almost Cracker Jack

We like to have something sweet to munch on while we watch conference. This year we decided on caramel corn.

I used Laurie's recipe from the Hendricks Family Cookbook.  We served half of it as caramel corn; soft, chewy, yummy!  The other half I put into a low oven which crisped it up.  The batch I didn't burn ended up tasting almost like Cracker Jack (I didn't have peanuts which would have been a nice touch).  This makes a really large, party-size batch so next time I might be tempted to cut the batch down by half.

Quick & Easy Caramel Corn
1 1/2 c brown sugar
1 1/2 c white sugar
1 c butter
1 c Karo syrup
1/2 c water
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar
1/2 tsp baking soda
6 quarts popped popcorn

Cook first 7 ingredients until it reaches soft boil then add 1/2 tsp baking soda stir well.  Pour over popped corn and toss well to coat.

Serve immediately or spread on parchment paper lined cookie sheets and place in a 250 degree oven.  Bake for 45 minutes stirring every 10 to 15 minutes.  Cool, break apart and EnJoY.

Hints:  If you keep the popcorn warm the caramel topping will spread more consistently.  It takes a while to get the syrup to soft boil so plan ahead.  Use a larger pan than you think you might need as it almost doubles in size when it foams up right at the end.  Use a silicone spatula because the caramel mixture will not stick to it!  Clean up is super easy with Hot Soapy water.