With Halloween parties just around the corner, I’m excited to share these Halloween Candy Apples.
I think we can all agree that you are either Team Candy Apples or Team You’re Gonna Break Your Teeth, Please Say No To Those Candy Apples.
While I’m on the latter team, I needed to see what all the fuss was about from the Team Candy Apples folks (my husband) who have such fond memories of snacking on a juicy on the inside, candy-coated on the outside treat while deciding which ride peaked their interest at the Fall fair.
I’m not sure I’ve ever had a candy apple before but was willing to give it a whirl when my husband looked at me and said “You’ve NEVER had a candy apple before?!”
I learned a couple of things during this experience.
Making Candy Apples (or candy in general) takes a bit of patience and then speedy yet neat handiwork.
You guys know I like to make things pretty, it’s why they named my food column Aimee’s Pretty Palate and I’ll be honest and say that these apples gave me a run for my money. Coating apples in a candy shell can get “not so pretty” in a hot hurry if you’re not careful.
Halloween Candy Apples
Ingredients
- 6-8 medium green apples
- 8 popsicle sticks
- 2 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup light corn syrup
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon green food coloring
- 1 teaspoon solid shortening * for bubble reducing, optional
Instructions
Begin by washing and thoroughly drying the apples. Remove the stems and insert popsicle sticks firmly into each apple. Prepare a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
Combine the 2 1/2 cups of sugar, 1/2 cup corn syrup, 1 cup water and 1 tsp food coloring into a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Place the candy thermometer into the pot. Bring mixture to a boil and cook until the candy thermometer reaches 300 degrees F.
Do not stir while the mixture is coming to a boil.
Remove the mixture from the heat and add the 1 teaspoon of
shortening. Gently stir to combine.
Carefully tilt your pot with one hand, and dip the apple
into the candy mixture with the other. Gently rotate the apple until completely covered. Allow the excess to drop back into the pan and place the coated apples onto the prepared baking sheet. Apples will be fully hardened in about 10
minutes.
It took me 3 tries to get my apples photo-worthy and to keep you from going through similar issues, I put together some helpful tips.
- Carefully select your apples. You want your apples to be on the smaller side and you want the flattest bottomed apples you can find.
- Be sure to completely clean your apples before you begin. Any residue remaining on the apples will affect the candy coating.
- Skip the advice telling you that you can use lollipop sticks as an option. I tried it twice and both times I lost an apple because the stick couldn’t handle the weight. Use a popsicle stick and be sure to really get it inserted well. I lost zero of my popsicle apples on round 3.
- Add 1 teaspoon of solid shortening to the mixture and allow it to rest just a bit before dipping the apples. It’s a double-edged sword because you do need to move quickly once you start dipping but it seemed as though I had less bubbles on my last few apples.
- Don’t stress the bubbles. Add ribbon to distract the ones you inevitably do get.
I got my apples at Sprouts, where thankfully their affordable prices meant I didn’t have to stress every time I messed up a batch of apples! I do wonder what they were thinking I was working on as I checked out for the 3rd time with green apples!
And if you’re wondering why green, it’s because Sprouts is creating a rainbow theme for Halloween on their Instagram feed. I was assigned green!
Do you eat candy apples? I saw on Trisha Yearwood’s Halloween episode of her show over the weekend that they’re a staple for them. She slices them and dips them in a cinnamon candy coating.
Todayโs post was sponsored by Sprouts Farmers Market but Iโd still be excited to feature their products even if it wasnโt! You can visit their website here.
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