Spooky Popcorn Balls

Okay, they're not really spooky, are they? They're so easy...that's what's spooky about them!

I made this first batch plain. The recipe only made up seven of them, but it's not so bad because it's really not that time consuming.

I decided to add some orange jello for color to the second batch. Because of all the jellos in the world, orange is my favoritest. I liked these, it gave just a little flavor (I added half the package to the syrup mixture), but the girl didn't like them.

And because I love salty and sweet together, I added some mini m&m's to the last batch. This was a little tricky since I had to let the popcorn mixture cool off enough to not completely melt the candies, but still warm enough to make into ball shapes. It's all about balance people!

The girl put them in cute little candy corn bags and piled them all in a lasagna pan for passing out later tonight.

I think dentists around the community will be happy with me :)

Here's the recipe I found at Halloween-website.com.

I like it because it's simple and you don't have to use a candy thermometer or anything complicated like that.

8 c. popped popcorn

2/3 c. light corn syrup

2/3 c. granulated sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

Combine the corn syrup, sugar and salt in a large kettle and heat on medium heat while stirring until dissolved. Add the popcorn to the kettle and toss. Cook for an additional 5 minutes until mixture becomes very sticky. Remove from heat.

Shape popcorn into balls with clean hands and cool. Wrap the balls in plastic wrap and seal tightly with a twist tie.

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I know I promised in the last post to share Emeril's black-eyed pea salad. Hope you're not too disappointed. Popcorn balls trump peas everytime :)