caramel corn

i have been working really hard all weekend on getting over this irritating little headcold: resting, not going to the gym, not going out with my friends…. not even getting out of my sweats, lets be honest. vacation is 1.5 days away and i need my health to return, immediately! so last night i really needed to scoot the tissue box closer, treat myself to two extra cups of tea, and to a bourbon for my throat and to one of my favorite Tarantino movies. and popcorrrrn!!

when we were growing up, my mom always made caramel corn in the fall, a tradition i have enthusiastically embraced. it really tastes of Autumn to me, the color of the crackly caramel reminding me of golden-colored leaves and early sunsets. a fantastic snack, if you like caramel corn. and even, if you don’t like it! my husband never cared for the stuff in his life before he ate some that i’d made with Mom’s recipe. now whenever it’s around, he munches on it every chance he can sneak some… even when i’ve made it for a party and scold him — “baaaabe! that’s for the ______’s party!” haha.

it is a little addictive. caramel corn has always been one of my very favorite sweets — i mean besides caramels – certainly thanks to the winning way my mom always cooked this up for us. she made hers — and still does! — in a giant enameled bowl that had chips on the edges. i can just picture it, full of caramel corn to bursting, but slyly covered with a kitchen towel in hopes we wouldn’t find it for a while. my sisters and brother and i would fight over mom’s caramel corn! her entire batch would disappear within hours of us knowing it was ready. it smells so enticcing when it’s in the oven, too…. you’ll feel as if you’re at the coast, strolling down a boardwalk past a candy shop that twists their own saltwater taffy and makes their own caramel corn from a big vat of bubbling, golden syrup. and the aromas make you so hungry for sugar! you know what i’m talking about? SO good!

this is a sinch to make and really, quite fool-proof. i’ve included directions that avoid the big clumps and small crumbs; instead you will find evenly-coated, evenly-sized bites of crisp (never sticky) caramel corn. i hope you try it, and love it as much as we always have! i also think that this is a wonderful cure for the common cold. i can feel my sense of smell returning…. mmmmm…. boiled sugar!

yields one huge bowl, or 25 – 30 servings

recipe source unknown

• 7 quarts (or enough to fill your large bowl/vessel) plain popped popcorn
• 2 cups packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter (or substitute margarine)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

lightly grease two large, rimmed baking sheets with butter or oil. divide the plain popcorn between the two pans; set aside. pre-heat oven to 250F.

in a large, heavy saucepan, combine sugar, corn syrup, salt and butter over medium heat. you’ll want to use a tough wooden spoon or a heatproof spatula with a long handle for this; it’s a warm job. once mixture begins boiling, continue to boil for 5 minutes (or until about 280 degrees on a candy thermometer), stirring constantly and making sure to scrape all sides and the bottom of the pan.

remove from heat and add baking soda and vanilla, stirring quickly, and the soda will cause the caramel to foam up. immediately pour over popcorn in the pans, dividing mixture in half for each pan as best you can. at this point, don’t worry about having the popcorn well-coated… you will get several more chances to stir and coat.

bake for one hour, removing each pan to give a good stir (and rotate between oven racks) every 15 minutes.

line countertop with waxed or parchment paper. pour caramel corn out onto paper from pans and spread into a single layer to cool, breaking up any large clumps. enjoy!

best eaten within a couple of days, and for best result and to avoid stickiness, store air-tight.

ginger pumpkin bread

i recently left my desk job and thought i would breathe a short sigh of relief on the first day i woke up without getting ready for the office. but i’ve actually found that i am just as busy (busier?) than when i was working 45 hours a week. and there is so much i want to get done. my list — because with me there is always a list — of desires and accomplishments for “unemployment” is pretty, pretty long. i even ran our poor old laptop into retirement…. couldn’t post this blog until we picked up a new computer. lots going on!

don’t you worry — there are totally fun things on the list, not just spring-cleaning tasks and tackling a Goodwill drop. things like going to visit my baby brother in the city he recently moved to, and probably taking him some food; going hiking with my mom (did you see her article in Willamette Valley Life Magazine? page 11 — great hiking spots!); running a 5k with a friend, put on by a winery; going out for wings with my former coworkers — oh yes, and the search for the perfect pair of winter boots. i have a pair i love, but with heels, and i want a lower-profile pair for our upcoming trip to New York and all that Walking. (thankfully our trip will coincide with Thanksgiving, and not with Frankenstorm… our thoughts are with all you East-Coasters!)

(and a note on finances… i just returned 6 months worth of bottles and cans [in Oregon, $.05 a piece] so we are set. totally enough for a Jim Beam, which will really complete my unemployment ensemble nicely, yes?)

i recently baked a double batch of this pumpkin bread for my coworkers at what was supposed to be the last staff meeting i would have with my organization, but then the staff meeting got cancelled. thankfully everyone was happy to wish me on my way by eating a slice! thanks, you guys! there are a lot of pumpkin bread variations out there and this has been my favorite for years. it’s light in color, dense and flavorful, packing a punch of ginger and extra pumpkin-y goodness. it doesnt have all of the other usual pumpkin-spice accompaniments such as cinnamon or nutmeg, and while i love those spices in pumpkin baked goods, this has a refreshingly different flavor with that zing of ginger.

i think it’s best straight out of the oven, still warm enough to melt a slab of butter. but toasting a slice the next day works wonderfully, also. once, i had some leftover mascarpone cheese mixed with a little honey and orange zest, and that was an amazing match for these slices. cream cheese, too!

grab a slice of pumpkin bread! it goes really well with Instant Netflix’s currently highlighted selection of ’80s horror films. my favorite.

adapted from Martha Stewart

makes 2 loaves (or 4 mini loaves)

• 12 tablespoons butter, melted (plus extra for pans)
• 2 1/2 cups flour (plus extra for pans)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree (not pumpkin-pie filling
• 3 eggs

prepare two 8 by 4-inch loaf pans (or 4 mini pans): use softened or melted butter to grease insides, then sprinkle with flour, tapping to release excess. set aside, and preheat oven to 375.

whisk flour, baking powder, ginger, and salt together in a large bowl. in microwave-proof measuring cup or bowl, melt the butter (or melt it on your stovetop in a pan) and then whisk in sugars, pumpkin and egg. add wet ingredients to flour mixture and mix just to combine. do not overmix.

fill prepared pans with evenly-divided batter. bake until a toothpick inserted in center of loaves comes out clean, about 50 minutes. after cooling for10 minutes, invert pans and transfer loaves to a wire rack to cool completely.

if you like, you can glaze the tops: combine 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar with 2 to 3 tablespoons water (it should be thick). drizzle over the top of the loaves and let set for about 15 minutes.