Black Candy Apples Recipe
These dramatic Black Candy Apples feature fresh, crisp apples covered in a glossy, jet-black hard candy shell. They're the perfect spooky Halloween dessert for parties, trick-or-treat celebrations, and festive fall entertaining.
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 640kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 medium Granny Smith apples
- 6 craft sticks 5 to 6 inches long
- boiling water as needed for dipping apples
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon black gel food coloring
- ¼ teaspoon yellow gel food coloring optional
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon oil-based vanilla candy flavoring
- nonstick cooking spray
Instructions
- Place the apples in a large heatproof bowl. Dip each apple into boiling water for 5 to 10 seconds. This helps loosen the waxy coating so the candy shell can stick better.
- Remove the apples with tongs or a slotted spoon. Rub each apple dry with a clean kitchen towel while the skin is still warm. Let the apples cool and dry completely before dipping.
- Remove the stems from the apples. Push one craft stick into the top of each apple. Twist gently as you push so it sits firmly in place.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly coat the parchment with nonstick cooking spray so the candy apples release cleanly after cooling.
- Add the sugar, light corn syrup, and water to a saucepan. Stir gently before turning on the heat so the sugar is evenly moistened.
- Cook the mixture over medium-high heat without stirring once it begins to boil.
- Continue cooking until the candy mixture reaches 260°F on a candy thermometer. Stir in the black gel food coloring. Optionally, add yellow gel food coloring if your black leans blue or purple.
- Continue cooking without stirring until the candy mixture reaches 300°F. Remove the pan from the heat as soon as it reaches temperature.
- Stir in the oil-based vanilla candy flavoring off the heat. Stir slowly and carefully since the hot syrup may bubble when the flavoring is added.
- Tilt the saucepan slightly and dip one apple into the hot candy mixture. Turn the apple until it’s fully coated, then lift it and let the extra candy drip back into the pan.
- Place the dipped apple onto the prepared parchment. Repeat with the remaining apples, working quickly before the candy coating thickens.
- Let the apples cool at room temperature until the candy shell is hard and glossy.
Notes
See the post for more information, photos and tips.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 640kcal | Carbohydrates: 168g | Protein: 0.5g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.01g | Sodium: 40mg | Potassium: 197mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 162g | Vitamin A: 98IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 0.3mg