Easy Homemade Toffee
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An unbelievably easy peasy, no-fuss, homemade toffee recipe (even for you first-timers!). So perfect for the holidays!
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Need an easy budget-friendly holiday gift for neighbors, teachers, friends and family? Some candy to munch on for all of December? I have you completely covered with this easy homemade toffee recipe.
But never made toffee before? Don’t have a candy thermometer? Don’t you worry, I got you. With the ins and outs, dos and donts, tips and tricks, a step-by-step video guide, you’ll be making so much toffee in no time!
what is the difference between toffee and caramel?
- Both toffee and caramel are made from sugar and butter, but toffee is cooked at a much higher temperature than caramel, resulting in a hard and brittle texture known as the “hard-crack” stage.
- Caramel has a creamier, thicker consistency and typically does not contain butter, yielding a soft and chewy end result.
Ingredients
Almonds
We love whole almonds but you can improvise with your favorite nuts such as walnuts or pecans.
Butter
A quintessential toffee ingredient! We always recommend using unsalted butter as it allows for more control and consistency. You can of course replace unsalted butter with salted butter in a pinch, reducing the amount of salt indicated in the recipe, and adding to taste.
Sugar
Granulated sugar is a must. We do not recommend using brown sugar as the molasses in the brown sugar has a higher chance of burning and scorching.
Vanilla extract
For added flavor! You can omit if needed, but the subtle notes of vanilla flavors certainly takes this toffee to the next level.
Salt
A little bit of salt allows the other flavors of the toffee to shine through.
Chocolate chips
Semi-sweet chocolate chips are perfect here, melting their way over the hot toffee.
Pecans
An added crunch as a finishing touch! But you can also use almonds, pistachios or walnuts.
tips and tricks for success
- Patience. Making toffee is a labor of love. Do not try to rush the process and increase the heat for faster results.
- Use a heavy saucepan. A heavy bottom saucepan is key for even heat distribution. A thin bottom saucepan tends to heat too fast, causing separation and burning.
- Avoid abrupt temperature changes. A sudden drop or increase in temperature can cause separation. We want to keep the temperature consistent and steady.
- Use a jar of peanut butter as a color guide. Known as the “peanut butter trick”, it is helpful to have a jar of peanut butter handy in order to cook the hot toffee until it resembles approximately the same color as peanut butter.
Storing and freezing HOMEMADE TOFFEE
- At room temperature. Leftover toffee can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 week with layers separated by wax paper to avoid from getting sticky.
- In the refrigerator. Leftover toffee can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 weeks with layers separated by wax paper to avoid from getting sticky.
- In the freezer. Leftover toffee can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. To freeze toffee, place the leftover toffee pieces in a single layer on a baking sheet (making sure the pieces are not touching), covered, and place in the freezer until frozen. This can take a few hours or overnight. Once frozen, transfer the frozen toffee pieces into freezer bags, squeezing out any excess air before sealing. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Easy Homemade Toffee: Frequently Asked Questions
We recommend using a heavy saucepan for the best results possible, and to avoid any abrupt temperature changes during the cooking process. In some cases, separated toffee can be salvaged by removing from heat and whisking vigorously and constantly.
We recommend using whole almonds but pecans, pistachios or walnuts will also work very well here.
A candy thermometer is not necessary here. The beauty of this recipe is its ease and simplicity!
This is a handy trick to help cook the toffee mixture until it resembles the color of peanut butter.
Homemade toffee can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 week (away from heat) or in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, letting it come to room temperature prior to serving.
Here is a foolproof step-by-step video guide for a stress-free toffee!
Easy Homemade Toffee
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw almonds
- 1 cup unsalted butter, cubed
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ⅓ cup pecans, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Spread almonds in an even layer onto the prepared baking sheet. Place into oven and bake until toasted, about 10 minutes; set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, combine butter, sugar vanilla and salt over medium heat. Cook, whisking constantly, until butter has melted and mixture is almond brown in color, about 10-15 minutes.
- Immediately spread the hot toffee mixture evenly over the almonds. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. After 1-2 minutes, spread the chocolate chips in an even layer until smooth. Sprinkle with pecans.
- Let cool completely, about 2 hours. Break into pieces.
Did you make this recipe?
