Get ready for this good Dr. Seuss Grinch flavored popcorn! Your kids will be delighted with this marshmallow coated green popcorn for your family Holiday movie night!

At Avdaye, we add lots of tips in all of our recipes – because we are a home cook without any formal training, and we find we are more confident making dishes when we understand why it works, and what each ingredient means to the flavor of a recipe. Our goal is for even the most beginner home cook to feel empowered in the kitchen.

Sweet and Salty Grinch Popcorn

Mr. Grinch was a mean one with a heart two sizes too small, this sweet and salty popcorn would have put a smile on even his face! Our kids love popcorn as a snack and as a treat while we are watching movies. We like to use an air popper to make popcorn and our kids love watching the kernels hop in the blower until they pop!

Our family has always been into Christmas movies, and we will admit we still love the Grinch movie even as an adult! We wanted to create a fun sweet popcorn that would reflect the Dr. Seuss spirit and of course green it was! This good sweet and salty popcorn uses a marshmallow coating with food coloring to make it a fun Grinchy green. See tips and tricks below for how to make an easy natural green food coloring!

How to make Grinch Popcorn

To make Grinch Popcorn first assemble the following ingredients:

Popped Popcorn – you can use popcorn that is popped in a bag in the microwave or home-popped corn. Either way you don't want the movie theater buttered popcorn. If your popcorn is microwave bag popcorn go for the plain sea salt type.
Salted Butter – We use salted butter to thin the marshmallow a bit. It is difficult to not burn melting marshmallows without butter in the pan. You can substitute margarin in an equal amount.
Mini Marshmallows – mini marshmallows are ideal for melting since they melt much more evenly and quickly than regular marshmallows. You can substitute traditional sized marshmallows if you want make sure you stir more frequently.
Green Food Coloring – We like to use food coloring gel but you can use liquid food coloring if you prefer. See FAQs section below for tips on how to make a natural green food coloring.
Christmas M&Ms – M&Ms add a rich chocolatey taste and also a festive pop of color. You can use regular M&Ms if you can't find the seasonal red and green ones.

Once you have assembled the ingredients use the following method:

Melt your mixture. In a heavy bottom saucepan melt the butter over medium heat. Add the mini marshmallows and stir until melted. Remove from the heat and add green food coloring until you get that Grinchy green.
Coat. Coat the popcorn with the marshmallow mixture well. Prep a baking sheet with parchment paper and pour the coated popcorn onto it.
Add and finish. Add the M&Ms to the popcorn while the marshmallow is still warm. Let it cool then enjoy!

Kitchen notes

See our tips and tricks and frequently asked questions below for solid tasty Grinch popcorn.

Take it slow with the green. When adding the food coloring remember you can always add more but you can't take it back. Its best to add a little at a time and mix well after each addition till you get the desired color.

Mix it up. You can add other candies and sprinkles in addition to or instead of the M&Ms recommended. The possibilities are endless!

A few answers

Can we use oil instead of butter to melt with the marshmallow?

If you want to use oil instead of butter, we recommend you use an equal amount of coconut oil. Coconut oil solidifies at room temperature as opposed to most oils which makes it ideal for this popcorn since you don't want it to feel oily to the touch.

Is there a natural way we can dye the popcorn green?

If you want to make your own natural green dye you can do so by cooking 3 cups of spinach in a pan on the stovetop. After you have cooked it down put it in some cheesecloth and squeeze the green juice from the spinach into a small bowl. The juice is a natural green food coloring, and it won't affect the taste of your popcorn at all!

How long will Grinch popcorn keep?

You can store leftover popcorn in a Ziplock bag on your countertop for 3-4 days.

What to Enjoy With Grinch Popcorn

You will love any of these festive drinks alongside your Grinch Popcorn – we love slow cooker hot chocolate homemade eggnog homemade hot cocoa mix – and of course, all of our good easy Christmas cookies!

For more Christmas recipes click here!

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Ingredients

10 cups Popped Salted Popcorn
3 tablespoons Butter, salted
3 cups Mini Marshmallows
Green food coloring
½ Cup Mini Marshmallows
M&M Christmas Candies

Method

Melt butter in medium saucepan on medium heat.
Add mini marshmallows to pan and stir until melted.
Turn off heat.
Add green food coloring to the marshmallow mixture, until it reaches that solid Grinch color
Coat popcorn with marshmallow mixture stirring quickly.
Pour coated popcorn into a parchment lined cookie sheet.
Add M&M's while popcorn still warm and toss to coat.
Allow to cool and enjoy!