Apple Cider Caramel Lollipops

Apple Cider Caramel Lollipops
Sugar
Apple Cider

Equipment
Buttered silpat or parchment
Lollipop sticks or some equivalent (cut bamboo skewers work well too)
Heavy-bottomed saucepan
Pastry brush

Prep First
Mis en place is never more important than when you work with caramel. What seems to take forever to start moves very quickly once it's going, and it helps to have everything you'll need handy. You don't want to walk away from caramel and you sure don't want to move around with it either - too dangerous.

Before you turn on a burner, do the following:

• Put on shoes, and get the kids and dogs out of the kitchen. Boiling caramel sticks and burns badly.
• Lay out your silpats or parchment paper on upside-down sheet pans or something that will protect your counters from scorching.
• Butter the silpats or parchment lightly.
• Open the package of lollipop sticks and put them in a mug so they're easy to grab in a hurry.
• Fill a small bowl with cold water and lay the pastry brush next to it. Place both near the stove.
• Grab a spoon or tiny sieve in case you need to skim the caramel.

Start Cooking!
Generally caramel is made by combining water and sugar, and then boiling them as a syrup until all the water evaporates and darkens. That's caramel. These lollipops use the same method, but instead of combining sugar and water, you'll combine the cider and sugar. The cider will impart a tangy apple flavor, but remember the darker your caramel, the stronger that flavor will be - it can overpower the apple flavor.

1. Combine the sugar and cider in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and place on the stove on medium to medium-high heat.
2. Stir to combine well, ensuring the sugar is completely moistened.
3. Using the pastry brush, dab water around the sides of the pan. This will keep the caramel from crystallizing on the sides of the pan.
4. Watch, watch, watch - but do not move the pan. At first the sugar syrup will boil rapidly and may produce scum from the cider. Use a spoon or a skimmer to pull this off the surface. After a little while, the bubbles will get larger and glassier and the bubbling will look like it's slowing down. Every now and then, make sure you're using the pastry brush to clean the sides of the pan.
5. When the syrup starts to take on a tiny bit of color, you really need to wake up. Turn the heat down a little, and start moving the pan to distribute the heat (and color) a little. You don't need to brush the pan anymore.
6. Before your caramel reaches the color you want, take it off the heat. It will continue to darken while you work, so work quickly.
7. Carefully pour (or spoon) the hot caramel onto the silpats. As soon as you pour the caramel, place your lollipop stick. You can go back and pour more on to seal the stick in place.
8. Continue this until you've used all the caramel, or it's too hard to use anymore.
9. Let your lollipops rest and harden. You can use a butter knife to gently push the edges in place, but it's not going to completely change shape at this point.
10. Once they're hard, use a butter knife or spatula/palette knife to pry it off the liner.
11. Wrap or eat!

A couple of notes:

• DO NOT EVER stick your finger in the saucepan to taste, and DO NOT taste from a spoon that has been dipped until it is cold.
• DO NOT use your fingers to tidy up your lollipops. Don't your your hands to catch or clean up drips, especially as they fall from the pan. Let it go, otehrwise you might get some nasty burns.
• DO NOT let the kids lick the pan when you're done unless it's cold.
• DO NOT put the hot pan in cold water. You'll ruin the pan and it will likely splatter hot water and caramel all over the place. Heat up the water first, then put the pan in the sink (on a pad, if you have one, to protect the sink).
• If you accidentally let the caramel get too dark and you're going to try again with the lollipops, make caramel sauce (if the caramel's still on the stove). Pour heavy cream in the pan and stir until it's combined. Warning: it will seize and/or spit at you. Be patient, keep stirring and let the caramel melt into the cream. But take it off the heat to do this.
• Screenshots below show the different stages of caramel. This is not rocket science. I never used a thermometer, but you certainly can.