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Last year, my daughter decided that she was going to make Christmas gifts for her friends.
When knitting them all scarves turned out to be more time-consuming than she had anticipated, she turned to food presents. She made several batches of these caramel-corn clusters, along with chocolates she made herself. With some festive wrapping and ribbons, she had a nice little present for everyone.
The trick is getting them wrapped up before your family knows you have made them, because otherwise they will be gone. They are really delicious and incredibly addictive. These would make great gifts for any of the younger people on your list or take them along to a party as a hostess gift. Caramel Corn Clusters
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/3 cup popcorn kernels
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
11/2 cups packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup salted peanuts (5 oz)
Special equipment: a candy thermometer
1. Heat oil with 3 kernels in a 3-quart heavy saucepan, covered, over moderate heat until 1 or 2 kernels pop. Remove lid and quickly add remaining kernels, then cook, covered, shaking pan frequently, until kernels stop popping, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and uncover.
2. Line bottom of a large shallow baking pan with foil. Lightly oil foil.
3. Melt butter in a 6-quart heavy pot over moderate heat. Add brown sugar and corn syrup and bring to a boil over moderate heat, stirring, then boil, without stirring, until syrup registers 300°F on thermometer, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
4. Using a wooden spoon or a heatproof spatula, stir salt and baking soda into syrup, then quickly stir in peanuts and popcorn to coat. Immediately spread mixture in baking pan as thinly and evenly as possible.
5.Cool completely, then break into bite-size pieces.
From the September 2004 issue of Gourmet
Difficulty level: Moderate
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