Black Matcha Caramel Corn

Whether it’s Halloween, or you’re feeling extra emo today, this sweet and creepy crunch is the perfect snack. Offering all the sticky goodness of your usual caramel corn, we’ve added matcha for a richer flavour and as the base for the dark colour. It’s a simple and frightfully delicious addition to the party!

Serves

10 cups popcorn

PREP TIME

15 minutes

COOK TIME

25 minutes

INGREDIENTS

10 cups (100 g) popped corn
⅔ cup (145 g) Redpath® Golden Yellow Sugar, packed
⅓ cup (76 g) butter
2 tbsp (30 ml) honey
1 tbsp (7 g) green matcha powder
1 tsp (5 ml) pure vanilla extract
6 to 10 drops black gel food colouring
½ tsp (3 g) salt
¼ tsp (2 g) baking soda

Golden Yellow Sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 275°F (135°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly grease parchment with butter or spray.

Place popcorn into a large heatproof bowl. If necessary, separate into two bowls.

In a medium, heavy-bottomed pot, combine the Redpath® Golden Yellow Sugar, butter, honey, and matcha powder. Place pot on medium heat. With a whisk, stir sugar mixture until homogenous, and mixture begins to boil. Lower heat to medium-low, simmer mixture for 5 minutes, whisking occasionally to prevent burning.

Remove from heat, stir in the vanilla extract, food colouring (see Chef’s Tips), salt, and baking soda. Be careful as the mixture may foam.

Pour caramel over the popcorn. With a long-handled spoon or heatproof spatula sprayed with cooking spray, quickly mix the caramel sauce into the popcorn until evenly distributed.

Transfer and spread popcorn mixture onto the prepared baking sheet. Place into the preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes, stirring mixture halfway through the baking process.

Remove from oven and allow to cool completely on pan. Once cooled, break apart any large clusters of popcorn.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

CHEF'S TIPS

*Popcorn can be made on the stovetop, in a popcorn machine (air-popped), or microwave. ⅓ cup of popcorn kernels will yield approximately 10 cups of popped corn. Alternatively, you can buy bags of plain popcorn from your local supermarket or grocery store.

*Mix the gel food colouring into the vanilla extract before adding. Do not add the food colouring to the hot sugar mixture with a toothpick, as this will likely result in a burn.

*Feel free to omit the food colouring (or change up the colour) for a naturally green coloured, but still spooky, caramel corn.