Mini Carmel Apples

So Marcie told me about an idea for mini carmel apples that I could make for N2's Halloween party at pre-school.  I thought they sounded like a really cute idea.  I searched around and found out that they don't store well and should be eaten soon.  So I nixed that idea for the party but wanted to make them just because.  I thought I would make them for my book club on Wednesday so I tried a trial run on Sunday.  Boy were they a failure!  I had a hard time using the melon baller on the apples.  I bent my melon baller!  I also learned that you can't start the ball remotely close to where you previously balled the apple.  Perhaps I needed a bigger apple!  I maybe got 4 balls out of one apple.  I made sure to dry the apples really well on a paper towel.

Then the next step was the caramel.  I melted just a small amount of Kraft caramels and the first time I burned them and the caramel turned really hard.  The next time the carmel was fine but but not dippable. I molded the carmel around the apples. That ended up working but it wasn't pretty and there was a LOT of caramel on each apple.  I tried rolling the caramel apples in Halloween sprinkles but the sprinkles wouldn't stick the the caramel.  I had to smoosh the sprinkles on.

Then I needed a stick.  I tried inserting a pretzel stick into the apple for the stick but they would just break.  I had to first make a hole with a skewer and then put the pretzel stick in.  The pretzel didn't work very well as a handle because it would fall out as you tried to eat the apple.

I ended up making 4-one for each of us.  N2's are sitting out so we'll see how they are when they wake up.  I need to investigate how to make these better.  I think I need to thin out the caramel so that I can dip.  I'm not sure it will stick to the apple though if it is thinned out.  I did read somewhere to first dip it in chocolate, let it harden and then dip it in caramel.