What is toffee?
Made with just sugar and a little water, toffee is easy to make and is an easy introduction to the world of confectionary. This recipe includes a dash of vinegar which will help keep the colour of the toffee clear and bright and banish any cloudiness.
What equipment you’ll need
- A large, heavy-based saucepan, preferably in a light colour so that you can see the colour of the toffee changing.
- Wooden spoon
- Pastry brush
Step 1
Combine 2 cups caster sugar, ⅔ cup water and 1 tbs white vinegar in the saucepan. Stir over a medium heat until the sugar dissolves completely then immediately stop stirring. Don’t be tempted to stir it any further or you will interrupt the caramelising process and risk the toffee not forming.
Step 2
Increase the heat to high and bring the toffee syrup to the boil without stirring. Allow the liquid to simmer for 15-20 minutes or until golden. To prevent sugar crystals forming on the sides of the pan, brush down the sides with a wet pastry brush every few minutes.
Step 3
Once golden, take the pan off the heat and allow to sit for a minute, or until the mix stops bubbling. Your toffee is now ready to use.
Tips and variations
- If you’d prefer a softer toffee, try adding ½ tsp cream of tartar at the start of the recipe.
- If you’d like to colour the toffee, add the food dye at the end of the cooking process to ensure your toffee reaches the right stage.
- If you want to add embellishments to the top of your toffee, have it all prepared and ready to sprinkle as soon as you finish. Once the toffee in poured out of the hot pan it will set very quickly, so be all ready to go.
How to use your toffee
Turn your liquid toffee into a range of delicious confectionery, such as the following:
Kids toffees
Place patty cases in a muffin tin and half fill each one with the golden toffee. Sprinkle over hundreds and thousands or toasted nuts and set aside for 15-20 minutes to set.
Toffee nut shards
Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper. Cover with ½ cup toasted nuts of your choice, keeping them away from the edges. Pour the hot toffee over the nuts, shake to evenly distribute, then set aside for 10 minutes. Break the toffee into shards and serve.
Toffee apples
Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper. Push confectionary sticks into the top of 12 small apples. Dip an apple into the toffee, allow the excess to drain off, then stand the toffee apple on the prepared tray. Repeat with the remaining apples, then allow them to set for 20 minutes of until set.
Other toffee delights
FAQs
Toffee is an English confection made by caramelizing sugar or molasses (creating inverted sugar) along with butter, and occasionally flour. The mixture is heated until its temperature reaches the hard crack stage of 149 to 154 °C (300 to 310 °F). While being prepared, toffee is sometimes mixed with nuts or raisins.
What is the difference between caramel and toffee? ›
The difference between caramel and toffee is greater, as caramel has a more liquid consistency and is usually pure sugar (it doesn't contain butter or flour). Still, the taste of caramel, fudge, and toffee is relatively similar, as they are all made from mostly sugar (as well as butter in the case of fudge and toffee).
What is the difference between American toffee and English toffee? ›
What's the difference between English and American toffee? The main difference is that traditional English toffee is created without nuts, while American toffee is created with a variety of nuts. The most common nuts being the almond.
Why is my toffee chewy and not crunchy? ›
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. Think you can save time by bringing the syrup to a full rolling, popping boil in order for it to darken more quickly? Think again.
What do Americans call toffee? ›
Taffy is considered an earlier rendition of the word toffee, but the word taffy continued to be used in America while toffee was used in Great Britain.
Is taffy just 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 vinegar in toffee? ›
Made with just sugar and a little water, toffee is easy to make and is an easy introduction to the world of confectionary. This recipe includes a dash of vinegar which will help keep the colour of the toffee clear and bright and banish any cloudiness.
Is butterscotch the same as toffee? ›
Toffee is butterscotch that has been cooked for a longer period of time. Toffee begins as a base of butter and brown sugar that is gradually cooked to the hard-crack sugar stage between 295 and 309 degrees Fahrenheit.
Is dulce de leche toffee? ›
But while it looks like caramel, it is, in fact, based on the Maillard browning of dairy rather than the caramelization of sugar. That may sound like a technicality, but it gives dulce de leche a sweet and mellow, toffee or butterscotch-like flavor without the bitterness associated with caramel (i.e., burned sugar).
Which is the famous toffee in the world? ›
World Famous English Toffee – Cora Lee Candies.
synonyms: brittle, toffy. types: peanut brittle. brittle containing peanuts. type of: candy, confect. a rich sweet made of flavored sugar and often combined with fruit or nuts.
What country is known for toffee? ›
Toffee didn't appear in dictionaries until after 1825, making it something of a newcomer to the world of candy. Most food historians agree that the sweet treat likely originated in Wales and then rose to prominence across Britain and Europe where supplies of butter and eventually imported sugar were plentiful.
Why put baking soda in toffee? ›
Brittles and toffees accumulate small amounts of acid from the browning reactions that occur during cooking. This is one reason why the baking soda is added at the end of cooking. The soda reacts with the acid to make bubbles, and the syrup foams.
What can go wrong when making toffee? ›
Stirring too quickly or too often can cause the toffee to separate. Moderate the heat as needed – turn it down if the toffee is boiling or cooking too fast so it doesn't burn.
Do you stir toffee constantly? ›
Once boiling, cook, stirring only 2 to 3 times, until it turns a dark amber color and the temperature reaches 285 degrees F (137 degrees C) on a candy thermometer, 20 to 30 minutes. Immediately pour toffee into the prepared baking dish.
Is toffee just crunchy caramel? ›
Toffee vs Caramel
The difference between toffee and caramel is that caramel is made with white granulated sugar and cooked to 340 degrees Fahrenheit, whereas toffee is made with butter and brown sugar and cooked to 295 - 309 degrees Fahrenheit.
What the heck is toffee? ›
Toffee is just sugar, butter, water, and vanilla cooked to a hard crack stage and caramel has added heavy whipping cream and cooked to a firm ball stage. While I like toffee, I think that if it's not done right it takes on a burned sugar flavor and I really prefer a richer flavor of caramel!
Is toffee the same as honeycomb? ›
Honeycomb is a sweet confectionery also known as cinder toffee. Discover how to make honeycomb at home, how to store it and what to make with it.
What is toffee supposed to taste like? ›
There is something wonderful about the absolutely shattering crunch of toffee. The high-volume bite alone is enough to keep you snacking on a bowl of this confection, but when it's combined with buttery, caramelly flavor with just a tinge of salt and bitterness it becomes positively irresistible.
