This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure Policy.

Something yummy this way comes! This deFRIGHTful Hocus Pocus popcorn is an easy and festive Halloween snack that’s as much fun to make as it is to eat. Salty popcorn is tossed in colorful white chocolate and littered with spooky mix-ins, creating a tasty and visually impressive treat (no tricks!). Serve it in a cauldron for a witchy centerpiece, or portion it into individual goodie bags for your little one’s classroom party.

Close-up, overhead view of a plastic cauldron filled with orange, purple, and green white chocolate covered popcorn clusters with sprinkles and candy eyes.

What Makes This Recipe So Good

This is one of the best Halloween party or spooky movie night snacks, especially if you’ve got kids! Not only is it super delicious, it’s really fun to make AND to look at. Seriously, I know you’re not supposed to play with your food (or whatever), but this Hocus Pocus popcorn is like snack time and arts & crafts time all rolled in to one. Go wild with the mix-ins, have fun with the colors, come up with creative ways to serve it. You can even use the food coloring to teach your littles about the magic of color mixing! Tasty AND educational.
Each and every piece of popcorn is coated in a rich, sweet, colorful white chocolate coating. You’ve probably had popcorn drizzled with chocolate before, and if so then you know that the problem with a drizzle is how uneven it is! Some pieces will have a ton of chocolate, others won’t have much at all, and the whole underside of the popcorn goes bare. Instead of a drizzle, we toss our popcorn in melted white chocolate so each piece is fully covered, giving the perfect combo of salty and sweet in every bite.
Room moms and teachers, get excited! White chocolate popcorn is super easy to adapt for any potential food allergies or dietary needs, making this a great option for a classroom Halloween party. Nut free, dairy free, gluten free, vegan, vegetarian, low carb, added-sugar free, all natural – Halloween popcorn can do it all. Just beware the curse of the sugar rush… and crash.

Chef’s Tips

When it comes to melting chocolate, especially white chocolate, it’s important – nay, CRUCIAL – that your bowls and your spatula (or spoon) are 100% dry. Even the smallest amount of moisture will cause the chocolate to seize, making it clumpy and crumbly. If that happens, don’t panic – you can add a little more coconut oil as needed until the chocolate is smooth again. Just don’t overdo it, or you’ll get chocolate that’s really thin and runny and won’t coat the popcorn well.
The key to perfect Hocus Pocus popcorn? Really nailing the actual popcorn part. You can pop your favorite microwave popcorn, or you can use a stovetop method like we did here. For the best stovetop popcorn, make sure you use a really good pot and resist the urge to dial up the heat. If the oil even so much as tiptoes near burnt, you’ll end up with burnt-tasting popcorn, even if it looks perfect. Heat the oil on its own first, and test it by dropping just 2 or 3 kernels in. Once those pop, the oil’s hot enough to add the rest.
When you add the kernels to the oil, cover the pot immediately and shake the whole the thing so the kernels can settle in one even layer. That way, they’re much more likely to pop evenly, since they’ll all be covered in hot oil. Keep shaking them until you hear them start popping, and then shake the pot periodically after that so you rotate any unpopped kernels down to the oil.
Covering the pot with the lid captures the heat and focuses it all on the kernels, but it can also trap steam that’ll make the popcorn soft instead of crisp. You can position the lid ever-so-slightly askew so the steam can seep out but the majority of the heat stays in.