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This year for Halloween, I’ve decided to bring one of my favorite fall snacks, homemade popcorn balls, to my friend’s costume party. Popcorn balls are great treats to make for events like these because you can decorate them in as simple or as complicated a way as you want. You can serve them as-is for a classic touch, or you can dress them up with chocolate chips, nuts, or Halloween candies such as candy corn.
For my popcorn balls this year, I’m opting to serve them plain and on a stick for convenience, but I’ll be wrapping them in cellophane packaging, and attaching Halloween-themed personalized tags in the style Jack-O-Lantern. I think the kids at the party will really love them.
Popcorn Balls
Recipe from Chow.com
• 9 cups plain popped popcorn
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup light corn syrup
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/2 stick), cut into small pieces
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions:
1. Coat a large heatproof bowl with butter, vegetable oil, or cooking spray and place popcorn in the bowl.2. Place sugar, corn syrup, water, vinegar, and salt in a medium saucepan and stir to combine. Place over high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved, about 2 minutes. Bring to a boil and cook until mixture registers 260°F on a candy/fat thermometer, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla until melted and smooth.
3. Immediately drizzle sugar mixture over popcorn and stir continuously with a rubber spatula, scraping the bottom of the bowl, until popcorn is thoroughly coated and cool enough to handle, about 3 minutes.
4. Using buttered or oiled hands, tightly press mixture (it may still be a bit warm) into 3-inch rounds. Place on waxed or parchment paper to cool completely, about 15 to 20 minutes.
Optional ideas for decorating your popcorn balls:
– Melt chocolate and drizzle it over the popcorn balls after they’re formed.
– During step three, add nuts or pieces of candy corn to the mixture.
– Turn your popcorn balls into pumpkin heads by forming faces with chocolate chips or Halloween-colored candies or M&M’s.
Used In This Project:
- Circle and Oval Favor Tags • I chose the “Jack-o-Lantern” style in Blue.
- Cellophane Bags • I chose the large size.
More Fall Recipes from Lindsay:
Pumpkin Butter Pumpkin Pie Spice Apple Cider Syrup Handheld Apple Pies
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Lindsay is a writer/blogger from Oregon who loves crafting, cooking, gardening, and simple living. You can find her writing about all of this and more on her blog A Wooden Nest.
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