SHF#6: Caramel Corn with Peanuts

click to enlarge

The Pros and Cons of Homemade Caramel Corn

Pros
1. Tastes good. Salty + sweet + crunchy = goooooood.

Cons
1. Tastes good. Then, about 3 cups later, tastes bad...really bad.
2. Corn syrup.
3. The cleanup is nothing short of horrendous. Do not use a pan that is a favourite.
4. Fairly hazardous to dental work.
5. Did I mention the cleanup?

There are, admittedly, hundreds if not thousands of recipes for desserts that incorporate caramel. The lovely and talented Debbie, over at Words to Eat By, knew this was the case when she chose caramel as the theme for SHF#6: Stuck On You. Cakes, cookies, biscuits, ice creams, custards...the possibilities are endless, and there are probably going to be about a gazillion participants (woo hoo!).

Out of all of those, I chose caramel corn with caramel nuts, whose mystery is exceeded only by its power. Wait, that's the 'continuum transfunctioner' in Dude, Where's My Car?, one of my favourite silly movies. What I should have said is, "its sweetness is exceeded only by its stickiness". Hmmm, that's not really funny, so I'll just say "I'm not ever going to make this stuff again as long as I live".

I'm actually in the middle of making another entry right now, one that I'm hoping will be a more enjoyable experience that this one. Come to think of it, lobotomizing myself with a salad fork would be a more enjoyable experience than making caramel corn again, so there's really nowhere to go but up, right?

Caramel Corn and Caramel Nuts
from James Beard's American Cookery by James Beard

3 quarts lightly salted POPPED CORN or 2 quarts POPPED CORN and 3 cups TOASTED NUTMEATS
2 1/2 cups firmly packed BROWN SUGAR
1/2 cup LIGHT or DARK CORN SYRUP
1/2 cup WATER
1/4 to 1/2 cup BUTTER
2 teaspoons VANILLA

How I used to love various forms of caramel corn, and sometimes I still dip into a can just for nostalgia's sake. This came into national popularity during the 1920s, when seldom anything but the caramel syrup coated the corn. Now there are many fancy names for a mixture of caramelized popcorn and nut meats. The nut meats should be toasted lightly before being covered with the syrup. Place them in a baking pan in a single layer and heat in the oven at 300 degrees for 8 to 15 minutes, depending upon the type and size of the nut meat.

Put the popped corn or the corn and nuts in an oiled or buttered mixing bowl and place in an oven heated to about 120 degrees. Oil a large piece of aluminum foil. Measure the sugar, corn syrup, and water into a 3-quart saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil, and wash down the sides of the pan with a pastry brush dipped in water to remove sugar granules. Add the butter and cook to the very hard ball stage (264 to 270 degrees). Stir in the vanilla. Immediately pour into the popped corn and stir well to coat evenly. While the mixture is still very hot, turn out onto the oiled foil, and with two forks pull it apart to make bite-size or slightly larger pieces. Let cool thoroughly, and store in airtight containers or freezer bags.

Comments

[ejm]

hahahahahahaha loved the pros and cons list. Excellent post!!

I know EXACTLY what you mean too. One December, we went through a craze of making caramel corn with toasted pecans (http://etherwork.net/recipes/snacks.html#caramel_corn) I couldn't stop eating it until suddenly I could... I'm so sorry that I overdid it! Because I really loved it. Your post almost (not quite, but almost) makes me want to try again.

As for the cleanup, I don't recall that part being a nightmare. Maybe I have lower standards than you do.... The only primary difference between our recipes is the addition of baking soda in ours. I can't now recall why the baking soda seemed so necessary (aside from the fact that it was called for in the recipes we followed - it seems to me that we saw someone - I think it was Christine Cushing - making caramel on her cooking show and that baking soda was featured) but it was very cool the way that the butter/sugar mixture foamed up when it was added. (Did it make the caramel smoother??? chewier??? I cannot remember! It sure was good though... until it wasn't... YOU know what I mean.)

