I’ve made this honey caramel corn more times than I can count.
Need a potluck dish? Make this.
Need a dessert you can quickly throw together? Make this.
Need something to take to a fall party? Make this.
Just DON’T make this if you’re home alone… Because it’s reaaaaaaly hard not to mow down the whole bowl. Oh, you’ll think you have enough willpower… But the sticky brown kernels will beckon you, “Just one more handful, no one will know…”
And then the bowl will be empty.
Not that I have personal experience here… All theoretical, of course.
But yes, this is absolutely one of my autumn go-to recipes. While it’s still a dessert and not something you’d want to make everyday, I love that this version uses honey and unrefined sweeteners, rather than corn syrup.
You’re welcome.
(This post contains affiliate links)
Honey Caramel Corn Recipe
- 1 cup unpopped popcorn kernels (where to purchase)
- 1/2 cup butter or coconut oil
- 1/2 cup honey (this is the honey I use)
- 1/2 cup sucanat OR brown sugar (where to purchase)
- Pinch sea salt (I love this one)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla (how to make your own vanilla extract)
Pop the popcorn and place it in a large bowl. We use a stovetop popper like this to pop our popcorn– it works like a charm.
I always grab a bigger bowl than I think I’ll need, as it makes the mixing/tossing easier.
I also grab this is the honey I use (affiliate), cause well it’s amazing.
In a medium saucepan, melt your honey, butter, sucanant, and salt. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook/stir for around 5 minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in the baking soda and vanilla. It will foam up a bit, but that’s OK. Simply stir it back down.
Working quickly, pour the caramel sauce over the popcorn. At first, it’ll look like you don’t have enough sauce, but it’ll work out– promise.
Using a wooden spoon, mix and stir the sauce into the popcorn. You’ll want to move in a timely manner here, as the sauce will begin to thicken/harden and we want to make sure we have full popcorn coverage before that happens.
Once the caramel sauce and popcorn is full incorporated, you have two choices:
- Set it aside for a bit, then eat it whenever you want
- Bake it
While most caramel corn recipes call for you to bake it before serving, but I usually don’t because:
a) It takes more time
b) The caramel corn is completely yummy and completely edible without the baking period, and it’s really not too much stickier.
c) I always burn it when I try to bake it. A-hem.
So yeah, if you want to bake it, simply spread the caramel corn on several baking sheets, and bake in a 250 degree oven for 30-45 minutes, checking and stirring frequently. Otherwise, you can follow in my lazy footsteps and skip that step.
Kitchen Notes:
- I’ve used both butter and coconut oil in this recipe with fantastic results. You can use either the refined coconut oil (no coconut taste) or the unrefined version (tastes like coconuts). Either is delish.
- Sometimes I mix 4-5 drops of cinnamon or cassia essential oil into the caramel sauce when add in the vanilla for a spicy kick.
Honey Caramel Corn Recipe
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 5 mins
- Total Time: 15 mins
- Category: Dessert/Snack
Ingredients
- 1 cup unpopped popcorn kernels
- 1/2 cup butter or coconut oil
- 1/2 cup honey (I love this raw honey)
- 1/2 cup sucanat OR brown sugar (where to purchase sucanat)
- Pinch sea salt (I use this one)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Pop the popcorn and place it in a large bowl (something like this is great).
- I always grab a bigger bowl than I think I’ll need, as it makes the mixing/tossing easier.
- In a medium saucepan, melt the butter, sucanant, honey, and salt. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook/stir for around 5 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the baking soda and vanilla. It will foam up a bit, but that’s OK. Simply stir it back down.
- Working quickly, pour the caramel sauce over the popcorn.
- Using a wooden spoon, mix and stir the sauce into the popcorn. You’ll want to move in a timely manner here, as the sauce will begin to thicken/harden and we want to make sure we have full popcorn coverage before that happens.
- Either set aside to harden/cool for a bit and eat when desired OR bake.
