Popcorn is such a great snack, but sometimes I almost forget about. It’s so simple and takes just a few minutes to make, plus you get that lovely popcorn aroma in your kitchen. Popcorn is a great carrier of flavour, and with a few ingredients you can transform it into something wonderful. Whether it is sweet or savoury, there are so many ways to enhance and flavour popcorn. I love toffee popcorn. As soon as I get that buttery caramel smell from the pan it always brings me right back to when I was a kid. I’ve made this recipe a little more indulgent by adding peanut butter and chocolate. I like the idea of popcorn as little sweets, as it makes it a bit more special. These treats would be great to bring to a party. They taste especially good crumbled over vanilla ice-cream … my new favourite dessert in fact.
Ingredients
- 2 oz of popcorn kernals
- Splash of vegetable oil
- 1/2 – 1 teaspoon of salt (depends on how salty you like it)
- 3oz of butter
- 2 oz of white sugar
- 2 oz of brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 3 tablespoons of golden syrup
- 1 tsp of baking soda
- 1 tablespoon of creamy peanut butter
- Melted chocolate (optional)
Method:
Place the oil and the kernals in a heavy bottomed saucepan over a medium to high heat. Put a lid on the saucepan and as soon as the kernals start to pop, shake the saucepan around so that all the kernals have a chance to pop. When the popping stops, remove the popcorn from the heat and add the salt. I love the flavour of salty toffee popcorn so I usually add 1 tsp – you could add less if you need to though.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a heavy bottomed saucepan. Then, add the sugars, golden syrup and honey and cook over a medium to high heat. Once the sugar has dissolved you need to bring the mixture to 150 degrees Celsius. You will need a thermometer to check that the toffee has reached the correct temperature. As soon as it has, add the baking soda and stir quickly. The mixture should be all bubbly and caramel like at this point. Pour the mixture straight over the popcorn, along with the peanut butter. Stir the mixture quickly, so that each piece of popcorn is evenly coated with the caramel and peanut butter.
When the popcorn has cooled slightly, but hasn’t completely set, form the popcorn balls with your hands. Place the popcorn in mini bun cases and leave to cool and harden. I added some melted chocolate to some of them, just for extra boldness. However they taste just as good on their own without the chocolate.
