Caramel Popcorn with Peanuts

Instructions

1. Pre-heat a large, heavy bottom pot over medium heat with 1 tablespoon of oil for 2 minutes. Add the popcorn and cook, shaking the pot every few minutes, until all the corn has popped.
2. Pre-heat oven to 250 degrees. Meanwhile, make the caramel sauce by adding the sugar and water to a small pot and cooking over medium heat until most of the sugar has dissolved, about 5 minutes. Give the mixture a little stir if the sugar at the bottom has not dissolved. Raise the heat to medium-high and cook until the color of the liquid becomes dark amber, or like dark maple syrup. Mixture will burn really quickly around that temperature, so take it off the heat as soon as it gets to that color. Carefully whisk in the cream. The mixture will bubble and possible stiffen up, but keep whisking and it will smooth out. Add the butter and put back over low heat, whisk until all the butter dissolves and add 1 teaspoon of salt. Take off heat and set aside. You can store this sauce in the fridge for 2 weeks.
3. Toss the popcorn in a large bowl with the peanuts and pour over the caramel sauce. Use wooden spoons, not your hands, to coat everything evenly. Cover a sheet pan with a layer of parchment paper and make one even layer with the popcorn. Bake for 60 minutes, but stir the mixture every 15 minutes on the sheet pan to make sure it bakes evenly. After 1 hour, take out of the oven, the popcorn will get crunchy and harden at room temperature. Use your hands to break it up. Serve and enjoy!