Peppermint Bark Popcorn

I am one of those people who go to the movies for the popcorn. Literally. If we go out to dinner first, I will purposely not eat all my food so I can make sure to save room for popcorn. And it’s not just movie theater popcorn: caramel corn? Yes please. Cheese popcorn? OK! The Chicago Mix from Garrett’s? Died and gone to heaven.

So I love coming up with fun recipes for popcorn snacks. Since one of my favorite holiday treats is peppermint bark, it was natural that I try to make it into Peppermint Bark Popcorn.

And holy moly, am I glad I did.

It’s light and chocolatey with just a hint of peppermint flavor. I have eaten pretty much the entire batch myself.

It’s super easy to make, too, and would make an awesome gift for friends, family and neighbors this holiday.

Pretty much all you have to do is coat some popcorn with white chocolate, let it set, then drizzle dark or milk chocolate over that, sprinkle with crushed up candy canes, and then let it set again. That’s it! Plus, I know from experience that crushing up candy canes is, like, the most fun thing ever for a 2-year-old and a 6-year-old to do. Especially if, in a moment of questionable judgement, you let them wield a meat tenderizer. 

I did experiment with it a bit when I was making it. I thought it would be extra good made with kettle corn instead of regular popcorn {because what isn’t better with kettle corn?!?}. So I made half the batch with regular popcorn and the other half with kettle corn. The verdict?

They tasted exactly the same.

The kettle corn was the teensiest bit crunchier, but once you coated the popcorn with the white chocolate, it was almost impossible to tell the difference. Oh well.

It’s still crazy delicious either way.

What is your favorite type of popcorn? Just plain old butter-and-salt, or do you have a favorite popcorn treat?

Peppermint Bark Popcorn

Jennifer Young

A sweet, minty popcorn treat with all the delicious flavors of peppermint bark!

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Ingredients

  

• 4 cups popped popcorn {I used one bag of microwave popcorn}
• 1 cup white chocolate or almond bark {I used Wilton white candy melts}
• 1/2 cup dark or milk chocolate pieces {I used a milk chocolate bar from the bulk foods section at Wegman's}
• 2 T crushed candy cane pieces

Instructions

 

• 1. Place popcorn in a large bowl.
• 2. Melt white chocolate according to package directions. {Or, check out this great tutorial on how to melt white chocolate.}
• 3. Pour melted white chocolate over popcorn and stir until completely coated. Spread on a baking sheet lined with a Silpat or parchment paper. Try to spread evenly and separate any large clumps. Let cool until set.
• 4. Meanwhile, melt dark or milk chocolate according to directions {again, here's a good tutorial on how to melt chocolate}.
• 5. Drizzle chocolate over white chocolate-coated popcorn. Shake baking sheet to distribute chocolate over popcorn. While still wet, sprinkle candy cane pieces over popcorn.
• 6. Let set, then break up any large pieces. Enjoy!!