- To bake: spread onto baking sheets, bake at 250 degrees for 30-45 minutes, checking and stirring frequently.
We love caramel corn. It is our dessert every Halloween. I just may have to try this recipe this year…….maybe I should make both…. in case there is an uprising. Yes, two batches of caramel corn is the answer.
Where in your recipe process could you add some dark chocolate and nuts? Have you tried this?
I added peanuts while I was mixing the caramel into the popcorn. I’ve not added chocolate, but I think if I did I would mix the caramel into the popcorn a bit first, so that it has a chance to cool down before adding the chocolate. Just a thought…
Fantastic recipe! We have made this with coconut oil and butter and while the oil tastes just fine my dd prefers the butter. 🙂 We never get the chance to bake it because it goes so fast! Thank you, Jill!
It’s so addictive, isn’t it? It’s almost dangerous! 😉 We’re so glad you were able to adapt the recipe for your family’s taste and that you love it. 🙂
I make huge cans of flavored popcorn for Christmas. If you plan on storing your corn make sure you bake it. I stir it every 10 minutes and as soon as it looks right I pull it. 25 to 30 minutes is about right. I add toasted pecans and almond slivers to it as I mix in the caramel. Just an extra yummy treat for Christmas. I make cheese corn, chili cheese corn, sour cream and onion corn, buttered corn and cinnamon corn. By News Years day is all gone. It is just sitting all over the house and anyone that needs something to eat can dive right in no questions asked.
The other flavoured corn sounds yummy! Would you mind sharing your recipes for these?
Making your own Holiday Popcorn
I got tired of the can’s of popcorn they have out there. The really good stuff is so very expensive and the rest is so tasteless. So I make my own. I fill those can’s I got from thrift stores and washed good. So today I am going to share my recipes with you. It takes two batches of popcorn to fill our popcorn cans.
Making Cheese Popcorn
We love cheese popcorn so we make a can full of that and it’s so very easy! We just make up regular popcorn and put it in a big bowl with a lid and sprinkle cheese powder thickly on it and then shake it up. You can also add different spices to make nacho cheese corn or Italian cheese corn, ect. As it sits in the can the flavor goes into the corn so after a couple days it’s really good stuff! We make two cans of this and in the second can we add chili powder (I only use Williams Chili Powder) Add a little or add a lot depending on your taste buds.
To amke Sour Cream and onion popcorn I get sour cream and onion mix from my Amish neighbor and make a can up with this kind of pop corn too. A little goes a long way. My family was shocked with this new flavor I introduced last year. It has become our new favorite flavor!
Cinnamon Candied Popcorn
(Make sure you read the recipe all the way through so you don’t mess up the candies/sugar measurement!)
THINGS YOU’LL NEED:
6 quarts of popped popcorn. (pop in a Stir Crazy or on the stove, do NOT use microwave popcorn.)
12 ounces of cinnamon red hot candies
sugar
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. light corn syrup
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. or 1 dram of cinnamon oil. You need oil, not extract, you can find it at http://www.lorannoils.com
INSTRUCTIONS
1 PREHEAT THE OVEN TO 250º. BUTTER A LARGE ROASTING PAN AND ADD THE POPCORN TO IT. IF YOU WANT YOU CAN PUT THE POPCORN IN THE OVEN TO WARM WHILE YOU ARE PREPARING THE CANDY COATING, BUT IT’S NOT NECESSARY.
2 POUR THE RED HOT CANDIES INTO A 2 CUP MEASURE AND THEN START ADDING SUGAR TO THE CANDIES, STOPPING TO SHAKE IT DOWN INTO ALL THE NOOKS AND CRANNIES UNTIL THE SUGAR REACHES THE 2 CUP LINE.
3 IN A HEAVY SKILLET, BRING THE CANDIES, SUGAR, BUTTER, WATER, CORN SYRUP AND SALT TO A BOIL. BOIL, STIRRING CONSTANTLY FOR FIVE MINUTES.
