Kiddie Academy cooks: caramel apples!

Preparing food can be a fantastic way to mix fun with learning and end up with a tasty treat. When children help cook, it strengthens listening skills, helps them learn to follow directions, work together, practice counting and more. And then, best of all, they get to eat the results!

Every now and then we like to share with you what some of our Academies are cooking up. In this post, we will visit Kiddie Academy of Floral Park, NY. Recently, their Pre-K classes had their first cooking lesson with their amazing chef, Ms. Voula. They learned about kitchen safety and worked together to make their own caramel candied apples to celebrate fall.

The children helped prepare the caramel to be melted, prepped the toppings and then taste tested to see which version they liked best. With Ms. Voula’s supervision, each student made their own delicious apple to take home!

It’s an easy and fun project you can do at home with your children. To get you started, here’s the recipe our friends from Floral Park followed:

Caramel Candied Apples

Ingredients:

• 5-7 small to medium apples
• 15 oz. chewy caramels
• 3 Tbsp heavy cream
• Various toppings, like crushed Oreos, M&Ms, chocolate chips, granola, etc.
• Small wooden dowels

Directions:

• Wash and dry apples thoroughly. Then help the children carefully insert one wooden dowl into the top of the apple (through where the stem would be).
• Prepare all toppings as necessary and spread them out on separate plates.
• In a microwave-safe bowl (or in a small pot on the stove), have an adult heat caramels and heavy cream together until melted. Stir often and keep watch to make sure it does not burn.
• Carefully dip and coat each apple in caramel. Before the caramel sets, cover with toppings of your choice. You can dip, roll, or sprinkle toppings as desired.
• Wait a few minutes for the caramel to set before enjoying!

We’ll share more simple and delicious recipes from our Academies from time to time, so be sure to check back often!