Drop Dead Recipes- Caramel Almond Popcorn

It’s that time of year! Halloween is just around the corner and those mini-chocolate bars get so freakin’ tempting, don’t they? Once you start you just can’t stop, so don’t even go near those suckers, and instead make a REFINED SUGAR and CORN SYRUP FREE Caramel Almond Popcorn to munch on instead! I am absolutely pumped about the flavour of this popcorn. To be honest, I don’t even like caramel popcorn, but everyone is going crazy about this one. It’s sweetened with coconut sugar and maple syrup, and has great healthy fats from coconut oil and almond butter. Forget the candy thermometer and a complicated caramel process- this comes together in just minutes.

Last year I think I was on a plane from New Zealand to Australia on Halloween which is incredible to think about. Time really flies. This year I’ll be in my new house in Vancouver and I’m looking forward to dressing up again. I love costumes! Catch me on Instagram to see what I’m being on the 31st!

 

I use an air popper to get nice popcorn without any extra additives. Alternatively, there are some great brands that make microwave popcorn now with simply corn, oil, and salt. Look for a brand that does that because regular microwave popcorn that is ‘butter’ flavour will not work in this recipe!

If you aren’t into almond butter, I’m sure peanut butter would work fine.

Caramel Popcorn

Caramel Sauce

½ cup coconut sugar

2 Tbsp water

½ cup maple syrup

1/3 cup coconut oil, liquid

¼ cup smooth almond butter              

pinch of sea salt

In a medium saucepan, combine the coconut sugar with the water and stir until all the sugar has been covered. Bring the mixture to a boil, and then reduce heat to medium. Let the mixture continue to boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the maple syrup and bring the mixture to a boil for 5 minutes, until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally.

Remove from the heat and whisk in the coconut oil, almond butter, and a pinch of sea salt.

This mixture should turn a lighter brown caramel colour and be totally smooth.

Popcorn

1/3 cup popcorn kernels (or a bag of plain, natural microwave popcorn)

½ cup chopped almonds

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C)

Pop popcorn kernels in an air popper or on stovetop and spread out evenly on a parchment lined baking tray. Scatter almonds evenly among popcorn. Pour caramel sauce over top and toss together until popcorn is well coated.

If your caramel has cooled off too long it will be hard to pour and toss on the popcorn. Heat it gently and whisk together again until smooth if necessary.

Place in the oven for 25 minutes until popcorn is crunchy. Store in a sealed container (in the freezer for longer storage).