Caramel Puff Corn Recipe
Supplies:
Wooden spoon
Measuring spoons and measuring cups
Large roasting pan or baking sheets
Wax paper or parchment paper
Container for storage
Ingredients:
Chester’s Puff Corn – found in the chip aisle at the grocery store
Brown sugar
Salted butter
Light corn syrup
Vanilla extract
Baking Soda
Instructions:
Begin by adding the butter, brown sugar, and light corn syrup to a saucepan.
Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring regularly.
Melting sugar and butter together makes the kitchen smell so good! At this point, the caramel mixture will be bubbly and the grains of sugar will be dissolved.
Next, add the vanilla extract and baking soda. The baking soda magically makes the caramel mixture puffy! It’s actually really cool to watch.
Pour puff corn into the biggest rectangular baking dish (like a large roaster pan) you have. If you don’t have a large pan, you can also use a couple of cookie sheets!
Recipe Tip:
Don’t worry about getting every kernel covered perfectly in caramel. More stirring is involved during the baking process.
Place the caramel puff corn in a preheated oven. Every 15 minutes, mix and stir the popcorn around, continually coating the pieces. In total, the caramel corn will bake for 1 hour.
Empty the caramel puff corn onto a flat surface prepared with wax paper or parchment paper. Separate the kernels into separate pieces. Because the popcorn was baking at such a low temperature, the kernels aren’t too hot so you can separate the pieces by hand (or use utensils if necessary).
Recipe Tip:
Separating the caramel corn kernels while they are cooling prevents the popcorn from sticking together in giant chunks and makes it easier to eat.
Optional: sprinkle on a little cinnamon or sea salt for extra flavor
Storage: Store the caramel puff corn in an airtight container
This fun treat is so delicious and addicting! It can be served in a large container or a bowl. If you’re giving this away as gifts, consider individual tins or clear treat bags tied with a bow.