Jake found these bars in the June 2011 edition of Midwest Living. They were the big winner for a recipe contest held by the magazine. Trust me, once you taste the final product, you won't even wonder what other recipes were submitted.
8 cups popped kettle corn (careful to get all of the unpopped kernals out before starting)
1 8-oz package chocolate-covered toffee pieces (Heath bars worked out well, too)
1 cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped (aka crushed to bits in a zip lock bag by a rolling pin)
2/3 cup light-color corn syrup
2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
5 Tb butter
3 Tb granulated sugar
1 t vanilla
1 12-oz package semisweet or milk chocolate pieces, melted
1/2 cup caramel ice cream topping (optional-- but, really, why hold off now?)
2-3 t coarse sea salt
Start by lining a 13x9x2 baking pan (your lasagna pan, perhaps?) with foil.
To make the caramel sauce: Bring corn syrup, condensed milk, brown sugar, butter, and granulated sugar to a boil over medium heat. Be sure to stir constantly. Once boiling, reduce heat and boil gently 6-8 minutes until sauce is a light golden brown. Be sure to stir constantly. Remove from heat and add vanilla.
**If you're feeling lazy (like we were) you can use caramel sauce from the store in place of making your own. Our bars didn't completely set after chilling. This could be due to: (a) use of store-bought caramel sauce instead of following the recipe exactly, or (b) not allowing for full chilling time due to strong desire to taste bars before 45 minutes passed.**
Pour caramel sauce over kettle-corn mixture and stir until thoroughly mixed. Transfer to lined pan.
After smoothing and leveling mixture with the back of a wooden spoon (apparently you can also use wax paper, that may work better), spread the melted chocolate pieces over the top.
Drizzle with caramel sauce and sprinkle with salt.
Chill 45-60 minutes. Chocolate topping should be set. Enjoy!
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