Gingerbread Caramel Corn

Name: Gingerbread Caramel Corn
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 75 min
Total time: 80 min
Ingredients: 20 cups popcorn; 1 cup butter (2 sticks); 1/4 cup corn syrup (light or dark); 1/4 cup molasses; 2 cups brown sugar; 1 teaspoon salt; 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 1 teaspoon ground ginger; 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon; 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg; 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves; 1 teaspoon baking soda

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Sweet and crunchy, this easy homemade Caramel Corn with warm gingerbread spices is perfect for the Christmas season!

WARNING! HIGHLY ADDICTIVE!

Caramel corn is a delightful treat to enjoy any time of year. But, when you add a few holiday spices into the mix, you get a heavenly Christmas treat!

homemade gingerbread caramel corn in a white bowl

This recipe is a fun way to enjoy the classic flavors of a gingerbread cookie combined with a crunchy snack.

It’s perfect for holiday parties or to package up and give as a gift (if you can keep your hands out of it–ha!).

Ingredients

Gingerbread caramel corn uses a combination of gingerbread cookie and caramel corn ingredients, resulting in a spice-filled snack that’s perfect for the holidays.

Key Ingredients

Popcorn– Plain popcorn is best for this recipe. You can use an air popper to make it, or cook it on the stovetop. I use and highly recommend a Whirly Pop. Best. Popcorn. Ever.
Butter– The fat from the butter will help meld your sweet ingredients together, giving your caramel corn a smooth, silky texture.
Molasses– This sweet syrup is a staple in any gingerbread recipe, so you can’t forget it when you’re making gingerbread caramel corn!
Corn syrup– This prevents the sugars from crystallizing, so it is an important ingredient.
Brown sugar– The rich flavor of brown sugar is a must when making sweet popcorn – especially when you add the gingerbread spices to the sauce.
Salt– Adding a small amount of salt to your caramel sauce enhances the flavor and adds a nice contrast to the sweetness of the caramel.
Vanilla– Mixing in vanilla extract will add flavor to your caramel corn to complement the sweetness of the corn syrup and brown sugar.
Baking soda– The secret ingredient to smooth caramel corn is baking soda, which reacts with the acid in the brown sugar and corn syrup to give your caramel a softer texture to make it easier to eat.
Gingerbread spices– To give your caramel corn a gingerbread flavor, you need a handful of gingerbread spices, including ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.

How to Make Gingerbread Caramel Corn

There are two main parts to making caramel corn.

Make the caramel sauce.
Bake the caramel corn, this is what makes it crunchy.

STEP ONE: MAKE THE SAUCE

Pro-tip– Before you begin, have your popcorn popped and in the roasting pan. Pre-measure all your ingredients because this moves fast!

Place the butter, corn syrup, molasses, brown sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan.

butter, brown sugar, molasses and corn syrup in a saucepan

2. Cook the ingredients over medium-high heat, stirring constantly to prevent the mixture from burning on the bottom of the pan.

3. When the butter is melted, stop stirring and allow the mixture to come to a boil. Give the sauce a chance to boil for around five minutes without stirring or disturbing the mixture.

4. When your sauce has thickened, remove it from the heat and immediately stir in the vanilla, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.

gingerbread spices being added to caramel sauce

5. Pour the baking soda into the caramel sauce and stir until the sauce begins to bubble and foam.

baking soda being added to gingerbread caramel sauce

gingerbread caramel sauce foaming after adding baking soda

STEP TWO: BAKE THE CARAMEL CORN

Pour the caramel sauce over the top of the popcorn. I recommend using a roasting pan for this because there is ample room to stir and mix it.

caramel sauce being poured over popcorn in a roasting pan

2. Stir the caramel and popcorn together until all the popcorn is well coated.

popcorn coated in caramel sauce in a roasting pan prior to cooking

3. Spread the popcorn in an even layer over the pan and place it in the oven at 250° to bake for one hour.

4. Every 15 minutes, give the popcorn a good stir.

5. When the baking time is up, transfer the homemade caramel corn to two rimmed baking sheets and allow it to cool completely before serving.

gingerbread caramel corn cooling on a rimmed baking sheet

Once you make homemade caramel corn, you’ll never want store bought again! This can be a really fun family tradition. I know my kids LOVE to help in the kitchen.

Storing

Once it’s completely cooled, store the caramel corn in an airtight container or bag. It will stay fresh at room temperature for up to two weeks.

If you’re making it for yourself, it probably won’t last that long. But, if you’re making it to gift, you can certainly make it a bit ahead of time.

You can also freeze caramel corn! Who knew? Make sure it’s in an airtight container, and you can freeze it for up to a year.

Notes & Tips

Use a roasting pan to mix the caramel corn– it’s large and deep, which makes it much easier to mix without it spilling over.
Pre-measure your ingredients- The recipe moves quickly, and you don’t want the sauce to set up before you can mix it well.
Use freshly grated nutmeg– This is my secret to taking the flavor up a notch and standing out! Freshly grated nutmeg is soooo much better than prepackaged. And it literally lasts for years. (um, the nutmeg, not the caramel corn). Use a Microplane or the small side of a box grater to grate it. The same one you’d use for citrus zesting or chocolate.

That being said, NO PRESSURE! It’ll still be great (and completely addicting) even if you use already ground nutmeg.

FAQ’S

Do I have to bake the caramel corn?

Baking the caramel corn is what makes it crunchy. It crisps it up so it’s not sticky and stays fresh longer. Note, it will become a bit crunchier after it has completely cooled.

How do I revive old popcorn?

If your caramel corn somehow got too much moisture in it, it may be chewy. Spread it out on a pan and bake it again on a low temperature for 15 minutes. Then let it cool.

Why do you put baking soda in caramel corn?

Baking soda causes the caramel sauce to foam up which aerates it and gives it a nice crisp texture, and not too hard.

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