Super Easy Candy-Coated Popcorn

My daughter's preschool class is having a valentine's day party tomorrow. My plan was to send little marshmallow pops for her school friends, but those hopes were dashed last night when the only marshmallows I could find in the house were grotesquely misshapen. There was not a hope in hell that they would look at all good. I resigned myself to just providing little cards for her friends, until I remembered something I'd seen on a blog a few days earlier. This Blessed Nest posted lovely candy-coated popcorn-and-m&ms treat bags. I just so happened to have Wilton candy melts in my pantry in a rainbow of colours, so I adapted her idea a little bit for what I had in my pantry.

Super Easy Candy Coated Popcorn
(adapted from This Blessed Nest)

Popcorn
Candy Melts in desired colours, ~1 oz per generous cup of popped popcorn
Salt (optional)

Pop your popcorn. Place in a large bowl.

In a double boiler or a heatproof bowl over a pot of boiling water, melt candy melts. Drizzle candy melts over popcorn, and toss to coat. Sprinkle a little salt as you toss if you like your popcorn salty & sweet.

Spread popcorn on a parchment-covered baking pan, and let sit for half an hour or so, until candy coating has set. Break apart gently with your hands, since the pieces will have stuck together.

The tags are also homemade - now that my craft area has been reorganized, I was able to find exactly what I needed to make these cute little tags, the perfect size for ziploc sandwich baggies! For my crafty readers, the supplies are all from Stampin' Up - Whisper White & Real Red cardstock, Wild Wasabi, Real Red & Pink Pirouette ink, and stamps from Wild About You, and Goody Goody Gumdrops.

Peanut Butter Caramel Squares

Peanut butter cups are one of my all-time favourite candies, and a close second are those delicious, chewy Kraft caramel squares. This recipe combines the best of both worlds - a sweet and peanut-buttery base, a smooth, soft caramel middle and a bit of chocolate on top. They're also sinfully addictive... I've been eating them by the fistful for days. Usually 'out of sight, out of mind' works for me, but even hiding them hasn't helped the rate at which they're being devoured!

I suggest keeping these refrigerated, as the caramel is quite soft at room temperature, and such a thick layer will tend to ooze a little. They look a little funky if that happens, but are no less delicious!

Peanut Butter Caramel Squares

Peanut butter layer:
1 1/2 cups icing sugar, sifted
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup butter

Caramel layer:
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 tbsp water

Chocolate layer:
1 cup chocolate chips
1 tbsp butter

In a bowl, mix together icing sugar and graham cracker crumbs. Set aside.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt together butter and peanut butter. Pour into dry ingredients, and stir until the mixture comes together and forms a ball. Press into a parchment-lined 9x9 pan and set aside.

To make the caramel layer, combine cream, butter, sugar and water in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir until mixture is smooth, then allow to boil untouched until it reaches 240F (soft ball stage) on a candy thermometer. Pour over peanut butter layer and let set for 20 minutes at room temperature, then place in the freezer for 10 minutes to firm up.

For the chocolate layer, melt together chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over a boiling water bath. Spread over chilled caramel and let cool before cutting into 1" squares.