The Best English Toffee Recipe (2024) | So Festive! (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between English toffee and regular toffee? ›

Americanized toffee may include nuts, while a completely traditional British toffee will not. On the other hand, English toffee uses pure cane sugar, brown sugar, or molasses as its sweet base and always involves chocolate.

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.

As the toffee cools and the molten sugar crystals become solid again, they are attracted to the 'seed' forming new lumps of tiny crystals – hence the grainy texture. This can also happen if the toffee is stirred, or agitated, after it has begun to boil or on cooling (as happened with this pink-tinted toffee).

If the butterfat separates out then usually this is due to the mixture being either heated or cooled too quickly, which "shocks" the mixture and causes the fat to separate out. It can also be caused by the mixture being heated unevenly (if the pan has a thin base and has hot spots).

This toffee is cooked initially to 310°F (154°C), then the salt and baking soda are added, creating carbon dioxide. The foaming and bubbling aerate the candy somewhat, making the texture lighter and the candy easier to bite into.

Although named English toffee, it bears little resemblance to the wide range of confectionery known as toffee currently available in the United Kingdom. However, one can still find this product in the UK under the name "butter crunch".

It's important while the toffee cooks to only stir it occasionally. Constant stirring can cause the toffee to crystallize and separate.

To avoid starting again, try these tips. Dissolve the sugar completely before increasing the heat and bringing the mixture to the boil. You'll know when it's dissolved - there won't be any crystals on your spoon. Brush any sugar crystals from the side of the pan with a wet pastry brush during the toffee-making process.

Generally, dark varieties contain about 6.5% molasses versus the 3.5% found in lighter ones, which gives dark brown sugar both a deeper color and a stronger flavor with more potent caramel and toffee notes.

Why do you put cream of tartar in toffee? ›

This means that as boiling continues, a portion of the sugar separates into its constituent parts—glucose and fructose. Adding cream of tartar and a dash of vinegar to a toffee recipe helps bring about this change.

Add the water and again bring to the boiling point. Boiling the butter and water will dissolve the sugar crystals very quickly. This will keep the batch from recrystallizing during the cooking process.

English toffee and American toffee diverged with the preferred use of sugar type. English toffee is made with brown sugar, while American-style toffee, known as buttercrunch is made with white table sugar (granulated sugar). Buttercrunch is typically dusted with crushed almonds or other nuts.

Homemade English Toffee is a sweet and addicting treat made with a hard candy layer topped with chocolate and chopped pecans for a nutty crunch. Plus, it is a no-bake dessert, so there is no need to turn on the oven.

Toffee is often combined with nuts such as almonds and semi-sweet chocolate to create classic English toffee. This is done by spreading the hot toffee out flat over a sheet pan and topping it with semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Toffee nut is much more, well, nutty! Whereas, English toffee has a more buttery and smooth flavor.