Rainbow Popcorn

lines of rainbow popcorn in rainbow order in a rectangular dish.

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Turn caramel popcorn into rainbow popcorn with just a handful of ingredients and your favorite food coloring.

Prep Time10

Cook Time10

Total Time20

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Servings: half cup servings

Calories: 102kcal

Author: Joanne Stekler

Ingredients

3 cups popped popcorn
½ cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons water for a wet caramel
1 tablespoon butter
¼ teaspoon salt if using unsalted popcorn
Gel food coloring 6 colors
Food-safe desiccant packet optional, for storage

Instructions

Turn on your oven to 200°F (93°C) and put three cups of popcorn in a heat-safe bowl in the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3 cups popped popcorn
In a wide frying pan, combine the sugar and water, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Heat the mixture over medium-low heat without stirring just until it turns a light copper color. It should not smell burnt.
½ cup granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons water
Remove the pan from the heat, and stir in the butter cubes, salt if your popcorn is unsalted, and one color of food coloring.
1 tablespoon butter, ¼ teaspoon salt, Gel food coloring
Quickly grab the popcorn from the oven and use a spatula to stir the popcorn to coat it with the caramel as much as possible.
Spread the caramel coated popcorn on your prepared baking sheet, breaking up large clusters with the spatula, and let cool completely.
Store in an airtight container with a food-safe desiccant packet for a durable crunch.
Food-safe desiccant packet

Notes

Cook times and nutritional estimates are provided for a single color of caramel popcorn. Repeat for each color you are making and let them all cool completely before mixing together.

Keeping your popped popcorn warm in the oven slows down the caramel from solidifying, giving you a better candy coating.

The recipe instructions call for a wet caramel because it is easier, but you can also make this rainbow caramel popcorn with a dry caramel.

Humidity is the enemy of crunchy caramel popcorn! Once your rainbow popcorn has cooled, store it in an airtight container with a dessicant packet for up to one week.

Nutrition