I am a popcorn monster. During the cold winter months in northern Minnesota when it gets dark early, there’s nothing like curling up in front of the fire with a bowl of popcorn. I don’t eat the popcorn from a bag that is prepared in the microwave — too much sodium. The kind I eat is prepared the old-fashioned way in a pot on the stove, then drizzled with just the right amount of melted butter and sprinkled with salt. Napkins are a must.
Years ago, I had a generous neighbor who would make batches of Honey Peanut Butter Popcorn, always sharing a big bowl of it with us. It would usually be during the summer time. We’d sit out on my front porch munching and visiting, and suddenly, the bowl would be empty. The snack that my neighbor had intended for my family was gone.
I hadn’t thought of that sweet, chewy treat in such a long time. But the other night, as I was sitting on the couch with my big bowl of buttered popcorn, watching The Biggest Loser, that popcorn treat popped right into my mind.
Lucky for me, my neighbor was willing to share the recipe. Yesterday, I made a couple of batches of it for my segment on Lakeland Public Television. When the cameraman arrived, I noticed that he very comfortably began picking chunks of the cooling Honey Peanut Butter Popcorn from the baking sheets. One mouthful led to another. He couldn’t stop. Was he another popcorn monster?
I sent a bag of the addictive snack back to work with him. (I have a feeling he didn’t share it.) As he was leaving my house he said he was going to make a batch of Honey Peanut Butter Popcorn to serve to friends as they watch the big game on Sunday.
There’s a bowl of it still sitting in my kitchen. Peanut butter, honey — sounds like breakfast to me!
Honey Peanut Butter Popcorn
- 1/2 cup popcorn kernels
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup light corn syrup
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup roasted, salted peanuts, optional
Heat oven to a very low temperature. The lowest my oven goes is 170 degrees.
Line two baking sheets with waxed paper and set aside.
In a large pot on the stove, pop popcorn (for this recipe I use the yellow variety which pops larger than the white kernels), using just enough canola or vegetable oil to cover the bottom of the pot. Transfer popped corn to a large oven-proof bowl. Place in warm oven.
In a medium saucepot, mix sugar, honey and corn syrup. Over medium heat, bring mixture to a boil. Once it starts to boil, set timer for 3 minutes and continue to stir as mixture bubbles. After 3 minutes, remove pot from heat. Add peanut butter and stir until melted and the mixture is smooth. Stir in vanilla.
Remove warm bowl of popcorn from oven. Pour peanut butter syrup over the popped corn and mix well until all the popcorn is coated. Add peanuts at this time, if desired.
Spread the Honey Peanut Butter Popcorn on two waxed paper-lined baking sheets to cool. Once cool, store the popcorn in a tightly covered bowl or tin.
Sue Doeden is a popular cooking instructor, food writer and integrative nutrition health coach. She is the host of Good Food, Good Life 365 on Lakeland Public Television. Her own hives full of hardworking bees and her love of honey led to the creation of her recently published cookbook, Homemade with Honey.