Old Fashioned Candy Apple Recipe: Easy Halloween Recipe

Discover the perfect old fashioned candy apple recipe that will transport you back to your childhood with its sweet, glossy coating and crisp apple crunch. Our neighbor Mr. Watkins always made red candy apples on Halloween, and I'll never forget how crispy and sweet they tasted.

Whether you're preparing for Halloween, a fall get-together, or simply craving a nostalgic treat from childhood, these time-honored recipes will help you create delectable candy apples that are sure to delight both young and old.

Old Fashioned Candy Apple Recipes: Glossy Red Perfection!

Mom's Recipe Scrapbooks (1920s)

Old Time Red Candy Apples

This old fashioned candy apple recipe makes a shiny bright red candied apple similar to the ones you see at the traditional fall fairs throughout the United States and Canada.

Two cups granulated sugar, one-half cup light corn syrup, one-quarter cup water, red food coloring, one-half teaspoon cinnamon flavoring, twelve red apples, twelve wooden skewers.

Cook the granulated sugar, corn syrup, and water in a small saucepan, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Continue cooking without stirring until the syrup is brittle when tested in cold water.

During the cooking, any sugar crystals thrown on the sides of the pan should be carefully wiped down with a wet cloth.

Remove the syrup from the heat and set at once over hot water. Add coloring and flavoring and mix well.

Insert the skewers, which can be purchased from the butcher, in the blossom end of the apples. Hold each apple by the skewer and plunge into the hot syrup. Draw the apple out quickly and twirl it until the syrup is spread smoothly over the apple.

Place apples with the skewer end down in a wire cake rack, which has been placed over a large bowl, so that the apple does not touch anything while hardening. These apples should be made the day they will be used.

Cinnamon Red Hot Candy Apples

2 cups granulated sugar
2 cups corn syrup
1/3 cup hot cinnamon hearts candy, or cinnamon red hots
1 cup water
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon cloves
3/4 teaspoon red food coloring
6 of your favorite type of eating apple, medium size
6 wooden skewers (often found in the produce department)

First prepare the apples for candy coating by washing them and removing the stems. Take a skewer and stab it right into the middle of the apple at its blossom end, and repeat for each apple.

Be careful not to poke the skewer through the other side of the apple though. If wooden skewers are unavailable, a Popsicle stick with one end sharpened can be used in a pinch.

In a small or medium sized saucepan set on medium heat, combine sugar, corn syrup, cinnamon candies, and water. Stir and keep stirring until everything is dissolved. Then stir some more just to make sure it's all dissolved. Once everything is dissolved, add cinnamon, vanilla, cloves, and food coloring to the mix.

Now boil mixture to 300°F on the candy thermometer, or until the syrup is slightly brittle when tested in cold water. Then, remove from heat and quickly dip your apples into your candy coating and be sure to coat them well. Slowly twirling the apple will help spread the syrup over the apple.

Place them with the skewer pointing up on waxed paper or a greased cookie sheet and allow them to harden.

They will be quite hot for a while so make sure you let them cool completely to room temperature before eating! Try this old fashioned candy apple recipe today.

Bright Red Candy Apples

15 apples
15 wooden craft sticks
2 cups white sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1-1/2 cups water
8 or 9 drops red food coloring

To make this old fashioned candy apple recipe, first lightly grease 2 or 3 cookie sheets. Insert craft sticks into whole, stemmed apples.

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine sugar, corn syrup, and water. Heat to 300 to 310°F (149 to 154°C), or until a small amount of syrup dropped into cold water forms hard, brittle threads. Remove from heat and stir in food coloring.

Holding an apple by its stick, dip in syrup and remove and turn to coat evenly. Place on prepared sheets to harden.

Old Time Molasses Apples on a Stick

1 cup molasses
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons butter
6 to 7 medium-size apples

Combine molasses, sugar, vinegar, salt, and water. Cook slowly over heat, stirring constantly, to 270°F (or when a small quantity dropped into cold water forms a hard but not brittle thread). Remove from heat and place over pot of hot water. Add butter.

Insert wooden skewers in stem end of apples and dip into syrup covering entire surface. Remove from syrup, twirling apple to give an even coating. Cool on greased baking sheet.

Gourmet Salty Caramel Apples

Ingredients:

6 Granny Smith apples
6 wooden candy apple sticks or skewers
1 (14 ounce) package individually wrapped caramels, unwrapped
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/2 tablespoons coarse salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Extra chocolate chips for decorating

Method:

Insert wooden candy apple sticks or skewers 3/4 of the way into the stem end of each apple. Combine caramels and water in a saucepan over low to medium heat.

Stir often to get a smooth caramel mixture. Dip apples into hot caramel and carefully twirl to produce an even coating.

Place caramel-coated apples standing up on a sheet of foil or a cookie sheet for easy decorating and cooling. Sprinkle evenly with the coarse salt and place in the fridge.

Melt chocolate chips in a small pot over boiling water while stirring until the melted chocolate is smooth and creamy. Randomly drizzle melted chocolate over the apples.

Sprinkle with the extra chocolate chips. Return to refrigerator to cool until ready to serve and eat.

For decorating variations, drizzle with white chocolate, sprinkle with chopped nuts or candy sprinkles or 24K edible gold flakes.

This caramel apple recipe offers a whole new twist on the traditional old fashioned candy apple recipe, and the results taste sensational. Sweet and salty! Who can resist?

About the Old Fashioned Candy Apple Recipes

Whenever I went out trick-or-treating as a youngster, the houses that handed out homemade candy apples always had the longest lineups of kids. One year, we altered our costumes and lined up at the same house again, hoping to get another. Sneaky, eh? Unfortunately for us, when we arrived at the door, there were no more candy apples left!

Did you know that these old fashioned candy apple recipes can be used on any special occasion? For instance, why not serve red and green candy apples at Christmas time as a special treat?

And just imagine giving red or pink candy apples for an edible gift on St. Valentines Day, or how about pastel blue, or green apples at Easter? Be creative and enjoy making your own taffy apples on a stick this Halloween. Kids of all ages love to eat them anytime!