October’s finally in full swing and that can only mean one thing- Halloween is almost here! As the official holiday for spooky sweet treats, now’s the perfect time to whip up some homemade Halloween Caramel Apples featuring our very special honey caramel recipe. The best part? This recipe is simple to follow, easy to make, and most importantly, delicious. Even if you’ve never made caramel sauce before, we’ll guide you through every step to achieving the perfect golden-brown caramel using just 5 ingredients- including honey sticks.
Ready to make some Halloween Caramel Apples? Here’s what you’ll need:
Ingredients For Caramel Apples
- 6 apples
- 6 wooden dowels
- 1 cup honey or approximately 68 honey sticks
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Optional food dye in your choice of color
Ingredients For Toppings
What Halloween Caramel Apple would be complete without a couple of spooky decorations? Feel free to use whatever toppings you please for this recipe, but here are some of our favorite suggestions for making the ultimate Halloween-themed caramel apples:
- Chopped Oreos
- Chopped pretzels
- Halloween sprinkles
- Melted chocolate candy melts
- Chopped peanuts
Instructions For The Caramel
Begin by preparing an ice bath. In a large bowl, fill it halfway with ice and water, and store it in the fridge for later use. Next, place a saucepan over medium-high heat. In the pan, pour the honey sticks for tea, cream, butter, vanilla extract, and salt. Continuously whisk the ingredients until the mixture begins to bubble, then reduce the flame to medium. If you would like to dye the color of the caramel, it is at this point you can stir in the food coloring of your choice. Additionally, if you’d like the color to be on theme with Halloween, we recommend colors such as purple, green, orange, and black.
Make sure to prevent any risk of burning the caramel by continuing to whisk frequently. Once the caramel reaches 260 F, it is done cooking and ready to remove from the stove. If you don’t have a candy thermometer handy, don’t worry! There are other ways to check the caramel’s doneness by observing its color, consistency, and bubbles. That is, perfectly cooked caramel is rich golden-brown in color, thick in consistency, and has tiny bubbles covering its entire surface. Ultimately, it should take about 25 minutes to cook caramel. Once your caramel is finished, it’s time to grab the ice bath from the fridge. Next, pour the caramel into a separate mixing bowl and gently rest it over the ice bath, making sure to not get any water or ice into the caramel. Continue to mix until the caramel has cooled.
Instructions For Assembling The Caramel Apples
Insert a wooden dowel into the core of each apple. Next, take one apple and gently roll it in the caramel until coated evenly. Then, dip the apple in a small bowl of the toppings of your choice and place it on a piece of parchment paper to finish cooling. Repeat this process for every apple. If desired, melt a small batch of chocolate candy melts in the Halloween-themed colors of your choice. Drizzle the melted chocolates over the tops of the apples for an extra Halloween flair! Finally, your apples are ready to serve and enjoy.
This blog is brought to you by Bee Man Honeystix, home of deliciously flavored honey sticks, including pina colada and cinnamon.