12 Medium Size Apples (Your Choice of Favorites)
2 Cups Granulated Sugar
½ Cup Water
2 Cups Heavy Cream, Heated
1 Cup Coarsely Chopped Pecans for Dipping Coarse
Coarse Sea Salt for Sprinkling
In a small sauté pan, toast the pecans over medium heat, tossing several times, until pecans become fragrant, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
In a medium-large heavy sauce pan (a 6 quart size is best) place the sugar and water. Swirl pan over high heat until sugar is dissolved and cook until mixture turns brown NOT BURNT. (Never use a spoon to mix the water and sugar. It just doesn’t work and will cause the sugar to clump. Swirling is the only option.) Remove from heat: CAREFULLY and SLOWLY add 2 heated cups heavy cream. When you add the cream to the sugar mixture it will bubble up and if you add too much too fast it will flow over the sides of the pan. This could be dangerous so please be careful. Mix with a large stainless steel spoon and return to heat. Simmer the sauce over medium heat until temperature on candy thermometer reaches 240°F. Remove from heat. Transfer to a heat proof deep and narrow bowl and set aside to cool for about 10 minutes.
Insert a 5” pointed dowel into each apple (I used plastic twigs purchased at a craft store).
Dip each apple, one at a time, into the caramel sauce. Let the excess caramel drip off and immediately dip into the toasted pecans, or sprinkle the top rim of the caramel apple with sea salt. Place the coated apples on a sheet pan or cookie sheet lined with waxed paper or a silpat non-stick baking mat. Let apples set before transferring to a serving platter, about 45 minutes.
