Caramel Apples

I've been wanting to make caramel apples for a long time, but was always a little afraid of it.  I remembered seeing caramel apples on Annie's Eats, so I checked out this recipe.  She made it look pretty easy, so I decided to go for it.   You definitely need the candy thermometer, so don't even try it with out it (unless you know what candy 'firm ball' stage looks like offhand!)

Ingredients:
8 tbsp. unsalted butter
2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
Pinch of salt
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
10-12 small Granny Smith apples, stems removed
Popsicle or lollipop sticks

Directions:
Insert a lollipop or popsicle stick into the top of each apple so that it is firmly in place. Melt the butter over medium heat in a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan.  Mix in the brown sugar, corn syrup and salt.  Cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, until it comes to a boil.  Stir in the condensed milk.  Cook and stir until a candy or instant-read thermometer reads 248° F (firm ball stage.)

Here's me waiting for the caramel to reach 248 degrees

 

 caramel right before being done

Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.

apples ready to dip - our toppings were candy corn, peanuts, walnuts, M&Ms and reese's

Dip the apples one at a time into the caramel mixture, turning slowly to coat evenly.  Transfer to a baking sheet lined with wax paper and allow the caramel to set.  Decorate as desired, with melted chocolate, chopped nuts, or candy pieces.

Some words to the wise - if you are going to decorate with nuts or candies, you need to do it before the caramel sets. My husband was helping me with this, so definitely grab a helper so one person can dip and one can add toppings.  Getting the nuts to stick was much easier when you roll the apple in the nuts rather than sprinkling them on.  The caramel is really hot, so try not to touch it while getting the toppings on.

The only negative about these was the caramel was a little too thick and chewy. Next time I will try to thin the caramel out a little with some cream and also try for a thin layer when dipping.  Let me know if you decide to try it!!