If you are looking at these caramel apples and wondering if they are some how miraculously low in calorie, sugars and carbs like most of the recipes on my blog........unfortunately you would be mistaken this time. 🙁
These are not your low calorie, free of sugar version. BUT they are quite fabulous! I haven't found a way to make a sticky caramel without using honey. BUT honey is still WAY better than using white sugar or buying caramel apples at the store which could probably sit on a shelf for a year and not go bad.
And if you are looking for the fabulously beautiful pictures of yummy recipes like I usually post, well.....you would be mistaken again. Just look at that sloppy goodness above. 🙂
The candy maker I am not.
Apparently the caramel maker I am not either!
Very messy, but the kids loved them just the same.
Yep I even coated WAY too much caramel over each of them so they have a Graduation Cap on top!So much caramel that I changed the serving to coating 8 small apples instead of the 6 VERY stinking large apples I used. Big Mistake.
Simple solution would be to:
- Use less caramel on each apple
- Use silicone cupcake liners to sit the apples in.
- Who cares if they have a cap anyway? They taste fantastic!
MMMMMmmmmm, you want to bite into that don't you?!!! A few simple steps with a few simple ingredients and more finesse in the coating part than I and you'll be sinking your teeth into one of these in no time at all.
Adapted from: rachelraymag.com/september
Honey Vanilla Caramel Apples
[sc:Ziplist]
Ingredients
- 8 small red apples of choice, chilled
- ice water
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups honey
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- optional: chopped nuts, sprinkles, crushed pretzels
Directions
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Skewer each apple stem with a popsicle stick or lollipop stick. Chill them in the fridge. In a 4 quart saucepan, heat the cream and salt over medium high heat until steaming. Stir in honey and bring to a boil. Continue to stir constantly and lower heat to medium. Once mixture registers 260 degrees on a candy thermometer, about 30 minutes, you can remove the pan from the heat and stir in vanilla. Carefully place the pan in a large bowl of ice water. Be careful not to get water in the caramel or it won't stick to the apples. Stir the caramel with a wooden spoon for about 5 minutes until it is thick enough to coat an apple. If it seems too thick, return to medium heat and stir. Take one apple at a time holding the stick, dip into the caramel, tilting the sauce pan to coat the apple. Place on parchment paper or in silicone cupcake liners. Dip into sprinkles or chopped nuts if desired. Work quickly with the rest and refrigerate for about 20 minutes.
Nutrition Info
Servings: 8* Calories per serving: 322* Fat: 6g* Cholesterol: 21mg* Sodium: 155mg* Carbs: 73g* Fiber: 4g* Sugars: 68g* Protein: 1g* Points+: 7*
Other recipes you might like:
- Naturally Sweetened Dark Chocolate Chunks: Dairy Free
- Naturally Sweetened Dark Chocolate truffles
- Chocolate Cereal Crunchies: Dairy Free
- Chocolate Hardening Sauce A.K.A. Magic Shell: No Sugar Added
About Brenda
Brenda Bennett is a certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, certified Sugar Detox Coach, certified Keto Coach and certified Life Coach. She has been Sugar Free & Refined carb free for 17 years and has written 2 cookbooks, Sugar-Free Mom, and Naturally Keto and her 3rd book The 30-Day Sugar Elimination Diet, is a four part program to help you detox from sugar, eliminate cravings, balance blood sugar and lose weight all while eating a delicious, nutrient dense whole foods. Meal plan offers two tracks to follow, low carb or keto. She is the founder of the Sugar Free Fresh Start course and Sugar Free Tribe weight loss membership. Learn more.
Nancy P
Oh, my gosh, I am laughing and loving this! Whenever I have made caramel apples, they look like yours! I love that you posted anyway. So many blogs have everything "perfect". Although I do also like these perfect ones, as most of yours are, too (LOL), this makes me feel a bond with you like no other! Hahhahaha. I am sure they are also delish and fresh and full of love!
Brenda
Thank you Nancy! I appreciate it! I'm so not perfect and never want anyone to think otherwise! The kids didn't care how they looked LOL!
Kat
Made these today, and they are yum! 🙂 I used coconut cream to make it dairy free. I have never worked with candy cooking before. I thought I would use my meat thermometer, but didn't realise till it was all boiling that it didn't measure temperatures high enough! So I guessed at the temperatures. In the end, I don't think I cooked it enough, because they are still a little sticky in the fridge... maybe next time we'll get them a big firmer! But they certainly do taste good - I will just throw the kids into the bath after they have licked their fingers and faces clean! 🙂 My first couple have graduation caps, but after that I left the mixture to cool/thicken even more and had the apples in the freezer for a little while before coating, and their caps were much smaller. 🙂
Janel @ Happy Life, Happy Wife
These look delicious. i think perfect looking caramel apples are boring.
I definitely think I'm going to have to make this. My husband isnt a big sweets fan but when he has something he loves caramel so I think these would go over well. i'm also a huge fan of honey.
Brenda
I thank you for saying that perfect looking caramel apple are boring! You are so sweet!
Tara page
Look yummy. I saw a few differnet ideas, one is to slice the apples in thin slices and dip them, then you make it a smaller portion. You can also do an inside out caramel apple which would work good with your sauce I bet, cut the apple in half, remove the core then put the caramel where the core was. Less messy, less calories but probably not as fun for kids ....
chris
any ideas for making it dairy free?
Brenda
yes, use coconut milk in place of the cream.
Chef Amber Shea
These look WONDERFUL!
I actually have a trick for sugar-free caramel - soak some pitted dates and then blend them up with a liquid (you could use cream in your case; I use coconut or almond milk), vanilla, and salt. It doesn't harden the same way other caramels do, but it's great for dipping. 🙂
Brenda
Thank you kindly for saying they look wonderful LOL! I know they are far from it, but the recipe is delish! And thank you for the tip, wish I knew that before I made them, but will definitely try it some time! thanks!