Boil in cauldron

When it comes to thinking about the classic signs of Halloween, most of which seem outdated now, I often turn to bobbing for apples, trick or treating with a small bucket (not a pillowcase), and carving a scary (though often it turned out to be goofy) grin on a pumpkin. When I think of Halloween treats, and I’m not talking about the miniature pieces of candy that filled my McDonald’s Jack-o’-lantern bucket, I immediately think of popcorn balls and candy apples. In Walt Disney World, we often dream about the gargantuan caramel apples covered in all sorts of goodies sure to cause a delicious stomach ache, but what about candy apples?

I recently stopped by the Candy Cauldron in Downtown Disney’s West Side to give their traditional offering a sampling.

At first glance, these appear to be the real deal, an authentic candy apple, with a classic red candy coating. There is an even coat around the outside of the apple, which doesn’t wobble and roll away. But how does it stand up to the taste test? Delicious! The Candy Cauldron uses a red apple, not the green variety utilized in the caramel versions, and the candy shell is not to thin or thick. You can feel it shatter under your teeth and the tiny shards melting on your tongue before you even get to the majority of candy or meat of the apple.

As for the flavor of the candy itself, it was red! I honestly couldn’t tell you if it was a cherry, strawberry, or any other sort of red fruit flavor. The candy coating was simply sweet and tasted red, if that makes any sense to you, and it was precisely what I remembered from the candy apples of my childhood Halloweens.

Also, the melting candy, mixed with the juicy apples, equaled a sticky mess all over my face. I mean it, there was syrupy juices on my cheeks and in my beard before I was done! To counteract this, the Candy Cauldron did offer to cut up my apple when I purchased it, but I wanted an authentic experience, and boy did I get one!

I know that Downtown Disney is not hosting the free trick or treating event that has been so popular in the last several years. However, for those brave souls out there who will be venturing out to Downtown Disney in the next few days, this weekend, or even in the summertime, you could do a lot worse than taking a bite out of this candy apple! Oh, and they’ve promised me the Old Hag has not been seen cooking up apples here in months!