Popcorn has made a few appearances here already, and I don’t see myself stopping my popcorn-love anytime soon. My current favourite is kettle corn (still haven’t posted about that, but will soon – the recipe is amazing and addictive), but this Candied Maple-Rosemary popcorn was a close second. It has the same sweet/savory combo that I adore, but goes beyond that, as this popcorn is filled with rosemary punches and sweet, sweet maple syrup.

I think the original recipe meant for the maple syrup coating to be more caramel-like in texture when finished, but since my candy thermometer broke, I haven’t been able to properly gauge my caramel cooking. That meant, for this popcorn, that the salty, buttery maple coating wasn’t crunchy or hard like caramel, but a more granular, light, sugary-salty coating (hence the name!). Perfectly perfect for me though, especially with the spears of fresh rosemary all over.

The rosemary and the maple were great together – this popcorn recipe is very aimed towards those people who adore the sweet/salty combos. I think I would’ve liked this had it come out more like caramel popcorn, but I know that I loved the way it did come out. Either way, I was sure to be happy, I guess.

The recipe below does not include my perfectly-popped-popcorn recipe; go here if you want to see it. Otherwise, pop your popcorn the way you like, and then top with the maple rosemary deliciousness.

14-16 cups popped popcorn (visit here for a great popcorn recipe)
1/2 stick organic unsalted butter (the original recipe calls for a whole stick)
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 1/2 tablespoon dried rosemary leaves
3/4 teaspoon flaked sea salt (start with 1/2 teaspoon and add more to taste)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1. Cook butter and maple syrup in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly until the mixture starts to turn amber (225 degrees F., if you have a candy thermometer). If you want a softer coating on your popcorn, like mine, cook for less time.

2. Remove from heat. Stir in rosemary, salt and baking soda. Pour over popcorn mixture; toss to coat. Spread out onto baking sheet.

3. Allow to cool and then break up into chunks before serving. This popcorn can be stored in an airtight container for about 3 days.

I love caramel popcorn. I like it sweet, buttery and rich. Until now, I’ve been making savory versions of popcorn, but finally tried my hand at making caramel popcorn.

This recipe is easy, sweet and delicious. The original asks for instant popcorn, but it’s cheaper and healthier just to pop your own, which I did. After the corn’s all popped up, make the caramel and pour it over the popcorn in a big bowl. Make sure you’re using a big enough bowl so that you can thoroughly cover all the popcorn!

I popped more corn kernels than a bag of instant popcorn would yield, and the amount of caramel was fine. I popped about 3/4 cup kernels and I ended up with a great batch of sweet caramel corn. However, next time, I’ll double the amount of caramel, as I like my popcorn drenched with caramel!

Caramel Popcorn
adapted from Life Frosted

1. Make popcorn. Here’s a great recipe for the perfectly popped popcorn!

2. Melt 1 1/2 tablespoons of butter with 1 1/2 cups of sugar over medium heat until it becomes a nice golden color

3. Take the butter/sugar mixture off the heat and add 1/2 a heaping tsp of baking soda (it will froth up so make sure you use a big enough saucepan). Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and stir.

5. Quickly pour the mixture over the popcorn and using a non-stick spatula, mix the popcorn around in the caramel sauce.

6. Pour the popcorn onto the baking sheet and separate into small pieces.

I loooove popcorn. I’m particularly a fan of the super-buttered, super-popcorn-MSG-laden-flavoured-sprinkled popcorn. However, we all know how bad for the health that style of popcorn is. Therefore, I’ve been looking for an equally delicious alternative. And I’ve found one.

This post is twofold; I have discovered the perfect way to pop popcorn, and I have found a way to dress them so they are packed with bright, interesting flavour.

I discovered the perfect popcorn popping method on Simply Recipes, and it does indeed pop popcorn perfectly. After doing this, I don’t see a reason to ever buy microwave popcorn again (which I have been very guilty of in the past) – for $1.50, I can get about 40 cups of popped popcorn – and can flavour it anyway I wish, without a ton of sodium, MSG or any other nasty stuff.

After popping the perfect popcorn, I needed a perfect way to flavour the stuff. I found what sounded like a delicious spice combo on The Kitchen Sink, a spicy rosemary-cayenne one. I upped the cayenne quite a bit, because I like things hot, and probably added more butter than was asked for. The end result was great – quite spicy, with strong rosemary tangs, and some nice sweetness from the brown sugar to round it all out.

I think I ate about 20 cups of popcorn before three days were done, it’s that good.

Perfectly Popped Popcorn
adapted from Simply Recipes

3 Tbsp canola, peanut or grapeseed oil (high smoke point oil)
1/3 cup of high quality popcorn kernels
Salt to taste

1. Heat the oil and a few pinches of salt in a 3-quart saucepan on medium high heat.

2. Put 3 or 4 popcorn kernels into the oil and cover the pan.

3. When the kernels pop, add the rest of the 1/3 cup of popcorn kernels in an even layer. Cover, remove from heat and count 30 seconds. This method first heats the oil to the right temperature, then waiting 30 seconds brings all of the other kernels to a near-popping temperature so that when they are put back on the heat, they all pop at about the same time.

4. Return the pan to the heat. The popcorn should begin popping soon, and all at once. Once the popping starts in earnest, gently shake the pan by moving it back and forth over the burner. Try to keep the lid slightly ajar to let the steam from the popcorn release (the popcorn will be drier and crisper). Once the popping slows to several seconds between pops, remove the pan from the heat, remove the lid, and dump the popcorn immediately into a wide bowl.

Spicy Rosemary-Cayenne Popcorn
adapted from The Kitchen Sink

2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
2 tablespoons minced rosemary (I used dried rosemary – 1 tbsp)
2 tablespoons grated parmesan
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne (or more, to taste) (I added at least one teaspoon!)
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 cups popped popcorn

In the bottom of a large bowl, mix the butter, rosemary, parmesan, brown sugar, cayenne and salt. Pour the popcorn into the large bowl. Stir the popcorn to evenly coat the kernels with the seasoning.