by Lizthechef
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Lizthechef's Notes:
Expand1 cup unsalted butter ( 2 sticks) Ask a question about this ingredient
1 cup brown sugar, generously packed Ask a question about this ingredient
1 teaspoon best quality vanilla Ask a question about this ingredient
1 pinch kosher salt Ask a question about this ingredient
18 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips ( one and a half packages) such as Ghirardelli Ask a question about this ingredient
1 cup finely chopped almonds Ask a question about this ingredient
good quality sea salt (optional) Ask a question about this ingredient
Put half the nuts and half the chocolate chips onto a cookie sheet.
Ask a question about this stepCook butter and brown sugar over medium high heat in medium-sized pot, using a candy thermometer, to "hard crack" stage, 300 degrees F. Stir constantly. This will take about 15 minutes. Using a copper pot allows you to cook at a higher temperature without burning the caramel.
Ask a question about this stepRemove pot from heat and quickly add salt and vanilla.
Ask a question about this stepCarefully pour caramel mixture over the mix of nuts and chocolate. Sprinkle remaining chocolate over hot mixture. When melted, smooth out with back of large spoon. Sprinkle remaining nuts and gently press into the toffee. If you like salted caramels, you may want to sprinkle some good quality sea salt on top of the candy.
Ask a question about this stepFreeze one hour before breaking into pieces for storage - or snacking.
Ask a question about this stepUh oh- my attempt ended up in the separation of the oil from the mixture as well. It happened around 250 degrees of slow heat in a heavy pan. It looked beautiful up until that point- I have no clue what went wrong...
Love the story and the toffee sounds delicious - going on the holiday baking rotation because when all of these amazing cooks are saying the same thing you know it's got to be a winner!
Thanks, I just made my first batch - here come the holidays!
Yay! I'm glad you re-posted this. I'm planning on making it for my food52 potluck.
Wonderful - have a great potluck! I'm flying to the Bay Area in 2 weeks for one too.
I love this recipe, too! Have a great time, both of you! We should think of a way to have a virtual potluck so we can all meet each other sort of in person.
Message for Sandy - just wanted to let you know that I had the same problem with the mixture separating and going oily as the temperature increased! You are not alone! I resolved it by using a different pan, and also not getting to the exact temperature - makes the texture a little different, but still works. Liz - a fab combination of nuts and chocolate - love how the choc melts. I put milk choc on the bottom, and dark choc on the top, with 3/4 almonds and 1/4 Brazil nuts, and these are what I had to hand. Thanks for the great idea - I will make again and again. So moreish!
Hey there, I have a nut allergy and was wondering if there would be anything I could swap for the almonds? :)
Why not just omit them?
I agree - just omit them. Or, what about raisins or dried cranberries, or even dried apricots with white chocolate, perhaps? I am going to try this.
Looking for a wonderful recipe to send my son who is away at college. It makes me feel like I can still do something for him. Thanks so much for sharing.
Sure! You might want to wait for the cool weather before sending this through the mail, though...
lovely story, I understand the need to put space between your mother's passing and the making of the toffee...I went thru something similar when Gran passed. Amazing how when you pick it up again, it feels like you reconnect with them?
Gosh, so sorry this comment was not picked up in my email. Yes, the reconnection can be powerful!
Liz - this is my Mom's favorite candy and I can't tell you how excited I am to have found this recipe. Mother's Day is right around the corner, and she'll be getting a double batch. - S
Sorry I missed this, Steve, as I wasn't getting comments fed into my email through some error. Hope your Mom liked the toffee!
Yum, thanks for sharing your wonderful recipe with us, again! Lovely...
This is a killer toffee recipe. I'm glad I finally caught it, what, a year later??
We spread this over matzo for Passover. Deadly good. Hope you had a great holiday.
Wow - do you do this while the toffee is still hot or break it up and add it once it has hardened? Most creative, dear drbabs!
My daughter-in-law made it. She spread the warm caramel over the matzo and the chocolate over that and sprinkled the whole thing with sliced almonds. Then refrigerated it so it would harden quickly. It was so wonderful, I had trouble making myself stop eating it.
Thanks, Lynda, some holiday seasons it feels as though my epitaph will read, "She made toffee - lots of it."
I love this recipe and I especially love peeking into your album of family events of long ago!
It was such a happy Christmas - thanks, Mare.
This is really sweet Liz. And although I didn't get a chance to make it when I first commented, I'm enjoying re-reading this lovely recipe. xox
I only make it between Thanksgiving and Christmas, so you can wait too ;)
oops, I did make this! I was thinking salted caramels. Still, your head note is lovely. : )
Sweet story! Can i be added to your list? ;-)
Sure ;)
What a lovely, lovely story (I literally got teary-eyed at the end!) Thank you so much for sharing it (along with the AMAZING recipe!)
Thanks - I forgot to add how I collect tins all year long...
