The Best Toffee Recipe That is Surprisingly Easy to Make - Life of Stacy (2024)

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No one can turn down a delicious piece of toffee. Making toffee at home can be a little intimidating. But with a foolproof toffee recipe like this, anyone can make this delicious treat at home.

Not to mention, toffee makes the perfect gift. Whether it’s for Christmas, Valentine’s, or just a Welcome to the Neighborhood, toffee is always a welcome gift.

The Best Toffee Recipe That is Surprisingly Easy to Make - Life of Stacy (1)

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So easy to make and you probably already have all the equipment you need.

This post is all about The Best Toffee Recipe.

The Best Toffee Recipe

Equipment:

  • Candy Thermometer – Don’t skip this. It is very important to get toffee to the correct temperature if you want to have the best texture.
  • Silicone Pastry Brush
  • Offset Spatula – This may be something you don’t have but it really comes in handy when spreading the chocolate. The offset feature makes a big difference. The smaller spatula is actually easier to use than the larger one.
  • 11×9 Cookie Sheet / 9×9 Baking Pan
  • Heavy Sauce Pan – you will definitely want to use a quality pot. If it is too thin it won’t heat evenly and will burn the toffee.

Ingredients:

  • 6ozMilk ChocolateChopped
  • 6ozSemisweet ChocolateChopped
  • 8ozButter (2 Sticks)
  • 1CupSugar
  • 1tspLight Corn Syrup
  • ½tspKosher Salt
  • 1tspPure Vanilla Extract
  • ½ – 1CupPecansFinely Chopped and Toasted
  • ¼CupWater
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Combine butter, sugar, corn syrup, salt and 1/4 cup water. Cook over medium heat stirring frequently with wooden or silicone spoon until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves.

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Then stir gently and only occasionally as the temperature nears 300° F and mixture begins to darken.

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Once the mixture reaches 300° F, remove from heat and GENTLY add the vanilla and stir in GENTLY.

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Let toffee cool for 2-3 minutes, then top with chopped chocolate. Place a larger cookie sheet on tip to help the chocolate melt. After about 3 minutes use offset spatula to spread chocolate and then top with chopped pecans.

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Allow to set for at least 4 hours for the chocolate to harden.

Or you can put it in the refrigerator to speed up the process.

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The Best Toffee Recipe That is Surprisingly Easy to Make - Life of Stacy (9)

The Best Toffee Recipe That is Surprisingly Easy to Make

The PERFECT Toffee Recipe. The texture of this toffee is incredible. Light and airy with just the right amount of crunch. It literally melts in your mouth unlike some recipes that are super sticky and can pull your fillings out of your teeth if you're not careful.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Ingredients

  • 6 oz Milk Chocolate Chopped
  • 6 oz Semisweet Chocolate Chopped
  • 8 oz Butter
  • 1 Cup Sugar
  • 1 tsp Light Corn Syrup
  • ½ tsp Kosher Salt
  • 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
  • ½ – 1 Cup Pecans Finely Chopped and Toasted
  • ¼ Cup Water

Instructions

  • Set a Bowl with water and silicone pastry brush next to your stove for easy access.

  • Set out a 9×9 metal pan. You can line it with parchment to help with removal of the toffee. If you would like nuts inside your toffee you can sprinkle a thin layer in the bottom of the pan at this time.

  • In a heavy sauce pan, combine butter, sugar, corn syrup, salt and 1/4 cup water. Cook over medium heat stirring frequently with wooden or silicone spoon until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves. .

  • Insert candy thermometer.

  • Then stir gently and only occasionally as the temperature nears 300° F and mixture begins to darken.

  • Occasionally brush the sides of the pan with he silicone brush and water to keep the sugar from crystalizing.

  • Once the mixture reaches 300° F, remove from heat and GENTLY add the vanilla and stir in GENTLY.

  • Using the silicone spatula, scrape the mixture into the prepared pan.

  • Tilt pan to evenly distribute the mixture. And let cool for 3 minutes.

  • Sprinkle chopped chocolate on top of warm/hot toffee and cover with a larger cookie sheet or foil to help retain the heat.

  • Let sit for a few minutes until melted and then, using the offset spatula, spread evenly.

  • Let cool for at least 3 hours. You can put it in the refrigerator to speed the cooling process.

  • Break pieces for a more rustic look or you can use a large chefs knife for a more finished look.

  • Store in and air tight container in the refrigerator.

Notes

One of my favorite ways to store this is in bight size pieces in the refrigerator. Perfect for a quick little snack when you are craving something sweet.

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Keyword the best toffee recipe

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Tips and Tricks

This recipe is very forgiving. If your butter separates when you poor it, there are two possible reasons.

  1. You had too much of an extreme change in temperature. Quick temperature changes from hot to cold or cold to hot can cause the butter to separate. ex. pouring cold vanilla into the boiling toffee mixture.
  2. Stirring too aggressively can also cause your toffee to separate. Remember to stir gently as you are adding the vanilla.

Don’t despair, if your butter does separate a little, all is not lost. If you look closely in the picture of my mixture, it is separated a bit too. And mine tasted amazing.

