Turtle Popcorn Gone Wild

Yah baby!


Chocolate = good!


Caramel = good!!


Toffee = good!!!


Pecans = good!!!!


Popcorn = good!!!!!


Chocolate + Caramel + Toffee + Pecans + Popcorn = Turtle Popcorn Gone Wild!!!!!!


Turtle Popcorn Gone Wild = "Well smack my ass and call me Judy" kind of good!!!!!!!

Yup, I did it again. And there's no oops in that. Nor any innocence. Sorry Britney! This was on purpose, premeditated, unadulterated foodie sin at it's best! I think some of you may have seen the Turtle popcorn I made the other day. It was a Paula Deen recipe, and it was quite good. But it just wasn't sinful enough for me. Yes I realize I just said one of Paula Deen's recipes was not sinful enough for me. They don't call me a Lunatic for nothing folks. Her recipe was yummy, but it lacked that extra oomph that I was looking for. I wanted this to taste like I had melted down a Turtles candy and poured it over top the popcorn. And while I am a Lunatic, I'm not crazy enough to take something as precious as Turtle candies and melt them down. So I did what any Lunatic would do....I made my own concoction to simulate the taste. Let's just say mission accomplished. This is AH-MAH-ZING! I mean smack your gramma good. Just don't tell her I told you to do it. You're on your own if she hits you back with her purse. 


Now this is a bit of an ordeal to make but I assure you it's worth it. You need to make the popcorn, which seriously people, is not that hard. Then you'll make some chocolate concoction a la Paula. That will need to dry. Then you need to make some caramel, let it cool a bit, then make this and let that dry. So it has some steps involved. But you'll thank me for it. Give some to your gramma and she'll thank me too. She might even forgive you for slapping her. 


So set aside some time tomorrow, or this weekend and make this stuff. It's popcorn gone nuts. And I mean who doesn't like their popcorn a little nuts anyway right. And your food bloggers too.


*smiles sheepishly*


*writes a letter apologizing to Paula for dethroning her as the Queen of Sin*


*thinks of ways she could deep fry this popcorn*


*gets dragged off by her family for a serious intervention*


*grabs some Turtle Popcorn Gone Wild for the car ride*

Turtle Popcorn Gone Wild:


Ingredients for Step 1 (this is Paula's recipe and the one I posted previously, but the popcorn is halved):


12 cups popped popcorn
1 cup of butter
2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup corn syrup
6 (1 ounce) squares of semi-sweet chocolate
1 teaspoon vanilla salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees.

Pop your popcorn. I did mine on the stove old school style!

Place your popcorn in a large roasting pan.

Now in a large saucepan combine your butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup.

Over medium-high heat bring this mixture to a boil.  Keep it at a boil for about 5 minutes.

Now remove it from the heat and stir in the chocolate, vanilla salt and vanilla.

Let it stand until the chocolate melts. Stir it occasionally.

Once it is melted stir until smooth.

Now pour this over your popcorn, toss it gently with a wooden spoon to coat it all evenly.

Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Stir it occasionally.

Remove from oven and transfer popcorn to parchment paper to let it cool down.


Ingredients for step 2, which is caramel sauce:


Adapted from Fine Cooking

1/4 cup water
2 tablespoon unsalted butter, more softened for the pan
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Generous pinch of salt, I used vanilla salt


Directions:


Place a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combining sugar and 1/4 cup warm water. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Takes 2 to 3 minutes.

Bring the syrup to a boil and do not stir, let it start to caramelize. You can gently swirl the pan to help it start to brown.

You watch, not stirring until it turns an amber colour.

Now remove from the heat, add cold butter.

Now stir in the heavy cream. You may return the pan to low heat if the mixture is not smoothing out right away.

Now add the vanilla and the salt. Stir this until it's smooth.

Let the caramel cool for about 15 minutes.


Ingredients for step 3 (which is the final step):


Turtle Popcorn you already made
Caramel Sauce you already made
1/2 cup Skor Toffee Bits (you can buy these by the chocolate chips)
1/2 cup crushed pecans


Directions for step 3:


Place your dried Turtle popcorn in a large roasting pan. 


Now take your cooled caramel sauce and pour it over top the popcorn.


Mix with a wooden spoon.


Now top with Skor Toffee Bits and crushed pecans. Mix gently again.


Now transfer this on to a parchment lined cookie sheet to let it dry. 


(If you are pressed for time and want it to try quickly place the popcorn in a 200 degree oven for 30 minutes. I personally did not want to do this as I wanted my toffee bits crunchy and not melted.)


Once dry you can serve this with a big old Turtle smile!

Tips and Hints:


Do not pour boiling hot anything over popcorn. I would think this is common sense but maybe not so much. If you pour butter, or caramel, or chocolate, or pink candy coating that is boiling hot over popcorn it will shrivel it up. So wait a few minutes. You don't have to wait long, just not scorching hot over top. Warm is better. 


I tend to er on the side of more is better when it comes to coatings. So feel free to double the popcorn amount and keep the rest of the ingredients at these measurements. I suppose not every subscribes to the more is better logic. 


You can certainly take the time to pop it in the oven a second time to dry. It would help as with this much caramel it takes awhile to dry out. I was fine letting it dry on counter but I had oodles of time.


You could in theory cut the caramel in half. But why would you want to. 


Remember when making caramel that it is suppose to fizz up, so don't freak out when that happens. It is kind of a cool science experiment. Have your kids help carefully as it's sort of cool. Of course I am 5 years old and find things like this fascinating right. You may not.

Okay folks that wraps up this one. I sure hope it was worth the wait. And me being carted off in a little white coat that ties in the back. Hope you're happy now. ....Paula!!!!!


For more Turtle recipes from your loyal and Turtle devoted Lunatic please feel free to click any of the links below, you won't be sorry!

TURTLE BARK

TURTLE ICE CREAM

TURTLE BANANA SPLIT

TURTLE ICE CREAM PIE

TURTLE POPCORN

After all my treatments are done I shall return with another new Turtle recipe just for you! You can take the Lunatic out of the asylum but you can't take the asylum out of the Lunatic. 


If you missed the PINK POPCORN you should go check it out. Have a Pretty in Pink Party and Pop this Pink Popcorn like a Pro and impress all your Peeps!

OLD FASHIONED PINK POPCORN

Toodles and smoochies. xx