The very first time I made Christmas Crunch, my entire kitchen filled with the buttery smell of freshly popped popcorn mixed with the sweet aroma of melted white chocolate, and it instantly reminded me of holiday movie nights from my childhood. I remember standing over the big mixing bowl, stirring in the red and green candies like I was decorating a giant edible snow globe. The crunch of pretzels and the sparkle of sprinkles made the whole mixture look so festive that I couldn’t stop smiling. From that moment, I knew this was one of those holiday treats I’d come back to year after year.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
You’ll love Christmas Crunch because it has the perfect blend of sweet, salty, crunchy, and colorful—all wrapped into a no-bake recipe that comes together in minutes but tastes like something you spent all day preparing.
Ingredients
- 8 cups popped popcorn
- 2 cups mini pretzels
- 1 ½ cups red and green M&M candies
- 12 ounces white chocolate or vanilla melting wafers
- ¼ cup holiday sprinkles
- Optional: crushed candy canes
- Optional: red and green gel food coloring (for drizzling)
I love using freshly popped popcorn because it gives the mix a lighter, fluffier texture, but bagged popcorn works as long as it’s not too salty. White chocolate melts smoothly and binds everything together with just the right amount of sweetness. Pretzels add the salty crunch that keeps this from becoming overly sweet. M&Ms and sprinkles make it look like Christmas exploded in the best way possible. If you want extra peppermint flair, crushed candy canes add a fun holiday twist.
Equipment Needed
- Large mixing bowl
- Small microwave-safe bowl
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Measuring cups
- Mixing spoon or spatula
A large mixing bowl makes tossing everything together so much easier—I used a smaller one once and popcorn was flying everywhere like confetti. A microwave-safe bowl melts the chocolate quickly without any fuss. The baking sheet helps the Christmas Crunch cool and set evenly. Parchment paper is your best friend here, keeping everything from sticking and making cleanup ridiculously easy. And while a spoon works fine, I often use a spatula because it helps scoop and fold the mixture more gently without crushing the popcorn.
Step-by-Step Instructions
When I start making Christmas Crunch, the first thing I do is spread parchment paper on a baking sheet so I don’t have to struggle later with sticky white chocolate. Then I pop the popcorn. I love hearing the kernels burst open, filling the kitchen with that warm popcorn smell. Once it’s done, I always give it a gentle shake to make sure any unpopped kernels fall to the bottom—I learned the hard way that biting into a rogue kernel mixed in with sweet candy is not fun.(See the next page below to continue…)