previous studies have measured free antioxidants in the products…”
The whole grain cereal with the most antioxidants are made with wheat, with corn, oats and rice cereals following in descending order, according to Vinson. He also noted that raisin bran has the highest amount of antioxidants per serving, primarily due to the raisins.
Bran cereals made from wheat overall do not have more antioxidants than wheat cereals, though they do have more fiber, he said. In other findings, he said that whole grain flours are very high in antioxidants; whole grain snacks have slightly lower levels of antioxidants than cereals; of snacks, popcorn has the highest level of antioxidants; and there is a wide variation in the amount of antioxidants in each class of cold cereal.
OK, so when you’re preparing your popcorn – turn it into a thoroughly Mediterranean snack. Instead of drizzling melted butter over it, put a couple ounces of a good virgin olive oil in a microwave-capable glass measuring cup – along with a few finely chopped garlic cloves. Microwave it for 5 minutes at about one-third power.
Pour that over your popcorn along with a minimum of salt – and Rock On!
Eideard 