Caramel Apples

Caramel apples are one of my son's absolute favorite things that I make. I have only made them one time before and that was on a whim after a colleague asked me if I would make theme for his wife. Two years later, I decided it was time to make them again but this time I'd do it to raise money for two charities: Heifer.Org and Child's Play.


So, around the middle of January, I sent email to friends and coworkers announcing my plan to make caramel apples in time for Valentines Day and provided a link for them to place their order (I used Survey Monkey). I offered five flavors, either with or without little red hearts (click on each picture for a close-up view):


Plain Jane was just that: plain! These were by far the most popular flavor.


M&M was also just as it sounds. A Granny Smith apple dipped in caramel and decorated with mini M&Ms, regular sized M&Ms, or if the customer asked for their apple to be Valentines Day-ized, they received their apple donned in pink, red, and white M&Ms.


Chocolate Lovers is a Granny Smith apple dipped in caramel that's dipped in dark Belgium chocolate and Lindt milk chocolate.


Cinnamon Apple Pie Just like grandma used to make but better! It too is a Granny Smith apple dipped in caramel that I then roll in homemade pie crust crumbs and coated with Scharffenberger white chocolate and then dusted with cinnamon sugar.


Sweet n' Salty was a flavor I made last time whose popularity was off the charts. For this special apple, I dip it in caramel and then roll it in crushed pretzels. It's then dipped in Belgium dark chocolate and then peppered with both red and white Hawaiian sea salt. Yummers!

While my caramel recipe is top secret, I will share a few tricks to making great caramel apples:

- Only use Granny Smith apples. In my opinion, there is no other apple that tastes as good with the caramel. If you pick a sweeter apple, the sweetness of both the apple and the caramel is almost too much sweet. The tart and sweet combination works really well.

- Take the time to soak your apples in a good quality vegetable soap to try to remove as much of the wax on the apples. I fill up the sink with luke warm water, put a few big squirts in the water, and let the apples sit for about 5 minutes. Then I rinse them using the same temperature water (don't use cold of the wax won't come off) and use a dish towel or polish and dry every apple. I then lay the apples out on a beach towel, stem side down (you should have removed these before washing. Using needle nose pliers really helps to get the broken stems out). Failure to do this can cause the caramel not to stick to the apples. I do not recommend removing the wax by dropping the apples in boiling water, even if just for a second. This will remove all the wax but the skin will turn brown almost immediately (I know this because I tried that too).

- Make caramel apples when the weather is cold. High heat and humidity will cause a good quality caramel to stay soft and not stay stuck to the apple. I set up a table in my garage to store the apples as I was making them as I ran out of refrigerator space very quickly.

- Don't make your caramel ahead of time and plan on dipping it later. Make it in small batches and dip your apples right away. Good caramel made with real butter does not melt the way a Kraft caramel* does. It will melt down but it will be lumpy and when it dries, it will have a matte surface and its texture will be grainy.

- If you're making a big order of apples like I did, color code your sticks in some way ahead of time. I just use markers to color the very ends. When you're ready to dip, you're working against the clock so you won't have time to really think about how much of what flavor you need when it's time to dip your apples.

- SilPat mats are the BEST surface for holding your apples after you've dipped them. Waxed paper is my second favorite but it still sticks. Buttered foil will work in a pinch but when your caramel starts to harden, it will stick to the foil and peeling tiny bits of foil off a big bunch of apples is no fun.

- If you can find the thicker wooden sticks, use them instead of the paper ones. While the paper ones are fine, I found that the caramel and chocolate that would inevitably get on my fingers would stick and stain them. The wooden sticks clean up better and I think look better overall.

- I like to use cupcake liners to hold finished apples. However, finding the right ones can be difficult. Most cupcake liners are just plain paper and these will stick to the caramel and are pretty much impossible to remove. I found one brand that was at Whole Foods (I don't have the box handy but I'll try look for them the next time I'm there and report back).

- Avoid Wilton bags at all costs and try and find strong florist bags instead. Wilton's bags are thin and sticks to the caramel making the bag look dirty and gives an unprofessional appearance. You can also use big squares of cellophane that are made specifically for caramel apples but I've never used them but I imagine they would be better than any wimpy Wilton bag.

- Make a few extra apples in each flavor because people will want more. The last thing you'll want to do is make more apples after you just cleaned up your kitchen. :)

* In my opinion, Kraft Caramels will work but the apples you get are nothing all that special. Good caramel, the kind you cook in a big pot on the stove, stirring constantly for about an hour, that's made with good quality ingredients and LOTS of love, that makes you smile instantly when you eat it, just doesn't compare and isn't even in the same league. Kraft Caramels would never be found in my kitchen, but that's just me.

My goal was to make 100 apples and when all was said and done, I made 130 apples plus three half-pound orders just for my caramel. I want to personally thank everyone for their orders and for making my little fund raiser such success! I plan to do it again at the end of the year in time for the holidays.