Ridiculously Easy Pecan Pie Caramel Corn
This Ridiculously Easy, Microwave Pecan Pie Caramel Corn has all the flavor of the beloved Southern pie with sweet buttery caramel corn and crunchy glazed pecans!
Servings: 17 1 cup servings
Calories: 310kcal
Ingredients
- 15 cups popped popcorn see post for types of popcorn
- ¾ cup butter I use salted
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- ⅓ cup corn syrup not high fructose corn syrup - I use Karo
- 1 teaspoon molasses
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 cups pecan halves
- sea salt I love Maldon
Instructions
- Prepare a work surface by laying out two 3-feet long pieces of parchment paper, overlapping slightly.
- After popping the popcorn, transfer it to a bowl. Lift the popcorn with your hands and shake the bowl lightly so the unpopped kernels fall to the bottom. Lift the 4 quarts of popcorn out of the bowl and transfer to a large brown paper grocery bag. (I like to place the grocery bag on a clean towel in my sink. This is a better height than on the countertop to pour in the caramel sauce.)
- Combine the butter, brown sugars, corn syrup, maple syrup, molasses and salt in a large microwave-safe bowl. Place in the microwave and heat on high power for 2 minutes. Stir to combine. If the butter is not completely melted, return to the microwave for another 30-60 seconds.
- After stirring, return to the microwave for 1 minute. The mixture should be bubbling up furiously by this point. Remove bowl and stir well then return to the microwave for another minute. Repeat this cooking and stirring for a total of 3 minutes.
- Remove the bowl from the microwave and stir in the vanilla and baking soda. Stir well until all of the baking soda is well incorporated. Add the pecans and stir for 30 seconds to ensure that the pecans are well coated with the caramel.
- Pour the hot mixture right into the center of the popcorn in the bag. Fold the top of the bag down once and shake, shake, shake to distribute syrup through the corn.
- Microwave on high power for 1 minute. Remove the bag and hold it at the top and one of the bottom corners. Shake well the return to the microwave for another minute. Repeat cooking and shaking two more times for a total of 4 minutes. Turn the popcorn out onto the prepared parchment paper. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt, if desired. Allow to cool completely.
- Store in an airtight container. The caramel corn will keep well for 1-2 weeks.
Notes
See Café Tips above in the post for more detailed instructions and tips to ensure success.
If you prefer to use Metric measurements there is a button in each of our recipes, right above the word “Instructions”. Just click that button to toggle to grams, milliliters, etc. If you ever come across one of our recipes that doesn’t have the Metric conversion (some of the older recipes may not), feel free to leave a comment and I will add it.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cup | Calories: 310kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 208mg | Potassium: 134mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 29g | Vitamin A: 277IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 1mg