White-Chocolate Caramel Corn with Cashews

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White-Chocolate Caramel Corn
Prep Time:
25 mins
Total Time:
1 hrs 25 mins
Yield:
12 cups

Caramel corn, a perennial Halloween favorite, gets an upgrade with the addition of chopped cashews and drizzled white chocolate. It can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week so you can enjoy it for the days leading up to October 31.

Ingredients

  • 12 cups popped popcorn (from ½ cup kernels)

  • 1 ½ cups roughly chopped cashews

  • 1 stick plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

  • cup light corn syrup

  • 1 ¼ cups packed light-brown sugar

  • 1 ½ teaspoons coarse salt, divided

  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda

  • 5 ounces white chocolate, chopped

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Place popcorn and nuts in a large bowl. Melt butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Stir in corn syrup, sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cook until sugar dissolves, stirring once or twice. Raise heat to high, and bring to a boil (do not stir). Boil, without stirring, until a candy thermometer registers 248 degrees, 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in baking soda.

  2. Pour caramel over popcorn mixture, stirring to coat thoroughly. Transfer to 2 rimmed baking sheets, spreading in a single layer. Bake 45 minutes, stirring twice. Test doneness by removing a few pieces of popcorn from oven; if they crisp within 1 minute, popcorn is ready. Remove from oven, and immediately sprinkle with remaining salt. Let cool completely.

  3. Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir until melted and completely smooth. Fill a small resealable plastic bag with chocolate, and snip a tiny hole in 1 corner. Drizzle chocolate over caramel corn. Refrigerate until chocolate is set, about 10 minutes, before breaking up.

Cook's Notes

Caramel corn can be stored in an airtight container up to 1 week.

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