Annabel Karmel's toffee apples

Method

• step 1

  Push thick wooden sticks, chopsticks or twigs into the apples. Line a baking tray with parchment

• step 2

  Put the sugar, butter, golden syrup and water in a heavy saucepan. Heat gently, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Boil without stirring until the temperature reaches 143°C on a sugar thermometer. If you don't have a sugar thermometer, wait until the sugar syrup goes brown in the pan. It's ready if, when you use a spoon to drop a little of the syrup into a cup of very cold water, the syrup hardens immediately as it hits the water.

• step 3

  Remove the pan from the heat. Holding them by the sticks, carefully dip the apples into the hot toffee mixture, swirling them around and allowing the excess to drip off. You can reheat the toffee if it gets too thick

• step 4

  Leave to set on the parchment-covered baking tray