Why get dressed & go to the cinema when you can create your own cinema at home? A nice movie, your blanket & a SUPER BIG bowl of homemade caramel popcorn.

I hate myself for finding this recipe because this means that whenever there is a nice movie on TV, I am gonna treat myself with a big bowl of these crunchy & sweet popcorn clusters.

You won’t believe how easy & quick this recipe is! Bonus; it is prepared on the stove in less than 20 minutes; no oven required.

The are 3 tricks if you make them right then be sure that you nailed the recipe: First, make sure to have all the caramel ingredients ready next to you because caramel can burn really quickly. Second, focus on the caramel color; when its LIGHT golden you stir in the butter & once it melts & the caramel becomes amber golden, you turn off the heat. Basically, once the butter melts, you turn off the heat. Third, from the minute you add the butter, move QUICKLY!

Pamper yourself & please don’t hate me!

Ingredients:

• 150 gm corn kernels
• 1/2 tsp oil or olive oil
• little oil for greasing the tray

For the caramel:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp cold butter
• 1/2 tsp baking soda

Directions:

• Grease a big tray with oil & set aside.
• To make the popcorn: Stir the corn kernels & 1/2 tsp oil in a large non stick pot. Cover the pot & place over high heat. Shake the pot up & down every 15 seconds until the kernels start popping. Keep shaking the pot up & down every 15 seconds until the popping is too little. Turn off heat. Remove the cover & set the popcorn aside until you prepare the caramel.
• To make the caramel: Place the sugar in a large pan (one large enough to be able to add the popcorn later). Let the sugar cover the bottom of the pan in an even layer. Place the pan on medium high heat to melt the sugar. DON’t stir the sugar; you can swirl the pan around so that the sugar melts from all sides. If the sugar on one side seems to be melting more than the other side, push the pan so that the unmelted side is right over the flame. Keep swirling the pan every now & then until all the sugar has melted & turned into a LIGHT golden color.
• Add the butter immediately & STIR to melt (stir the butter around the whole pan; not just in the middle). As you are melting the butter, the color of the sugar will keep getting darker. Once the butter melts, turn off the heat. The color of the caramel will be amber golden at this stage.
• Stir in the baking soda immediately; it will foam a bit. Add the popcorn immediately & toss with the caramel quickly until coated.
• Spread the popcorn on the greased tray. Don’t touch it with your hands; spread it with a wooden spoon or spatula.
• Let it cool completely then break the clusters into smaller pieces & enjoy.

• You don’t have to follow my recipe in making popcorn; make it in your own way if you prefer.
• Don’t use a dark pan for making the caramel to be able to tell the sugar color.
• Have everything ready next to you while making the caramel as it burns in a second.
• The color of your caramel popcorn will be much lighter than the above pic. Don’t worry it is supposed to be like this.

Recipe adapted from Gordon Ramsay