DIY Popcorn Ball Gifts Kids Can Make

I love that the boys are old enough to want to make and give gifts to their family and friends. There’s so many sweet and thoughtful gifts that kids can make to give away. This week we tried our hand at DIY popcorn ball gifts thanks to our sponsor G. H. Cretors.

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DIY Popcorn Ball Gifts Kids Can Make

Kids love to have a hand in making the gifts they give to others. And it’s special to the recipient to know their gift was handmade with love by a child.

Popcorn balls are a classic holiday treat, but so often filled with artificial sweeteners and binders. So I thought we’d try out a natural popcorn ball recipe.

We added a little twist by using G. H. Cretors flavored organic popcorn to help us skip a step in flavoring the popcorn ourselves.

Our favorite flavor was G. H. Cretors Just the Caramel Corn which has a delightfully rich caramel coating. G. H. Cretors still makes their caramel corn in small batches in copper kettles for that true caramel flavor. While this was our favorite flavor, I have to warn you that because it’s already coated, our honey-based recipe didn’t want to adhere to the corn. So… We just enjoyed an extra sticky treat.

However, the Chili Jalepeno White Cheddar flavored popcorn stuck together much better. I handled the hot stove cooking of honey and butter for safety reasons. The kids enjoyed getting a little messy with the popcorn ball making.

Then we placed the popcorn balls in Christmas cupcake liners and popped them into pretty cello bags for gifting. All the grandpas and uncles in our family enjoy a spicy treat, so the robust flavor of this popcorn surprised and delighted them!

Natural Popcorn Ball Recipe

Making this popcorn ball recipe was so easy (if a little messy) and fun for the kids to experience the joy of giving. Plus, giving a homemade food gift like popcorn balls is a fun way to show some love, while keeping the holidays simple and hands on for kids.

Ingredients:

6 cups of G. H. Cretors flavored popcorn (or unflavored if you like plain)
1/4 cup honey
1 T butter (divided)

Directions:

Melt butter into honey in a small saucepan until honey forms small bubbles. Let cook for about a minute until you get a slightly caramelized honey. Watch it carefully so it doesn’t burn. Allow to cool slightly. Then pour evenly over popcorn in a casserole dish. Mix gently.

Rub hands with some butter and grab a handful of popcorn and press together firmly but gently. Don’t move hands too much or the pieces will “break” away and have nothing sticky to “stick” to. We learned this the hard way.

Gently place balls into a cupcake liner and allow to harden into a firmer ball. Put into a treat back and tie closed to prevent popcorn getting stale until you gift it. Because these are made with honey they won’t have that rock hard, tooth-breaking adhesion. You may find some balls want to come loosely apart, which is where the cupcake liner helps hold them together.

Enjoy within the next few days for best freshness.

Popcorn makes a great gift idea!

Popcorn is rather a wonderful item to have on hand for holiday parties and gifting. I’m already thinking about other popcorn food gifts, like drizzling with chocolate, or just bagging up for a take-home treat after a party! Pair some popcorn with a hand-written popcorn recipe, or with a holiday mug and some hot chocolate, and you have a lovely gift!

Our family has gotten quite attached to the unique and bold flavors of G. H. Cretors popcorn. My personal favorite has become The Mix, which blends cheddar cheese with caramel corn. I know, that sounds surprising, doesn’t it? But it’s actually a really delicious combination!

What popcorn gifts do you enjoy making? If you want more popcorn party and gift ideas, check out out my previous post on all things popcorn!