Grandma Betty’s Caramel Apples

A family favorite for over 50 years. Once you try this, you will never go back to unwrapping and melting all those commercial caramels to dunk apples in!

Braeburn apples are my favorite for this recipe—not too sweet and not too tart.

Grandma Betty’s Caramel Apples

Ingredients:

12 whole Apples
¼ cups Butter
1 cup White Syrup
14 ounces, fluid Eagle Brand Condensed Milk
2 cups White Granulated Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Instructions:

Assemble all ingredients: wash and dry apples, insert sticks, and butter a cookie sheet and dinner plate before starting to cook.
Heat all ingredients except vanilla in a heavy 2-quart saucepan over medium/low heat. Stir constantly! (Unless you really like the look of scorched bits on your apples.)
When caramel reaches soft ball stage (235°F–240°F) remove from heat and add vanilla. Let cool a few minutes.
Using the stick inserted in the apples, dunk apples in the hot caramel and twirl slowly away from the heat for a couple of minutes. It’s nice to have a helper or two at this point.
Place caramel-covered apples on a buttered cookie sheet. Optional: drizzle with melted chocolate or roll in chopped nuts.

Extra caramel from the bottom of the pan:

1. Can be scraped out with a spatula into a buttered plate or dish to be cut into individual pieces when cool.
2. Can be thinned in the pan with half-and-half and eaten warm, as a dip for apple wedges.

Source: http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/desserts/grandma-bettye28099s-caramel-apples/