Thrifty Faux Ice Cream Valentine

As promised...here's the lowdown on this really cute Valentine favor. I saw this several months ago and just knew I had to try it. An easy and cheap supply list:

• ice cream sundae dishes I thrifted mine - the most expensive one was marked $1.25, but I got it and several others at a 50% off sale, making most only 35-50 cents.
• assorted Valentine candy - candy corn, gummy hearts, conversation hearts, M&M's (The M&M's, red hots, and probably the convo hearts could be purchased on Feb 15 when everything goes on sale and stored, unopened until next year.)
• red foil wrapped chocolate hearts or red Hershey kisses (I purchased mine last year)
• Pixie sticks or straws
• My Grandmommie's Candied Popcorn - recipe follows
  
• cellophane
  
• ribbon

You can see from the photo how this is assembled. If you want some other ideas on how to top your candy, hop over to Jesse Kate Designs where I originally saw this idea. Some folks have used cotton candy, marshmallows, taffy....but these were mostly glued on and I wanted mine to be 100% edible. I stuck a toothpick through the bottom of the chocolate heart and gently worked it into the popcorn ball to serve as a cherry.

Candied Popcorn Recipe:
Pop about 1 C of popcorn on the stove and put in a large bowl that you have lightly sprayed with Pam. Melt 2 sticks butter, 1/2 C light corn syrup, and 1 1/3 C sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently. Cook until it reaches hard crack stage. Immediately pour over the popcorn and mix well. Pour out on waxed paper to cool. Break apart when cooled and store in an airtight container.
If you are making this for the sundae project, use two large spoons (lightly sprayed) to form mounds of popcorn. Be really careful with the hot candy - just a drop can really hurt your hands. This is NOT a part your children should assist with.
I have all everything ready except the popcorn. The popcorn mounds are ready to put on and then I will tie the entire thing up using ribbon and clear cellophane, just before they are delivered on Thursday. So a handful of candy, a little popcorn, and thrifted dishes help make this little project ring in at maybe $1.50 for the largest dish.
Come back tomorrow or Thursday for the cake pops...they are turning out pretty cute! My neighbor enjoyed the ones we delivered for her birthday today!