Soft and Chewy Caramel Popcorn

This caramel popcorn is so easy, festive, chewy and gooey--delicious!!!  It would be perfect to make for a fun movie night, your child's sleepover, Christmas party, or even packaged and given as a homemade gift!  I did just that, by filling a pretty disposable pie box with the caramel popcorn, tying a ribbon around the box, and hanging a cute gift tag to complete the gift!  This batch makes popcorn for several, so you could have enough left for your family, too.

I've made poppycock before and as delicious as that is, the chewiness of this soft caramel makes this popcorn amazing and down-right addicting!   I ran out of corn syrup, but I made a wonderful discovery by substituting the rest with molasses!  It really adds depth of flavor that's even more perfect for the holidays, so that's how I wrote the recipe below.  Salty and sweet, you can't beat homemade caramel corn for very special treat!

Chewy Caramel Popcorn

Adapted by Six Sisters Stuff

1 lb. (2 1/4 c.) Brown sugar

14 oz. Can Sweetened condensed milk 

1/2 c. Karo syrup, light corn syrup

1/2 c. Molasses

1/2 c. Butter

Salt

1 cup unpopped popcorn

Pop your popcorn in an air popper or--like I do-- over the stove top with a little less oil than usual.  Salt it as you normally would while still hot.

In a saucepan, cook the brown sugar, Karo syrup, molasses, and butter over medium high heat and bring to a boil.  Add the sweetened condensed milk and stir continually for about 3-4 minutes until it gets to soft ball stage (clings together when dropped in cold water).  It will burn if you cook it too long, so make sure you're continually stirring and watch closely.

When it's finished cooking, take the pot off the heat and carefully pour the caramel sauce over the popped popcorn.    Mix until it's all coated well.  You'll need a very large bowl or maybe even two bowls to stir it.  This makes a huge batch!