This post was sponsored by Kitchen PLAY on behalf of JOLLY TIME Pop Corn. All thoughts, views, and opinions expressed are my own.
Popcorn is one of the most versatile snacks. You can put it in snack mixes, use it in savory dinners, cover it in caramel, and, of course, eat it plain! I just bought an electric popcorn popper which pops JOLLY TIME kernels in no time and leaves no seeds unpopped, so our family eats popcorn at least once a week.
I wanted to switch things up a bit and make colorful candy popcorn. This fruity popcorn isn’t a recipe with corn syrup or sticks of butter, this recipe has a secret ingredient and that secret ingredient is healthy. No dyes created these bright colors!
The secret ingredient is freeze-dried fruit!
By pulsing freeze-dried fruit to a fine powder, you can have colorful, flavorful popcorn with over 10 servings of fruit per batch! You can find freeze-dried fruit in almost any grocery store. Use any fruit you want, but strawberries and blueberries make the brightest colors.
Dye-Free Fruity Popcorn May Baskets
Do you make May baskets? I am unsure if this is a regional tradition, but here in Iowa, most May baskets include popcorn and candy. Kids make simple baskets out of cups or paper bags, fill them with a snack and ding-dong-ditch their neighbors. When I was making this popcorn, I thought it would be the perfect recipe to make with the kids to use in May baskets to celebrate spring!
Stay tuned on Facebook for a chance to win your own JOLLY TIME mix-in prize pack (value $50) 4/4-4/18!
- 1 cup Jolly Time popcorn white kernels, popped
- 3 oz. package of freeze-dried fruit, any flavor
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup water
- 1 Tbls butter
- Pop the popcorn and place in a large bowl. (If you are making several different flavors, place them in separate large bowls.)
- Place the freeze-dried fruit in a blender or food processor and pulse until it becomes a fine powder. Place the powder in a bowl.
- Over medium heat, cook the sugar, water, and butter until boiling. Reduce the heat and boil for 3 minutes.
- Add the freeze-dried fruit powder to the boiling mixture and stir until combined. (If you are making several flavors, you will need to pour the boiling sugar mixture into each of the bowls with the freeze dried fruit and mix well. You will need to work fast or the fruit mixture will harden).
- Pour the melted fruit over the popcorn in the large bowl. Mix well.
- Let the popcorn sit out on a baking sheet for at least one hour.
Love this idea! My kids are crazy for popcorn, I bet they’d go nuts.
This is genius! Love the idea! I bet it tastes delicious too. Its so pretty!
What a genius idea to use freeze dried fruit for the color and flavor! I’ll have to try this with the kids next movie night
OH wow, I know the boychild would love this. I’m going to do this with him as a family project. It turned out so good.
This is adorable AND brilliant! It’s so pretty, I would have a hard time eating it! Great for parties or presents even!
I love this idea. My kids love popcorn and they would love that they are so colorful.
We love to snack on popcorn at our house. I will have to give this a try. I am always looking for ways to change things up.
What a super cool idea, I love that this is dye free. I will have to try to make it for Family Friday Night!
Now this is really cool. I love popcorn and so do so many of my family members. What a cute idea for an inexpensive gift for friends or family when visiting.
I love popcorns so much. This post makes me want to make popcorn again but this time, more colorful
This is such a great idea. We eat a lot of popcorn in our house. Thanks for the recipe.
I love to find healthy alternatives to snacks… especially those darn dyes, so this is great!
I love the look and the flavors of this candy. I’ve never though of doing this before, so I can’t wait to try it.
How fun! I’ve always shied away from colored, flavored popcorn like that because I knew it was filled with dyes. Not anymore! I can’t wait to make this with the kids for the weekend.
Oh yum! What a great snack idea! My kids would love this.
I LOVE this! We try to eat healthfully and organically and I feel like my kids miss out on a lot of the “fun” food that their friends enjoy.
Dried fruit in popcorn is such a great idea. I WILL try it for sure!
LOVE using dried fruit to dye things naturally <3 I wish more foods would incorporate this healthier way of coloring
This is so cool! I had no idea colourful popcorn existed :)