And the Winner Is...{Recipe: Caramel Popcorn with Chocolate Drizzle}

This caramel popcorn is a must for annual Oscar party I've been attending for years. I honestly think the host and fellow guests would not let me in the door if I didn't bring it. This  is also perfect treat for another February celebration, Valentines!

Caramel Popcorn with Chocolate Drizzle

This recipe is adapted from a recipe found on the blog, One more Moore @https://morganmoore.typepad.com/one_more_moore/. I believe the original recipe is from AllRecipes.com. 

1 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda 
1 teaspoon vanilla
5-6 quarts of popcorn
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 250ºF. Spray the inside of a brown paper grocery bag with cooking spray. Make sure it's well coated on the sides & bottom so the caramel doesn't stick to the inside of the bag. Pop the popcorn, remove any unpopped kernels & place popcorn inside the of the brown bag. Stir together baking soda and vanilla in a small bowl; set aside. In a medium sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat.  Stir in the brown sugar, corn syrup & salt. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. **This is the crucial part of the recipe: as soon as this mixture starts to boil, step away from the pan. Boil without stirring for 4 minutes. Once the mixture is done boiling, remove from heat and add the baking soda & vanilla mixture; stir well. The mixture will bubble up quite a bit do to the reaction to the baking soda, stirring should keep it under control. Pour over the popcorn in the paper bag. Fold over the top of the bag and shake like crazy, turning upside-down and side to side. This is the best way I've learned to evenly get popcorn coated. Once coated, divide the mixture evenly and place onto 2 cookie sheets and bake for an hour, stirring every 15 minutes. This is what makes the caramel corn crunchy. It you don't want it too crunchy, bake for less time. I seem to find that 45 minutes works perfectly. Once cooked, allow to cool completely. Melt 1 cup of chocolate and drizzle onto the popcorn. The popcorn needs to be completely cooled or the chocolate won't harden. Once the chocolate is drizzled, you can always place the pan into the freezer for 10-15 minutes  or in the fridge for 30 minutes. It can take a few hours to harden if left to harden at room temperature. Once cooled, break into pieces.

Enjoy!