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Thursday, May 30, 2013

Birthday Cake Caramel Corn

 White caramel corn with rainbow sprinkles - a fun, delicious birthday treat, and a great alternative to birthday cake!


It's that time of year again....BIRTHDAY SEASON!! Around here, we spend most of the summer celebrating our kids' birthdays (I used to work in a school, so summer birthdays were a must....) Starting next weekend, we celebrate Nora's birthday on the 8th, Ellia's birthday on the 30th, and Greta's birthday on August 14th! Which means lots of presents, lots of balloons, and lots and lots of treats!



Don't get me wrong....there is never a shortage of treats around here... But I always feel like birthday treats should be extra special. Like homemade cupcakes with lots of sprinkles, ice cream sundaes with whipped cream and cherries, ooey gooey rice krispie treats with chocolate on top....you get the picture. Birthdays are supposed to be extravagant!!


So with "birthday season" just around the corner, I've been busy coming up with some EXTRAVAGANT new birthday desserts. Like Birthday Cake Oreo Blondies...and now this fun Birthday Cake Caramel Corn! I actually made it just this week for Ellia to take as her birthday treat. I would have sent cupcakes (every kid's favorite) but her teacher doesn't like crumbs or mess. Ha! Pretty hard to avoid in a first grade classroom......but I wasn't about to be the one to make the mess!


My original plan was to let Ellia decide....(after all, it was her treat, right?) and she decided on a Rainbow Candy Cookie Mix, I couldn't have been more thrilled! All I had to do was add butter and an egg...and she would be happy!? Perfect. But when I proceeded to burn the Rainbow Candy cookies because I was trying to do a thousand things at once (sound familiar?) I had to come up with a new plan.


So around 10:00 pm the night before treat day, I decided to give this a whirl. And, of course, I burned the first batch of popcorn. Because it was just that kind of day. (At this point, Jorden suggested I might just want to buy something the next morning....and although he may have been on to something, I'm way too stubborn for that!) So I pushed on, and by the time 11:30 rolled around, Ellia's birthday treat was (finally) ready.


When she woke up the next morning, she couldn't have been LESS excited to discover popcorn in place of the cookies she had decided on. But that all changed when she tasted it....and by the time she left for school she was bubbling with excitement over the fact that she was taking 20 cups of extra special caramel corn with her! Sometimes it really IS worth the effort - burned cookies, burned popcorn, and all.


Birthday Cake Caramel Corn
16 c. popcorn (1/2 c.kernels, popped)
2 c. white sugar
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. light karo syrup
1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 c. rainbow sprinkles

1. Bring sugar, butter, and karo syrup to a rolling boil; boil 5 min, stirring often. 
2. Add 1/4 tsp. baking soda and stir. Add sprinkles. 
3. Pour mixture over popcorn. Bake 1 hour at 200 degrees. Stir several times while in oven. 
4. Let cool.


Enjoy!

Looking for another delicious birthday treat? Check out my Strawberry Shortcake Pops!

 


Thanks for taking a peek inside my Lemon Tree Dwelling...
I hope you feel right at home!
-Cathy

26 comments :

  1. What an awesome and fun idea! I bet any kid would love that for their birthday. Heck I am 28 and would love this for my birthday!

    Happy Blogging!
    Happy Valley Chow

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  2. This caramel corn looks like a lot of fun to eat! ☺

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  3. What a fun alternative and a delicious birthday treat! Isn't it the best when the littles are adament they don't want something - until they give it a try? Suddenly....golden silence! Yay for that!
    (Birthday season here too - Ms Sydney turns 5 June 26th!)

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  4. Wow..this looks incredibly delicious! I just pinned it so I could make it later!!
    Restoration Beauty

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  5. I have never made any type of caramel corn. I am going to try it! Looks so good. Pinning!
    Karen

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  6. I have a summer birthday and always felt short changed in school! I was thinking of what to make myself and now I know. Caramel corn!!! How fun!

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  7. Oh, looks so delicious! Can't wait to make some for any special summer day! or b-day! Theresa @ DearCreatives.com Hope you have a great weekend ahead! (ps I have two kids oriented giveaways going on right now pop by for your chance if you like) xo Theresa

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  8. Oh my dear Lord these sound scrumptious! I can't wait to try these recipes!!!! Thank you for sharing! Patty O @ www.athankfullyimperfectwoman.com

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  9. I'm pretty sure that I "need" to try this ;) Pinned it!

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  10. I think it goes without saying that I pinned this...I can't tell you how amazing this looks! I want to eat it RIGHT NOW. My kids will be so excited to "help test" this recipe, thank you!

    I also want to just take a minute and compliment you on your beautiful photos. The second reason I pinned this post is that your pictures are so inspiring, it makes me want to work on my food photographing skillz!

    I also followed you by GFC. I'll be stopping by again for sure!

    www.domesticblisssquared.com

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  11. This sounds amazing! I definitely want to try this out. I would love for you to share this on my Sweet Tooth Tuesdays blog link party.
    http://sarahlynnssweets.blogspot.com/2013/06/sweet-tooth-tuesdays-4.html

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  12. You are two for two with my nostalgic sweet tooth! YUM! I have been wanting to try one of those fancy popcorn versions of these and now I can make it at home. PERFECT! Thanks for sharing. Pinning this one too and now following you...thanks!

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  13. This looks amazing!!!

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  14. Hey there! Here from the Blog Hop! Just wanted to let you know I'm following you via GFC! I also liked your Facebook page and am following your other social networks! Hope you'll get a chance to visit me :o) You can find me here:

    Blog url
    http://www.croppedstories.blogspot.com

    Facebook
    https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cropped-Stories/615495055132216

    Bloglovin'
    http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/3718883

    Twitter
    https://twitter.com/croppedstories

    Google+
    https://plus.google.com/u/0/102758509830977850235/posts

    Pinterest
    http://pinterest.com/croppedstories/

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  15. This looks SO fun! Definitely giving this a try! I just love caramel corn : )
    Thanks for sharing at Time To Sparkle!

    Liz

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  16. We love popcorn around here! This looks delish!

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  17. How fun is that popcorn?!? Looks delish! Thanks so much for sharing at Thursday's Temptation. I am going to be featuring your popcorn at tonights link party!
    Jill

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  18. I can't believe how awesome this is Cathy! Just pinned to multiple boards and will be featuring tonight! LOVE! LOVE! LOVE!

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  19. This looks super delicious! My kids would think I am amazing if I made this!

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  20. Cathy this is so fun!! My kids would go crazy for these, me too!

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  21. Aw, you're such a good mom! This looks delish! I can't wait to try!

    ~Jen

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  22. I featured these here: http://www.housewifeeclectic.com/2013/06/creative-showcase-link-up-and-features.html

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  23. Children love to have fast food and pizza is liked by majority of the, so you can throw a pizza party, besides adding soft drinks and desserts on the list, for making the 18th birthday party ideas a huge success.

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  24. This is my first time i visit here and I found so many interesting stuff in your blog especially it's discussion, thank you. party characters

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