America has a love affair with popcorn. Whether it is the butter-drenched treat at the movies, low-calorie microwave popcorn or Cracker Jacks, it's a favorite snack. Learn to make delicious, no-bake caramel popcorn at home.
Basic Recipe
Place 8 cups of popped popcorn in an oiled roaster pan or large bowl. Add a combination of 6 cups of ingredients from the Variation section, or a total of 14 cups of popcorn. Set it aside. Spray the pan with cooking oil, or just rub oil on the pan. In a medium-sized pot, combine 1 cup brown sugar, ¼ cup dark corn syrup and 1 cup brown sugar (packed). Bring the mixture to a boil over a medium heat, then reduce it to low and cook for five minutes. Remove the pot from the stove and add 1 tsp. vanilla extract and ¼ tsp. salt mix. Pour the hot caramel mixture over the popcorn mixture and toss until the popcorn is completely coated. Cool the caramel popcorn, then break it apart to eat. For a smaller batch, cut the recipe in half.
Variations
Choose a total of 7 cups of any of the following. One cup of nuts or seeds; choose from peanuts, walnuts, almonds (whole or slivered), hazel nuts, pecans, mixed nuts, sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds. Three cups of prepared granola, broken cookie pieces or any breakfast cereal. Two cups of pretzels, M&M's or Reece's Pieces. Try adding cinnamon, ginger or any other spice for added flavor. The vanilla extract can be exchanged for almond extract, rum extract or other flavorings.
Tags: brown sugar, total cups, vanilla extract