This easy homemade candy apple recipe, also known as toffee apples, will be a huge hit this fall as it combines your favorite apple with a toffee coating that you and the kids will love! Enjoy these for family game night, hand out to trick or treaters, or serve at your next Halloween party!
The Best Candy Apple for Beginners
As we are heading into fall, although it is still hot here in Texas I am dreaming about sitting outside on my porch with a nice cool breeze waiting for the bus to bring the kids home from school. With thoughts of that also come thoughts of fall decorations, caramel apples, and apple cider donuts. This year the kids have already begun to beg for candy apples for dessert and for good reason! These candy apples are super delicious and are the perfect way to celebrate the beginning of fall.
With fall upon us, we are definitely gearing up with all our favorite apple recipes like our apple crumble pie, apple dumplings, and apple dessert pizza. These are all must-make treats this season!
What is the Difference between a Candy Apple and a Toffee apple?
A candy apple is made with a toffee coating on the outside of the apple, the same as a Toffee Apple. The only difference is where you are from! Typically within the United States, we call Toffee apples candy Apples, and outside the United States, they are referred to as Toffee apples.
Best Type of Apple for Candy Apples
The best type of apple for candy apples is all a matter of preference. You want to be sure to choose an apple that is firm and has a crunch to it when you bite into it. The best types of apples for candy apples are Fuji, Gala, Granny Smith, and Jazz.
Do Candy Apples Need to be Refrigerated?
Yes, you do need to refrigerate your candy apples after you make them to prevent foodborne allergies. So if you are not going to be eating it soon, like within an hour put it in the fridge. You can keep them in the fridge for up to two weeks.
Candy Apple Recipe
Serves- 6
Prep Time- 15 minutes
Cook Time- 25 minutes
Total Time – 40 minutes
Candy Apple Ingredients:
- 6 Granny Smith Apples, (any variety will work just my preference)
- 2 cups sugar
- ½ cup corn syrup
- ¼ cup water
- Red Food Coloring
- Candy Thermometer
- Candy Apple Skewer Sticks
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring Spoons
- Glass Measuring Set
- Bowls for Toppings
Other Candy Apple Supplies:
Candy Thermometer (a must for making Toffee Apples because you cannot guess with these)
Optional Supplies
Candy Apple Boxes If you are planning to give away your candy apples these boxes are perfect to do them in!
I have seen other people use cupcake liners also that work, but I don’t have any experience using those, but these were really cute Halloween liners if you went that way!
How to Make Candy Apples
- First, you want to wash and thoroughly dry the apples. Like they need to be 1000% dry before coating them!
- Then you will want to insert the candy apple stick into the top side of the apple.
- Get your baking sheet ready by placing wax paper that is sprayed with cooking spray on it.
- In a small saucepan, mix the sugar, corn syrup and water. Attach the candy thermometer to the side of the pan. Make sure the bottom is in the mixture.
- You will then cook this mixture over medium heat until the candy thermometer says 300 degrees. This is referred to as the hard crack stage.
- This will take some time to reach this, do not rush it by turning up the temperature of the burner. Making the candy coating is a slow process, be patient and stay nearby! Things move VERY quickly towards the end.
- If you don’t have a candy thermometer, you can make a pretty close guess as to when the candy is done cooking when a spoon forms a thin thread when being lifted from the mixture. If it pours off easily, it’s not done, but seriously so much easier with a thermometer and worth the investment.
- After the candy mixture has reached 300 degrees then remove the pan from the heat and stir in the red food coloring until the desired color is reached. I love this red food coloring because it really makes it red rather than a shade of pink.
- To get the red of these apples it took about ½ tsp of food coloring with this brand.
- Once the toffee apple mixture is to the desired color it is time to start dipping apples!
- Dip each apple into the melted sugars, allowing access to drip off back into the mixture.
- Dip each apple 2-3 times before setting them on the sprayed wax paper to set. If at any point your mixture begins to harden too much, put back over medium heat and heat back to 300 degrees, and then pull it back off.
Tips Tricks and FAQs
How to make candy apples any color
To make candy apples any color you simply change the food coloring color! I love how randy candy apples look so I opt for these often, but the sky is the limit when it comes to the color of the candy apples you make.
How Do I Use Real Sticks to Make Candy Apples?
For these Candy apples, I literally went outside and grabbed sticks from the yard which you can totally do for a super rustic apple approach! My kids loved it!
You will want to gather sticks twice the height of your apples and you will want to wash them really good and let them dry overnight.
If you want to get even fancier add Modge Podge to the top half of each stick and apply glitter. Seal in the glitter in place with a second layer of Modge Podge. Or just use candy apple sticks, it is completely up to you!
To easily clean your pans after making candy apples simply add water to the empty pan and bring to a boil. This will make it easier to clean the candy off!
There you have it! The best candy apple that is simple yet so delicious!
Love what you see? Leave a comment and don’t forget to rate it below! We always love knowing how your recipe turns out! Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @micheletripple to show me your finished product!
Candy Apples
Add a pop of color this fall with this super simple Homemade candy apple recipes, otherwise known as a toffee apple outside the United States.
Ingredients
- 6 Granny Smith Apples, (any variety will work just my preference)
- 2 Cups sugar
- 1/2 Cup corn syrup
- 1/4 Cup water
- Red Food Coloring
- 6 Candy Apple Sticks
Instructions
- First you want to wash and thoroughly dry the apples. Like they need to be 1000% dry before coating them!
- Then you will want to insert the candy apple stick into the top side of the apple.
- Get your baking sheet ready ready by placing wax paper that is sprayed with cooking spray on it.
- In a small saucepan, mix the sugar, corn syrup and water. Attach the candy thermometer to the side of the pan. Make sure the bottom is in the mixture.
- You will then cook this mixture over medium heat until the candy thermometer says 300 degrees. This is referred to as the hard crack stage.
- After the candy mixture has reached 300 degrees then remove the pan from the heat and stir in the red food coloring until the desired color is reached. I love this red food coloring because it really makes it red rather than a shade of pink.
- To get the red of these apples it took about ½ tsp of food coloring with this brand.
- Once the toffee apple mixture is to the desired color it is time to start dipping apples!
- Dip each apple into the melted sugars, allowing access to drip off back into the mixture.
- Dip each apple 2-3 times before setting them on the sprayed wax paper to set. If at any point your mixture begins to harden too much, put back over medium heat and heat back to 300 degrees and then pull back off.
Notes
You will need a candy thermometer!
Gear up for Fall with these other Fall Desserts!
Michele Tripple is a renowned author and expert in the fields of parenting, relationships, and personal development. With her degree in marriage and family studies, her experience as a Family Life Educator, and over a decade of experience as a professional writer, Michele has authored books that provide practical advice and insights into improving family dynamics and personal growth. Her work is celebrated for its blend of research-driven information and relatable, real-world applications. Michele has been a keynote speaker at conferences and has contributed to numerous publications and media outlets, solidifying her reputation as an authoritative voice in her field and helping families build relationships.
This was very easy to make. The thermometer was key to knowing when it was ready. Also, putting a drop in a glass of water to see if it was hard was a great idea, too. I used both methods to make sure! I made candied strawberries, too. I would post a pic but don’t know how. Thanks for the recipe.
So glad you enjoyed it! Candied Strawberries sound delightful!