Popcorn Cakes …incase you needed to see even MORE sugar here

 

Last night we worked on the final touches of the Christmas gifts that we needed to mail out.  We really should have mailed them last Friday or even this Monday might have done it, but oh well!  They will be late …. but as they say – better late than never! 

A couple weeks ago we were sitting at the kitchen table chatting and looking through our diocesan weekly newspaper and we noticed a popcorn cake recipe.  My mom made lots of popcorn cakes when she and my dad owned a popcorn store at the local mall and Loren’s grandma used to make them at Christmas when he was a kid.  We reminisced about popcorn cakes for awhile and decided that we should make some at the candy making deal we had last Saturday and Loren would have the little ones help him. 

Since the cakes were such a hit at the candy making day we decided that they would be fun to mail off to our siblings we won’t see this Christmas.  As a result of that decision,  Loren became the official popcorn cake maker here at the farm this holiday season.  He made 4 of them last Saturday and 4 last night.  Mixing anything that involves melted butter and marshmallows is one of my least favorite chores and so I was happy to have him make them. 

Tonight however, we had 3 more to make, which meant I was head popcorn cake maker since he was at work.  That was a bummer.  I put it off most of the afternoon … surprised anyone? … but I finally took the plunge and made them and it turns out that they aren’t hard!   I gave my loving husband much too much credit for the “hard job” I think but oh well.  Ha.  They are much, much easier to make then rice crispy bars, which I really don’t like to make. 

Popcorn Cakes

1 bag (10 oz) marshmallows

1 Stick of Butter (actually calls for ½ stick but we love our butter!)

10 cups popped popcorn (we popped ½ cup raw corn)

1 teaspoon Vanilla

Candy!  — the recipe we read called for 1 cup each of m&m’s, gummy bears, and peanuts.  We did 1 cup of peanuts and 1 cup m&m’s in these ones.  My mom’s favorite is just gumdrops.  You can pretty much do whatever you want to with the candy or nuts. 

Melt your marshmallows and butter, add your vanilla and pour over your popped popcorn (check well for the old maids (unpopped ones)that hide! and mix together.  Pour in a buttered dish.  We used a bunt pan, which looks great I think. Mom used to use an angel food cake pan at the store.  You could pretty much use whatever you have. 

They are little work and delicious.  Looks like popcorn cakes might become our signature treat each season.  We have two more baking days around here coming up as we make cookies on Sunday and Monday, which is just a forewarning that you may have to see more sugar in pictures in the coming days.