One of my favorite single-use appliances is my hot air popper. Sure, the only thing it can do is make popcorn, but I love popcorn and I hate the hassle of making it on the stove (and since we don't own a microwave, that's not an option). The air popper also makes it easy to make massive batches of caramel corn, which I usually do around the holidays. But Joanne Chang's recipe for Sticky Bun Popcorn from Pastry Love looked so good that I thought it was time for some summer caramel popcorn.
As Chang describes it, "We mix popcorn with toasted pecans and a light goo coating, then bake it all together to make it extra crispy and caramelized." While the recipe instructs you to pop the popcorn in oil in a pot on the stove, I just used my air popper. I have a huge nonstick turkey roasting pan that I use for making caramel corn (that's actually the pan's primary use because we hardly ever make turkey), and I put all of the popped corn in pan along with some toasted pecan halves while I made the caramel mixture.
To make the "goo," you cook butter with brown sugar until it foams and darkens a bit; add honey and bring the mixture back to a boil; and add vanilla, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. I poured the mixture over the popcorn and pecans, stirred to coat, and baked the popcorn. There was a good ratio of popcorn to goo and the popcorn was almost entirely coated with a thin layer of the caramel mixture.
The popcorn was nice and crisp after it cooled and I thought it was really good. The cinnamon definitely gave it a sticky bun vibe, along with the pecans, which were a highlight. Using entire pecan halves instead of pieces definitely made this popcorn feel more luxe. I do have one complaint, however. I could clearly taste the honey in the finished product, and it seemed a bit out of place (and I used a light clover honey that was not strongly flavored). After all, honey is not a flavor I associate with either a sticky bun or caramel corn. But there is an awful lot of honey in this recipe; it calls for equal volumes of brown sugar, butter, and honey. I would be tempted to reduce the amount of honey, or perhaps substitute corn syrup or golden syrup for part of it, but I wouldn't want to risk ending up with a coating that has the incorrect texture. I think you could easily convert Sally McKenney's caramel corn recipe that I love so much into sticky bun popcorn just by adding some cinnamon and pecans.
I definitely recommend sticking with a very mild honey for this popcorn. And honey flavor or not, it was pretty addictive. It's a crispy, sweet, satisfying treat!
Recipe: "Sticky Bun Popcorn" from Pastry Love by Joanne Chang.
Previous Posts:
As Chang describes it, "We mix popcorn with toasted pecans and a light goo coating, then bake it all together to make it extra crispy and caramelized." While the recipe instructs you to pop the popcorn in oil in a pot on the stove, I just used my air popper. I have a huge nonstick turkey roasting pan that I use for making caramel corn (that's actually the pan's primary use because we hardly ever make turkey), and I put all of the popped corn in pan along with some toasted pecan halves while I made the caramel mixture.
To make the "goo," you cook butter with brown sugar until it foams and darkens a bit; add honey and bring the mixture back to a boil; and add vanilla, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. I poured the mixture over the popcorn and pecans, stirred to coat, and baked the popcorn. There was a good ratio of popcorn to goo and the popcorn was almost entirely coated with a thin layer of the caramel mixture.
I definitely recommend sticking with a very mild honey for this popcorn. And honey flavor or not, it was pretty addictive. It's a crispy, sweet, satisfying treat!
Recipe: "Sticky Bun Popcorn" from Pastry Love by Joanne Chang.
Previous Posts:
- "Holiday Party Sugar Confections: Caramel Popcorn, Homemade Butterfingers, Hazelnut and Seed Brittle, Dried Lime Truffles, Cashew Caramels, and Spiced Saltine Brittle," January 4, 2020.
- "Baked Sunday Mornings: Candy Caramel Popcorn Balls," April 23, 2017.
- "More Bacon Makes Everything Better: Bacon and Cashew Caramel Corn," December 24, 2011.
- "Break Out the Holiday Tins: Caramel Popcorn with Peanuts and Chocolate," December 10, 2011.
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