Perfect snack for this time of year....Caramel Corn!!

Do you ever have a craving for that wonderful caramel corn you get at the fall carnivals? I know I do. When I was a kid, this was a common snack in our house when we were looking for something sweet and salty. It is so easy to make yourself, you won't have to wait for the fall carnival.

The recipe for this wonderful snack came from my dad's cousin's family and was often the snack we had while playing cards around their kitchen table. We'd play Uno for hours and eat bowl after bowl of this wonderful treat. There never seemed to be enough, even when we were almost ill from stuffing ourselves with this caramel corn.

These days, I'm always on the look out for inexpensive and fun treats to make for my family. This time of year, there is always a party or gathering of some kind to kick off the "Fall Season" or to watch the football game or a class party at school. Having an easy recipe like this, comes in quite handy.

Thankfully, this is one recipe that we have enjoyed for years that didn't require any altering once we cut gluten out of our diets. There are very few recipes that I could just leave alone. Having a handful of family favorites that didn't have to be played with was a huge blessing!

Another thing that I love about this recipe is that I almost always have the ingredients on hand. The only ingredient that I don't normally have in my pantry is the corn syrup. That is something that I try to not use whenever possible. I just think that "high fructose corn syrup" is one of those over used ingredients. Plus, after making this recipe many times over, I have found that we actually prefer it with the maple syrup rather than corn syrup. You could also use brown rice syrup, that would work well also.

Most caramel corn recipes that I have seen over the years require some time in the oven. Thankfully, this one doesn't! You do have to work quickly once the caramel is ready to pour over the popcorn, so make sure your corn is popped ahead of time. Don't butter or salt your popped corn, the caramel is all you'll need!

This recipe for caramel corn is a fun process to watch. The sugar, butter and syrup boiling away and then adding the baking soda. The transformation that happens to that sugar mixture is always amazing to me. The baking soda is what causes the sugars to harden, don't ask me why or how, but it does. The look of the caramel will change quite dramatically. Don't spend too much time watching it though, remember, you have to move quickly.

Once you have combined all of the caramel ingredients and have poured it over your popped corn, the fun begins. It never looks like the caramel is ever going to mix with all of the popcorn. Trust me, it usually does without any problem. It just takes a lot of stirring to get it there.

Once you have the popcorn coated and there are no big clumps of caramel, you are ready to eat it! Be careful though, it will be hot. I think I burn at least a finger every time I make this, simply because I can't wait for it to cool! A fun addition to this caramel corn would be some peanuts. That would make it even more like the caramel corn at the carnival!