Well this whole thing goes back to this birthday party my girls were invited to over the summer. The Mom had a popcorn bar set up with all these gourmet popcorns set out from Popcornopolis. I don’t eat popcorn that often- it just isn’t something I think about making I suppose -but I just grabbed a cup without thinking.
And then I tasted the popcorn.
It took a supreme amount of self control to not raid that table for every last kernel and make a run for it. (I did consider this for a moment). I promptly made up an excuse to go to the mall and to get my own giant lovely bag of this wonderful stuff…. Um… I won’t tell you how expensive the store in the mall is but let’s just say we could have had a nice steak and lobster dinner for the same price as the popcorn.
So I decided to try and duplicate the sweet flavors at home- and Halloween gives me a perfect excuse to indulge.
Here are three recipes I played with and I just cheated and used bags of popcorn rather then making my own.
I would encourage you to get the buttery, salty kind of popcorn and not the light no salt stuff you might normally pick. After all- we are taking chocolate on popcorn here so go big or go home is my motto. The contrast in flavor from the sweet chocolate or caramel and the salty popcorn is way yummy.
::COPYCAT ZEBRA POPCORN RECIPE
Popcornpolis makes a zebra popcorn that is white and milk chocolate flavor. This is super easy to make.
Simply pop one bag of popcorn
Spread popped popcorn out on a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper.
Melt about 4oz of milk chocolate and 4oz of white chocolate in a double broiler or place in microwave for 30 second increments, stirring each time until fully melted. (Take a lot of care with the white chocolate because it seizes up really quickly.)
Let it cool slightly and place in a piping bag or a Ziploc Sandwich bag.
Cut a very small opening in a corner of the bag and pipe it out on the popcorn.
Repeat this process with both white chocolate and milk chocolate.
Set aside to let it set (or if you are impatient just pop it in the freezer for 4 minutes or so).
You can gild the lily here by sprinkling on some fun Halloween sprinkles or add some sugar candy- like candy corn to your mixture. Reese’s Pieces would also be really good.
::EASY MILKY WAY POPCORN RECIPE
I came across this easy caramel corn recipe from Tyler Florence and personally I thought it tasted like Milky Way bars. I could have easily eaten the entire tub by myself. This is REALLY yummy so please hurry and try it and see what you think.
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup light corn syrup
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Pinch cream of tartar
1/2 (10-ounce) package marshmallows, about 4 cups
10 cups hot, salted popcorn, uncooked kernels removedIn a saucepan, combine the brown sugar, water, corn syrup, butter, and cream of tartar (this bit of acid keeps the sugar from crystallizing.) Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon to dissolve the sugar. When the sugar syrup reaches a boil, stop stirring and swirl the pan around over the heat so it doesn’t burn. As the syrup reaches the caramel stage, the bubbles on top will become smaller, thicker, and closer together. Simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, until the caramel coats the back of the spoon.
Remove the caramel from the heat and stir in the marshmallows. Fold the marshmallows into the hot caramel so they all melt into a gooey caramel sauce.
The caramel will coat better if the popcorn is hot, so make it while boiling the sugar or pop it first then keep it warm. Put the popcorn in a big bowl and pour the caramel marshmallow mixture over the popcorn. Gently fold with a wooden spoon to coat each kernel.
You can make popcorn balls with this or just lay it flat to cool on a parchment paper lined baking tray.
I found it way ooey gooey at first but after a few hours the caramel sets and it is easier to manage.
Now if you want to kick it up a bit you can mix in M&Ms, Reese’s Pieces, Candy Corn, sprinkles etc…
::HALLOWEEN WHITE CHOCOLATE POPCORN.
Pop a bag of popcorn. Set aside in a large bowl.
Melt about 5 oz of white chocolate or almond bark* or Wilton’s Candy MeltsBe really careful if you use white chocolate or white chocolate chips. It does tend to seize so you don’t want to overcook.
If you can find almond bark or vanilla bark in the baking aisle of your favorite store, that is the best option. I can never find almond bark so I went with white chocolate chips for mine. Just pop in a double broiler to melt or pop in the micro in 30 second intervals, stirring well each time.
Now you essentially dump this all over the bowl of popcorn and stir it nicely so everything is coated well. Add any additional toppings you like- I choose M&Ms and salty peanuts for mine.
Candy corn, Reese’s Pieces or any other Halloween candy you like should be good as well. I prefer to add the toppings after the white chocolate but you can also do it before and have everything coated in white chocolate.
Wilton does make wafers in orange so that might be a fun twist for the kiddos too.
Enjoy!
Here are a few other recipes you might enjoy:
Charlene, These sound so yummy, I just might have to try a couple 🙂
I know 🙁 Hurry and make the Milky Way one. I seriously could have eaten the entire bowl- heck with the kids! I didn’t even wait for it to cool ;P.
Mmm… Sounds so yummy! I’m like you, I don’t eat it often, I just don’t think about making it. I know the store you are referring to at the mall though… Conveniently located across from the maternity clothing shop! Lol.
The Zebra Corn is evil. Oh my goodness, I will eat the entire bag by the time I get home. Shhhh, don’t tell.
Wow, after reading these recipes I really want some popcorn! Some chocolate popcorn! I am definitely a chocolate mixed with salt girl so I am so anxious to try them! I am thinking these would also make very clever treat bags to give out during the holidays, you added in some Christmas M&Ms mixed up with that white chocolate, yum! Thanks so much for sharing!!
I stumbled upon Popcornopolis Zebra Popcorn at Costco and fell in love. Its is so yummy!!! Thanks for these recipies.
J,
Yes I have seen it at Costco too. I think they might have an extra layer of sugar of some sort on their popcorn but I thought just the chocolate swirl was good enough.
It is evil Nicole!! Can you imagine the calories? I like the cheese corn and the cupcake from them the best and they always make it a deal where you buy 2 and get 1 free. I can eat all 3 by myself 😉
A little tip: If you need just a pinch of Cream of Tartar, my Sprouts offers Cream of Tartar in self-serve bins (along with spices)… buy as little as you like. So, I am rationalizing eating yummy popcorn = corn = vegetable group! Thanks for sharing 🙂
If you need microwave popcorn, try Walgreens. I got Act II Butter Lovers Popcorn 8 bags/$1. They are tagged BOGO & use the in-ad coupon 4 bags/$1. Buttery & salty like your recipe calls for!
I believe that glitch has been corrected at most stores now EC.
I don’t usually like sweet popcorn, but these look delicious! Especially the Reese’s Pieces! I’ve featured this post in my blog post about Recipes containing Reese’s Pieces. Come Check it out! http://dontboilmybooks.weebly.com/1/post/2012/10/reeses-pieces-recipes.html