Popcorn Snowballs
This is one snowball you won’t mind if the kids snack on!
These winter-y popcorn balls can be made with honey or candy melts, but we like to make ours with marshmallows!
These couldn’t be simpler to make — it’s basically a Rice Krispie square recipe with the cereal switched out for popcorn!
The popcorn balls can be left at room temperature or put in the fridge to set. Trust me, you want to put them in the fridge.
Fridge = Quicker Setting Time = Eating Popcorn Balls Sooner
After the popcorn balls have set, they can be kept either at room temperature or in the fridge. Room temperature tends to let the balls get a bit softer, so it’s personal preference.
You can also place the individual popcorn balls in baking cups after they have set for easy serving — don’t do this before they set because they will stick to the paper and be impossible to remove.
How to Make Popcorn Snowballs
Grab your ingredients:
- 2 cups of popped popcorn
- 1 cup marshmallows
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- Sugar crystals and silver dracon balls
In a microwave-safe bowl, melt 1-2 tablespoons of butter for every 1 cup of marshmallows. I microwave in 25-second bursts, stirring well in between each heating to ensure that the marshmallows don’t burn.
(For a chewier popcorn ball, add more marshmallows and more butter.)
Once the butter-marshmallow mixture is completely melted, mix in 2 to 2.5 cups of popcorn and stir to coat completely. You want the popcorn to just be lightly coated with the marshmallow mixture.
While the mixture is cooling down enough so that you can safely handle it, set up a silicone slipmat or grease a baking sheet to set the formed popcorn balls onto. If the kids are helping, have them pick out some fun sprinkles (snowflakes, snowmen, clear sugar crystals, silver dracons — or just decide to leave them plain).
When the mixture is cool enough that you can handle it safely, wet everyone’s hands slightly, and then show them how to form a handful of the popcorn mixture into a ball. Place on the slipmat or baking sheet, and if using sprinkles, add them now.
Grab your free printable for this popcorn snowball recipe here:
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Popcorn Snowballs
Ingredients
- 2 cups popped popcorn
- 1 cup marshmallows
- 1-2 Tablespoons butter
- Sugar crystals and dracon balls
Instructions
- In a microwave-safe bowl, melt 1-2 tablespoons of butter for every 1 cup of marshmallows. I microwave in 25-second bursts, stirring well in between each heating to ensure that the marshmallows don't burn.
- (For a chewier popcorn ball, add more marshmallows and more butter.)
- Once the butter-marshmallow mixture is completely melted, mix in 2 to 2.5 cups of popcorn and stir to coat completely. You want the popcorn to just be lightly coated with the marshmallow mixture.
- While the mixture is cooling down enough so that you can safely handle it, set up a silicone slipmat or grease a baking sheet to set the formed popcorn balls onto. If the kids are helping, have them pick out some fun sprinkles (snowflakes, snowmen, clear sugar crystals, silver dracons -- or just decide to leave them plain).
- When the mixture is cool enough that you can handle it safely, wet everyone's hands slightly, and then show them how to form a handful of the popcorn mixture into a ball. Place on the slipmat or baking sheet, and if using sprinkles, add them now.
What do you think of our popcorn snowballs?
Be sure to check out the rest of our Kids’ Kitchen recipes for more fun winter snack ideas – like our no-cook gingerbread fudge recipe or reindeer cookie recipe.
Hmm… You say 1 tbsp butter in recipe but 2 tbsp in the list of ingredients?
Hi Marion,
Thanks for pointing that out! I mention using 1 Tablespoon of butter for every cup of marshmallows because I know some people like a more chewy popcorn ball while others just want the popcorn to stick together. Using 1 and 1 will just have popcorn balls that stick together, while 2 and 2 will result in chewier popcorn balls similar to a rice krispie square. I’ll clarify that more in the recipe because I can see that I didn’t make it clear the first time.