Caramel Apples & A Few Other Treats

Okay, so I loved this recipe that I tried today.  First of all, things did not go the way that I had initially intended in that I thought for sure that I would find a recipe for homemade caramel (for apples) made with heavy cream rather than sweetened condensed milk, since:

1) That's what I had (heavy cream) and

2) I swore that I saw someone online (either a recipe or a YouTube video) making

it with just the sugar, butter & heavy cream...

I just knew that I had all the ingredients.  But sure enough, lo and behold, when it came down time for me to make it...I didn't  really have all of the ingredients, so...I just had to wing it! 

I started out with a few of my apples & I boiled them, just slightly to get rid of the waxy outer layer.  Then I put my sticks in them.

I got my chopped pecans lined up because I know that I would be using those later.

Then I got my sugar boiling.  (Sugar and water that is).

Next, I moved on to add my butter (about 5tablespoons, and one cup of heavy cream)

and I just continued to cook, and cook, (and stir) and cook it down until it was about this color.

I turned the heat off on the caramel & got my plate ready to begin dipping my apples.

Set them aside.

Now next, I turned to start making my drizzle with these (wilton melts)...

Now, I can't tell you what else I added to this.  All I will say is that just melting the

wilton melts in the microwave, like I've done before to make candies, did not work here.

Then I drizzled them on top of my apples.

And sprinkled on my nuts.

And Voila! Delicious!

With the leftover caramel and sauce, I came up with a few other treats.



Milk Men

Whew!  It's been a whole summer since my last post and I've got a lot of catching up to do!  In the meantime, let's kick off the fall and approaching winter with a little 'Ode to Christmas (for my mind is already there :-)  Today's post is dedicated to "milk men".  I've seen them on some different sites, and they've inspired me and given me different ideas and I want to share them with you!  Here goes:

(as seen on Bakerella.com)

They're smart and simple.

Snowman Milk Glasses. A perfect mix of winter and whimsey.

You may have seen them already, they were inspired by some that Amy Atlas made on the Today Show after being inspired by Celebrations at Home who was inspired by these from Better Homes and Gardens. (Check them out.)

(These were made by one of Bakerella's friends, Julie.  How cute?)

And here are my other favorites:

(As seen on Celebrations at Home.com <-love that site!)

Okay, LOVE THE SWEETS PARTY!!!!

All you need:small milk glasses (these from Target work great)
powdered doughnut holes
straws
milk, of course

To decorate, you can use chocolate jimmies to press into the doughnuts for the eyes and mouth. The noses are orange coated sunflower seeds pressed into the dougnut and attached with a tiny bit of frosting.

You can decorate their felt scarves with the same color striped straws. And to finish them off, glued a few small buttons right on the glass.



Fun & delish!

-Bakie