Circus Caramel Corn With Smoked Almonds And Sea Salt Food

PARKER HOUSE ROLLS WITH SEA SALT

Steps:

• Heat 1/2 cup milk until lukewarm (105 degrees F to 110 degrees F). Pour into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, sprinkle in the sugar and yeast and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the softened butter, about half each of the flour and remaining milk, and the fine salt; mix on medium speed until incorporated, about 1 minute. Add the egg and mix until incorporated, then add the remaining flour and milk; knead on medium-high speed until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the bowl, about 5 minutes (it will still be sticky).
• Lightly brush a large bowl with vegetable oil and add the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
• Lightly brush two 12-cup muffin pans with some of the melted butter. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Punch down the dough. Tear off about 1 tablespoon of dough and roll into a ball, then put on the prepared baking sheet; repeat with the remaining dough. Dip the dough balls in the remaining melted butter, letting the excess drip off, and arrange 3 balls in each muffin cup to make a clover shape. Cover the pans loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in the refrigerator, at least 8 hours or up to 1 day. Cover and refrigerate the remaining melted butter.
• Position racks in the lower and upper thirds of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F. Remove the muffin pans from the refrigerator, uncover and let stand at room temperature, 1 hour. Sprinkle with sea salt and bake, rotating the pans halfway through, until the rolls are golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Melt the reserved butter, then brush on the hot rolls while still in the pan. Serve or let cool and freeze.

CARAMEL CORN WITH SMOKED ALMONDS AND FLEUR DE SEL

Steps:

• Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil and grease generously with nonstick vegetable-oil spray. Generously spray a large bowl and all but the handle part of a large spoon or rubber spatula.
• In a large deep pot with a lid, combine the popcorn kernels, oil, and salt and stir to coat the kernels in oil. Place the pot over moderately high heat, cover with a lid, and cook, shaking the pot frequently to redistribute the kernels, until all the kernels have popped, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer the popped popcorn to the large prepared bowl, discarding any unpopped kernels. DO AHEAD: The popcorn can be popped in advance and stored, in an airtight container at room temperature, up to 3 days.
• In a large deep pot over moderately high heat, combine the corn syrup, sugar, and 1/4 cup water and stir to combine. Cook, undisturbed, until the mixture develops a light amber color, about 10 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat, add the baking soda and butter, and stir continuously to melt the butter and combine the ingredients, about 20 seconds. (The mixture will be very hot and will foam up at this point-continuous stirring will help the foaming subside.) Working quickly, pour the caramel over the popcorn and add the almonds, then use the prepared spoon or rubber spatula to stir everything together, trying to evenly coat the popcorn and nuts in caramel. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet, spreading out the caramel corn as much as possible. Sprinkle with fleur de sel and let cool and harden for about 20 minutes. Break the caramel corn into smaller, bite-size pieces and serve. DO AHEAD: Caramel corn can be prepared in advance and stored, in an airtight container at room temperature, up to 3 days.

CARAMEL CORN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300°. Combine the honey, butter, molasses, vanilla and salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; boil, stirring, until the butter melts, about 2 minutes.
• Pour the caramel over the popcorn in a large bowl; toss well. Spread the popcorn evenly on a rimmed baking sheet.
• Bake, checking often, until the popcorn is crisp, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer the pan to a rack to cool completely.

SMOKED ALMOND CARAMELS

Steps:

• Spray a 12-count muffin pan, liberally, with vegetable oil cooking spray. Put the almonds in the bottom of each muffin cup and set aside.
• For the caramel: In a 3-quart, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the cream, butter, sugar, and water. Stir over medium heat until the mixture is smooth. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook, without stirring, until a candy thermometer registers 240 degrees F, about 5 to 7 minutes. Let the mixture cool for 30 seconds. Using a long-handled, metal spoon, carefully spoon the caramel over the nuts. Allow the caramel to harden, at room temperature, for 1 hour.
• Put the chocolate chips in a medium stainless steel or glass bowl. Set the bowl over a saucepan of barely simmering water and stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted, about 4 minutes. Spoon the chocolate over the caramel and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Using a thin-bladed spatula, remove the turtles from the pan (caramel will be hard). Let the turtles stand at room temperature for at least 1 hour (to allow the caramel to soften) before serving.
• Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

ALMOND CARAMEL CORN

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200°. Place popcorn and almonds in very large roasting pan or divide popcorn mixture between 2 ungreased rectangular pans, 13x9x2 inches.
• Heat brown sugar, butter, corn syrup and salt in 2-quart saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until bubbly around edges. Continue cooking 5 minutes without stirring; remove from heat. Stir in baking soda until foamy.
• Pour sugar mixture over popcorn; toss until evenly coated. Bake 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Spread on aluminum foil or cooking parchment paper. Cool completely, about 30 minutes. Store tightly covered.