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Epicurious
Bon Appétit

Spiced Marshmallow Popcorn Bars

By Chris Morocco

5.0

(1)

Popcorn bars on a red plate and blue and red checkered tablecloth.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca

Crispy rice treats are exactly the kind of food I’ve tried to keep a secret from my kids. While their monolithic sweetness doesn’t do it for me, marshmallow deserves some credit for being a versatile and transformative product. This recipe, which uses popcorn in place of puffed rice, takes full advantage of marshmallow’s ability to bind ingredients together, saving you from having to break out a candy thermometer to make a homemade cooked sugar syrup. Marshmallow is produced using a similar technique but on an industrial scale.

Instead of using plain melted butter, I melt marshmallows into an Indian tadka-inspired mix of butter flavored with cumin seeds, mustard seeds, and mild chile flakes. The savory spices do wonders to counteract the marshmallow’s sweet flavor, while popcorn adds nutty character of its own. The result is salty-sweet balance in every bite. —Chris Morocco

What you’ll need

Recipe information

  • Yield

    Makes 9

Ingredients

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 tsp. black mustard seeds
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 tsp. Morton kosher salt
1 tsp. Urfa biber or other mild pepper flakes
½ tsp. cayenne pepper
3 cups large marshmallows (about 5 oz.)
8 cups unsalted popped popcorn

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Line an 8x8" baking dish with overlapping pieces of parchment paper, leaving overhang on all sides. Lightly coat parchment with nonstick vegetable oil spray.

    Step 2

    Melt ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add 1 tsp. black mustard seeds and 1 tsp. cumin seeds and cook, stirring often, until butter is foaming and beginning to brown and seeds are beginning to pop, about 4 minutes. Add 1½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 tsp. Morton kosher salt, 1 tsp. Urfa biber or other mild pepper flakes, and ½ tsp. cayenne pepper, followed by 3 cups large marshmallows (about 5 oz.), and cook, stirring, until marshmallows are mostly melted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir until marshmallows are fully melted.

    Step 3

    Using a rubber spatula, gently fold 8 cups unsalted popped popcorn into marshmallow mixture until evenly combined.

    Step 4

    Scrape mixture into prepared pan, press into corners, and smooth surface. Let cool in pan at least 15 minutes. Lift out of pan using parchment; cut into bars.

    Do Ahead: Bars can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

TagsSnackSnack BarMarshmallowEasyNut FreeBon Appétit

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