Looking for a fun and colourful way to jazz up your plain popcorn? This Rainbow popcorn recipe is the answer! Loved by kids and is the perfect snack for birthday parties or baby showers.
Pick your child's favourite colours and add as many mini marshmallows or other sweeties to it as you wish.
Apart from the small amount of sugar syrup, this delicious treat doesn't rate too badly in the health department either, compared to some other snacks. You can leave the additional sweets out to make it even healthier.
For more fun snack recipes suitable for children's parties, have a look at these easy Mars bar slices, colourful mini meringues, this impressive Rice Krispie cake or this popular recipe for coconut ice.
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What's to love about this recipe
- The perfect treat for a unicorn party or a movie night at home.
- Healthier snack than some other options.
- This sweet popcorn recipe is fun to make and it's a great opportunity to involve kids in the assembly process.
- Pick any of your favourite colours.
- Add any variety of small sweets or leave it out completely.
- Ideal to portion into individual cupcake holders, paper bags or small popcorn boxes.
Key ingredients and substitutions
**Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the full recipe and list of ingredients.
Microwave popcorn
We use microwave popcorn for its convenience, but you can definitely make the popcorn from scratch using a few tablespoons of popcorn kernels or other ready-made popcorn varieties.
Food colouring
Gel food colouring is the best option for vibrant colours and a wide range of choices. It provides the most intense colours and comes in many different shades.
We have used the following Wilton colours for our rainbow mix in the photo above:
- Pink
- Violet
- Cornflower blue
Sugar and water
Sugar and water are mixed together to make a syrup. This syrup is then used to add colour to the rainbow popcorn.
Mini marshmallows
We add mini marshmallows to the rainbow popcorn, but you can use other small, colourful sweeties like Smarties or M&M's. Ideally, choose sweets that go well with the popcorn colours you selected.
How to make multi-coloured popcorn - Quick summary
- You will need a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper or wax paper, small bowls for colouring the sugar syrup, and medium bowls for colouring the popcorn.
- Cook the popcorn in the microwave as directed on the package. Make sure to let it cool completely before continuing.
- In a medium saucepan, mix together the water and sugar. Heat the mixture over medium heat until the sugar melts and the syrup starts to thicken. Keep it at a very low boil.
- Pour the syrup into the small bowls and add your desired colours to each bowl. Make sure to divide the syrup evenly among the bowls.
During this step, it is important to work quickly to prevent the syrups from thickening too much. The goal is to mix the popcorn and sweets efficiently before the syrups become too sticky.
- Pour a couple of tablespoons of the first coloured syrup into a medium bowl. Add some popped popcorn to the bowl and toss it quickly to coat the popcorn with the colour. Be careful not to soak the popcorn too much in the syrup, as it can make it soft.
- Spread the coloured popcorn evenly onto the baking tray lined with parchment paper.
Repeat the process for the remaining colours, ensuring each coloured popcorn is spread out in its own section on the tray.
- Allow the popcorn to air dry for approximately 3 hours in a draughty, dry place in the house.
- Combine the different coloured popcorn together in a large bowl and mix it with mini marshmallows or your preferred choice of sweets.
Storage
The popcorn is best enjoyed within 2 days to maintain its freshness. After that, it may become stale. Keep it in an airtight container.
Not suitable for freezing.
Top tips
Everything in its place
Mise en place is crucial for this recipe, meaning it's important to gather and have all your ingredients and tools ready before you begin the process.
Start with a small amount of syrup
When adding colour to the popcorn, begin with a small amount of coloured syrup and toss it well. Adding too much liquid can impact the texture of the popcorn.
Be patient and continue tossing before adding more syrup. The colour will transfer as you move the popcorn around.
Use your hands
For the best results, we recommend using your hands to toss the popcorn with the coloured syrup. If you prefer, you can wear gloves, but good quality food colouring usually washes off easily with water.
Put the popcorn in a draughty area
If you have a draughty area in your house, place the tray with the popcorn in that spot to help it dry more quickly.
Sugar syrup will affect the texture of popcorn
Please note that coloured popcorn may be slightly softer than uncoloured, crunchy popcorn, which is normal and expected.
