Caramel corn-recipe

Living at the Jersey Shore my whole life I have certain foods I cannot live without.Caramel popcorn is one of them.My kids and I could smell the aroma two blocks away from the Atlantic City boardwalk.My daughters and I suffer from food allergies so we cannot have peanuts in our caramel corn.The line for the caramel corn was unbelievable.I counted and twenty people were in front of me.After 20 minutes I started to get out of line and realized it was worse behind me.Coming back and getting in line was not an option.If we were going to get a tub of caramel corn we had to wait.Well you would not know we were in a recession prices were steep.It cost 20.00 with tax for a 10 ounce tub of original caramel corn without nuts.Was it worth it?As my daughter would say ,it was yummy for my tummy.My family used to own The Doughnut Bar as well as a fudge shop on the Boardwalk so I have recipes for all these tempting foods.Caramel Corn is a great house warming gift ,Christmas present or anytime celebration.Something you can make with the kids that is not expensive ,fast and easy to make.Make a big batch and wrap the caramel up in pretty tins with lids or glass containers with air tight lids.I scour yard sales and antiques shop for unique glass jars( with air tight lids) .The caramel corn will stay fresh in a sealed glass jar ,air tight container or tin with lids for a longer amount of time.The containers can then be used for something else.Saving the environment and recycling at the same time!Then the kids can help wrap in fancy tissue paper or cute little gift bags!Fun family time all year round.A couple of suggestions:popcorn can be made with an air popper,microwave,stove top or an oven whichever you prefer.Measure out all the ingredients before you start to cook because it is easy to burn any of the ingredients once you begin cooking.I use silicone mixing spoons so the syrup does not stick.Also be very careful the hot syrup will burn terribly and could really damaged skin to the extent of taking a layer of skin off.Do not let children help with the cooking part of this recipe.After the caramel corn has cooled let the children brake apart and store in airtight containers.The children will have fun wrapping or decorating the containers.As with any of my recipes you can play around.Make with or without nuts which ever you prefer.The nuts are a great way of changing the recipe.Also switch out the 1 tsp.pure vanilla extract for a liqueur to make an adult version.One tsp. Frangelico or Kahlua go great with nuts.Pre Measure Ingredients:
8 cups popped corn (pick out all the unpopped kernals)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
2 tablespoons corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoons molasses
1/4 teaspoon baking soda(when you add the baking soda to your recipe it will bubble)
2 cups nuts (peanuts,cashews,almonds,hazelnuts,macadamia,pine nuts ,any nut you prefer or do a mixture)
1 silicone spatula or silicone mixing spoon
Instructions :
1. Place popped corn in a large bowl and set aside.
2. In a large sauce pan combine brown sugar, butter, corn syrup, sea salt, and molasses.
3. Bring to a boil then lower heat and simmer for 3 minutes.
4. Remove from heart and stir in soda.
5. Stir until mixture is creamy.
6. Pour evenly over the popcorn and toss with the nuts.
7. Spread on a baking pan spayed with baking spray and bake at 250 degrees for 30 minutes; stirring every 10 minutes. *This nut recipe should make 4 cups of roasted nuts.If you only want to make enough for your caramel corn cut the nut recipe in half.I like to make the whole nut recipe and store the extra for snacks.
-1 lb. raw nuts (go by a pound of nuts because all nuts measure different)
-4 Tbsp. pure maple syrup
-1 ½ Tbsp. butter
-1 tsp. sea salt
-1 tsp. pure vanilla extract (adult versian add a liquer such as Frangelico)
-1 tsp. cinnamon
-3 tbsp. brown sugar
-Baking sheet with aluminum foil,a measuring cup ,mixing bowl that has been sprayed with baking spray or non stick spray & a silicone mixing spoon (all these items make it easier to cook and clean up with the stickyness)
-Preheat oven to 300-350 degrees F and place nuts in a large mixing bowl. Measure maple syrup and butter into measuring cup. Add sea salt, vanilla and cinnamon. Microwave mixture for about 22 seconds until butter melts completely. Stir mixture with large spoon.Pour heated syrup mixture over the nuts in the bowl. Stir nuts with a large spoon to coat with mixture.Spread coated nuts on a large, ungreased baking sheet in a single layer. Line the baking sheet with aluminum foil .Bake coated peanuts at 350 degrees F for 5 minutes, stir around and cook for another 5 to 7 minutes at 300 - 350 degrees F until golden brown.Do not burn them.Remove roasted nuts from oven and immediately transfer hot nuts to a large, clean mixing bowl. Sprinkle nuts with 3 tablespoons of brown sugar while mixing with a large spoon. Let nuts cool.Store in an airtight container if not using.