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Hi Bold Bakers!
My homemade English toffee is a triple threat! Easy to make, a great edible gift around the holidays, and so absolutely delicious you may not want to give it away! It’s one of the easiest homemade candies you can make, and who doesn’t love Old Fashioned English Toffee!
Ever have a Heath bar? Or in Europe, a Daim bar? After you make this recipe, I don’t think you’ll impulse buy one of them at the checkout line at your grocery store again!
This homemade English toffee is chocolatey, nutty, and has the most amazing dark caramel at the bottom. It’s not a chewy caramel either; it has a nice crisp bite. A bit of advice: don’t be shy with that vanilla and salt. They add such an incredible flavor to this candy!
And, if you love toffee, why not try my recent Sticky Toffee Pudding recipe? If candy is what you’re after, you have to try my Apple Cider Caramels and my Homemade Caramel Candies.
What Is English Toffee?
If you’ve had a Heath or Daim bar, then you have a vague idea of what English Toffee should taste like! Toffee is a candy that is made by caramelizing sugar and butter. Then, I cover the crisp toffee with chocolate and toasted nuts! It’s incredibly addicting.
What Do You Need To Make English Toffee?
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Baking Sheet
- Parchment paper
- Heavy-bottomed saucepan
- Candy thermometer (optional)
How Do You Make English Toffee?
English toffee is one of the easiest and most delicious candies to make! Here is how you do it (and don’t forget to get the full recipe with measurements, on the page down below):
- Prepare a medium baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper.
- In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt. Heat over medium heat.
- Allow the butter and sugar to dissolve and then bring to a simmer. Once at a simmer, stir constantly with a whisk, so the butter and sugar don’t separate. Heat until the mixture turns dark amber. This should take around 15-20 minutes. If you are using a candy thermometer, it should be 285ºF
- Pour the toffee mixture into the prepared baking sheet. Set aside and let it harden for 20 minutes.
- Gently melt the chocolate and use a spatula to spread it thinly on top of the toffee. Sprinkle the wet chocolate with almonds and pecans.
- Refrigerate JUST to set the chocolate, about 1 hour, then remove from the fridge and break into pieces.
Gemma’s Pro Chef Tips For Making English Toffee
- You don’t want to keep the toffee in the fridge for too long, as the toffee will become damp and not crispy.
- Do NOT be shy with the salt and vanilla — they add great flavor!
- I use milk chocolate in this recipe to resemble a Daim and Heath bar, but feel free to use dark chocolate!
- For maximum flavor, be sure to toast the nuts before adding them on top of the wet chocolate?
How Do I Store English Toffee?
You can store leftover toffee in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.
Make More Holiday Recipes!
And don’t forget to buy my Bigger Bolder Baking Cookbook!
Full (and printable) recipe below!
Try These Recipes!
Watch The Recipe Video!
Classic English Toffee Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 ½ sticks (10oz/284g) butter
- 1 ¼ cups (10oz/284g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup (4 ½ oz/128g) milk chocolate
- ⅓ cup (1 ½oz/43g) toasted chopped almonds
- ⅓ cup (1 ½oz/43g) toasted chopped pecans
Instructions
- Line a medium baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat, combine butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt.
- Let the butter melt and sugar dissolve and then bring to a simmer, then cook, stirring constantly with a whisk, so the butter and sugar don't separate, until mixture turns dark amber, 15 - 20 minutes or 285ºF on a candy thermometer. Note: if your toffee is still pale at this temperature then continue to simmer until you reach the color in the video.
- Pour toffee mixture into the prepared baking sheet and set aside to harden for 20 minutes.
- Gently melt the chocolate and using a spatula spread it thinly and evenly over the hard candy. Sprinkle the chopped almonds and pecans all over the wet chocolate.
- Refrigerate to JUST set the chocolate, about 1 hour. Then remove from the fridge and break into pieces and enjoy. Store the toffee at room temperature in an airtight container. Note: Don't store the toffee for too long in the fridge as it will make the toffee damp and not as crisp.
it was doing good and right at the end the butter and sugar separated. what did I do wrong? I used my dutch oven pot for a heavy bottom pan and I kept whisking the whole time.
OMG! This is good toffee! My husband loves toffee and with the pandemic I’m not running out to buy him any so decided to give this a try. I couldn’t locate my candy thermometer so used my instant read. Remarkably easy to make! And so much more cost effective than store bought! My husband loved it! Highly recommend this recipe!
Hi!
Absolutely loved the recipe. Will try it tomorrow itself. However, I don’t happen to have a candy thermometer.
Any tips or tricks to get the caramel part right?
Thankyou
Lots of love from India
This is literally one of the best recipies for toffee i have ever come across…my whole family is going crazy for this stuff..absolutely loved it!!
This was so very easy to make and really delicious! I delivered holiday goody bags to my neighbors last night with a bit of this in it! Great recipe! Starting a new batch now!
Hi there! I made this recipe, and it turned out VERY well! I was wondering about using brown sugar but after reading the comments below, I got my answer! Also, I too used milk chocolate, but it wasn’t very “pourable” so I added a little bit of water. Gasp! Big mistake!! The remedy, after searching the internet, was to add plenty of non-flavored oil or butter. CRISIS AVERTED! This is a SUPER recipe and I appreciate you sharing it with us!!!
Thanks Gemma
Just finished this great recipe: Now the trick is to keep my fingers’ out of the bowl!
They taste really great……… Now to you have anything that I can make for my husband who is diabetic?
What do you recommend if i don’t have a candy thermometer?
can i use unsalted butter
Hi, is the butter salted or unsalted?