IMAGE / Jenna Robinson
Toffee is a crunchy holiday treat that requires few ingredients.
Toffee is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth this Christmas
Each year for Christmas my family makes a variety of candy and cookies to enjoy and give as gifts. One of my favorite candies is toffee.
Toffee is a treat with few ingredients but a ton of great flavor.
This is the recipe for our holiday treat.
Ingredients:
(You will need a pound of each of these, including an additional 1/4 cup of chopped almonds.)
- Unsalted butter — can be found at Kroger or any grocery store
- Raw almonds (unsalted) — can be found at Kroger or any grocery store
- Sugar — can be found at Kroger or any grocery store
- Milk chocolate — can be found at candy supply store at Collette’s (in Davison) or any candy supply store
Sugar, milk chocolate, unsalted butter, and unsalted almonds are the four ingredients needed to make toffee.
First, combine two cups of sugar (1 pound) and two cups of butter into a pot. Turn the stove to medium heat and stir with a wooden spoon. Coarsely chop two cups of almonds and add them to the pot.
Insert a candy thermometer into the pot to keep track of the temperature.
Continue stirring until the mixture is melted. The mixture will then become gooey, only mix occasionally during this time. Stirring too much will cause the mixture not to cook correctly, but the bottom needs to be scrapped here and there to avoid burning.
When the candy thermometer reads “hard crack,” or 310 degrees Fahrenheit, immediately take the pot off the heat and poor the mixture onto a cookie sheet and spread it out evenly using a wooden spoon. This step is the most crucial because if the mixture doesn’t get hot enough it won’t set, but if it reaches any higher of a temperature it will burn.
Melt the milk chocolate, we did this by putting it in the microwave for one minute. Spread the milk chocolate on top of the mixture. Then sprinkle about 1/4 cup of chopped almonds on top of the chocolate.
Ms. Susan Kern (l to r) and Mrs. Melissa Robinson make toffee every year as a Christmas tradition.
Let the treat cool and harden. We set our pans outside to speed up this process.
Once the treat is completely cooled, break it into pieces. We just did this step using our hands, washed of course. The pieces don’t have to be uniform, so using your hands is the easiest method.
After the pieces are broken up, the toffee is ready to eat.
Good luck making this fun and delicious treat this holiday season.