Popcorn Snowman
Submitted by cjwd
Popcorn snowman craft built from hard-ball-stage caramel popcorn, stacked into a holiday centerpiece with gumdrop features and raisin buttons. A sweet, edible Christmas decoration kids can help make.
YIELD
2 servingsPREP
30 minCOOK
10 minREADY
50 minThis isn’t so much a recipe as a holiday craft project that happens to taste like kettle corn. Thirty-two cups of popped corn get coated in a hot sugar syrup cooked to the hard-ball stage (250°F/121°C), then shaped into two stacked balls for a snowman’s body and a cone for his hat.
Hard-ball stage is the non-negotiable target on the candy thermometer. Anything softer and the popcorn won’t hold its shape. Anything harder and you’ll break teeth. Cook the sugar, corn syrup, butter, salt, and water to a rolling boil, then stop stirring once it’s dissolved and let the thermometer do the talking.
Wear rubber gloves for shaping. The mixture is hot, and bare hands will blister. A powdered-sugar frosting glues gumdrops, raisins, and fruit roll strips onto the finished snowman for eyes, buttons, scarf, and mouth.
This is best made the morning of serving. Popcorn caramel gets sticky in humid conditions and can soften by the next day.
Kitchen Tips
- Keep the popcorn warm in a 225°F (107°C) oven while the syrup cooks. Cold popcorn makes the caramel seize on contact.
- Brush down sugar crystals from the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush. Crystals cause the whole batch to seize.
- Don’t double the batch. Large batches of hot caramel are hard to handle safely.
- Store uncovered at room temperature. Plastic wrap steams the surface into a soggy mess.
Variations
- Use red and green M&Ms instead of gumdrops for a Christmas vibe.
- Shape into pumpkins with orange candy for Halloween, or hearts with pink candy for Valentine’s.
- Add a teaspoon of ground cinnamon to the syrup for a spiced kettle corn flavor.
Ingredients
Directions
About 2 hours before serving or day ahead: Place popped corn in a large open roasting pan and set in 225 degrees F oven to keep warm.
Meanwhile, in a 5-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, heat sugar, corn syrup, margarine or butter, salt and water to boiling, stirring constantly until sugar completely dissolves.
Set candy thermometer in place and continue cooking, without stirring, until temperature reaches 250 degrees F or hard ball stage.
Remove saucepan from heat; quickly stir in vanilla.
Pour hot syrup mixture over popcorn, tossing to coat well.
Set aside about 2 cups popcorn mixture for snowman’s hat.
Wearing clean rubber gloves (for handling hot mixture), shape remaining mixture popcorn into 2 balls, one slightly larger.
On large plate, place smaller popcorn ball on top of larger popcorn ball to form snowman’s body.
Shape reserved popcorn mixture into coneshaped hat; place on top of snowman’s head.
In a mall bowl, mix confectioner’s sugar with 1¼ teaspoon water to form a thick pasty frosting.
Cut snowman’s mouth from fruit roll; cut remaining fruit rolls into strips.
Attach strips around neck for scarf and on hat for decoration.
With frosting, attach 1 green gumdrop to snowman’ face for nose, and 2 purple gumdrops for eyes.
With frosting, attach remaining green gumdrops around base and on tip of hat.
With frosting, attach raisins to snowman’s body for buttons.
Comments