When adding chocolate, remember that less is more. You may want to cut back on the chocolate called for. If you add too much chocolate, it will overpower the flavor of the toffee instead of enhancing it.

So, the next time you have a sweet tooth or are looking for the perfect homemade gift to share with a friend, I hope you will give this recipe a try. You won’t be disappointed.

This post was all about the best toffee recipe.

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The Best Toffee Recipe That is Surprisingly Easy to Make - Life of Stacy (2024)

FAQs

How do you keep butter from separating when making toffee? ›

If the two elements melt unevenly it can result in separation. If you have good stovetop burners, we recommend turning them to medium-low to allow the butter and sugar to melt gently in the beginning stages. If the heat is too high, but butter might melt too quickly and can separate from the sugar.

Why is my toffee chewy and not crunchy? ›

Low and slow

Simmering the syrup for English toffee to the requisite 300°F temperature can (and should) be a slow process — up to 20 minutes or so. Don't hurry this gradual transformation; syrup that doesn't reach 300°F, or close to it, will make candy with timid flavor and chewy (not crunchy) texture.

How long does homemade toffee last? ›

Store homemade toffee in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week or in the fridge for up to two weeks.

Do you stir toffee constantly? ›

It's important while the toffee cooks to only stir it occasionally. Constant stirring can cause the toffee to crystallize and separate. For those of you that need to know exactly how often you should stir, I would suggest erring on the side of not stirring more than stirring.

What can go wrong when making toffee? ›

Common toffee making mistakes:
  • I started with way too high of a heat. (At least, I think this was an issue.) I set my portable cooktop at 260 degrees F.
  • I stirred too quickly. I didn't realize this could be an issue.
  • I didn't add a dash of salt. They say you can save a ruined batch of toffee by adding a dash of salt.
Dec 13, 2017

Why does my toffee keep separating? ›

Again, in the beginning stages of making the toffee, you can get separation if you heat the mixture too high too quickly. Not only will the high heat affect how evenly the butter and sugar melt together, but the high heat can also cause the water to evaporate too quickly.

What kind of pan is best for making toffee? ›

You need a very sturdy pan which is KEY to even heat distribution. Thinner, cheaper pans can scorch the cooking candy and/or cook it unevenly. Here are some great choices: Anolon Nouvelle Copper and Cooks Standard. I own a couple pricier copper pots because of the amount of candy I make.

How do you make toffee less hard? ›

Toffee is a hard candy made by cooking a sugar syrup with butter to the hard crack stage, 300–310°F (149–154°C), and then pouring it out to cool. It can have inclusions or not, and it can be made either very dense and hard or can be lightened by adding baking soda when the candy is almost done cooking .

What is the difference between toffee and English toffee? ›

Americanized toffee may include nuts, while a completely traditional British toffee will not. On the other hand, English toffee uses pure cane sugar, brown sugar, or molasses as its sweet base and always involves chocolate.

How do you know when toffee is done? ›

For cooking: cook the toffee until it turns nutty brown. Don't stop cooking it until it's brown. Stop cooking it immediately as soon as it's brown.

What happens if you cook toffee too long? ›

Toffee Making Tips + Troubleshooting

Your toffee is better off overcooked than undercooked! Undercooked toffee won't be anything more than a caramel sauce. But overcooked toffee will be just slightly crunchier (almost unrecognizably). So, always err on the side of over-cooking!

What's the difference between taffy and toffee? ›

Is toffee the same as taffy? Taffy is in no way, shape, or form toffee. Taffy describes chewy fruit candies, whereas toffee is closer to caramel.

Why do you put cream of tartar in toffee? ›

This means that as boiling continues, a portion of the sugar separates into its constituent parts—glucose and fructose. Adding cream of tartar and a dash of vinegar to a toffee recipe helps bring about this change.

Should toffee be hard or soft? ›

It is SO MUCH BETTER than any of those! English toffee is made from sugar and butter and heated to the hard crack stage for a crunchy, buttery candy. I've heard that traditional English toffee isn't made with nuts, but we won't even go there. Toffee simply isn't the same without almonds.

How to fix separated toffee reddit? ›

I'm on my second batch (first one was a total dud) and it's started to separate more than 5 times but I've been able to bring it back by adding some hot water and stirring vigorously.

How do you keep butter and heavy cream from separating? ›

If you mean while you're cooking, keep whisking, don't pour cold into hot or vice versa (similar temp so warm that milk before you add it to a roux), and don't add too much of an acid like lemon juice to a hot cream sauce or you'll curdle it and make it separate.

Why is my toffee not set and why is it's texture grainy and not smooth? ›

As the toffee cools and the molten sugar crystals become solid again, they are attracted to the 'seed' forming new lumps of tiny crystals – hence the grainy texture. This can also happen if the toffee is stirred, or agitated, after it has begun to boil or on cooling (as happened with this pink-tinted toffee).

Why is my chocolate separating from my toffee? ›

Sometimes some of the butter separates out of the toffee and concentrates on the surface. If it does, the chocolate isn't going to adhere to the toffee. Try blotting up the butter with paper towels - the surface should be matte, rather than shiny. Then you can spread the layer of chocolate on top.

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