The caramel apple is a treat that most people associate with Halloween, so it shouldn’t be surprising that National Caramel Apple Day is a holiday that falls on October 31st. This makes sense because caramel is a flavor that’s historically been associated with fall, and apples come into season around this time of year as well. It’s logical that the two would have been combined to make a delicious treat. This holiday encourages everyone to run out and purchase a caramel apple for themselves or to pass out as Halloween treats. It’s also a good day for people to try making their own caramel apples.

A Brief History Of Caramel & Candy Apples

Try as we might, we couldn’t uncover the history of this holiday. It has seemingly been lost to time. What we could uncover, however, was the history of candy and caramel apples. We think this history will not only give you something to talk about on National Caramel Apple Day but will also give you a better appreciation for the caramel apple itself.

The red candy apple was invented in 1908 by a candy maker in New Jersey named William W. Kolb. He was experimenting with some red cinnamon candy that he was selling for Christmas and decided to dip some apples into the mixture. He then placed the candy apples in his window with a sign that priced them at a nickel apiece. It was an almost immediate hit, and it wasn’t long before they were being sold along the Jersey shore and at candy shops all over the U.S.

Although you might have thought that caramel apples would have been invented before candy apples, considering that caramel had been around since at least the 17th century, it wasn’t until the 1950s that caramel apples were invented. They were created by Dan Walker, an employee at Kraft Foods, who was experimenting with excess caramels from Halloween. He melted them down and dipped apples into the mixture. Most of the caramel apples sold during the 1950s were handmade, but in 1960, the caramel-apple-making machine was invented by Vito Raimondi.

For any of you wondering, there is a difference between the various types of candy apples, although many of them are mistaken for one another. Candy apples are usually made with a red candy shell, caramel apples have a caramel shell, and jelly apples have a softer candy shell than candy apples. Confused? Well, there are also taffy apples—apples that have a caramel coating with nuts on the outside of them.

Observing National Caramel Apple Day

National Caramel Apple Day is a holiday that blends perfectly with Halloween, so feel free to celebrate Halloween but include some caramel apples in your celebrations. You can also use not only the #Halloween hashtag on your social media account posts for this day, but you can also use the hashtag #NationalCaramelAppleDay with some pictures of your beautiful caramel apples.