Finally, it’s that time of year again. For spooky and silly spider, bat, and black cat decorations. For expensive, itchy, and hot but oh so cute costumes. For BAM’s (Brooklyn Academy of Music) fun street party before trick-or-treating. And, time for candy, candy and more candy! 

Due to Character Day at school and spoiling my son, he gets two costumes. One that is a storybook character. (Last year he chose Sherlock Holmes because I was addicted to and binge watched the rather quite good TV show, Elementary.) And one for Halloween night, usually a vampire or Spiderman. 

Dracula and I, usually the queen of vampires, go trick—or-treating in our area. Of course, there won’t be any of that this year but there will be candy apples, as soon as I get that candy thermometer.

I knew before attempting this recipe that I should probably invest in one, but I couldn’t find one at our supermarket (only meat thermometers) so I thought that I could wing it and “see what happens.” 

Well, no hard candy happened. Only the almost-candy apples that were extremely sweet and dripping with gooey, ultra-thick and slides right off syrup. C’est la vie. 

It happens to the best of us. We make mistakes and we learn.

I still decided to post my mistake, because not only was it the sweetest one I’ve made yet, the apples didn’t come out half bad. 

My son enjoyed licking the candy off the apples the most, which I suspect, was his plan all along. It was a challenge keeping him away from the leftover “candy” in the pot.

My goal this weekend will be to rectify our candy-apple sich, by cleaning the wax off the apples with a mixture of a little vinegar and water so the candy sticks better, by using a candy thermometer to ensure that the syrup heats up to over 300 degrees, and by convincing my son to eat the apple, not just lick the candy. 

I’ll console myself that at least he’s eating something nutritious in addition to pure sugar.

Candy Apples 

Ingredients 
3 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup light corn syrup
Many drops of red food coloring 
2 tbsp maraschino cherry juice 
12 small red apples

Instructions
1. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray, then line with wax paper, then apply another coat of cooking spray.
2. Insert popsicle sticks (or whatever you have lollipop sticks, chopsticks, etc) into each apple and push about two-thirds through—be sure that you can safely pick up each apple, but sticks shouldn’t reach beyond the bottom.
3. In a medium heavy-bottomed pot over high heat, mix sugar, water, corn syrup and food coloring. Bring to a boil. Use a candy thermometer to ensure the syrup’s heat rises to above 300 degrees, which should take 20 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. Add cherry juice to the mixture quickly.
5. Quickly and carefully dip apples into bubbly, very hot, liquid candy, and put them on prepped baking sheet. 
6. Allow perfect, shiny, and sweet apples to cool and harden. Share with your favorite superheroes and/or villains.