Fabulous idea!
my butter did ooze out a little from the caramelizing sugar while boiling, but a rapid stir right before pouring over the chocolate and nuts was a good technique, plus i didn't use the last little tablespoon of butter left in the pot. i'm sure there's a food science explanation dealing with the moisture content of the air and the butter and the amount of packing you did (how many sugar molecules there were). suffice it to say that if it separates, it's not destined for the trash! that's a lot of ingredients! plus mine only took about 10 minutes to get to 300...
I sprinkled yuzu zest in between the toffee and the chocolate for a twist. Not sure how everyone would like it, especially if you're expecting traditional flavor, but I think it added a nice fragrance.
Also, I did this without a thermometer. It's just as easy to drop a little into a cup of cold water to see whether it's reached the hard crack stage.
thank you so much for sharing liz, it took all of 20 minutes for me to make this!
I should know what yuzu zest is but I have to confess that I don't! Glad to read of your success...
Sandy,
If you're still trying and having separation problems, the likely problem is that you are heating too fast. The thicker pan should help this, but try lowering the heat a bit as well.
Sandy, try an All-Clad saucepan. I use a digital candy thermometer. I admire your stick-to-it attitude. I have never known of such toffee-making problems :(
Sandy the trooper!! I made these about a month or so go and it was my first attempt at candy making. I found the pan is the key. Heaviness is the factor. For me at least. Hope this helps, it's worth it. Great recipe!!
It is not a heavy pan and it is a new thermometer. I'm doing a trial run since it's a new recipe and we're making several candy recipes Sunday at a friend's house. I'll bet she has a heavier pan we could use. Good excuse for a new pan! Thanks for your quick response. My husband wondered if it could be that the butter was an "off" brand. What do you think of that theory?
Yes, a heavier pan - not large either, just a regular 1 and 1/2 - 2 qt. Your husband is brilliant - go out and buy good quality unsalted butter - I buy (organic) either at Trader Joe's or the 365 house brand at Whole Foods. I have been pondering about the mixture separating. I have made over 100 batches of this over the years - more probably - and never had that happen. Good luck and please let me know how it goes...
Okay, six batches down the drain. I switched to another saucepan, this one seemed heavier...a Farberware stainless steel aluminum clad. My thermometer was new, but today it was leaking (I have a concrete countertop so I think it was actually okay the other day, but hit the counter after that). Today I bought a new thermometer and Land O'Lakes butter. The last two batches did the same thing. The first batch I used the old butter just so I could try to figure out what was really the problem. However, by a process of elimination, it HAS to be the pan! I need new pots anyway, so tomorrow I will purchase them! I WILL get this toffee made. Story to be continued.... ;o)
Okay, I've made a disaster of this! Three batches down the drain. When the candy thermometer gets to about 275 the butter separates from the mixture. I used light brown sugar and unsalted butter. The pan I'm using is stainless steel. I'm using an electric stove and I have it set on medium (5). The third time I tried stirring more slowly, per another website suggestion, but it didn't make a difference. This website also suggested perhaps it could be that my kitchen is hot and humid. It's not, it's very cool. The pan I'm using is stainless steel.
Any ideas?
Is your sauce pan heavy and of good quality? My toffee-making improving when I switched to an All-Clad pan, then I was given a copper pan that allows me to cook it at a higher temp without scorching it. Nothing is wrong with your kitchen, I'm certain. Are you stirring pretty constantly? I never heard of the mixture separating. Is your thermometer new/accurate? What a nightmare - so very sorry. I just made a batch - wish I could send it to you!
I think I'm going to give this a whirl but am wondering if regular chocolate chips would work? I don't have semi-sweet on hand.
It might be a little sweet for my taste but give it a try. I'd be sure to garnish with flaked sea salt to off-set the sweetness of the chocolate.
I think you're right about the sweetness factor, semi-sweet is definitely the way to go, thanks!!
I can see where this week's contest is going to be very dangerous. Love this!
This makes up for suggesting we skip dessert last week ;)
I love the hint of the salt, too. This sounds like the recipe to follow for toffee!
My friends fight to get on my holiday "toffee list" ;)
I've never had good luck with toffee but this sounds so good that I am definately trying it.
It is easy, just takes time to get the toffee to "hard crack" stage.
You could make this with your eyes shut! Very simple. Thanks for your earlier comment - cannot edit once recipe has been posted in a previous contest...
Oh, I'm itching to re-write the headnote...
you can! go to the recipe and somewhere near the picture it says "edit the recipe" or something like that.
I don't think that one cookie sheet's worth would be enough!
This is the only killer chocolate/toffee/sea salt recipe I offer.
This would be a special Halloween treat too...
Note the novice food 52'er unable to properly edit...
Stephanie is the Head Recipe Tester of Food52.
I suggest to use "medium-high" heat in my recipe - wonder if you did this? I just made 20 batches - no problems - except I'm pooped ;) Sorry it didn't work for you. Couldn't you stir it together?