If you want a classic dessert that is more addicting than some traditional cakes, this popcorn cake is for you! It’s filled with red, white, and blue chocolate candies to make it perfect for a Fourth of July picnic dessert!

Making homemade Rice Krispie Treats has never been a favorite activity of mine… but I definitely prefer to have some salty/chocolate to go along with marshmallow. That’s why this popcorn cake has been the dessert we didn’t anticipate, but the one we really needed all along.

If you’re wondering how to make the PERFECT melty-marshmallow popcorn cake, this is the recipe for you!

What You’ll Love About This Popcorn Cake:

It’s just 5 ingredients. You’ll love how easy this is to put together! Once you get everything measured out, it’s just a few simple steps!
It’s quick. You’ll have to work fast because of the melted marshmallow mixture, but once it’s in the pan it’s completely done!
It’s a little messy but it’ll be worth it. Soon you’ll be cutting into a delicious marshmallow-coated chunk of popcorn, chocolate, and nuts. It sounds a little ridiculous but it’s amazing.

marshmallow pouring over peanuts and popcorn

Tips on Making This Popcorn Cake:

It may be slightly messy, but there are a few ways you can avoid some of the craziness!

Don’t overheat the marshmallow and butter. Just make sure it’s melted and mixed all the way through, and you’re good to go!
When adding the marshmallow mixture, add the chocolate candies last. Mixing them TOO much will make them melt everywhere and get super messy.
When pressing the mixture into your buttered bundt pan, be sure to put butter or oil on your hands to keep the marshmallow from sticking. It’ll make the whole process a little faster and a little less sticky!

What Do I Put On Top Of Popcorn Cake?

For this recipe, we drizzled some white chocolate candy coating on top! Here are a few other options for topping:

Crush peanuts and sprinkle with chocolate candy. This can be done with or without a chocolate drizzle!
A plain chocolate drizzle.
Chocolate drizzle with sprinkles.
Chocolate drizzle with mini marshmallows.
Anything else – get creative!! 🙂

Can I Leave Out The Peanuts or add Other Ingredients?

You can definitely leave out the peanuts if you don’t like them! You can either leave the other ingredient amounts as they are, or add a little bit more popcorn.

If you’re adding another ingredient (another nut, toffee, chocolate chip or something), do half the amount of peanuts and half the ingredient of your choice. That way you’ll still have enough marshmallow coating.

How Long Should I Let Popcorn Cake Set?

For the best result, we let this cake sit covered in plastic wrap overnight. It needs to set at least 4 hours after turning out of the bundt pan, but after that it should be ready to slice and serve.