One of my favorite parts of Fall is the television. Yes, I know. I’m pathetic. Can’t help it! I love Fall TV!
I also love the pretty leaves, the cooler weather, and, of course, Halloween and Thanksgiving, so I’m not a complete loser.
Back to the TV. I love it. It’s so nice to curl up on the couch at night and watch a good show. The kids and I love watching The Biggest Loser together. Both my 9 year old son and my 4 year old daughter enjoy watching Food Network. My son’s favorite show is Chopped and my daughter’s is 30 Minute Meals with Rachel Ray (especially if Rachel is cooking chicken!). My kids have apparently inherited both my love of food and of good TV!
When the kids see me settling in for a good show or if we happen to turn on a movie to watch, they instantly ask for popcorn. I’m usually happy to oblige, but sometimes plain old popcorn gets boring, so lately I’ve been surprising them with this caramel corn. They love it and so do I!
When I saw this recipe at Get off your butt…and Bake! I couldn’t believe how simple it was! Homemade caramel corn in minutes? Count me in! I’ve made this four or five times in the three weeks since I discovered this recipe.
To start, pop some corn. You can use microwave if you want, but honestly, popping corn on the stove is so simple! Check out Simply Recipes for how to make perfect popcorn.
For the caramel you just add butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup to a microwave safe bowl and heat it all up! Stir in some baking soda and vanilla, dump it on your popcorn and stir. Seriously, does it get easier than that?
Some people like their caramel corn soft and chewy and some like it hard and crunchy. I prefer it to be more crunchy than chewy, but not so hard that it breaks my teeth, you know? If you like it soft, go ahead and eat it immediately. If you want it a little crunchier, bake it for 10 to 20 minutes depending on how crunchy you want it!
If you want to liven things up a bit, add a dash of cinnamon to the caramel. It’s add a little depth to the flavor. You could also add some peanuts if you really wanted to go crazy!
Homemade Caramel Corn
adapted from Get off your butt..and Bake!
- 12 cups popped popcorn (about 1/2 cup kernels)
- 1 cup peanuts (optional)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
Pre-heat oven to 250 degrees. Place popcorn and nuts (if using) in a large bowl, set aside. Add corn syrup and brown sugar to a small bowl. Chop butter into small chunks and add to bowl with corn syrup and sugar. Microwave for 30 seconds and then stir. Microwave for 2 more minutes and stir. Return to microwave for another 2 minutes. Stir to combine. The mixture should be hot and bubbly. Add in vanilla, baking soda, and cinnamon (if using). The mixture will get a bit foamy. Stir and then pour over the large bowl of popcorn. Mix well to coat popcorn. If you want your caramel corn very chewy, go ahead and eat it now. Otherwise, pour caramel corn onto a foil or parchment paper lined baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 5 minutes, stir and taste. Keep baking and stirring every 5 minutes (up to 20 minutes of baking) until you get it as crunchy as you want. It will harden up a bit as it cools. Break apart and devour!
| Tags: appetizers, desserts 20 comments »
November 15th, 2009 at 9:42 pm
I am still away on my trip but I am making this THE SECOND I GET HOME! MMMMM!!!!
November 16th, 2009 at 6:47 am
I think I just found what I’m going to make for my father in law’s retirement party! This is so much better than the icky fruit salad with 2 tubs of cool whip in it that I was supposed to bring.
Orville Redenbacker (totally butchered that spelling) used to make a microwave caramel corn but I haven’t seen it in years. This sounds way better though because it actually has real food ingredients in it.
November 16th, 2009 at 7:14 am
Yum! This looks great. (And I love fall TV, too.)
November 16th, 2009 at 7:34 am
LOVE CARAMEL CORN!!! I cheat – I usually melt a bag of caramels & mix it in the popcorn and bake for a few minutes to firm it up. Either way – It is yummy…I will have to try this recipe!!!
November 16th, 2009 at 8:02 am
i like tv, of course, but i’d enjoy it a lot more if i had something this tasty and decadent to nosh on as i watched. what a treat!
November 16th, 2009 at 10:38 pm
I love fall TV too – a little too much! I feel like I don’t have enough time for everything but then I end up watching 4 episodes of something in a day haha. This popcorn looks outstanding! Lucky kids. I recently made caramel popcorn but was disappointed that it got soft the next day. I like the crunch! Does this one stay crunchy?
November 17th, 2009 at 7:53 am
I can’t wait to try this recipe. Sounds yummy! And my daughter and I love Biggest Loser also. Its our favorite show. And I’m with ya, fall TV is great!
November 17th, 2009 at 4:08 pm
OMG, that is definitely insulin worthy! It looks amazing, and so simple!!
Thanks for sharing.
And I love Biggest Loser, and while no one watches that but me in my house, I have turned my husband onto Chopped and Man v. Food!
November 17th, 2009 at 5:55 pm
This looks so good!! Wouldn’t this be nice to make as gifts for the holidays. I love fall tv too, I’m a CSI Las Vegas freak and also love the Biggest Loser.
November 18th, 2009 at 12:50 am
This looks ridiculously good, and addictive in the best way possible. Love your blog, you’re a fabulous photographer!
November 18th, 2009 at 5:58 am
That brought back memories! My dad used to make caramel corn all the time. Love that your recipe mentions including cinnamon- what a great fall flavor that would be. I’m going to give your recipe a try over Thanksgiving.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:31 pm
I have this love hate relationship with caramel. At times I think it is really good (such as in creme caramel) but caramel popcorn just doesn’t do it for me. Although yours looks absolutely perfect I would go for a salty box any time! (as I LOVE watching good tv shows with fall weather as well! Nothing better than a good movie or show and rain and storm outside!)
November 22nd, 2009 at 10:23 am
I have been thinking that I should make some caramel corn, but hadn’t done it yet. I will give your recipe a try! This is just the thing I needed. Today. Like, this morning! I will make it and take it to visit with my brother and niece, who are visiting my dad. Excuse me while I go to my pantry!
November 22nd, 2009 at 11:01 am
It’s in the oven now!! Looks great, and I tasted a bit before I put it on the pan. Yummy!
November 22nd, 2009 at 6:07 pm
It’s all gone, except a small bag I saved to give to a friend at work tomorrow. Thanks for the great recipe! I also tried the nuts. Awesome. I ended up baking them another 30 minutes. They didn’t last long, either!
November 27th, 2009 at 11:11 pm
[...] caramel corn from Buns In My Oven which is possibly the best thing to happen to me since…well, it’s [...]
December 10th, 2009 at 10:57 pm
You just keep blowing my mind with your recipes. I just nominated you to cook for Christmas Eve Brunch!
I absolutely love the new look of the website! How cool! I’m proud of you my daughter In-law. You have really made this a cool blog! Oh and I love all the cute things in your blog about my wonderful little grandkids!
December 30th, 2009 at 9:04 pm
I just had to leave a post after reading through and seeing the comments to you from your mother-in-law! What a sweetie-pie! lol
Again, thank you so much for the simple, easy and most delicious recipe. For the record: I’ve added toasted almonds, pecans and cashews to the mix, but then again, if you knew me, you’d already say I was nuts. *snicker*
Happy New Year!
January 11th, 2010 at 8:45 pm
Read this @ 8:00 and had it made by 8:20! I used dark corn syrup ’cause I didn’t have lite! It. Was. Awesome. BTW, can I adopt your mother in law? Please?
February 10th, 2010 at 2:05 pm
Great, easy recipe! takes mere minutes to make! no sure why, but my caramel seemed a bit thicker than it need to be, making it slightly hard to pour out, but it all worked out fine, and it’s a definite repeat! thanks