Caramel Corn
Ingredients
- 8 cups popped corn (about ⅓ cup unpopped)
- 1 cup roasted, salted peanuts (optional)
- ¾ cup packed brown sugar
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons light corn syrup
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 300°.
- Pop the popcorn and transfer to a large bowl, remove all unpopped kernels.
- DO NOT use microwave popcorn.
- If using peanuts mix peanuts into popcorn.
- Transfer popcorn and peanuts to a 17x12x2 cookie sheet.
- In a 1½-quart saucepan combine sugar, butter, corn syrup, and salt.
- Cook and stir over medium heat until butter melts and mixture comes to a boil.
- Cook at a simmering boil, without stirring, for precisely 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat.
- Stir in baking soda and vanilla. You will notice the baking soda will cause the mixture to foam and lighten up in color.
- Immediately pour carmel sauce over popcorn; gently stir and coat popcorn (I use a heat proof spatula for stirring). You need to work fast so that the caramel coating doesn’t harden. Don’t worry if you can’t coat all the popcorn.
- Bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove from oven and gently stir to coat the popcorn.
- Bake 10 minutes more.
- Remove caramel corn to a large bowl; cool.
Recipe from Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book, Des Moines: Meridith Corporation (1981).
Comments
Makes 8 cups of caramel corn.Store in an airtight container.
Caramel corn will keep for about a week, but I’m warning you it will disappear much faster than that.