Caramel Popcorn

       Caramel Popcorn

makes about 2  dozen balls or 1 pan of caramel bliss

Ingredients
10 – 12  cups popcorn ----1/3 - 1/2  cup popcorn kernels

For the Caramel Sauce:
3/4  cup brown sugar

2  Tablespoons butter

1/3  cup of a half and half mixture of honey and light corn syrup

1  teaspoon Vanilla

1/4  teaspoon salt (if you are using unseasoned popcorn)

Instructions

1.  Sift the popped popcorn to remove any un-popped kernels.
2.  Place the popcorn into a large bowl.
3.  Season with salt, if necessary.
4.  In a small saucepan, combine the caramel sauce ingredients.

5.  Cook and stir the caramel sauce over a medium heat until the mixture reaches 256° degrees.  ( this is sea level temperature)
(Make temperature adjustment for your altitude) 
This will take about 13 minutes from the onset of the fire.
6.  Pour the caramel sauce over the popcorn.  
7.  Quickly and thoroughly stir the caramel sauce and popcorn together with a wooden spoon.   Some popcorn will get crushed.  
8.  Grease your hands with a generous amount of butter if you  are going to form the mixture into balls.  This keeps the caramel from sticking to your hands and also keeps the hot syrup from burning you.  
9.  Wrap the individual balls in wax paper or parchment paper.
10.  Or you could just spread the popcorn out onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and enjoy a mound of caramel bliss.