the last bite
Bionic Apples
Photography by
Jonathan Gayman
Contributor: Kelly Klein, Director of Sales I always look forward to fall. The leaves change to bright oranges and reds, the hot weather comes to an end and I get to partake in my favorite annual tradition of taking my nephews apple picking. Every year when we come home from apple picking, we try to create our own sweet treats with the crisp treasures we collected. No matter how hard we try, we have never quite mastered making caramel apples like the ones at Merb’s – probably because the historic St. Louis candy shop has been perfecting its Bionic Apples since the 1970s.
Bionic Apples were the brainchild of Robert Wright – the father of the shop’s current owner, Teri Bearden – and actually began as caramel-covered pears. The pears proved too perishable, and thus the Bionic Apple was born. The first apples Wright used were Jonathan apples, but as it became more difficult to find large Jonathan apples from year to year, the shop switched to Granny Smith. “The tartness of the Granny Smith apple complemented our homemade caramel sauce so well that we’ve been using them ever
since,” Bearden says. When asked if any special ingredients go into the Bionic Apples, Bearden replied enthusiastically, “Bionic Apples are made with lots of love and whipping cream.” Merb’s typically begins stocking Bionic Apples at all three of its locations immediately following Labor Day and offers them through
the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. The shop’s Bionic Apples can also be found at select grocery stores across the St. Louis area. For me and my family, nothing signals the shift in seasons from summer to fall like biting into these crunchy, sticky-sweet treats. Merb’s, multiple locations, merbscandies.com
Director of sales Kelly Klein isn’t the only Feast team member looking forward to caramel apple season – turn to p. 28 for pastry chef Christy Augustin’s recipe for apple cider caramel apples.