Brenda's Awesome Caramel Popcorn

I love caramel popcorn. I mean, I LOVE CARAMEL POPCORN! As a kid, I couldn't wait until Halloween so that when I went trick-or-treating I would get one of Alice's popcorn balls. If you grew up in Alum Creek, West Virginia, you know what I am talking about. They were the best.

I have spent the last few years searching for a good recipe but had a difficult time finding one. So many of the recipes call for Kayro Syrup and end up being hard and flavorless. I have experimented and played around with some recipes. I finally found one that was pretty good then changed it some and it became AWEWOME. The caramel becomes firm but not hard and brittle.

Is this as good or better than Alice's? I can't really answer that. It has been so many years since I tasted hers that I can't honestly do a comparison. Thinking back to being a kid and digging through my trick-or-treat bag for that popcorn ball, nothing could beat that taste!

I thought I would share the recipe with you. Try and let me know what you think.

Brenda's Awesome Caramel Popcorn

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 stick butter
• 2 to 4 3.5 oz bags of microwave popcorn

Pop the popcorn and remove any unpopped kernels. In a double boiler, combine the other 4 ingredients. Stir constantly. Once the mixture begins to boil, let it boil for 2 or 3 minutes. Pour over popcorn and mix to coat evenly. Enjoy while warm or wait until cool. Store in a sealed container.

Helpful hints...

• Use real butter. Forget that margarine stuff. This recipe has to be so fattening that switching out the type of butter isn't going to make that much difference in calories and fat but it sure does make a difference in taste!
• The easiest way I know to evenly coat the popcorn is to dump all the popcorn in a large paper grocery bag and then pour the caramel mixture on it. Then, shake, shake, shake.
• The amount of popcorn used is up to you. I like a lighter coat of caramel so I use 3 or 4 bags of popped corn.

The pictures were taken just a bit ago. My friend, Tammie, and I are vacationing in the Smoky Mountains. I made some for the kids and grownups to enjoy this evening. MMMMMM