[Alice]

Tee Hee...your description of making caramel corn made me laugh! I didn't have a particularly fun time with caramel either...

[Dawn]

Moira,
Your caramel corn looks amazing! I don't think I'll ever make it because I've got enough stress in my life so I'll just look at yours & dream!! There's a popcorn store here & they make lots of varieties of candy corn. I may have to take a trip there this weekend.
You are right, Blogger has to go. I do have to keep it for a bit more because someone is working on my site(facelift) but he said the same thing the first time I spoke with him.

[Nic]

Hi Moria. Great minds think alike - I made caramel corn, too! Although I didn't have any problems polishing off the whole batch... and the second batch...

[Moira]

Hi Elizabeth...glad you could empathize! If there is a hell, I'll probably be going to the part where I'd have to make caramel corn with corn syrup and wash (chip off) the pots it was cooked in for all eternity. I don't think my cleanup standards are very high- maybe it's because I have to do so many cleanups everyday anyway, without adding one like this into the mix.

Hi Alice...glad you like it! I'm going to pop on over to your entry right after I'm done here.

Hi Dawn...thanks! Definitely just buy a little whenever the mood strikes. Making your own caramel corn is grossly overrated in my book (not like you couldn't tell that from my post- hee, hee).

Hi Nic...the boys across the street didn't have a hard time polishing off this batch, but there was no way I was making another! I'll be off to check out your post after Alice's...

Cheers all!

[ejm]

For cleanup of caramelized sugar, I'm a big fan of three things: leaving things to soak overnight, vinegar and baking soda.

Dawn, don't believe Moira! It's not that bad to make and the result is a thousand times better (and cheaper) than the storebought stuff. Just don't overeat it....

I used to think that one could NEVER have too much butter, but I've changed my mind.

-Elizabeth

[Moira]

Well, I just made pear caramel ice cream, with a traditional butter and sugar caramel, and the clean up WAS a breeze. I think the problem I had with the caramel corn was the inclusion of corn syrup, which I think is a really miserable ingredient on so many levels.

I will definitely be making more desserts in the future that include proper caramel, but I'll be giving the corn syrup a pass. Thanks for the tip on using vinegar for cleanups! I've always used baking soda to great effect, but I'll have to give that a go as well.

[Fatemeh]

M -
I really considered entering this SHF, primarily because it was something I could do without baking. (I don't bake. 'Nuff said.)

Then, I realized that the only recipes I could find that looked easy enough contained {cue ominous music} CORN SYRUP.

I will not allow that stuff in my kitchen since one of my favorite pots was detroyed by a friend making caramel for a tart a while ago.

For the record, it wasn't actually the caramel that ruined the pot - it was me throwing it at a wall when I couldn't get the damn stuff out!

[Julie]

Mmmm...crunchy, sweet, nutty, salty..now I want some. I have a deep and evil love for a candy called "Poppycock" which is popcorn in a light caramel with pecans and almonds. Your gorgeously nutty caramel corn looks like it would satisfy the same jones.

I had the same mixed feelings about the corn syrup in my SHF recipe. I know that in England, golden syrup is widely used -- what is it made from? Is it as bad for us as corn syrup? Could it be substituted? I've noticed that Nigella seems to use it in recipes in the English versions of her cookbooks, and then puts corn syrup in the American editions. That's why I wonder if one can be exchanged for the other. It's hard to come by over here, but not impossible.

[Bakerina]

Moira, will you marry me? :) Seriously, I know that you are in Corn Syrup Hell right now, but it *is* beautiful caramel corn you've made.

To answer Julie's question, I do believe that golden syrup can be substituted for corn syrup in equal measures. I buy it in big tins from the British grocery in the West Village (although more and more supermarkets are selling the smaller, squeezy bottles of it, I think they charge way too much for what you're getting). Not only does it taste better than corn syrup, you also don't get that weird, palate-drying sensation that you get from corn syrup.

