Holiday Popcorn Bliss
Remember the can of caramel popcorn that always showed up around the holidays? You know, that big canister of seasoned popcorn with caramel corn, cheesy popcorn, and buttered popcorn brimming the top of the can? I loved that. As kids we would sit by the fire, nibbling crunchy corn from the canister and play board games, or listen to my dad read stories. Such great memories are associated with popcorn. For years I’ve been perfecting my caramel corn recipe. I spent hours hovering over the stove-top to make sure the caramel reaches the perfect candy consistency, so it didn’t crystallize after coating the popcorn.
Easy Caramel Popcorn Recipe
A good caramel popcorn recipe is a thing of beauty, but relatively tedious to make. Until now. A friend recently told me her mom has always made her caramel popcorn recipe in the MICROWAVE. Blackout, warping noises, little birds fluttering around my head… How many hours have I wasted sweating over the stove?
Microwave Caramel Popcorn
The first time I tried this method of preparing a caramel corn recipe, I stood shaking my head while the seconds ticked away on the microwave. “It can’t possibly be as good.” I told myself. A self-soothing message to ease the pain of countless hours lost. After removing the paper bag filled with caramel corn, and dumping it out on waxed paper, the verdict was in. It is not as good as stove top caramel corn, it is BETTER. Making your caramel corn recipe in the microwave provides an extra thin, ultra-crisp coating of caramel with even coverage. If you think about it, shaking the corn in a bag would provide astounding uniformity, over-pouring the caramel on the popcorn in a roasting pan, and trying to mix the gloppy mass with a wooden spoon. Why had I not thought of this before?
Ingredients for Caramel Corn
Popped Popcorn (freshly popped from kernels) Cashews (optional) Brown Sugar Butter Corn Syrup Sea Salt Vanilla Extract Baking Soda Large Paper Grocery Bag
How to Make Caramel Popcorn
What’s the difference between caramel corn and kettle corn?
Kettle corn is a simple stovetop popped corn, sprinkled with sugar at the last minute, so the sugar melts over the kernels. However, caramel corn is popcorn thoroughly covered in a rich caramel candy coating. As the coating cools it hardens and turns crispy.
How long does this caramel corn recipe last?
Homemade caramel corn can last in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. Even longer in very dry climates. But if you are anything like my family with teenagers, they won’t last past the night!
How do you revive stale popcorn?
One way you can revive this recipe is by spreading it out on a baking sheet and bake at 250 degrees F for about 5 minutes. You can also place it in another paper bag and microwave for 1 minute. Then shake vigorously.
More Edible Gift Ideas:
CopyCat Garrett’s Popcorn Recipe Apple Cake with Salted Caramel Icing Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Bars Caramel Apple Homemade Soft Pretzel Recipe Rice Krispies Peppermint Snowmen Easy Peppermint Fudge Banana Crunch Popcorn ~ Inside BruCrew Life
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