Cinco de Mayo is now less than a week away, and I’m so ready. I could use a little celebrating – working from home is wonderful and all, but after a while you can start to feel like the walls are closing in on you.
I’m just anxious to get out of the house and travel somewhere beyond my driveway.
Like to a bar.
That serves great Mexican food.
And speaking of Mexican food, I really thought I’d be posting more Mexican recipes to help me get into the celebrating spirit, but I ran into a snag. Somehow or another, making Mexican themed dishes before Cinco de Mayo is making me feel like I’m opening presents before Christmas. You know totally you want to do it, but in the back of your mind you’ve got this nagging voice telling you that it would ruin what’s special about that day if you did.
I have no idea why my mind made this weird connection other than I really, really need to get out of the house. Like to a bar. That serves great Mexican food. And tequila.
So when I was planning my recipes for the week, I thought long and hard about where I could draw the line. What can I make that is easy, still in the Cinco de Mayo spirit, but won’t make me feel like the grinch that stole the… er, guacamole? Sorry, there wasn’t many Mexican dishes I could end that with that didn’t sound like I was talking about something totally different than food.
And after some thought, I came up with the perfect compromise: churros.
Because churros are simply awesome and still common enough that I don’t see them as a special Cinco de Mayo treat.
I set about researching different churro recipes, but I was surprised to discover that these little guys are kind of tricky to make. The batter consistency needs to be just right, and ideally, you need a special star tip for your pastry bag for to achieve that iconic “ridged look” of churros, and then there’s all that oil you’ll need for deep frying (and the disposing of it after) – etc, etc, and etc. Suddenly my genius idea wasn’t seeming all that easy, and easy was requirement numero uno.
I was feeling pretty down about my churro dilemma until a stroke of inspiration hit me in the middle of a Netflix marathon: I could make churro popcorn! How perfect does that sound?! And I sure was feeling
How perfect does that sound?!
And I sure was feeling pre-tay clever about this idea until I found out that the internet already beat me to it (like always – curses!) But that’s okay. I made my own version of churro poporn, and it’s completely from scratch so you won’t need to go to the store and buy anything fancy like “cinnamon chips.” If you have basic baking ingredients lying around then churro popcorn could be in your future.
Mission: Easy.
Status: Completed.
I suppose it’s fitting that I thought of this while watching Netflix, because that’s exactly what I ended up doing when I sat down with a big bowl of it.
Churro popcorn is sweet, chewy, and crunchy all at the same time, and I don’t know about you, but in my book that’s the perfect snack food for suspenseful dramas and raunchy comedies.
This will definitely become one of my new go-to snack foods.
Recipe Details
Churro Popcorn
Ingredients
Instructions
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In a small bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the churro sugar coating (powdered sugar, granulated sugar, and cinnamon), then set aside.
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Prepare popcorn in a popcorn maker. You can also put popcorn in a paper bag, fold over a few times, then microwave for 90-120 seconds (or until popping slows). Pour popcorn in a large mixing bowl and set aside, giving it time to cool a little while you prepare the next steps.
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Begin to slowly pour cinnamon coating over popcorn a little at a time. Use a spatula to gently stir and toss the popcorn to coat.
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Sprinkle the top of the popcorn with 1/3 of the churro sugar coating, then toss to coat. Continue adding more churro sugar coating until popcorn is completely covered and appears light gold in color.
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Serve immediately.
Shanna @ pineapple and coconut says
I love popcorn, I LOVE churros – churro popcorn. Totally genius. I am with you on Cinco De Mayo and Mexican food. Its the best and I look so forward to it every year. I know my kids will love this popcorn to so I will have to surprise them with it next week.
Chrisy says
Awesome Shanna! And thanks – I really hope they like it 😀
Inquiring minds want to know says
Should the cinnamon be ground? 🙂
Eliza says
yes
Mooshroom says
This popcorn is AMAZING tastes just like the real thing!!! So simple, so delicious, 10/10 would recommend
Jennifer | Bake or Break says
What a fun snack! I’d wager it’s pretty addicting, too!
Chrisy says
It is! The batch I made is already gone. Perfect snacking food.
Elizabeth says
Wow! My boys would love this – pinning it to try the next time one of them has friends over.
Chrisy says
Great idea 😀 I hope they like it!
Kacey @ The Cookie Writer says
I am always looking for new ways to spice up my popcorn, and I must say, this looks amazing!
Chrisy says
Thank you Kacey!
Jennifer Stewart says
Never had these before and can’t wait to try this!! My kids love churros!
Chrisy says
Your kids have good taste 😀 I hope you guys like it!
CakePants says
Whooaaa this looks amazing!! Given my fear of deep-frying (and burning myself), I’m more than happy to skip that step. Can’t wait to try this!
Chrisy says
Thanks! And I totally agree – deep frying is nice and all, but there are plenty of shortcuts out there that work just as well (and no one gets hurt!)
Kaitlin says
Wow I love this idea! Looks like Puppy Chow, but even better 😀
Chrisy says
You know, it wasn’t until after I made these that I thought about trying it with Chex instead of popcorn. Both sound delicious!
Sommer says
Can you substitute the corn syrup with honey?
Chrisy says
Yes, you could make that replacement. The taste will be a bit sweeter, but you could counter that by using a little less sugar (like maybe a tsp or tbsp).
Chaya says
anyway to make this and serve not right away? Say a few hours later?
Chrisy says
If you seal it in an air tight container, it should be okay. The popcorn will just be a little more chewy once the sugars have completely dried.
Erica says
This looks so delicious! I had some churros at the street food circus last week. Oh my it was so good, with chocolate dipping sauce too. My friend will love me forever if I make these for her. Great DIY birthday gift I think. Thank you!
Erica
http://www.spinachandspecs.blogspot.com
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Dawn says
If I have leftover already popped popcorn, how much should I use for this recipe?
Susan says
Holy smokes.. that’s good stuff.
Addicting as all get out… I had to catch my neighbor and send him home with a bunch of it or I’d have eaten the entire bowl myself.
I’ll definitely be making it again.
Heidi says
Is the cinnamon supposed to be teaspoons? I put 3 tablespoons like the recipe says and it was so cinnamony no one in my house would eat it.