Kettle Corn is the Devil.

Kettle corn brings back memories of being in downtown New Orleans as a little girl. There used to be this kettle corn stand in the Farmers Market and I always had to buy a large bag. Lets not forget the alligator sausage and snowballs either. I always thought that you could not make kettle corn without the kettle but BEHOLD I was wrong.

So, I am sitting here on my third, THIRD I say, batch of homemade kettle corn without the kettle. My friend was gracious enough to bring me two bags of popcorn kernels the last time he stopped by. I'm a regular salt and butter on popcorn girl but I wanted to switch it up a bit. I googled 'how to make kettle corn at home' and here is the recipe I used from Erin Huffstetler of About.com. Her recipe calls for a kettle but I used my handy Wolfgang Puck sauce pan and it worked out fine:

Ingredients:

• 1 large pot with lid (The lid is vital to prevent burns! I have burns everywhere from my first batch! Ouch!!)
• 1/2 cups of popping corn kernels
• 1/4 cup sugar ( I used less sugar.)
  
• 1/4 cup veggie oil (I used light canola oil.)
• salt to taste

Directions:

• Heat vegetable oil in a large kettle over medium heat.
• Then, toss in three kernels, and place the lid on the kettle.
• Wait for the kernels to pop.
• Once popped, quickly stir in the sugar, and add the remaining kernels.
• Replace the lid, and listen for the kernels to start popping.
• Then, remove the kettle from the stove, and shake to keep the kernels from burning. (This step is oh so vital! I burned my first batch but the kernels on top were edible. Burn popcorn smells horrible BTW).
• Return the kettle to the stove for a few seconds; then, lift and shake again.
• Repeat until all kernels have popped.
• Then, salt to taste, and enjoy!

See, it's not difficult to make. Just a warning in advance. This stuff can get addictive... I've been eating it all day now!

It's so satisfying, I'm tempted to make another batch now of sugary saltiness! Enjoy!