Andre's Caramel Corn Recipe

Who doesn't love a family fun project? We really enjoy a project that creates a treat, so we want to share one of our favorites with you. We found the original recipe on line and made some adjustments and changes to suit our family and we now refer to it as "Andre's Caramel Corn Recipe" since he helped me make at least six batches over the holidays.

From our family to yours - enjoy!

Andre’s Caramel Corn Recipe

Ingredients

·         7 quarts plain popped popcorn (we use an air popper)

·         2 cups dry roasted peanuts (optional)

·         2 cups brown sugar (we like the dark, but it’s up to you)

·         ½ cup light corn syrup

·         1 teaspoon salt

·         1 cup butter (doesn’t matter if it’s salted or unsalted and if you really like margarine better, go ahead … but since my hubby is a dairy farmer, we use real butter)

·         ½ teaspoon baking soda

·         1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1.   Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Combine the brown sugar, corn syrup, butter and salt in a saucepan, do not heat until after the corn is popped.

2.   Pop your corn - place the popped popcorn into two shallow greased baking pans. If you don’t have a dishwasher, you may want to use disposable roasting pans. Add the peanuts to the popped corn if using. Set aside.

3.   Bring the butter/brown sugar mix to a boil over medium heat, stirring enough to blend. Once the mixture begins to boil, boil for 5 minutes while stirring constantly.

4.    Remove the butter/brown sugar mix from the heat, and stir in the baking soda and vanilla. The mixture will be light and foamy. Immediately pour over the popcorn in the pans, and stir to coat. Don't worry too much at this point about getting all of the corn coated.

5.   Bake for 1 hour, removing the pans, and giving them each a good stir every 15 minutes (this is when you want to make sure everything is evenly coated).

6.   Line the counter top with waxed paper, or if you are daring … just use a clean countertop (this is what we do to avoid any wax paper sticking to our treat). Dump the corn out onto the waxed paper and separate the pieces – this is the most fun for young helpers.

7.   Allow to cool completely, then store in airtight containers or zip lock bags.

May your paths be abundantly filled with lemons, sugar, and sunshine as well as sticky counters and full bellies!

~Crystal (and family)