I became obsessed with popcorn as a child, but rarely had it outside of a movie theater or a visit to the circus until I was a teenager. It was then that I talked my mom into buying a popcorn maker. This came after burning one of her pans a few too many times. Sorry, Mom. Of course, before that special moment of popcorn machinery possession, I experimented with the famous Jiffy Pop brand of popcorn and its amazing foil packaging. Who doesn't get a thrill out of that flat wonder expanding into a silver turban of goodness? Of course, I have never made the stuff without a large portion of it burned and adhered to the bottom of the very hot tin! Have you? Most of the time, I've eaten it anyway. Several years ago, I ran across a really unique recipe in "Emeril's Creole Christmas," a great holiday cookbook from the king of forty cloves of garlic and some of the richest, decadent recipes on the planet. It's called "Jiffy Pop Firecracker Shrimp". My experiences with this recipe have been both great and borderline disaster. As long as you follow the recipe exactly, and do not attempt to save on the foil and use a lid on your pan, you should have success. I made the mistake of using a lid once, and ended up with the popcorn steaming and not popping properly. It was a mess, and resulted in me popping some corn in another pan with some Creole seasoning, and throwing the shrimp on top before I tossed in the salt and extra spicy stuff. I was a bit frazzled that day. It's best to use a non-stick, deep skillet, the heavy-duty foil, and medium shrimp that are well cleaned and dried before placing in the pan. I suggest making this as an unusual appetizer, or as a special snack with a flute of champagne, sparkling wine, or a light beer. Heck, I'd eat it for dinner! It's spicy goodness will make you happy. Thank you Emeril Lagasse. Here's to you. BAM! [Submitted by lovechild]