Sautéed apples served with deliciously sweet and salty caramel sauce tastes heavenly. Use tart apples, such as Granny Smith, which will balance the decadent sauce. This is my idea of an adult caramel apple!

• 4 Granny Smith or other tart cooking apples, peeled, cored and sliced in half and each half sliced into 4 slices
• 1/2 cup salted butter plus 1 teaspoon for the sauté pan
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/16 teaspoon sea salt

For the apples

1. Melt the 1 tsp of butter in a large skillet set over medium heat.
2. Add the apples to the pan and sauté them for 5 to 7 minutes, until they turn golden and tender. Remove the apples from the pan and set them aside.

For the caramel

1. In a separate small pot set over medium-low heat, melt the butter in the heavy cream. Immediately remove from the heat and set aside.
2. Place the sugar in a separate heavy bottomed saucepan set over medium heat. Sprinkle the water over the sugar and allow it to dissolve over the heat without stirring.
3. Cook the sugar undisturbed, watching carefully and as the sugar begins to caramelize, occasionally shake and swirl the pan to evenly distribute the color. This will take approximately 8 – 10 minutes.
4. When the caramel is a rich golden color, (be careful as the mixture goes from pale to burnt very quickly) remove the pan from the heat and carefully add the hot cream and melted butter to the caramel. Stand back during this process; the hot caramel will bubble up the sides of the pan and hot caramel and sugars are a nasty burn.
5. Return the caramel to low heat, whisking constantly. Cook and stir the caramel for about 2 minutes over the low heat. Remove from the heat and season the sauce with the about 1/16 teaspoon sea salt; stir until it is dissolved completely.
6. Drizzle the caramel sauce over the warm apples and serve immediately.

Serves 6

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