4 REMOVE FROM HEAT AND ADD THE BAKING SODA AND CINNAMON OIL. STIR WELL AND STAND BACK TO AVOID THE STEAM THAT WILL COME UP FROM THE OIL, SOME PEOPLE ARE SENSITIVE TO IT. I LIKE TO ADD THE OIL OUTSIDE IF POSSIBLE OR OPEN A LOT OF WINDOWS SO THAT MY HOUSE DOESN’T SMELL LIKE CINNAMON FOREVER.
5 POUR OVER POPCORN AND TOSS QUICKLY WITH A BUTTERED WOODEN SPOON TO DISTRIBUTE THE CANDY COATING EVENLY.
6 Bake for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes.
7 Remove from the oven and pour out onto parchment paper or a clean granite or marble counter. Break up the larger clumps as it is cooling and then store in ziploc bags or a plastic container once completely cool. If you like cinnamon, watch out, this is addictive!
These sound amazing Cherlynn! Thanks for sharing!
This is simply perfect! I stopped making caramel corn cause I hated using so much brown sugar. This recipe look amazing and I can’t wait to try it!!!
Hope you love it Missy!
I tried this recipe today and it is delicious! Knowing the temptation to eat the entire bowl would be lurking, I decided to start with a half-batch and it worked out great. Will definitely be adding this one to my recipe collection…thanks Jill! 🙂
This looks delicious and perfect to make over Thanksgiving break! Thanks 🙂
Just made this………..easy and so much better for you than the other……..very yummy also. Thanks for this recipe!
Made this today and it is to DIE FOR!!!!!! I made enough for us then made another half batch just for me and I couldn’t stop eating it!! I’m not a popcorn fan and I am SO head over heels for this stuff!! Amazing, Jill!!!!
I know– it’s dangerous, huh? 🙂
Oh my goodness. You are not exaggerating. This recipe is incredible. Thank you!
That hint in the middle, about using a bigger bowl than you think you need, that’s something I do wrong every chance I get.
Ha, me too Mark! Even though I wrote the darn post. 😉
Can I add peanuts to the recipe? Will there still be enough caramel to coat everything?
Sure! I think you’ll be fine.
I haven’t made caramel corn in years. It was not this healthy either. I used to put pecans and peanuts in mine. YUM!!
Jill,
I see your corn popper……are you aware of the dangers of aluminum ? Especially with heat.
I loved mine but tossed it for that reason. Just sayin’
Is the recipe correct when it calls for 1 cup of uncooked popcorn ? That will make a lot of popped corn? This looks yummy!
Yes, I usually use 1 cup.
Just made this and its amazing!! This is the first time I came across your blog and it looks fantastic. I love it already
My wife uses maple sirup, that’s right, sirup, spelled with an “i” from Funk’s Grove in Illinois. Very good. Any kind of sugared popcorn is good snacking.
That’s a new spelling for me! 😉 Very interesting!
Delicious popcorn! I used the recipe that is in your Cookbook. It was amazing. It does like to hop out of the bowl when you are mixing it but mostly it likes to jump into your mouth…..Thanks for the recipe. I love that it does not use tons of sugar and still tastes amazing!
I’m so happy that you love the recipe! Caramel popcorn is one of our favorite treats around here. It gets eaten so quickly when we make it! And being sweetened with an all-natural sugar makes it even yummier!
So yummy! A perfect fall treat. Easy to make too. I didn’t have a big enough bowl so I just left some popcorn in the pan, but the amount of caramel was perfect for what did make it in the bowl.
I haven’t made homemade caramel corn in years. When we used to do it, we would put the popped corn in a large paper grocery bags then pour the caramel sauce over it. Roll the top of the bag and shake away. My daughters liked taking turns shaking the bag.
This is delicious!! Made a fun special snack for Halloween.
Thanks for putting alternative ingredients. I don’t use sucanat but really want to try this!