BEST CARAMEL APPLES FOR FOOTBALL WEEKEND

It was a party in Texas! Time for the infamous Red River Rivalry of Texas/OU weekend! I only wish Autumn weather had hung around a little longer, but instead we had temps in the 90's! Grandpuppy Bo was busy seeing what the fuss was all about when the master of boiled peanuts began to set up his cooking station! 

Boiled Peanuts! 

Time to go inside for a sneak peak at our football party! 

So many big games were being played across the country. Our big rivalries were Ole Miss vs. Texas A&M, Texas Longhorns vs. Oklahoma, and LSU vs. Florida....we were yellin' GIG EM', HOTTY TODDY,  GEAUX TIGERS, and we "allowed" Jenn to yell Hook Em' Horns! Sorry Jenn......this is an AGGIE house! 

 Brats in Beer!

Tailgate Dip!

Hot German Pretzels with tangy Mustard!

A celebratory dance with Jenn and Bo....

Texas Longhorns won the game...

first time the Longhorns beat OU since 2007 and the first win over OU for the seniors!

Now this was FABULOUS! 

I will never make caramel apples again with store bought caramels. 

This recipe was soooo good and the caramel was rich and buttery tasting....

cook for the full 40 minutes and you will have the perfect caramel sauce! 

CARAMEL APPLES
1 cup butter
2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
8 -10 wooden sticks
8 -10 medium tart apples  

Insert 1 wooden stick into each apple. In a heavy saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup and milk; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook and stir until a candy thermometer reads 248 degrees (firm ball stage) about 30-40 minutes and for a softer caramel cook just to a few less degrees. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Dip each apple into hot caramel mixture; turn to coat. Holding by the stick, sprinkle with nuts or whatever you desire while the caramel is still warm (work quickly the caramel sets up fast). Set on generously buttered wax paper to cool, which has been sprayed with Pam. 

 I used three different variety of apples.......Zestar, Gala, and Honey Crisp.