My New Addition

I'd like for you to meet my newest little addition to the Pink Kitchen. The Cuisinart popcorn popper!

Like I said in my previous post, lots of fabulous pink things come out every October for Breast Cancer Awareness. I've been wanting this popcorn maker for a while, and when I saw it in pink, I had to have it! Plus, a portion of my purchase went towards breast cancer research! My FAVORITE food in the whole world is popcorn, but not just any popcorn. I love movie theater popcorn (as greasy as it could possibly get, and I'm sure the butter they use isn't even real butter)! I'm on a mission to recreate the deliciousness that is movie popcorn. But until then, here is a great recipe for Caramel Popcorn. It's great for a snack anytime, or to give as a gift.

Caramel Popcorn


Ingredients:

1 c. butter
2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. corn syrup
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla
5 quarts popped popcorn (about 3 bags microwave popcorn, or 3/4 c. kernels)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
2. Melt butter in saucepan and add brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt. Stir until it comes to a boil. Boil without stirring for 4 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda and vanilla.
4. Pour caramel over popcorn and stir to coat.
5. Spread popcorn on cookie sheets and bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.
6. Cool and break into pieces.


Alissa's notes: If you want to make this even more interesting you can add peanuts, pecans, almonds, or a little bit of cinnamon. For slightly chewier caramel corn, bake for 30 minutes instead of the full hour. This is great to give as a holiday gift in cute little cellophane bags or Christmas tins.