Easy Homemade English Toffee (2024)

FAQs

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

English Toffee is a nationwide favorite that is easily made with only a few ingredients. The difference between regular toffee and English Toffee is one important ingredient – butter! I make English Toffee throughout the year for special occasions and it's always a big hit.

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.

The cream of tartar crystals bind to sugar crystals preventing them from crystallizing. This means that the candy will have the sugar molecules evenly spread across the candy as opposed to forming unattractive lumps of sugar crystal in various places.

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

In cooking brittle, the baking soda is added right before the candy is poured, while toffee is cooked longer after the soda is added. This lets much of the carbon dioxide escape, leaving the toffee less brittle. In the end, they are cooked in much the same way, but with a few key differences.

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).

A common problem when making toffee is crystallisation. The sugar clumps together into a white and grainy syrup that turns into a messy solid mass. To avoid starting again, try these tips. Dissolve the sugar completely before increasing the heat and bringing the mixture to the boil.

Test toffee is ready by placing a teaspoon of hot toffee into a glass of cold water, if toffee cracks its ready. Fresh water is needed for every test. When ready, toffee will be golden brown in colour. Allow bubbles to subside.

Toffee Making Tips + Troubleshooting

Undercooked toffee won't be anything more than a caramel sauce. But overcooked toffee will be just slightly crunchier (almost unrecognizably). So, always err on the side of over-cooking!

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.

Why did a toffee fail to set despite using the correct ingredients? ›

This usually happens when the toffee mixture is heated too quickly or at too high of a temperature. Make sure to use medium heat (or medium-low) and go SLOW!

If you don't have cream of tartar, you can use lemon juice as a substitute. No lemon juice? Use white vinegar, which, like lemon juice is acidic, for a similar effect. We recommend replacing the cream of tartar with twice as much lemon juice or white vinegar.

Both parchment and wax paper will do an excellent job lining pans, wrapping individual pieces, or creating barriers between layers when storing—the differences between the two papers for use with confections are minimal. Ultimately, it comes down to personal preference and what materials you have on hand.

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).

You need a very sturdy pan which is KEY to even heat distribution. Thinner, cheaper pans can scorch the cooking candy and/or cook it unevenly. Here are some great choices: Anolon Nouvelle Copper and Cooks Standard. I own a couple pricier copper pots because of the amount of candy I make.

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.

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.

English Toffee flavor has a smooth caramel flavor without the creaminess.