
Larry is a good cook, and an enthusiastic one. Sometimes we practically arm wrestle “who gets to make what” when we feed other people. But he usually wants to be the dessert guy, so he selected caramel corn for our picnic in the Hollywood Forever cemetery with Cathi and Barry. He was all over this assignment, studied about ten recipes, choosing this one. In the dark as we munched the stuff while enjoying our outdoor movie, everyone proclaimed this dessert totally KILLER.
This is NOT a shortcut recipe. Once you make your candy coating, you then bake the stuff long and on a low temp to really gloss it on there. Nothing better than caramel corn with a good crunch. Give this a try, it is buttery delicious. The online recipe also had peanuts; Larry’s did not.
Larry’s Killer Caramel Corn
- 7 quarts plain popped popcorn
- 2 cups brown sugar
- 1/2 cup light corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup margarine
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Spray two shallow baking pans with non-stick spray and divide popcorn between them in a single layer.
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C). Combine the brown sugar, corn syrup, margarine and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to blend. Once it reaches a boiling point, boil for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat, stir in baking soda and vanilla. The mixture will become light and foamy. Immediately pour over the popcorn in the pans and stir gently to coat (don’t worry about getting it onto all the corn).
Bake for 1 hour, stirring gently every 15 minutes.
Line the counter with waxed paper. Once baked, pour the corn onto the waxed paper and gently separate the pieces with a wooden spoon. Allow to cool completely, then store in an airtight container or resealable bags. Makes 7 quarts of caramel corn.

{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
These will be perfect to make for my daughters kindergarten Halloween party. Thank you for the post. I will let you know how they turn out.
another brilliant idea
My husband is going to love this recipe. Thanks
This would be a bad thing to have on hand. Very bad.
Awh! This is perfect for movie nights! Thanks for sharing, I’d love to try this when we next do a dvd marathon. 😀 heehee! Keep on sharing xx
Cheers from Australia,
Amy @ Foodista
I love that Larry is a perfectionist like you! This popcorn sounds so tasty & I am sure it is worth the extra effort. xo