Darlin’ it’s better down where…there’s 30th Anniversary Little Mermaid Rainbow Celebratory Popcorn!
Isn’t that how the song goes? As my four-year old would say, ‘Nooo, Mom, that’s not right!’
It might not be how the song goes, but life does seem better when popcorn is involved. Especially popcorn from Walt Disney World and Disneyland. They must sprinkle extra pixie dust into the mix to create the world’s most addicting popcorn.
The popcorn featured below might not be Walt Disney World or Disneyland popcorn, but it is a celebratory popcorn for the Little Mermaid’s 30th anniversary this year. Can you believe that the Little Mermaid has been out for 30 years?? I’ve decided to accept this detail, but not fully embrace it. Mostly, because it doesn’t feel like it was too long ago that I was watching this movie (and getting freaked out by Ursula) as a little kid. How have 30 years already gone?
Since Ariel seems to be the fountain of youth and you’d have no idea it was her, what maybe 45th? 50th birthday? (How old do you think she was when she married Prince Eric?) Either way, I think she would appreciate some kid approved celebratory popcorn creation to mark this special anniversary! Without further ado, here is our 30th Anniversary Little Mermaid Rainbow Celebratory Popcorn!
Supplies
Popcorn
1/4 c. to 1/2 c. Popcorn Kernels (Or 1 Bag of Natural, Plain Popcorn: Black Jewel is Perfect)
1-2 Tbps. Oil or Water
Flavor/Coloring
Skittles: Sorted for about 1/4 to 1/2 c. Each Color (We used the 41oz Bag (and not the whole thing!), but you can use several Regular Sized Bags)
Food Processor (We like this one!)
Brown Sugar or Corn Syrup (About 1/4 c. for Each Color, 1.25 c. Total)
1/2 Stick of Butter Per Color (About 2.5 Sticks of Butter Total)
1. Step One
Gather up all your supplies! The pot you use should be about the size of a soup pot. If you don’t have a food processor, it’s not completely necessary. It does help the candies melt a little quicker though. Prepare your waxed paper on the counter.
2. Step Two
Make your popcorn! Keep your attention on the popcorn as it is cooking as it can go from cooked to burned very quickly! We have made popcorn with both oil and water before. Oil helps the popcorn cook a little quicker, but the water is a touch healthier. You can experiment and see which you like best.
Whichever you choice, pour 1 Tbsp in the bottom of a large pot. Add two to three kernels of un-popped popcorn. Turn the heat up to high and cover the pot with the lid. Keep you eyes on the pot and wait for the kernels to pop. Once they pop, your oil and pot is hot enough to add the remaining kernels and cover back up. Give it a big shake so the kernels are evenly distributed in the pot. You can take the original two kernels out of the pot if you want to make sure they don’t burn.
Continue to stay close to the pot, moving it back and forth on occasion as the kernels pop. Staying close and keeping things moving helps kernels pop and also helps prevent burning. Once a majority of the kernels have popped, remove your popcorn from the heat and set it aside.
3. Step Three
In step 2 we are going to start preparing the separate colors for the popcorn candy coating. I found that processing the skittles down to a powder allowed me to make the candy coating in the microwave and helped the candy melt faster. It is not necessary and you could melt the candy on the stove without processing it. The powdered candy would melt faster on the stove as well though.
If you do plan to use the food processor, prepare for a little noise! Pour the skittles in, one color at a time. Pulse the skittles until they are a fine powder. If you want to dampen the sound a little and plan to use brown sugar instead of corn syrup, you can always add this in at the same time to grind up with the skittles Just watch to make sure the skittles are still grinding down into a powder.
4. Step Four
Once all the colors are ground to a powder it’s time to melt down the colors! Before you do that, setup your plain popcorn in 5 bowls (or however many colors you have). Then, if doing the microwave version, take one color at a time, add in the brown sugar or corn syrup (NOT BOTH!), and a 1/2 stick of butter. Meltdown in 30-45 second intervals, stirring as you go. Adjust as needed for your microwave time.
If you’d prefer to do this step on the stove, grab a small sauce pan and melt down the candy, sugar and butter. Keep the heat medium to medium-high, constantly stir and keep your eyes on the pot! Once everything is melted down into a liquid go ahead and pour slowly over the popped popcorn. We found that we needed to move the bowl around to keep the hot liquid from completely dissolving all the popcorn upon initial pour over. Keep a silicone spatula on hand to be able to move things around. Once the liquid is completely poured out, spread the popcorn over the waxed paper and let it cool.
5. Step Five
Once all the popcorn is nicely cooled, mix it all into a huge bowl to complete your rainbow celebratory popcorn!! Time to kick back and turn on a flick. Perhaps the Little Mermaid?? Happy 30th Anniversary, Little Mermaid!!
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