In light of the recent news about organic popcorn and how healthy it is for us, I thought it would be a good idea to make a popcorn snack. Plain ole popcorn can be boring after a while so why not try something new?
I love caramel but I don’t love the way caramel is made with corn syrup or tons of brown sugar (which is very refined.) Rather, using grass-fed butter (I use KerryGold) and raw, unpasteurized honey, I created my own caramel-like sauce. Using equal parts honey and butter, I boiled it down for about 4-5 minutes and then tossed it in with organic (to avoid GMO’s) AIR-POPPED (stay away from microwave popcorn) popcorn. I stirred it until the popcorn was coated and then poured the mixture into an 8×8 glass dish. I took a piece of wax paper and placed it on top of the popcorn and gently pressed down until it was as flat as I could make it without crushing all the popcorn. I then placed the dish in the fridge for about 30 minutes for it to cool. Once it was cooled, I cut the caramel popcorn into squares. It worked wonderfully. The caramel held the popcorn together nicely. I then wrapped each square individually in wax paper so I can pack them in my boys’ lunches. You could keep the popcorn in the dish and cut out one piece at a time. If you want an extra treat, drizzle some melted dark chocolate over the popcorn before placing in the fridge to cool. I have to warn you, this caramel is very sweet. You don’t need a big piece to satisfy any cravings you may have. Also, if you popcorn is unsalted, you may want to toss in a little salt to create a sweet / salty effect. This is a great alternative to boxed caramel corn! Also, there are many nutritional benefits in grass-fed butter and in raw honey. Recipe below.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup grassfed butter
1/4 cup raw honey
5-6 cups organic air-popped popcorn
dash salt (if desired)
melted chocolate (if desired to drizzle on top)
Melt butter and honey on stovetop over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Once it is boiling, allow it to boil for about 4 minutes – stirring occasionally. Pour hot caramel mixture over top of popcorn in large bowl and stir to coat well. Pour into 8×8 dish and place a piece of wax paper over top and press down firmly with fingers. Remove wax paper. Drizzle melted chocolate over top if desired. Place in fridge for about 30 minutes or until cool. Cut into squares and serve or wrap individually in wax or parchment paper to send in school lunches!!
Life Made Whole 
Sounds delicious! I might try this with maple syrup instead of honey. We make our own maple syrup. When you say stay away from microwave popcorn, are you just referring to the stuff you buy in the store or is it the fact that it is microwaved? We make our own microwave popcorn using a paper lunch bag and olive oil.
Both – don’t like using the microwave at all and the bagged popcorn has lots of additives. Let me know how it works with maple syrup. I LOVE maple syrup (did you see my chocolate syrup recipe??)
These are SO GOOD! I used maple syrup and it turned out well. Very yummy!
Awesome! I will have to try maple syrup for my next batch.
that looks very tasty I will have to try it. Does the grass fed butter have more flavor? I don’t think I have seen it in my local health food stores.
I think grass fed butter has more flavor and also has more vitamins than conventional butter. KerryGold brand is grassfed and that can be found in most traditional grocery stores. Otherwise you may have to try out a local farm.
Wow that looks very delicious. Does grass fed butter have more flavor than regular butter? I have never tried it.
The honey and butter and dash of salt actually taste like caramel. It’s so good! One of the quickest, easiest desserts ever. And, yeah I used my leftover popcorn to scrape the bottom of the caramel pan and it was Dlish!