Old Fashioned Popcorn Balls

1 cup pecans

1 cup sliced almonds

1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

16 cups popped corn (about 3/4 cup kernels)

1 1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 1/4 cup dark corn syrup[

6 tbsp butter or margarine

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place pecans and almonds in 17" x 11"

roasting pan; put coconut in 15 1/2 " x 10 1/2 jelly roll pan. Place pans

on 2 oven racks and bake 10-15 minutes or until toasted, rotating pans

between upper and lower racks halfway through baking and stirring occasionally.

Stir nuts into coconut in jelly roll pan; cool completely.

Line large cookie sheet and same roasting pan with non stick cooking spray.

Place popcorn in roasting pan; discard any unpopped kernels. Sprinkle nut mixture

over popcorn. In heavy saucepan, heat brown sugar, corn syrup, butter and salt to

boiling over medium high heat, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium; boil

5 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat; stir in vanilla and baking soda (mixture will

foam up.) Pour hot caramel syrup over popcorn mixture. With 2 forks, toss popcorn

mixture while hot until evenly coated with caramel.

Working quickly, scoop up hot popcorn mixture by level cups. Place popcorn mounds on

prepared cookie sheet. When popcorn mixture is cool enough to handle, coat hands

with nonstick spray; shape mounds into balls, pressing lightly so they hold together.

Cool completely. Wrap each ball in plastic wrap. Store in tightly covered container at

room temperature up to one week.