Homemade Caramel Apple Recipe

Photo: Courtesy of Workman Publishing Company

Caramel Apples
Makes 15

This is a fun treat to make with slightly older kids—say, age ten and above. Who doesn’t love dipping something in goo? Here’s another instance where the fresh, homemade version kicks the tar out of the store-bought kind and then steals its lunch money. If you haven’t had a fresh caramel apple, you haven’t had a caramel apple at all. Another bonus: no leftovers! Run out of caramel? You have apples for the week. Run out of apples? You have some extra caramel to store in the fridge and drizzle over a sundae. Everybody wins.

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT
Candy thermometer
Heatproof spatula
15 sturdy wooden skewers, 6 to 8 inches long and roughly ¼ inch in diameter (available at most grocery stores), pointy ends snipped off; or 15 popsicle sticks
Large (13” x 18”) rimmed baking sheet, lined with parchment

INGREDIENTS
1¾ cups (350 g) granulated sugar
1½ cups (12 ounces/375 g) evaporated milk
? cup (160 g) heavy (whipping) cream
1 vanilla bean, split open and seeds scraped out, pod reserved or 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon (300 g) light corn syrup
3 tablespoons (45 g) unsalted butter
1 tablespoon (20 g) coarse sea salt
15 medium-size (3-inch) tart apples, such as Granny Smith or Gala, washed well and dried thoroughly, any stems removed

Combine the sugar, evaporated milk, heavy cream, and vanilla bean and seeds (if using) in a large (6- to 8-quart) saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, uncovered and without stirring. Insert the candy thermometer.

Add the light corn syrup, and stir gently with the heatproof spatula until everything is mixed well. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often and scraping the bottom of the pot, until it reaches 230°F/110°C (thread stage), about 30 minutes.

Add the butter and vanilla paste or extract (if using), and fish out the vanilla bean with a slotted spoon. Stirring continuously, cook the caramel until it reaches 241°F/116°C (thread-to-soft ball stage), 15 to 20 minutes; it will be a deep tawny color and have slow, rolling bubbles in the middle. Remove the pan from the heat.

Stir in the salt, mixing well so that it’s distributed evenly. Allow the caramel to sit and thicken up a bit, until it’s the consistency of pancake batter, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, insert a skewer into the stem end of each apple, and push it down as far as you can without breaking through the bottom of the apple; you want at least 3 inches of skewer poking out of the top.

Give the caramel a few stirs with the spatula to even out the temperature. Carefully dip an apple in the caramel, holding it horizontally and slowly twirling it as you lift it out (to catch any drips). Place it on the lined baking sheet. When you’re handling the apples, remember to keep the skewer horizontal at all times! It can be easy to forget how hot this caramel is and hold it up to show off to somebody— and then you have hot caramel all over your hands. Bad News Bears.

Repeat with the remaining apples. Allow the caramel coating to set until it is cool and firm but yielding to the touch, about 10 minutes.

Caramel apples are best eaten the day they’re made, but you can store them, layered with parchment or wax paper, in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

More apple stories:
Mini Muffin Tin Apple Pies
Make an Apple Dutch Baby
Don’t Make These Apple Picking Mistakes

Reprinted from The Liddabit Sweets Candy Cookbook by Liz Gutman and Jen King (Workman Publishing Company.