Sweet Bites: Bourbon Caramel Apple Popcorn + Heaps n Heaps + Ryley Walker

This snacktastic little number made quite an impression at a Supper Club gathering last fall and then again at our Holiday Open House in December. The recipe makes an enormous batch, which oh darn, leftovers. Not for long.

In addition to the bourbon – bourbon! – the biggest surprise is how delicious the dried apple slices are as a mix-in for popcorn. Why didn’t I learn about this sooner? 

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Enjoy these sweet tunes while you read on. Recipe appears below. 

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Bourbon Caramel Apple Popcorn
This recipe was Frankensteined from several others, including inspiration from Blue Bonnet Baker

Ingredients:

• 16 cups popped plain popcorn (from about 1/2 cup kernels)
  
• 1 cup salted peanuts (not Spanish peanuts)
  
• 1 cup dried apple chips 
  
• 1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar
  
• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks)
  
• ½ cup maple syrup or you can use corn syrup
  
• ½ cup Bourbon (3-4 oz)
  
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
  
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  

 
Directions:

• Pop the popcorn and put it in a large bowl with the peanuts and apple chips – mix well and put to the side.
  

• Place the brown sugar, butter, maple syrup, and salt in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula until the sugar has dissolved, about 5 minutes. Continue to boil without stirring for 3 minutes – temperature should be about 250 degrees.
  

• Remove from heat, add the bourbon, vanilla and baking soda, and whisk until the caramel is light in color, foamy, and has doubled in volume, about 10 seconds. 
  

• Immediately drizzle over the popcorn, stir with a rubber spatula until thoroughly coated, and spread into an even layer on baking sheets lined with Silpat or parchment paper.
  

• Bake at 250 degrees, stirring every 15 minutes with a rubber spatula and scraping up any caramel from the bottom of the pan, until a cooled piece of popcorn is very crunchy, about 45 minutes to 1 hour total. (To test for doneness, take a few pieces of popcorn out of the oven and let cool for 30 seconds. If they’re crunchy, then the caramel corn is done.)
  

• Transfer the caramel corn to a work surface or rimmed baking sheet to cool completely (it will crisp as it cools). Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week or more.