Caramel Apple-Caramel Corn

Did you guys see Peabody's supremely amazing creation a couple of weeks ago - caramel apple-caramel corn?? Of course I had to make it as soon as possible. And oh it was good. Really really good. I don't know what size bag of popcorn she used because I halved the recipe and got more popcorn than she did for the whole recipe! Unfortunately the popcorn was only nice and crisp on the first day. The next day it started to get soft and it quickly after that got really soft. I'm not sure if it's because I should have heated the caramel more or if that's just what happens (maybe because the dried apples are in there).

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Peanut Butter Fudge
Caramel Walnut Chocolate Chunk Granola
Monster Cookies
Chocolate Scotcheroos

Caramel Apple-Caramel Corn
Adapted from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody

Makes about 25 cups.

The caramels I found were in an 8 or 9 oz bag so I didn't use them all, and I just used whatever dried apples I had. The exact amount of the caramels and apples you use are not a big deal. Unfortunately my halved version uses 1 1/2 bags of popcorn - but next time I'd probably just use 1 bag to keep it simpler.

1 1/2 80 g bags plain (not buttered) microwavable popcorn, popped

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, tightly packed
1/4 cup white corn syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp baking soda

7 oz of caramels (unwrapped), chopped into fourths
6 oz dried apples, chopped into bite size pieces (this is probably about 1 1/2 cups)

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 200F.

Put the popcorn in a large bowl or stock pot. Add the apple and caramel pieces and toss with popcorn. Set aside.

In a large saucepan bring sugars, syrup, salt, and butter to a boil, over high heat. Boil until all the ingredients has dissolved and it is boiling away at you.

Add vanilla extract and baking soda and stir quickly. Be warned, it’s going to bubble up and get mad at you.

Dump the caramel into the bowl with the popcorn, apples and caramels. Mix thoroughly.

Spread out evenly onto prepared baking sheet and place in oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Your caramels will melt, but will firm back up as they cool, don’t panic. Enjoy.