Maple Pecan Popcorn Recipes

Steps:

• Place popcorn and pecans in a large bowl; set aside. In a large heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, butter, maple syrup, corn syrup and salt. Cook and stir over medium heat until a candy thermometer reads 300° (hard-crack stage). Remove from the heat; stir in maple flavoring. Quickly pour over popcorn mixture and mix well., Transfer to baking sheets lined with waxed paper to cool. Break into clusters. Store in airtight containers.

Steps:

• Toss together pecans and popcorn in a large bowl.
• Line a large shallow baking pan with foil, then lightly oil foil and a wooden spoon.
• Melt butter in a 1- to 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat. Add syrup and salt, then boil, without stirring, until mixture registers 300°F on thermometer, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Pour syrup over pecans and popcorn, stirring briskly with oiled spoon to coat. Immediately spread popcorn in baking pan. Cool completely, then break into bite-size pieces.

Steps:

• In a greased large roasting pan not too deep, mix popped popcorn and pecans. Set aside.
• In a large saucepan with thick bottom, mix sugar, butter, maple syrup, corn syrup and salt. Bring to boil at medium heat. Let simmer, always stirring, 10 to 12 minutes or until a candy thermometer reaches 300 F (149 C). Remove from the heat. Add maple extract and stir. Pour the mixture on the plain popped popcorn and stir to coat well. Let cool. Break off and it's ready. (you can do this in advance and put it in an hermetic container. It will be good up to 1 week at room temperature.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 300 degrees, and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking sheet.
• In a large pot with a tight-fitting lid, heat oil and 3 popcorn kernels over medium-high with lid on top. When kernels pop, add remaining kernels to pot, lower heat to medium-low, and crack the lid open a sliver, facing away from you, to release steam. (Alternatively, you could cover the pot with a mesh deep-frying screen, or an upside-down colander or strainer.) Cook, shaking the pot occasionally, until the popping stops.
• Transfer popcorn to a heatproof bowl, discarding any unpopped kernels. Add nuts to bowl.
• In a medium pot, bring maple syrup, butter and brown sugar to a boil. Cook, stirring constantly, until butter and sugar have melted (the mixture should be foamy). Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches 240 degrees on an instant-read thermometer. Remove from heat, and stir in salt, vanilla and baking soda. (Mixture may bubble up.)
• Immediately pour hot syrup over popcorn mixture, and use a spatula to mix it well. Scrape popcorn onto prepared baking sheet in one layer. Bake, rotating the pan after 15 minutes, for 25 to 35 minutes. You'll know it's done when you can remove a piece of the popcorn, and after letting it cool for about a minute, it's crisp when you bite into it. Taste and sprinkle lightly with more salt if you like. Let cool before serving.