Serving suggestions for rainbow popcorn
Extras to add:
- Dust the popcorn with edible glitter using a large fluffy brush.
- Add any other sweets apart from mini marshmallows, or leave it out for a healthier option.
- Add a sprinkling of sea salt.
Colour options:
Feel free to customise the colours according to your child's preferences or the colour scheme of the party. Here are some ideas to inspire you:
- Camouflage popcorn - shades of green, khakis and oranges.
- Unicorn popcorn - pinks, blues and purples. Add edible glitter.
- Halloween popcorn - black and orange.
- Under the sea popcorn - blues and greens.
- Valentine's Day popcorn - red and pink.
- St Patrick's Day popcorn - shades of green.
- Superman popcorn - blue and red.
- Hulk popcorn - green and purple.
- Batman popcorn - black and yellow.
- Iron Man popcorn - blue and black.
- Wonder Woman popcorn - red, blue and yellow.
- Thor popcorn - blue, black, yellow and red.
- Spiderman popcorn - blue and red (and black).
- Captain America popcorn - red, blue and white.
- Ariel popcorn - green, purple and orange.
- Jasmine popcorn - Turquoise.
- Aurora popcorn - Purples.
- Belle popcorn - Yellows.
Serving vessel ideas:
- Serve in cupcake cases.
- Tied-up, plain, transparent piping bags.
- Small popcorn boxes.
- Paper bags.
- Large glass bowl (to see the full effect of the colours).
More ideas for children's parties
Recipe
Rainbow unicorn popcorn
Ingredients
- 1 packet microwave popcorn - like Butterkist (60g) in the UK, or Act II (2.75 oz) in the US
- 120 grams sugar
- 120 grams water - 100ml
- food colouring of choice
- mini marshmallows - multi-coloured
Instructions
Get your stuff together
- Prepare a large baking tray by lining it with parchment paper. This will be used to dry and set the coloured popcorn.
- Get together some small bowls, one for each colour you want to use.
- Ensure you have your food colouring ready, along with toothpicks for transferring the colour from the jars to the syrup, especially if you are using gel food colouring.
- Also, have some medium-sized bowls ready for combining the popcorn and coloured syrup. Prepare one bowl for each colour you plan to use.
Make the popcorn
- Cook the popcorn in the microwave as directed on the package. Make sure to let it cool completely before continuing.
Make the sugar syrup
- In a saucepan, combine the sugar and water over medium heat. Stir occasionally as the sugar melts. If it starts boiling too rapidly, reduce the heat to low.
- Once the sugar has fully melted, let the mixture simmer gently for approximately 10-15 minutes until the syrup slightly thickens.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and let it stand for about 10 minutes to cool down slightly.
- Pour the syrup into the small bowls and add your desired colours to each bowl. Make sure to divide the syrup evenly among the bowls.
Let's colour some popcorn!
- Begin with your first color. Take a clean, medium-sized bowl and pour approximately 2 tablespoons of the coloured sugar syrup into the bottom of the bowl.
- Take a few handfuls of popcorn and throw it on top of the coloured syrup in the bowl. Working quickly and using your hands, toss the popcorn around in the syrup to coat it evenly. Avoid letting the popcorn sit on top of the syrup for too long as it may make the popcorn soft. If you want a stronger colour, you can add more syrup and toss again. Always be cautious not to add too much liquid. Start small first.
- Once you're happy with the colour, spread the coloured popcorn evenly onto the baking tray lined with parchment paper.
- Repeat the process for the remaining colours, ensuring each coloured popcorn is spread out in its own section on the tray.
- Allow the popcorn to air dry for approximately 3 hours. If you have a draughty area in the house, this will be ideal to leave your tray in to help the drying process.
- Combine the different coloured popcorn together in a bowl and mix it with mini marshmallows or your preferred choice of sweets.
**Nutritional data disclaimer**
Please keep in mind that the nutritional information provided below is calculated by a third party and we cannot guarantee the accuracy. We try our best to give you the most accurate information, but we do not take responsibility for errors that may be present. Also, the nutritional value of the recipe may change depending on the exact brands and products used. We recommend that you consult with a qualified healthcare professional or registered dietitian for personalised advice on your dietary needs.
Nutrition
For food safety advice, including guidance on food allergies
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