Truffled popcorn balls- Moneyball

The film:

The reason:

These are not baseballs. They’re lumps of popcorn, a dandruff of parmesan and a lick of truffle bound together like an island of misfit toys.  It’s worth noting; these do not contain real truffle. If you can afford real truffle in your popcorn, you’re probably not making snacks. Your butler is.

But since the oil still carries a ghost of the truffle’s flavour these treats nicely ape the Oakland A’s General Manager Billy Beane’s philosophy of making cheap things work harder for you. One slightly sweet and salty, truffle bound ball of popped corn will cost you about the same as it does to post a letter.

And for those with an oral fixation (Brad Pitt, seen once again on screen continuously chewing, I’m looking at you) they’re the perfect snack to tide you over until the main event starts. 

One thing to watch; pressing scalding hot balls of honey and oil together into balls can hurt; so you’ll want to wear a glove. I went for a Marigold, but you may just have something left over from Little League that you can put back into rotation.

The way:

Makes 8-10 balls. Excellent as a nibble with drinks.

Equipment
Plastic gloves. 1 baking tray, lined with baking paper. 1 roasting dish. 1 saucepan. Heatproof spatula.

Shopping/foraging

7 cups plain popped popcorn
55 grams butter, cut into chunks
1/4 cup honey
1 tbsp truffle oil (or a little more, depending on how pungent your truffle oil is)
35 grams parmesan, grated
Salt and black pepper

Here’s how we roll

1. Preheat oven to 325°F/ 160 C. Put popcorn in a roasting tray and dust with parmesan. Line a large baking sheet with baking paper .

2. Place the butter, honey and salt together in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the butter is melted.Turn up the heat and boil the mixture for one minute, stirring constantly. Then add the truffle oil and stir.

3. Pour the honey goo over the popcorn and cheese in the roasting pan and stir gently. Season well with salt and pepper. Don’t be shy about either. Bake for five minutes, then stir, then return to the oven, bake for another 5 minutes, stir, then return to the oven for another five minutes (bake for 15 minutes in total)

4.  Put on the rubber gloves and press small fistfuls into balls, clenching to make it stick. If the mixture hardens, return it to the oven for 30 seconds or so to soften.

5. Place the popcorn balls on a baking tray to cool. These will keep in tupperware for up to 2 weeks.

See also ‘The Artist not-so-silent Martinis’