Regular readers will know that popcorn is one of my very fav foods. I am somewhat obsessed with it – I even named my mini schnauzer after it! I have an air popper machine at home and it gets quite the work out. If I am out and see popcorn for sale I buy it. I have even been known to go to the movies, buy popcorn, and leave.
Usually I just have salt and butter – mmmm, butter – but this morning I was thinking of how I could `Christmas-ize` popcorn. A quick pre-school-drop-off trip to the supermarket later and I had some M&Ms and a plan.
In Australia the array of Christmas confectionary is very poor compared to what my friends in the US have. You can buy single colour M&Ms here but they are tricky to find. I bought a pack of mini M&Ms and set Miss9 to work, segregating all the reds and greens. I also bought a pack of mint M&MS which were mainly green, with a few whites. I am trying to think of a Christmassy way of using these.
This fun and easy Christmas snack is a cinch to make. Please do not use microwave popcorn. It is coated in so many very weird chemicals and it tastes like a bucket of chlorine.
I found this recipe on the fabulous Two Sisters Crafting website, which is packed with so many cool recipes. I just reduced the quantities. Check it out: http://www.twosisterscrafting.com/
This recipe makes heaps and is perfect for sharing at Christmas picnics, BBQs and school Christmas gatherings, which is where this batch is destined to end up. I also think Santa would love a dish of sweet and salty Christmas popcorn to eat on Christmas Eve.
My pro-tip: wash the saucepan the instant you have finished making this recipe – you do not want melted marshmallow congealing on your pan. Trust me on this.
GATHER:
6 cups popped popcorn
freshly ground sea salt
3 cups of white marshmallows
45 grams butter, diced
1 cup red and green M&Ms or Skittles
Here`s Popcorn the mini schnauzer looking unimpressed at her Santa photo 2016 🙂 She hated having her photo with Santa but look how cute she is! Squee! 🙂
LET`S GET TO IT:
Spread cooked popcorn on a large baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper and remove any unpopped kernels.
In a large pan over low heat melt together the butter and marshmallows. Stir constantly. It will become a really sticky, weird science-experiment texture but continue on. When it is 90 per cent melted turn off heat and keep stirring until there are no lumps of marshmallow left.
Immediately pour the mixture over the popcorn, then use a fork or tongs to stir popcorn to coat as much as possible. Sprinkle over the M&Ms, and stick some to the marshmallow sauce. Grind over the sea salt to taste.
Set aside to cool then break into chunks to serve.
the hungry mum 