Peppermint Bark Popcorn

 I made this twice over the holidays, and its delicious as well as so easy!  This will definitely be kept in my repertoire as a quick treat to make to bring to a gathering or as a gift.  Here's the source - a wonderful blog with tons of great recipes.

Ingredients:

1 package almond bark - white
18 cups popped popcorn
2 tsp peppermint extract
1 box candy candes
3/4 c chocolate chips (not pictured)

It took me three bags of popcorn to get the 18 cups, but I also leave a lot of kernels unpopped because I'm afraid of burning it. Here's what you do:
-Unwrap and crush up the candy canes using a plastic bag and a meat tenderizer.
-Melt the almond bark in small batches in the microwave (according to the package directions) and pour over the popcorn.
-Sprinkle the candy cane pieces and peppermint extract over the popcorn and mix very well.
-Spread popcorn out on parchment covered baking sheets and allow to set.
-Melt chocolate chips, spoon into a plastic bag with the corner cut off and drizzle over the popcorn.
-Let sit for a few hours (on the counter or in the fridge). Once hardened, break apart and enjoy!

You can mix the peppermint extract in with the almond bark but many people online suggest that this makes the bark 'seize up' and become clumpy.  I just used my fingers and tried to sprinkle it over the popcorn, which worked out fine. I also did mine in two batches because I didn't have a big enough bowl to do it all at once.  If you aren't a peppermint fan, there are a number of other options on the source blog, some of which I hope to try soon!