A Twist on Caramel Apple Day

It makes perfect sense that October 31 – Halloween – would be National Caramel Apple Day. When I was a little girl Trick or Treating was very different from today.

To begin with, there were no snack or mini size candy bars. People who handed out a candy bar gave you a full size bar. Often those who did hand out candy gave you treat bags filled with an assortment of Penny-Candies. Or homemade treats such as Popcorn Balls or Caramel Apples. So for Halloween to be Caramel Apple Day really is reminisce of a Halloween long ago. You could hand out homemade treats for two reasons – first there weren’t the allergies or food restrictions children seem to have today and you knew the children knocking at your door. Neighbors knew one another. Communities meant something special. Often a neighborhood sprang up around a religious community that bonded people together.

Today, the children who knock at my door are strangers to me. I’ve never seen them playing in the nearby park or at the community swimming pool. Some come into our neighborhood in cars, so I’m really not sure where home might be. I would love to hand out homemade treats. Chances are a homemade treat will end up in the trash since you can never be too careful and there are a lot nuts out there.

In keeping with National Caramel Apple Day and missing those wonderful home baked goodies, I give you delicious Muffins. These are so good, you could get away with serving them for breakfast or dessert. Enjoy!

Luscious Caramel Apple Muffins
8 tablespoons Butter, softened
2 medium Fuji Apples
1/2 cup Walnuts
1-1/2 cups Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
2 large Eggs
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup Buttermilk
1/2 cup Caramel Sauce for drizzle

Heat oven to 350-degrees. Line a muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside.

Soften butter on the counter. Peel, core and dice the apples. Place diced apples in a bowl, cover with water or 7-up to prevent browning. Chop walnuts. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and ground cinnamon. Set dry ingredients aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter. Add both sugars, beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla.

Gradually add dry to the batter ingredients alternating with buttermilk; beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined.

Gently fold in the diced apples followed by the walnuts. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups, filling each about 2/3-full.

Place muffins in the heated oven to bake for about 20 minutes, or until cake tester inserted into the cent of an inside muffin comes out clean.

Allow the muffins to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool an additional 10 minutes, to room termperature.

Warm caramel sauce as directed. Drizzle sauce over the muffins on the rack just before serving. (Placing butcher paper under the rack makes clean up much easier!) Serve and enjoy.

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Blessed be the LORD, my rock,
who trains my hands for battle, my fingers for war.