One of my favorite things about fall is making fall treats at home! Let me teach you how to make gourmet caramel apples in your own kitchen! I’ve got a few tips and tricks for making these picture perfect and extra delicious! Plus, you’ll save so much money making these caramel apples at home, rather than buying them at the store! I’m sharing all the details on how to make caramel apples in this post! Let’s get cooking.

Caramel Apples

These easy Caramel Apples are one of the ultimate fall treats!

This is a foolproof process thats nearly impossible to mess up and it makes perfectly tempting and tasty caramel apples that are great for holidays, parties and gifting. 

It’s so easy you really don’t even need a recipe, it’s more of just a quick how-to teaching you the method and ingredients to use.

Caramel Apple Ingredients:

• Peter’s Caramel: a MUST!! This is, hands down, the best caramel to dip and make caramel apples with! You can buy a 5 pound loaf at chef food stores near you or online! I stock up on mine locally from Orson Gygi or at the Chef Food Store in Salt Lake.
• Apples: try and buy apples that are round and uniform in size if you are making a lot of caramel apples at once! Granny smith are popular for that classic tart contrast to the sweet caramel. However, I love a honey-crisp apple and I like using those too!
• Melting Chocolate: use good quality chocolate snaps that are meant for melting! This includes snaps or melting wafers; these are meant to melt down and dip and drizzle on things. Avoid using regular chocolate chips since those won’t melt down as nicely as their purpose is to hold their shape.
• Toppings: whatever you like! I have a whole list of topping ideas below but the options are pretty much endless!

What are the Best Caramel Apple Toppings?

• White chocolate, milk chocolate, or dark chocolate wafers melted for dipping, or good quality chocolate melts
• Cinnamon Sugar
• Crushed pretzels
• Crushed Oreos
• Chopped nuts 
• Mini M&M’s
• Sprinkles
• Flaky sea salt
• Chopped candy bars
• Crushed graham crackers with ground cinnamon
• Shredded coconut

The list really can go on and on! Comment below your favorite caramel apple topping!

The Apple Pie Apple

My favorite is the apple pie apple, which is white chocolate dipped and then rolled in a blend of equal parts granulated sugar, brown sugar, and a few tablespoons of cinnamon.

Dip the apple into melted-down white chocolate, then roll it in the cinnamon sugar blend below.

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 Tablespoons cinnamon

Drizzle on more white chocolate to give it a gourmet finish, plus hide any imperfections.

Caramel Apple Supplies for Success

• Dutch Oven: if you are planning to make dozens of caramel apples at once, the very best way to melt down your caramel is to use the dutch oven method. Place the entire block of Peter’s Caramel Loaf into your dutch oven and place it in the oven at 200 degrees for 2 hours. No need to check on the caramel or stir it. Just let it melt!
• Silicon Bowls: if you are planning to make a few caramel apples, melt the caramel down in these silicon bowls. They are the very best for melting and microwaving. I use them to melt my chocolate down too!
• Spoonula: I like using this spoonula to scoop and coat my apple in caramel! It’s great because it is silicon and it helps the caramel to not stick, but also to coat the apple generously in caramel.
• Parchment Paper: have this ready and rolled out on a baking sheet so that you have a place to set your caramel apples while you are making and dipping them.
• Wooden sticks: Sticks make eating caramel apples convenient and fun, while also serving as a useful dipping tool. You can use suckers sticks, popsicle sticks, or even kabob skewers.
• Apples: Pick apples that are uniform in size and shape. You want them to be round, blemish free, and be apple to sit upright when left alone. I dip my caramel apples upside down, by sticking the stick in the bottom, so I make sure and test that they can stand on their own upside down.

How to Dip Caramel Apples

1. Prep and clean the apples. Use warm water to remove the wax coating, then dry. Stick your wooden sticks in either the top or the bottom of the apple. I prefer to stick it on the bottom side of the apple, upside down.
2. Melt the Peter’s Caramel: Either in the Dutch oven (if using the whole loaf at once) in the oven for 2 hours at 200 degrees, no checking or stirring required. Or in the silicon bowls (if only using a portion of the caramel loaf) in the microwave for one-minute intervals, stirring in between.
3. Dip the apples in the caramel. I prefer to spoon the caramel onto the apples and let it drip and run down the side to coat them. Twist the caramel apple in the bowl to shake off the excess. Let the excess drip back into the bowl of caramel so it doesn’t get wasted.
4. Once you have coated the apple, use a rubber spatula and scrape the excess off the bottom while rotating the apple around to clean off the extra caramel. Place on the parchment paper to set.

Adding the chocolate and toppings

1. Once the caramel has cooled you can then apply chocolate and other toppings. Be sure the caramel is cooled completely before dipping it in chocolate, refrigerate if needed to help it set. Dip your apple in chocolate, and allow the extra chocolate to drizzle off the bottom of the apple. If you’re adding toppings to the chocolate, I suggest lifting and tapping the apple repeatedly, while twisting it to all the sides, directly in the bowl of your desired flavors.
2. Drizzle chocolate on the outside with a ziplock baggie filled with chocolate with the tip cut off, and add more texture and layers to your apple. This will make your apple look gourmet!
3. *If adding topping directly to the caramel, apply right after dipping, while the caramel is still warm. The larger toppings like nuts or pretzels need the warmer caramel in order to make them stick.

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