Do you know that song by Lionel Richie? “Stuck on you, got a feeling down deep in my soul…dah, dah, dah, Yes, I’m on my way–” (Hum the rest, because if you’re anything like me, you NEVER know the correct words to ANY songs.) Well, that song kept playing over and over in my head as I made this caramel corn.

Making this caramel corn was a sticky endeavor. But it is delicious!

With autumn comes no more humidity on the East Coast. Yay! This means a variety of things are now possible for me. For one: pants. Now I can wear them and be comfortable. Not that I was going bottomless before, I was just much more likely to be in a dress or a skirt when it was sticky outside. I love girly clothes, but I also love my jeans.

Two: Dry air means not only is it possible to keep popcorn (a favorite snack of mine) without it getting stale and soggy, but it is also possible to coat said popcorn in salty sweet caramel, and snack ’til my heart’s content.

This recipe uses a candy thermometer, but it is not at all finicky. When making caramel it is important to boil the sugar to a certain temperature, in this case– 250 degrees. Other than that, you will most likely have the rest of the ingredients on hand– always a good thing. There is also a good dose of salt in this recipe. I like my caramel corn to have a salty kick. But you can use less if you like.

Once you have the caramel made, you’ll want to work fast. Pre-measure the baking soda and the vanilla, and make sure you have a clean, bowl, that is large enough to thoroughly mix the caramel with the popcorn.

Gently break up the caramel corn into sizable pieces once it is out of the oven. It will last in an airtight container for about 5 days. But it’s never lasted that long in my house.

Salty-Sweet Caramel Corn

10 cups of popcorn, either made in air-popper or on the stovetop. For the stovetop, 10 cups of popcorn requires 3 tablespoons of oil and 1/4 cup of kernels

1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup, light or dark
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4-1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Line a baking sheet with a Silpat, or parchment paper.

Place the popped popcorn in a large bowl, discarding any unpopped kernels.

In a medium saucepan melt sugar, corn syrup, butter, salt and water, stirring until smooth. Continue to whisk and simmer until mixture reaches 250 degrees with a candy thermometer, about 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, and add the baking soda and vanilla. The mixture will bubble up, but continue to stir.

Quickly pour the caramel mixture over the popcorn, and with a rubber spatula, stir evenly but gently to coat. Pour coated popcorn on the baking sheet, spreading into a single layer.

Bake for 1 hour, stirring and turning every 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, cool slightly, and break up if needed.