Who doesn’t like toffee? This is my mother-in-law’s recipe for Old-Fashioned Toffee. As you may know, toffee can be very tricky to make and I was lucky enough for her to teach me the steps hands-on. It is easier to see first-hand the color toffee should be when it is done.
You can make this year-round, however it has always been a special treat around the holidays. It is also makes for a perfect homemade gift placed in a holiday tin.
Equipment tips for Old-Fashioned Toffee:
Use heavy-duty cookware:
When making Old-Fashioned Toffee you need a good heavy duty pot or sauce pan that holds high heat. I use a LeCreuset dutch oven.
Testing your thermometer is very important:
Also be sure to have a very good candy thermometer. You should always test your candy thermometer before you use it. To test your thermometer, boil water and place the thermometer in the boiling water. If it reads 212F degrees it is good to go. If not, adjust the temperature called for in the candy recipe to an adjusted temperature. For example: if your thermometer is 5 degrees higher (217F), add 5 degrees to the recipe temperature.
Keep water and a silicone pastry brush nearby:
When making candy keep a small bowl of water next to the stove. After you stir candy, the sugar crystals tend to form along the side of the pan. After you stir it, take your silicone pastry brush dipped in water and run along the edge of the candy to dissolve those sugar crystals.
Ingredient tips for Old-Fashioned Toffee:
About the butter:
Use good quality real butter since it is a main ingredient. My favorite brands are Challenge or Land O’ Lakes. Be sure to let the butter fully incorporate into the superfine sugar, otherwise your toffee will tun out grainy. The recipe calls for 1 pound of butter (i.e. 4 sticks) so I like to use half salted and half unsalted to provide a hint of salt without adding any additional salt to the recipe.
Superfine sugar is best:
There are several types of sugar to use in your baked goods. When making candy use superfine sugar. I use Baker’s Sugar which is made of smaller sugar crystals that will dissolve faster to help ensure your toffee doesn’t come out grainy.
For more holiday candy recipes try our recipe for Old-Fashioned Peanut Butter Fudge
Old-Fashioned Toffee
Equipment
- Heavy-duty dutch oven
- Candy Thermometer
- 2 quarter sheet pans
Ingredients
- 1 c. salted butter
- 1 c. unsalted butter
- 2 c. superfine sugar
- 1/2 c. nuts chopped fine
- 4 1.55 oz. milk or semi-sweet chocolate bars
Instructions
- Set out 2 quarter sheet pans, pre-chop the nuts.
- Place butter and sugar in a heavy-duty sauce pan. Stir once in a while until it starts to reach high heat. Right after you stir the mixture, dip silicone pastry brush in water and run around the side of pan to dissolve the sugar crystals.
- Stir and watch closely as candy thermometer registers between 295-300 degrees.
- Remove from heat and pour immediately onto the 2 pans.
- Add 2 broken up chocolate bars over each pan of the toffee and cover with foil. Let melt for a few minutes. Remove foil and spread melted chocolate with off-set spatula.
- Sprinkle on nuts and put pans in the fridge to set for a few hours or overnight.
- Break up toffee and store in a container.
