Spooky Honey Caramel Apples for Halloween

I normally test the recipes before posting, 
but thought I'd put up this picture anyway, 
as it's the season to celebrate with caramel apples. 
I saw the healthier caramel recipe here. I love the sticks!

I usually use Mom's Caramel Corn recipe 
(see below, page 13 in her cookbook, or online on the tab above) 
for the caramel for our apples, 
though this also sounds like a nice change.

Honey Caramel Apples
1 c. honey
3/4 c. heavy cream
2 T. butter
1/4 t. unrefined sea salt
natural red food dye (optional)
1/2 c. crushed pecans (preferably soaked and dried)
6 sticks or wooden dowels

Whisk honey, cream, butter and salt in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat until it begins to bubble, then immediately reduce the heat to medium. Stir in food coloring, adjusting the volume to match the intensity of color you like.

Continue to whisk the caramel frequently to prevent scorching and to prevent it from bubbling up and out of of your saucepan. Continue to cook until the caramel reaches a temperature of 260 F (about 25 minutes). The caramel should be a rich brown or red-brown if you also used food coloring; the bubbles should be small and should uniformly cover the surface of the pan and the caramel should be thickened.

Prepare an ice bath. Then pour the hot caramel into a mixing bowl and place the bowl in the ice bath, taking care not to splash water into the hot caramel. Stir the caramel until it is uniformly cooled and it begins to thicken just a bit.

Plunge a wooden stick or dowel into the core of your apples and roll them, one by one, in the caramel until uniformly coated. Roll them in chopped pecans and place them on a piece of parchment paper to cool completely before serving.


YIELD: 6 Caramel Apples (6 Servings)

PREP: 5 mins
COOK: 30 mins
READY IN: 35 mins

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Caramel Corn I

2 sticks margarine, or 1 margarine and 1 butter
1/2 c. white Karo syrup
2 c. brown sugar
1/2 t. salt
1 t. soda
7-1/2 qt. popcorn

Cook butter, brown sugar, syrup and salt for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in soda. Pour over popped corn, mix and put in flat pans. Bake at 200° for one hour. Stir every 15 minutes. Can be stored in sealed containers.