31 Days of Halloween, 26 October
First off: Update time. Housemate did not end up going to Milwaukee (yet). Her father is doing MUCH MUCH better. Apparently, it was a very small stroke that somehow or other had its origin in his irregular heartbeat. He's now in a different ward of the hospital and they are trying him on various heart meds. She will be headed up later in the week. Thank you all SO much for the prayers and positive vibes; please keep them coming.
Onward with the Halloween stuffs. Continuing in yesterdays vein of screw ups, my Halloween plans for today misfired as well. A friend of mine and I were going to pick apples at a local orchard and get some fresh pressed cider. Luckily we thought to call before heading out there, and it turns out they are only open Wed-Sun. Who knew? *sigh* But we had a lovely time anyway, discussing her bridal shower (Corpse Bride themed) and making more Halloween plans--woot there is still pumpkin carving in my future!
Otherwise, I sat down with a really lovely and messy caramel apple today and enjoyed every second of it. nom nom nom. The only thing that could have made it better would have been eating it outside among all the gorgeous yellow, orange, and red trees on campus. This is why fall is my favorite season. *sighs with happiness*
The following recipe is from the website 101 Cookbooks (as is the above picture). One day when I don't have 3 HUGE looming deadlines, I'm totally going to try this:
Caramel Apple Recipe
Please be careful when making caramel apples, you will be working with dangerously hot, sticky, ingredients - I always put on an apron and make sure I have a closed-toed pair of shoes on when making candy. Be extra, extra careful if you have kids around. On the ingredient front, I typically go for a mild clover honey when making caramels.
6 - 8 small apples, unwaxed, cold
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup honey
Special equipment: candy thermometer, and lollipop sticks
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Push a lollipop or popsicle stick deep into each apple - in through the stem.
Fill a large bowl 1/2 full with ice water and set aside.
In a medium, thick-bottomed saucepan heat the cream and salt until tiny bubbles start forming where the milk touches the pan - just before a simmer. Stir in the honey. Bring the mixture to a boil. Now reduce the heat to an active simmer and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, for about 15-20 minutes minutes or until the mixture reaches about 255-260F degrees. To stop the caramel from cooking, very, very carefully set the bottom of the saucepan in the bowl of cold water you prepared earlier - taking special care not to get any of the water in the caramel mixture. Stir until caramel begins to thicken up - you want the caramel to be thin enough that it will easily coat your apples, but not so thin that it will run right off. If the caramel thickens too much simply put the pot back over the burner for 10 seconds or so to heat it up a bit.
I tilt my sauce pan so all the caramel forms a pool on one side, and use my other hand to dunk and twirl each apple until it is thoroughly coated with caramel. Place each apple on the parchment lined baking sheets and allow the caramel to cool and set.
Makes 6 - 8 caramel apples.
Onward with the Halloween stuffs. Continuing in yesterdays vein of screw ups, my Halloween plans for today misfired as well. A friend of mine and I were going to pick apples at a local orchard and get some fresh pressed cider. Luckily we thought to call before heading out there, and it turns out they are only open Wed-Sun. Who knew? *sigh* But we had a lovely time anyway, discussing her bridal shower (Corpse Bride themed) and making more Halloween plans--woot there is still pumpkin carving in my future!
Otherwise, I sat down with a really lovely and messy caramel apple today and enjoyed every second of it. nom nom nom. The only thing that could have made it better would have been eating it outside among all the gorgeous yellow, orange, and red trees on campus. This is why fall is my favorite season. *sighs with happiness*
The following recipe is from the website 101 Cookbooks (as is the above picture). One day when I don't have 3 HUGE looming deadlines, I'm totally going to try this:
Caramel Apple Recipe
Please be careful when making caramel apples, you will be working with dangerously hot, sticky, ingredients - I always put on an apron and make sure I have a closed-toed pair of shoes on when making candy. Be extra, extra careful if you have kids around. On the ingredient front, I typically go for a mild clover honey when making caramels.
6 - 8 small apples, unwaxed, cold
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup honey
Special equipment: candy thermometer, and lollipop sticks
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Push a lollipop or popsicle stick deep into each apple - in through the stem.
Fill a large bowl 1/2 full with ice water and set aside.
In a medium, thick-bottomed saucepan heat the cream and salt until tiny bubbles start forming where the milk touches the pan - just before a simmer. Stir in the honey. Bring the mixture to a boil. Now reduce the heat to an active simmer and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, for about 15-20 minutes minutes or until the mixture reaches about 255-260F degrees. To stop the caramel from cooking, very, very carefully set the bottom of the saucepan in the bowl of cold water you prepared earlier - taking special care not to get any of the water in the caramel mixture. Stir until caramel begins to thicken up - you want the caramel to be thin enough that it will easily coat your apples, but not so thin that it will run right off. If the caramel thickens too much simply put the pot back over the burner for 10 seconds or so to heat it up a bit.
I tilt my sauce pan so all the caramel forms a pool on one side, and use my other hand to dunk and twirl each apple until it is thoroughly coated with caramel. Place each apple on the parchment lined baking sheets and allow the caramel to cool and set.
Makes 6 - 8 caramel apples.