Every autumn in Chicago, the Midwest’s snappiest fall treat — the Affy Tapple caramel apple — makes a big splash at area grocers. The familiar red-and-yellow three-packs of the crispy, gooey, peanutty delights seem to be everywhere you look.
This fall marks the 75th year of Affy Tapple’s “original caramel apple,” a fall tradition that began in 1948 when a Chicago candy store bookkeeper formulated a winning, now top-secret recipe for a crisp apple dipped in buttery caramel and wrapped in a cozy coat of Spanish peanuts.
Edna Kastrup tended to the daily financial recordkeeping at Windy City Confections, a chocolate and candy shop at 7110 N. Clark St., when she developed the recipe for a rich caramel — the color of a copper penny. Kastrup’s caramel boasted the ideal smooth, creamy consistency for coating a tart, crispy apple.
Unlike another popular treat at the time — the red candy apple, with its hard, sugar candy shell — Kastrup’s taffy apples caused less dental damage, with each bite packed with the delightful fall flavor and texture pairing of a fresh-picked apple and caramel.
In 1952, Kastrup and her husband, Knud, bought out Windy City Confections and opened their first taffy apple-focused retail store down the street, at 7117 N. Clark St. in Rogers Park.
They named their new business Affy Tapple so they’d be among the first companies listed in the telephone book.
“We still use Mrs. Kastrup’s exact same caramel recipes,” said Derek Dye, marketing manager at Affy Tapple. “It remains a closely guarded secret.”
In a 1983 interview with a local paper, Kastrup, who died in 2000, did reveal other secrets to the perfect caramel apple: “We only use fresh Jonathans — they’re the best-tasting. The size of the apple doesn’t matter.”
Later, in a 1987 interview, she remarked, “I wouldn’t sell the formula for a million dollars!”
She also shared the company’s early quality-control process: “We eat one every day to make sure they’re good. That’s the law.”
Today, truckloads of apples direct from Michigan farms arrive every morning at the doorstep of the Affy Tapple factory in suburban Niles. From mid-August through the end of November, 350,000 apples a day bobble along the assembly line as the company’s team of 350 employees rolls out over 15 million caramel apples a year.
And though some operations are computerized, such as the caramel temperature monitoring system, the apples are still largely handcrafted. Even the delectable caramel is made in small batches, from scratch, every day.
”Our focus is not on being fast, but on being efficient and effective,” said Affy Tapple plant manager Abe Esquivel. “And our people are the best part of our company, bar none. Our team sticks together. One of our team members, Eddie Delgado, has been with us since 1986.”
Teammates include five recently arrived refugees, thanks to a partnership with RefugeeOne, a nonprofit organization that provides resettlement services to refugees in Chicago.
Josephine, a refugee from the Republic of Congo, gushed, “I love working here!” as she assembled boxes of orange and yellow sprinkle-coated caramel apples for shipment.
“Our team members from RefugeeOne are tremendous workers,” said plant manager Abraham Esquivel. “We appreciate the hard-work ethic they bring to Affy Tapple.”
During the hectic fall season, employees work in overdrive as the factory runs two daily shifts, from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and from 5:30 p.m. to 3 a.m. According to Esquivel, approximately 4,900 apples per assembly line per hour are transformed.
The journey from plain apple to Affy Tapple begins with the selection process. Bad apples are tossed aside and later sent to a pig farm. Fruits that make the cut are whisked through a washing machine, then poked with a wooden stick: workers here impale 23 to 25 apples a minute. Then they’re dipped into a copper pot filled with molten caramel and finally coated in chopped peanuts.
“Double-dipping in the dry roasted peanuts is always a good idea,” said Esquivel. “We go through about half a billion peanuts per year!”
Beyond retail sales, Affy Tapple has also played a role in the fundraising efforts of schools across Chicago, especially in the 1960s and ’70s. Today, a dedicated factory store sells caramel apples by the case, at a discount, for local fundraising efforts.
In 1995, the Kastrup family sold the company — it’s switched hands several times since — and in 2000, the company moved from its Clark Street headquarters to the larger facility in Niles. In 2001, the company acquired Mrs. Prindables, and a section of the factory is dedicated to the line of handcrafted, gourmet mega apples coated not just in caramel but also chocolate, sprinkles, marshmallows and more.
“Half of the calories in an original Affy Tapple are from the apple itself,” said Esquivel. “They’re also a good source of fiber. So, overall, an Affy Tapple makes for a more nutritious treat than a candy bar. I eat one of our classic caramel with peanuts daily, and I rarely get sick. Maybe a caramel apple a day really does keep the doctor away.”
To mark its birthday, Affy Tapple has unveiled a special 75th anniversary packaging label. Local Chicago area businesses can also enter for a chance to “Win Affy Tapple for Their Office,” delivered by a snappy mascot, Affy Man. VIsit affytapple.com for details.
