How to Make Popcorn Taste Just Like a Trader Joe's Fan-Favorite Snack

Popcorn is the perfect snack because it's light, crunchy and endlessly customizable. Whether you like it plain with a pinch of salt, or coated in butter or caramel, popcorn is a great way to satisfy your snack cravings. It’s easy to make and crunchy texture keeps you coming back for more. Plus, it's the perfect couch snack to pair with your favorite shows and movies.

The flavored popcorn trend has really picked up over the last few years and it's easy to find fun flavors at stores like Aldi and Trader Joe's. One of the fan-favorite popcorns is the Maple & Sea Salt Kettle Corn at Trader Joe's, which is perfect for this time of year.

This kettle corn is coated in lightly caramelized sugar, seasoned with sea salt and sweetened with a light maple sugar glaze for the perfect fall snack. If you don't have a Trader Joe's near you, but want to make a similarly-flavored popcorn, blogger Gabby posted this recipe on her blog 'Mom Makes Joy' and we can't wait to try it!

She gave two versions of this popcorn—a White Chocolate Popcorn and a Pumpkin Spice Popcorn. The Pumpkin Spice Popcorn seems to have a similar flavor profile to the Trader Joe's Maple & Sea Salt Kettle Corn.

Related: 80 Appetizer Recipes That Will Be the Stars of Your Fall Get-Togethers

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How to Make Pumpkin Spice Popcorn

For the pumpkin popcorn recipe, you will need popcorn, pumpkin pie spice, a mix of brown sugar and white sugar and melted butter. The amounts are listed on the blog.

To get a sense for the general method, melt the butter in the microwave and make your popcorn. If you make your popcorn from kernels, toss the sugar mixture into the pan that you popped your popcorn in. If you popped your popcorn in the microwave, transfer the popcorn into a large bowl and pour the melted butter over the kernels. Toss it until it's coated enough for the sugar mixture to stick to it. Add the pumpkin spice to taste. It's that easy to get a fall-flavored popcorn that's sure to wow!

Pro tip: If you really want to give your popcorn Trader Joe's vibes use maple sugar instead of brown sugar. Don't try to substitute maple syrup, though. For this recipe, you need a dry mixture to coat the kernels.

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