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I attempted and failed to make successful toffee three times with a candy thermometer. The peanut butter trick is genius and the two batches I made matching the color to a jar of PB came out perfectly at exactly 10-15 minutes of stirring. As a side note, I made one of the batches with white chocolate chips and crushed candy canes which was a big hit. Thank you for this foolproof method of making delicious toffee.
Best recipe ever!
I’ve made it so many times and everyone loves it, for the kids I used dairy free butter and choc chips still worked perfectly! I also added chopped jelly sweets and marshmallows! Big hit!
My go to toffee recipe every Christmas
Can I use salted butter and omit the 1/4 tsp salt?
I tried this twice! its wonderful. It will separate at about 15 minutes but all comes together at the end- 19 minutes when its the color of peanut butter! I used a 8 x 12 pan. worked well! I did add 1/2 tsp of water when it separated and that helped. Persevere because it is really good but it comes together!
Made this toffee many times! Huge success every single time.
Super delicious! Great gift for Christmass.
I made this today. It was my first attempt at toffee. It came out perfect. I was really pleased. I was a bit worried after reading some of the posts about the fails. I used toasted pecans instead of almonds. I also used an 8 x 8 foil lined pan. The peanut butter trick was really helpful for determining when the toffee was done. I live at altitude (5,280 feet) so it took about 25 minutes to get the toffee to the hard crack stage. I love that I didn’t need to use a candy thermometer. I will be making this recipe again.
Great Recipe! I stress every time I make toffee because it separates so easily, but not this time! I cooked two batches and both came out beautifully. Thank you for this great recipe and instructions. My go to recipe from now on!
I made this in a sheet pan and found that the toffee didn’t cover the whole pan. It is delicious, but not I just have a huge portion of the pan without toffee on it. Any tips for how to clean the pan and whisk? I am struggling
I used a stainless steel pan the first time I made it and I actually filled it with water when I was finished and heated the water to soften the caramel. I stirred it with the dirty wisk and it dissolved off the wisk. I use a rubber spatula and a non stick pan now and it wipes out very easily.
This year (year.. 4? I love this recipe) I realized I didn’t have sugar so I used syrup. I have been using pure maple syrup for most of my baking anyway. I used 1 1/4 cup syrup in place of the 1 cup sugar. It is delicious!
Soak in hot water…it usually helps
The only problem with this recipe is that it is so good I can’t stop eating it!
My first time making toffee and it was so easy and delicious.
I have been making this for a couple years. every one loves it , it’s delicious !
It definitely separates while cooking but comes together at the end, so have faith and just keep stirring!
THE BEST TOFFEE I’VE EVER MADE! Oh my goodness, my friend and I are like really good bakers with peanut brittle, banana bread, cake, pecan pies (all from scratch) all under our belts, I wanted something new to try for the Holidays. We made this and wow, I literally can’t stop thinking about how good this toffee is. You should totally try this recipe, it will change your life!
This looked so good that I just had to try it, even though I only had vegan butter in the house. It did NOT work. I’m sharing this to help anyone else who might want to try it, but especially because I’m likely to forget about this whole incident and try it again at some point in the future.
Such a simple recipe and SO incredibly delicious! Next time I won’t use as many almonds and will chop them first. Just my taste. I tell you, I ate nearly the whole lot in one sitting. It’s THAT good! Thankyou for sharing this recipe X
Cool
So much better than I thought it was going to turn out. I toasted some chopped pecans and mixed it into the sugar mixture when done and then spread it onto a parchment-lined pan. I love, love, love it. So, so great. I was kinda nervous because it was in this weird stage where I was worried it was going to separate, but then it started caramelizing. It does take a bit of time, but not too much. I will definitely make this again.
Hi I made this today and it delicious but it’s more like caramel. I used salted butter and brown sugar, any advice would b great .
You probably didn’t cook it enough. This candy would cook to 300 degrees on a candy thermometer, otherwise known as “hard crack” stage. Caramel (that is soft) was cooked to a soft crack stage. A candy thermometer is your best bet when making candy so you get the texture you want. Alternatively, you can drop a tiny bit of the candy mixture into a cup of ice water and see how it feels.
Easy is right! Turned out great first time. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
I just made it and it looks so good! At one point, it did start to look like marshmallow crème, but I just kept stirring and it turned out okay. It would have been helpful to include the pan size though. The only thing I hate about this is how I have to wait 2 more hours until I can finally devour it! 🙁