You may be tempted by an occasional sweet treat - especially when you’ve been particularly good! This week YOU features a wonderful selection of recipes for timeless kids’ treats
INGREDIENTS: 10 small red apples; 10 skewers; 400 ml sugar; 125 ml water; 10 ml vinegar; 75 ml golden syrup; a few drops of pink food colouring.
METHOD: Wash the apples under running water and dry well. Remove the stems and insert a skewer at the stem end.
In a medium-size saucepan heat the remaining ingredients over low heat. (Don’t use too much colouring - you can add more later if necessary.) Stir until all the sugar has dissolved. Use a brush dipped in hot water to remove sugar from the sides of the saucepan.
When the sugar has dissolved increase the temperature and boil the syrup until it reaches the soft-crack stage (138 degrees Celcius on a sugar thermometer). When a little is dropped into cold water it forms thin threads that become firm.
Place the saucepan with the syrup over a larger saucepan with boiling water. Dip each apple in the syrup, ensuring it’s completely coated. Put the toffee apples upright on greased wax paper and leave to cool until the toffee has hardened.
TASTY TIPS
- Don’t store toffee apples for long; they should ideally be made on the day they’re to be eaten. Small apples are easier to handle and look prettier.
- Apples with waxy skins such as Granny Smiths aren’t suitable for making toffee apples as the mixture won’t stick to them.
