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In the world of candy making, toffee is the pinnacle. And English toffee is rich and buttery, has a good crispy snap, and yet is somehow easy to eat. The defining factor of English toffee is the thick layer of chocolate slathered on top with a generous dusting of toasted nuts. Hungry yet?
At its base, toffee is just a mixture of butter and sugar. And even though it seems like a simple ingredient, the amount of butter makes a huge difference and is what distinguishes a toffee from a brittle. There is more butter in toffee, which is what gives it its more pliable texture when compared to brittle.
The mixture is slowly cooked together until a hard crack temperature is reached, at 290°F. The ingredients are simple, but the results can vary, depending on the execution.
Over the years, I’ve had lots of problems with toffee. The process is easy – how hard could a combination of butter and sugar that’s heated to a hard crack stage really be? But on the way to this temperature, I’ve often had the mixture separate. Soon after the butter and sugar would start to boil, the butter would separate from the sugar, and the result would be an oily mess. No, thank you!
For years, this perplexed me! Sometimes it would work, and other times it wouldn’t. After trial and error, I’ve discovered there are a few things that lead to toffee failure:
- One of the major culprits can be abrupt temperature changes. A constant, even heating environment leads to the best results.
- The use of a thin saucepan as opposed to a heavy-bottom variety. Thin pans do not heat evenly and do not cook the toffee well. I know it can seem trivial to read a recipe that urges the use of a heavy-bottom saucepan, but in the case of toffee, it’s very important.
After years of trying different tricks, the best thing I’ve learned is to add corn syrup. A little corn syrup doesn’t add moisture but does help stabilize the mixture. It helps the mixture heat up evenly and cook properly. Now, every time I make English toffee, it comes out perfect as long as I follow these three steps:
- Use a heavy-bottomed saucepan.
- Heat it up slowly.
- Add a little corn syrup.
More Christmas Candy
- Chocolate and peanut butter fudge
- Grandma’s peanut brittle
- Peanut clusters
- Chow mein candy
- Make sure to check out all of my holiday baking recipes
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English Toffee
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp light corn syrup
- 6 oz dark chocolate chips
- 1 cup chopped toasted pecans
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Butter a 9×13 baking sheet pan. Set aside.
- Have an instant-read thermometer ready or fit saucepan with a candy thermometer.
- In a heavy-bottom four-quart saucepan, combine butter, sugar, and corn syrup. Over low heat, bring to a boil, stirring slowly. Continue to boil until the mixture reaches 290°F, 15-20 minutes. It will be a light amber color and smell like caramel and butterscotch.1 cup salted butter, 1 cup granulated sugar, 2 tbsp light corn syrup
- Remove from heat, add in the vanilla, and pour into the prepared baking sheet pan. Let cool for one minute and sprinkle with ¼ cup chopped nuts over the entire mixture. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Let sit until melted, about two minutes. Spread the chocolate evenly with an offset spatula. Sprinkle with remaining chopped nuts. Let cool completely, about four hours.1 cup chopped toasted pecans, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 6 oz dark chocolate chips
- Once cooled completely, break into desired pieces. Store in an airtight container in a cool place for up to one month. If in a warm climate, store in the refrigerator.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did you make this? Leave a comment below!
I haven’t made this recipe yet and can’t wait to try it out. Thank you.
Alway enjoy your videos! Whether you in the garden or the kitchen you make me feel like I could be sitting right there with you! Blessings for your Holidays!
Hi Kaleb! Love your videos. And the English Toffee one was especially helpful. I just finished making a holiday test batch & it turned out perfect! After reviewing other recipes I decided on yours & will look no further. It was a little stressful preventing it from separating but it worked out. I did line my pan with non stick foil vs butter. I should have stock in that company. Use it often. And I gently melted a combo of chocolate chips in the microwave, using half semi sweet & half milk chocolate vs sprinkling. Thanks so much for your videos, great recipes & tips, and the entertainment. I look forward to more.
This has become my favorite English Toffee.
Have made it three times this year and will be making again in October to take to my family when I visit.
Is the butter room temperature or right out of the fridge. For this recipe and the Carmel’s
The toffee was amazing. I tried the Carmel recipe. I did not know at the time that high altitude (6,700 ft) that you need to lower the temperature as it will be hard not soft. My number 1 question on both recipes IS:
Is the butter at room temperature before you put it in the pan ( both recipes) or right from the fridge. Thank you for answering my question.
Watching your “How to Freeze Corn” video inspired me. I went right out to our local farmers market and got busy. Today, I watched the “Pepper Relish” video. Trust me when I say. I will be making relish tomorrow.
Are you sure the temp should be 290? Mine only got to 190ish and was burned…ugh
Made this for first time and turned out great!!! Now requests coming in for another batch. I love following you on facebook.
120 servings?? How small are they?