Chesapeake Chocolate Popcorn

I am a huge fan of all things salty sweet, and today's recipe just takes the whole thing to a new and exciting level!

We start with some microwave popcorn. We're going to use kettle corn for this recipe to add another dimension to the salty sweet mash up. So, prepare the popcorn according to package directions, discard any unpopped kernels, and pour the popcorn into a large bowl to prepare for mixing.

Our popcorn gets coated in an Old Bay seasoned milk chocolate that starts with plain ol' milk chocolate chips. With so few ingredients in this recipe, we really want our chocolate to shine. So, this is the time to invest in a really good chocolate. It will make a difference.

Since we're keeping this quick and simple, we're going to melt our chocolate in the microwave. You could certainly set up a double boiler to melt the chocolate, but we can achieve the same goal with the microwave shortcut. Adding just a little refined coconut oil helps to keep the chocolate smooth and shiny, but it's important to make sure you don't use unrefined coconut oil. Unrefined oil has a stronger coconut flavor, and that's not what we're looking for in this popcorn.

After the chocolate is melted, we're going to mix in our Old Bay. Then, it's time to pour the melted chocolate all over the popcorn. Gently toss the popcorn to make sure it's completely coated in the chocolate, then spread it out on to a lined sheet pan to dry. You can also speed up the chocolate setting process by letting the popcorn chill in the fridge.

When it's time to snack, we have the most unique snack/dessert hybrid! The sweetness in the chocolate helps to bring out the warm notes in the Old Bay, while the slightly spicy notes in the Old Bay mellow out in the rich chocolate. Then, combine that all with an already salty sweet popcorn, and your senses will be on flavor overload.

I'm a sucker for popcorn on the regular, but this snack is truly dangerous. It's sooooo good and sooooo hard to put down! Talk about one of those show stopping treats with barely any effort.

This popcorn is that!

What unique food pairings do you live for? Give me some inspiration. You know I'm not afraid of the unusual!

I hope you all enjoy. And, let's eat!