[Julie]

Thanks Jen -- I thought so, and next time I get down to Myers' I'll have to pick up a tin of the golden syrup.

So, Moira...are you going to post about the Pear-Caramel ice-cream (which sounds too delicious to bear thinking about...)?

[ejm]

Julie, I too have that same deep evil love of "poppycock" - or at least I did until we overdosed on our poppycock knockoff. We use corn syrup in our recipe and I really can't remember having the problems that you all had with it. We also use corn syrup in our pecan pie and we never hear anyone cursing and screaming about cleanup. (I'm the one who invariably cleans up the kitchen too. Perhaps I've blocked it from what's left of my mind??)

Is it even vaguely possible that Canadian corn syrup is different from American corn syrup?? Maybe it's the latitude? ;)

-Elizabeth

[Moira]

Hi Fatemeh...love your {cue ominous music} !

Hi Julie...I think one of my sisters used to love Poppycock, but I don't remember ever having it myself. I'm one of those people that doesn't really think something is dessert if it doesn't have chocolate in it...I know, boring.

Golden syrup isn't as processed as corn syrup, and I don't think it's as sweet, if that makes any sense. I'll have to send you and Jen a care package of British foodstuffs when I get back from the states...start making a list!

I am going to post about the ice cream tomorrow. It's not as creamy as other types that I've made, I think because of the inclusion of pears. The old school caramel was awesome to make and clean up, though! ;-)

Hi Ms. Bakerina...so glad you like it! I was happy with the photo, but glad to kiss the project itself goodbye...just not my thing, I guess.

[Liz]

Good times! At least reading about it was. :o)
I love caramel popcorn, but after reading your story I think I'll stick to store bought. Liz

[ejm]

Poppycock would never count as a dessert!! Oh my no. It's a nice light afternoon or evening snack ;^D

[Jennifer]

Moira - I'm so sorry this was such a terrible experience for you...please don't blame me for it! I swear - it's Debbie's fault, I swear! I'm starting to be very thankful that I didn't make caramel corn as I originally had intended...thanks for going through the tough part for me!

Thanks for sharing the experience and recipe with us in SHF Caramel - I do appreciate your pain!

[McAuliflower]

No no I shouldn't click to enlarge... well, maybe a peek...

Heavens, we haven't even delt with the sugar rush of Easter candy yet! What ever are we to do?

[Moira]

Hi Liz...yes, store-bought is the ticket for me, too. If I ever crave caramel corn again in this lifetime- hee, hee!

Hi Elizabeth...you really love this stuff, don't you?

Hi Jennifer...I would never blame anyone for this! Well, on second thought, maybe James Beard...;-)

I can't wait to see what's up next!

Hi McAuliflower...this was an extraordinarily sugary SHF, wasn't it? I hope no one ever goes with marshmallow as a theme, then we're all in serious trouble! Oh, God...is that even a possibility? ;-)

[ejm]

I don't usually go for sweets that much. Except dark chocolate. And fruit pies. And whipped cream.

And I'm afraid that poppycock is one of my weaknesses as well (even though I did overdose on it). I think it must be the pecans. And the butter. And the caramel.

Oh, oh. Marshmallow?? I bet NOW you've done it, Moira!!

-Elizabeth

[Barbara]

Silpat!! Silpat!!

Okay, that won't help you with pot-clean-up, but mine is new and I'm still enamored...

The actual point I was going to make is that I've used Golden Syrup instead of corn syrup for several years now and I've never had a recipe fail as a result. It works, and although I've never checked it out (sometimes I can be lazy), it's my understanding that it's better for you than corn syrup. Maybe, anyway...

[Moira]

Hi Barbara,

Yes, I've got to give golden syrup a try the next time I do one of these sticky things, don't I? Hopefully it will be awhile...hee, hee...

I would absolutely LOVE to have a Silpat! It's on my Amazon wish list, and my next "occasion" is next Autumn...fingers crossed, I guess!