Southern Living: Tricks to great treats

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Tricks to great treats

Schend, James Leo

Crisp fall apples only get better covered in chewy caramel and rich chocolate.

I have Penny P. Patrick's Praline Parlor to thank for my love of caramel apples. While working at this shop within Six Flags Great America amusement park, I made well over 50,000 of them. The hours of leaning over a huge cauldron of hot caramel taught me a few tricks of the trade. Now you and I can both enjoy this tasty fall treat.

JAMES LEO SCHEND

CARAMEL APPLES

MAKES 6 APPLES

PREP: 20 MIN., COOL: 5 MIN., CIIILL: 30 MIN.

6 large Granny Smith apples

6 wooden craft sticks

1 (14-ounce) bag caramels, unwrapped

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon water

2 cups chopped pecans, toasted

1 (12-ounce) bag semisweet chocolate morsels

Pecan halves (optional)

WASH and dry apples; remove stems. Insert craft sticks into stem end of each apple; set aside.

COMBINE caramels, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon water in a microwavesafe glass bowl. Microwave on HIGH 90 seconds or until melted, stirring twice.

DIP each apple into the caramel mixture quickly, allowing excess caramel to drip off. Roll in chopped pecans; place on lightly greased wax paper. Chill at least 15 minutes.

MICROWAVE chocolate morsels at HIGH 90 seconds or until melted, stirring twice; cool 5 minutes. Pour chocolate where craft sticks and apple meet, allowing chocolate to drip down sides of apples. Press pecan halves onto chocolate, if desired. Chill 15 minutes or until set.

COOK'S NOTES

* Lightly scrub apples with mild soap and a soft scrub brush to remove waxy coating.

* Hot caramel won't stick to a wet apple, so make sure apples are thoroughly dry.

* Don't get the caramel too hot, or you'll end up with a thin layer on your apple and the rest sliding off.

* Scrape excess caramel off the sides of your apple before rolling in nuts or other coating. Don't forget to scrape the bottom of the apple too.

NOTE: For testing purposes only, we used Kraft Caramels.

CALYPSO CARAMEL APPLES: Substitute 1 cup chopped toasted macadamia nuts and 1 cup toasted coconut for pecans.

GEORGIAN CARAMEL APPLES: Substitute 2 cups chopped toasted peanuts for pecans.

BLACK-AND-WHITE CARAMEL APPLES: Microwave 6 ounces white chocolate morsels at HIGH 60 sec-onds or until melted, stirring once; drizzle evenly over semisweet chocolate.

THE BEST EVER CARAMEL SAUCE

MAKES 1 1/4 CUPS

PREP: 10 MIN., COOK: 10 MIN.

Toss apple slices in pineapple juice before serving to prevent browning. This recipe is adapted from Discover Dinnertime: Your Guide to Building Family Time Around the Table (Wimmer Cookbooks, $15.95).

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup whipping cream

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Apple slices

COOK butter and brown sugar in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar melts.

STIR in 1/2 cup whipping cream, stirring occasionally. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Serve with apple slices.