Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Make the Popcorn and Prepare the Apples
Pop the popcorn and place into a large bowl.
Chop the apples into uniform squares and toss them with the popcorn.
Make the Caramel Sauce
Measure out the cream.
Add the salt and the vanilla to the cream and place it to the side.
Then, measure out a cup of sugar and place it in a heavy small saucepan.
Turn the heat on to medium heat. (I have an electric stove and set the temperature to between 6 and 7.)
Start your timer for 6 minutes! (It takes exactly 6 minutes from start to finish on my stove.)
During the cooking process, you will find that the sugar will melt down and become a sugar syrup.
Once the 6 minutes is up (you will notice it starting to smoke a little, this means it is at the right temperature), the sugar should look like the color of a copper penny. If it does not, then keep whisking for a few more seconds until it does. It can go from a copper color to burnt fast, so be careful! If you are using a thermometer then the temperature for perfect caramel is 350 degrees.
Once it is the desired color, carefully and slowly pour in the the heavy cream mixture, whisking continuously.
At this point, you will find that the sugar syrup has clumped up. Place the pot back on the stove and turn the stove on to its lowest setting. Keep working it with the whisk or wooden spoon and it will eventually start to melt down into the heavy whipping cream.
Add the vanilla extract and the sea salt to the caramel mixture.
Whisk until everything is completely combined.
Incorporate the Caramel Mixture with the Popcorn Mixture
Place a pot holder under the bowl of popcorn.
Pour the hot caramel over the popcorn mixture and use a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon to gently fold it together. The caramel will still be hot, so be careful.
Slowly combine the caramel with the popcorn mixture and gently toss. Make sure that the apples and popcorn are completely coated with the caramel sauce before transferring it to the baking sheet.
Bake the Homemade Caramel Popcorn
Transfer the mixture to a prepared baking sheet pan and spread it in to an even layer. Place into the preheated oven.
Allow the caramel corn to bake for 10 minutes.
Carefully remove the pan from the oven and (very carefully) stir the popcorn, then spread out into an even layer.
Place the popcorn back into the oven for an additional 10-15 minutes or until the caramel is sticking to the popcorn and not the parchment paper.
Once the 10-15 minutes is up, carefully remove the sheet of popcorn.
Give the popcorn one last stir. Then allow it to cool completely for at least 1 hour before enjoying. The temptation will be hard but the caramel will burn you!
Prepare the Chocolate
Place the chocolate chips in a double boiler filled with water. Turn the temperature to medium and melt the chocolate.
Using a fork, dip the teeth into the melted chocolate and drizzle it over the cooled popcorn.
Allow the chocolate to cool completely.
Place the room temperature popcorn into a large bowl and serve!
