Create-a-Flavor Popcorn Contest, Creative Family Idea Box Day #9

Waiting on the Judges for our Create-a-Flavor Popcorn Contest! Who will be the winner?

Dump the spice rack and contents of your pantry onto the kitchen table, make a huge bowl of plain popcorn, and create your own flavor. This was so much fun! I was really surprised at the creativity and spirit of adventure that this little challenge brought out in my children. (I even had one child who hates popcorn and routinely refuses to eat it. I told him he didn’t have to eat what he made. But after he slathered it with chocolate chips and caramel sauce, he decided popcorn isn’t as bad as he thought it was…) Here are some pictures of our popcorn party. It is pretty self-explanatory. At the bottom of the post, I will write a few tips for making this a fun, no-stress family time. Enjoy!

mackenzie chester, creative family culture, sacred everyday, popcorn challenge — Plain popcorn, tons of spices, extracts, oils, etc. all lined up and ready to be experimented with.

Create-a-Flavor Popcorn Contest, Creative Family Idea Box, mackenzie chester, creative family culture — Choc-Corn! (Popcorn with melted chocolate chips and homemade caramel sauce.)

Adding ginger to her cinnamon and clove-scented popcorn.

“Hmmm… I don’t know. Why don’t you smell it and see?”

Cinnamon, cloves, coconut oil and dried fruit and nuts.

Chocolate Raspberry Ripple Delight (And the winner of the best name!)

Waiting for the judging. Sampling some of the flavors while she waits.

They agree that all the popcorn is delicious.

Popcorn Party, Creative Family Idea Box — The winner! Carnival Apple Popcorn. Made with homemade caramel sauce, bits of fresh apples, butter and a tiny bit of sea salt.

Ok, so just a few tips to help your children have a great Create-a-Flavor Popcorn Contest.

*Let them experiment! Let them smell spices, taste ingredients, etc. This is a great sensory exercise and they will love opening up jars of spices they’ve never heard of and imagining that flavor on their popcorn.

*They can use anything on the table, and if they have an idea for something that isn’t on the table, have them ask if it is ok to use it.

*Encourage their ideas, even if they don’t sound delicious to you. You may be surprised!

*If you have children who are sensitive, you could play down the contest idea. Instead, you could just have a flavor-guessing game, where everyone tastes all the popcorn and tries to guess what ingredients were used.

*We used air-popped popcorn, but you can use a plain microwave popcorn as well. If you are using plain popcorn, you will need to use some oil or melted butter to get the spices to stick. If you have a buttery popcorn you are starting with, you can omit this step.

*Encourage creativity! Savory? Sweet? Inspired by your favorite meal? Inspired by your favorite dessert? Your favorite drink? Flavors from around the world?

*Food sensitivites? Try this idea with oatmeal or rice cakes or some other base that lends itself to lots of different flavor combinations.

There is no wrong way to do this. Just have fun and allow your children to play in the kitchen.

Hope you enjoy this day from Creative Family Idea Box! I’d love to hear about the flavors your children create in the comments below.

See you tomorrow when we continue our goal to make something every day!

Love,
Mackenzie and family