Here in the newsroom, we’re sent a lot of information about stuff we really don’t care about from halfway across the country. “Baby toe socks free moms of frostbite worry!” Usually, it goes straight to the trash bin. However about six months ago, we got a press release for a product called Bacon Salt which hails from the Seattle area. It’s a seasoning that, sprinkled over food, makes it taste like bacon. The most disturbing and curious thing about the stuff is that it is kosher and vegetarian-friendly.

As much as I am disgusted by nonfood food, this stuff really intrigued me and I kept thinking about it. So, I went to the product’s site a couple of months ago and discovered that it was available at Food Pavilion in Wenatchee. I made the 15 minute drive to get a small bottle and tested it out on a green salad. It wasn’t bad at all and probably contained fewer nonfood food ingredients than that neon-hued nacho cheese sauce with chips that I used to eat during free skates at the Ice Arena when I was a kid.

The bottle has been lounging in my boyfriend’s cupboard, more or less untouched, until yesterday. Brian and I were about to start watching “Black Hawk Down” when I decided to make popcorn. For the same reason that I don’t like to eat most processed foods — I like to know that my food is real food — I like to make popcorn on the stove in a pan with olive oil and butter. But last night the plain popcorn wouldn’t do. I wanted more flavor. So, as per Brian’s suggestion, I sprinkled it with Tapatio sauce. Then I spotted the Bacon Salt. Snatching it up, I sprinkled it too over the popcorn. The combination tasted fantastic. Sometimes my tastebuds win over my brain telling me how wrong kosher bacon flavoring is.

If it hadn’t tasted so good, I’d be beating myself up for eating this stuff with abandon. It has inspired me to save some bacon grease to heat with my popcorn sometime.

I really want to know what everyone else does to season their popcorn. I’ve had parmesan cheese on it with excellent results. What’s your favorite popcorn seasoning?