tjr wrote:The mushroom corn makes excellent caramel corn. I find it a little less crunchy as plain popcorn, though.
Here is the bacon cracker jack recipe I did for Baconfest 2015. 1200 tasting portions, absolutely delicious, huge pain in the ass.
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Cracker JackBaconfest 2015
Yield: About 10 cups of popcorn
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Ingredients:
10 cups of freshly-popped popcorn (Amish mushroom popcorn)
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup lightly salted candied pecans with a touch of habanero powder
1 cup bacon in small dice, cooked crisp
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
2. Pop the popcorn. Coat a large mixing bowl with nonstick cooking spray, and then transfer the popcorn to the bowl; set aside.
3. In a small saucepan, whisk together the brown sugar, corn syrup, butter, salt and water, and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Continue to simmer, stirring often, until the mixture reaches 250 degrees F on a candy thermometer, about 3 to 5 minutes.
4. Turn off the heat, and whisk in the vanilla and baking soda.
Immediately pour the hot mixture over the popcorn. Use a rubber spatula to gently fold the caramel into the popcorn until all of the popcorn is coated.
Gently stir in the peanuts and bacon, and transfer the mixture to the prepared baking sheet, spreading it out.
5. Bake at 250° for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven, and cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes.
Gently break up the popcorn.
Serve immediately, or store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Notes:
Temp when you add vanilla and baking soda is important, has to be exact
Small lardons of bacon
Pecans, candied with a touch of habanero powder
Pop popcorn with bacon fat
Use Mushroom Popcorn from Amish Popcorn in Indiana.
Made 1200 tasting portions for Baconfest