Christmas Crunch is a sweet and salty holiday snack made with popcorn, pretzels, M&Ms, white candy melts, and Christmas sprinkles. The entire batch costs about $10.76, making it an easy and budget-friendly treat for the holiday season.
We make this Christmas Crunch every single year, and it’s the treat I hand out most to friends, neighbors, and teachers. It’s white chocolate popcorn tossed with salty pretzels, red and green M&Ms, and sprinkles — like our Reindeer Chow, but made with popcorn. It takes 15 minutes, needs no oven, and one batch makes enough to fill a stack of gift bags.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe!
- No oven, no candy thermometer. Just a microwave, a bowl, and a baking sheet.
- Sweet and salty. Popcorn and pretzels balance the sweet candy coating and M&Ms.
- Big batch for less than $1 a serving. Enough for a party or a whole round of neighbor gifts.
- Kid-friendly. Kids can toss the mix and add the sprinkles.
After years of creating and testing recipes for my family, I know how helpful it is to have festive treats that are simple to prepare. Christmas Crunch is one of those recipes that makes holiday snacking and sharing easy without spending a lot of time in the kitchen.
You may also like to make Crock Pot Christmas Crack and Sugar Cookie Popcorn.
Ingredients
- Popcorn. Plain or lightly salted microwave popcorn works best. Skip extra-butter or movie-theater flavors. The extra oil keeps the candy coating from setting and makes the mix greasy.
- Pretzels. Break them into bite-size pieces so every handful gets a little salty crunch.
- White candy melts. They melt smoothly in the microwave and set firm at room temperature, so the mix doesn’t stay tacky.
- Red and green M&Ms. Holiday colors make it festive, but plain M&Ms taste exactly the same.
- Christmas sprinkles. Add them while the coating is still wet so they stick.
Find the complete ingredient list and instructions for the recipe at the bottom.
How to Make Christmas Crunch
Step 1. Prepare the popcorn and place on a baking sheet with parchment paper or wax paper. Make sure to remove any unpopped kernels.
Step 2. Sprinkle the broken pretzel pieces on top and gently mix them into the popcorn with your hands.
Step 3. Melt the candy in a microwave safe dish. Heat in 20 second intervals and stir after each one until completely melted.
Step 4. Drizzle half of the melted candy over the popcorn and pretzels. Gently toss with a rubber spatula until most of the pieces have a light coating.
Step 5. Drizzle the rest of the candy melts over the top.
Step 6. Then immediately scatter the M&Ms and sprinkles over the wet coating so they stick.
Step 7. Let it sit at room temperature until the coating is completely firm and no longer shiny, about 30 minutes. If you’re in a hurry, pop the pan in the fridge for 10–15 minutes. Tip: If your candy melts turn thick or clumpy, they got too hot. Stir in ½ teaspoon of vegetable oil or shortening to smooth them out and keep heating in short 20-second bursts. Add the M&Ms after the coating has cooled for a minute or two so the colors don’t streak.
Step 8. Break it into bite-size clusters and serve.
Pro Tips
- Popcorn. This can easily be made with air popped popcorn instead. This recipe uses approximately 10 cups of popped popcorn.
- Melted candy. You can use melted white chocolate chips instead of candy melts if you prefer.
- Pretzels and peanuts. You can use different shapes of pretzels in this recipe. Another idea is to leave the pretzels whole instead of breaking into pieces. Sometimes, we also add a handful of peanuts and combine in a large bowl.
- Microwave safe bowl. Make sure to use a bowl that is microwave safe to melt the candy. Only melt in increments so that you do not burn it.
- Flavored candy melts. Try different flavors such as mint, milk chocolate or peppermint.
- More holidays. Substitute the red and green m&m’s for other seasonal m&m’s or plain ones. You can pair this with any sprinkles that work for the occasion to enjoy these year round.
- Chex Cereal. Instead of popcorn, use chex cereal. It is a tasty variation that combines well with the other ingredients.
Making Christmas Crunch for Gifts
One batch makes 12 servings and costs about $10.76 total, or about $0.90 per serving. Package the servings in small treat bags for an easy homemade gift for teachers, neighbors, friends, or holiday parties. Need more? The recipe doubles easily, just use two baking sheets.
Variations and Additional Mix-Ins
- Swap the popcorn. Air-popped popcorn or Chex cereal both work.
- Swap the coating. Use melted white chocolate chips, or try mint or milk chocolate candy melts.
- Make it for any holiday. Swap in seasonal M&Ms and matching sprinkles.
- Add-ins we love: peanuts, cashews, mini marshmallows, crushed candy canes, mini peanut butter cups, or peanut butter M&Ms. Stick to about 2 cups of extras total so there’s still enough coating to hold everything together.
Frequently Asked Questions
We used plain microwave popcorn cooked to the package instructions. I wouldn’t use the extra butter varieties in this recipe. It will be too greasy.
Let it cool completely, then store it in an airtight container or zip-top bag at room temperature for up to 1 week. It’s crunchiest in the first 2–3 days, so if you’re gifting it, make it no more than a day or two ahead.
Make it 1–2 days before you plan to hand it out and bag it as soon as it’s fully set. Sealed treat bags or mason jars keep it crunchy longer than open tins.
More Christmas Treats To Try
Give this Christmas Crunch a try and let me know what you think! Leave a star rating and share your review below. I’d love to hear how you served this festive holiday treat.
Christmas Crunch
Ingredients
- 2 bags Popcorn about 10 cups popped, popped per package directions
- 1 cup Pretzels broken into small pieces
- 1 bag White Candy Melts 12 oz bag
- 1 bag Green and Red M&Ms 10 oz bag
- Christmas Sprinkles
See how we calculate recipe costs.
Instructions
- Pop the popcorn based on the bag instructions and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Spread the popcorn over the parchment paper. Sprinkle the broken pretzel pieces on top and gently mix them into the popcorn with your hands.
- Place the candy melts in a microwave safe dish. Heat in 20 second intervals (stirring after each one) until the melts are fully melted.
- Drizzle half of the melted candy over the popcorn mixture and gently toss with a rubber spatula to coat the mixture with the candy melts.
- Pour the remaining candy melts over the popcorn mixture and Sprinkle the M&Ms and Christmas Sprinkles on top.
- Let the mixture cool completely so that the candy can harden. Then break into pieces and serve.
