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How to Make Caramel Corn: National Popcorn Poppin’ Month

Posted By on Oct 1, 2013 in Candy Recipes, Corn, Desserts, Featured, Food Holidays, Fruit & Vegetables, Halloween, How To Cook, Snacks Recipes, Sweets, Vegetarian, Veggies | 0 comments

October is National Popcorn Poppin’ Month, and I suppose we should be watching movies, cuddled up inside from the cold, rainy weather.

popcorn kernelsIsn’t it a wonderful aroma when corn is being popped and suddenly, it feels like you just have to have some?

Corn has been popped in the Central American Region for nearly 7000 years. Sweetened popcorn is a fairly new treat, such as caramel corn.

I remember the days when people would make caramel corn balls and give them out for Halloween treats.

How to Make Caramel Corn:

Any method is okay, but my recipe for sweetening or caramelizing corn follows.

Type: Sweets Recipe

Serve for: movie night or Halloween
Prep Time: 8 min
Syrup Cook Time: ~ 10 – 12 min
Popcorn Pop Time: 3 – 4 min
Serves: 1 qt

How to Make Caramel Syrup:

The syrup should be made ahead of popping the corn, by up to half an hour.

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 1 3/4 cups brown sugar – packed
  • 7 tbsp water

Instructions:

  1. In a heavy bottomed saucepan, melt butter.
  2. Add brown sugar and water.
  3. Over low heat until melted, then over medium heat, bring to a boil.
  4. Wash down sides as you go with a pastry brush.
  5. Heat to softball stage – about 235° F on a candy thermometer.
  6. Keep warm until popcorn is popped.

How to Pop Popcorn:

Now’s the fun part! Poppin’ the corn kernels!

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup un-popped corn kernels
  • 2 1/2 tbsp butter

Instructions:

  1. Using a heavy lidded pan or pot, melting butter, add popcorn kernels.
  2. Put top on and cook until popping stops. * Tip: Shake a bit as you go along to heat all kernels.
  3. Put popped corn into a large bowl.

caramel cornAssembly:

Now, you can add peanuts to this mixture at this point, if desired, but it’s not necessary.

  1. Add caramel syrup to the quart of popped popcorn in the large bowl you put it into by drizzling it over and continually stirring to coat all kernels. * Tip: Work rather quickly, and somewhat gently with the popcorn as you stir it.
  2. Serve as is in a bowl, or greasing your hands with butter, grab handfuls of the caramelized popcorn and form into balls or other shapes, and allow to cool.

So, pop up some corn for National Popcorn Poppin’ Month!

Thanks for checking me out on Cooking with Kimberly. Please check out my blog too:

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I hope you enjoy this Corn Recipe on Cooking with Kimberly. Until next time…

Be a Champion in Your Kitchen & Eat Deliciously!

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Author: Ingrid Turner

Ingrid Turner from IngridTurnerToday.com, is a blogger, writer, grandmother, mother, cancer survivor and all around sparkling human being. From cooking, crafts, seniors’ issues, cancer, health, pets, gardening & the like, she entertains us in her writings. Ingrid is also a regular on her daughter's cooking show, “Cooking with Kimberly” @ CookingWithKimberly.com. Website Facebook Twitter YouTube

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