Any caramel corn variety will work for this recipe. You can take it easy and use Cracker Jacks, but if you want to make your own, I recommend this recipe for caramel popcorn.
Yield: 36 1" truffles
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp water
- ½ tsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp salt
- 2/3 cup heavy cream
- 9 oz semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 lb chocolate candy coating for dipping
- 3 cups prepared caramel popcorn
Preparation:
1. Place the chopped chocolate in a large heat-safe bowl. Combine the sugar, water, and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat and stir until sugar is dissolved.
2. Continue to heat and bring the mixture to a boil, brushing down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush to prevent crystallization. Allow the mixture to cook until it turns a dark brown color. Don’t pull it off too early, or you won’t have a rich caramel flavor. Leave it until it is dark brown and you just start to smell the sugar caramelizing. When it reaches this point, remove it from the heat..
3. Meanwhile, scald the cream and salt in a small saucepan until small bubbles form around the edges of the pan, or microwave it until hot and bubbles appear around the edges.
4. Return the caramel to the heat and pour the hot cream into the caramel (it is natural for this mixture to sputter as it is mixed). Whisk constantly as you stream in the cream, and continue to heat and stir until the caramel and cream are completely combined and any clumps of caramel have dissolved.
5. Pour the caramel-cream on top of the chocolate, and whisk until the chocolate melts and the mixture is well-combined. Cover the chocolate with cling wrap and cool to room temperature. Once it is cool, refrigerate until firm enough to scoop or pipe, about 2 hours.
6. When the truffle mixture is almost ready, take the caramel corn and place it in a food processor. Process it until it is fine crumbs. If you don’t have a food processor, chop it as finely as you can with a large sharp knife. Pour the caramel corn crumbs into a bowl.
7. Melt the chocolate candy coating in the microwave in 30-second intervals until it is smooth and fluid. When your ganache is hard enough, roll it into small 1-inch balls, dusting your hands with cocoa powder if they start to get sticky.
8. Use dipping tools or a fork to dip a truffle in the candy coating. Bring it out of the coating and tap the fork against the lip of the bowl several times to remove the excess coating.
9. Tip the dipped truffle into the bowl of caramel corn crumbs and carefully cover the whole truffle with crumbs. Leave it to set for a moment or two while you dip another truffle and cover that one as well. Gently remove the truffle from the crumbs and place it on a foil-lined baking sheet, reshaping it if necessary so that it’s round. If you don’t want to bother with the process of covering the whole truffle with crumbs, you can place the dipped truffle on a baking sheet and sprinkle caramel corn crumbs on top.
10. After all of the truffles have been dipped and coated with crumbs, refrigerate the tray to set the chocolate for about 15 minutes. Caramel Corn Truffles can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. After a few days, the caramel corn coating starts to get stale and sticky. Allow these to come to room temperature before serving for the best taste and texture.
