Holiday Sweetness From Emeril
I’m not really a fan of Emeril Lagassse - I don’t love him or hate him. I’m pretty much indifferent, but I do love the Food Network. And, in my search for some new and unique holiday recipes I found one of Emeril’s in the FoodNetwork.com archives. Miss Hilda’s Popcorn Cake caught my eye immediately. If nothing else, the name made me want to know just what a popcorn cake was. The cake consists of popped popcorn, m&m’s, marshmallows and a couple other ingredients. What could be wrong with that recipe, right?
Miss Hilda is actually Emeril’s mother, and she used to make this cake for holidays. Emeril advises that you can use whatever type of M&Ms you would like, you don’t have to stick with the plain ones. So if you get one of those My Flavors samplers toss a few of those in if you want. On second thought, as expensive as those are, I’d savour every single one. Maybe even individually.
2 teaspoons plus 1/4 cup vegetable oil
12 cups popped popcorn (plain, unsalted and unbuttered)
2 cups M & M candies
1 cup lightly salted cocktail peanuts
1 stick unsalted butter
1 pound marshmallows
Grease a large tube or bundt cake pan with 2 teaspoons of the oil, and set aside.
In a large bowl, mix the popped corn with the M & M candies and the peanuts.
In a small saucepan, melt the butter, remaining 1/4 cup of oil, and marshmallows over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. When melted, pour over the popcorn mixture, and stir to combine. Pour into the prepared cake pan, pressing down to fit. Cover with aluminum foil to keep moist and let rest until firm, 3 to 4 hours.
To serve, invert the cake pan onto a large cake plate or platter. Shake gently to release. Serve at room temperature.
That sounds sickening!