Happy Halloween!

In honor of Halloween and all of the cavities that are sure to result in children around the US, I decided to post a recipe for a tasty treat that your dentist would probably hate! A week or two ago, I was browsing through a family cookbook that my sister Jessica made about eight years ago. In it I found my mother's recipe for Carmel Corn. Oh, do I have fond memories of that! It was always such a special treat. I remember that we were usually too impatient for it to be cooked and had to sample a few bites "raw" -- which of course resulted in the occasional mouth burn and always in glue-like carmel sticking to your teeth. Today, I decided to continue the tradition and made a batch with Ella -- gluey carmel stuck to my teeth and all. Enjoy!

Mom's Carmel Corn

Ingredients:
3 quarts popped corn
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup light Karo syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup margarine or butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Directions:
Preheat oven to 225 degrees. Place popcorn in a very large roasting pan. In medium saucepan, boil sugar, Karo syrup, salt, margarine and vanilla. Boil five minutes -- stir frequently. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda. Pour hot mixture over popcorn and stir to coat. Bake 20 minutes; stir popcorn. Bake another 15 minutes. Cool and serve. Store in airtight containers.

PS - I didn't feel like digging the roasting pan out of the garage, so I just put the popcorn in a large bowl to toss it with the carmel and then cooked it on baking sheets. You just have to stir the popcorn a little more gently so it doesn't fly out of the bowl or off of the baking sheet.