Caramel crack (December 15, 2009)

December 15, 2009
Originally uploaded by Robin's Nest3

Christmas is the one time of the year that I make caramel corn. I think I associate caramel corn with Christmas because that's when my mom always made this addictive treat, hiding the bags in the cupboard so my Dad and the rest of us wouldn't eat it all before Christmas. (Or maybe she was hiding it from herself?)

Caramel corn is actually deceptively simple to make, as long as you've invested in a candy thermometer. Apparently you can do strange tests with the caramel and water to cook the candy without a thermometer, but this is just too imprecise for me.

So, at the request of more than a few people, here is the caramel corn recipe that I use from my great-aunt. Enjoy...and be warned! Once you start you can't stop. I'm not kidding. It's like crack.

***Aunt Roberta's Caramel Corn***
1 large roast pan of popcorn
(Mine is about 10 cm x 40 cm x 30 cm. You can go bigger, you'll just get less coating per piece of popcorn.)

2 cups brown sugar
1 cup butter (don't even think about margarine!)
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda

Set the oven to 255 F and put the popcorn in the oven to stay warm.
In a decent-sized sauce pan, combine sugar, butter, syrup, salt, and vanilla. Clip the candy thermometer to the side. Stir over medium heat to melt butter. Keep stirring until the thermometer hits 248 F. It will get get big and bubbly.
Remove from heat and stir in baking soda. Pour over popcorn and stir it up. Cook in oven for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from oven and spread out on waxed paper, breaking up the big chunks. Cool and enjoy.