How to make perfect toffee candy at home! Today begins a week of candy recipes, and we’re starting with a classic favorite!
If you’re feeling intimidated by the thought of making your own candy at home, don’t be! I walk you through the whole process in my toffee recipe and I’ve included a how-to video. You’ve got this!
Today I’m kicking off a week of candy recipes! Every day this week I’ll be sharing a great (giftable!!) candy recipe, and today we’re starting with this perfect Toffee Recipe. What more could you ask for on a Monday morning 😉
For the longest time, candy making intimidated me. Aside from my family’s favorite chocolate fudge (and thermometer-free treats like potato candy), I preferred to keep my distance and stick to cookies and cakes. I’m also not terribly patient, so the temptation to bump up the heat on my stovetop to speed up the process was real, and often my most fatal mistake. So many ruined batches of candy made their way through my kitchen, so I know firsthand how frustrating and discouraging a failed batch of toffee can be!
Today I’ll be sharing plenty of tips so you can make your own perfect toffee at home. Some of these you’ll see reiterated in the next few days as they’ll apply to other candy recipes as well. Let’s jump in.
Tips for Making Toffee
Have all of your ingredients ready before you begin
You’ll probably see this tip repeated in just about every post this week. That’s because with candy, this step is very important. Once your toffee reaches 305°F, it’s time to move. You need to immediately remove it from heat, add your vanilla extract, stir, and pour it into a pan, What you don’t have time to do is go scrambling to your spice cabinet to measure out your vanilla, find that rogue measuring spoon in your kitchen drawer, line your pan with parchment, chop your almonds… you get the idea. Be prepared and set yourself up for success from the beginning.
I also recommend reading through the whole recipe at least once and even watching the video before you begin.
Patience is key
You’ll notice that this recipe has you cook your toffee over medium heat. You’ll also notice while you’re cooking it that it’s taking a while. Ten or more minutes may go by and your candy thermometer is still creeping along at a snail’s pace.
You’ve got other things to do, I get it, but whatever you do, do not try to speed up your toffee making process by turning up the heat! What’s likely to happen if you turn up the heat is you will probably scorch your mixture and burn your toffee. Then you have to start all over again.
Invest in a decent candy thermometer
Investing in a good candy thermometer was a game changer for me. I use this inexpensive digital candy thermometer that I bought off of Amazon (affiliate).
Now some people will argue that they can make perfect toffee just fine without a candy thermometer thank-you-very-much, and I have no doubt that’s true. Some people will use the hard crack test (drizzle a small bit of the syrup mixture off a spoon into a cup of cold water. If it forms threads and even cracks, it’s done — this is actually a great test to use along with your candy thermometer reading) or will be able to judge when their toffee is finished just by looking at the color of it (the deep caramel color is a great indicator). However, for most of us, a candy thermometer is a critical tool for making perfect candy and I highly recommend using one.
Don’t get discouraged!
Did your first batch not turn out perfectly? It’s OK and it happens to the best of us. The only way to overcome this is try again and practice, practice, practice. Fortunately I have plenty of recipes coming your way this week to help you get familiar with your candy thermometer and develop a knack for making candy in your own kitchen.
What Ingredients do I Need for Toffee?
- Butter
- Sugar
- Water
- Salt
- Vanilla Extract
And then optional ingredients include:
- Nuts (I use almonds)
- Chocolate (for topping)
- Flaky sea salt
Don’t forget that you will also need a candy thermometer!
How Long Can I Store Toffee?
If stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place, your toffee will keep for several weeks. 
Whew, that was a lot! Sorry for talking so much but hopefully you’ll find these tips to be helpful when you try your hand at making your own toffee! And if you make it and want to share a picture, please tag me on Instagram (@sugarspun_sam and #sugarspunrun) or share a picture in my free Facebook Baker’s Club! I just may be doing a few more fun giveaways in the Facebook group this month, so stay tuned!
Enjoy!
Treat yourself to a FREE E-BOOK!
How to Make Toffee
Toffee Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup coarsely chopped almonds*
- 1 cup (2 sticks ) unsalted butter cut into pieces (226g)
- 1 cup granulated sugar 200g
- 1/4 cup water 60ml
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips
- 1-2 Tablespoons finely chopped almonds for topping, optional
- Flaky sea salt for topping, optional
TOOLS
- Candy thermometer (see note at the bottom of the recipe for the one that I use)
- Pastry brush
Instructions
- Line a 9x9 pan with parchment paper and scatter coarsely chopped almonds evenly over the bottom. Set aside.
- Combine butter, sugar, water, and salt in a medium-sized pot over medium heat. Meanwhile measure out your vanilla extract and have it ready nearby.
- Stir ingredients frequently over medium heat. During this time (only before boiling), use a wet pastry brush to brush down the sides where any sugar may settle on the side of the pot to prevent sugar crystals. Continue to stir frequently until mixture comes to a boil (this may take a while, have patience and do not turn up the heat or you will ruin your toffee).
- Once the mixture comes to a boil, attach your candy thermometer. Make sure that the point of the candy thermometer is not touching the bottom of your pan.
- Continue to stir occasionally, the mixture will slowly thicken and will turn a more yellow hue as it cooks, and cook to hard crack (305°F/151°C).
- Once toffee reaches 305°F/151°C, immediately remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract (careful, it bubbles and steams a bit).
- Pour mixture evenly into your prepared pan over the almonds. Allow to sit for 5 minutes and then sprinkle chocolate chips evenly overtop the mixture. Cover with foil and allow to sit another 5 minutes, then remove the foil and use a spatula to gently spread chocolate chips evenly over your toffee.
- Immediately sprinkle with additional finely chopped almonds and flaky sea salt, if desired. Allow to cool completely at room temperature before breaking and serving.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Michele B says
May 14, 2019 at 8:05 pmWhat happens if you use salted butter? I have a big box of Irish butter from Costco. Good quality butter with a lower salt/moisture content.
Sam says
May 14, 2019 at 9:31 pmHi Michele! Typically when you substitute salted butter for unsalted butter, you cut the amount of salt added by 1/4 teaspoon for each stick of butter. So in this case, you can leave out the salt if using salted butter. 🙂
Lucy says
May 7, 2019 at 2:37 pmWould you ever consider adding Hershey Cocoa to the toffee mix with the sugar? It could be a possible heavenly chocolate toffee.
Sam says
May 7, 2019 at 4:10 pmHmm that is a really cool idea. I haven’t tried it and I’m not sure how it would turn out. Candy can be a little finicky and having not tried it, I can’t say whether or not it would work. If you try it, I would love to know how it works if you do. 🙂
Jan says
April 27, 2019 at 7:21 pmWell, I bought the thermometer and set for hard crack. In retrospect, I wonder if I should have just set for 305. Regardless, it was at 297 and I stirred it and then it jumped to 305-307. As soon as I stopped stirring, it went back down…I wasn’t sure what to do. I did stir in vanilla and pulled off burner, but I would say it over cooked. Not burnt but pretty hard. I’d really appreciate your thoughts/suggestions.
Sam says
April 27, 2019 at 10:08 pmHi Jan! Did the toffee taste burnt at all? Did it have that bitter taste to it? If it didn’t it might not have been burnt, the toffee should be pretty hard and brittle so that would be right. Happy to discuss further though!
Gali says
March 21, 2019 at 8:25 pmWould it be possible to add almonds into the toffee and maybe score it so I’ll be able to break it up in uniform pieces and then dip in chocolate? 😳🤔
Sam says
March 21, 2019 at 10:28 pmHi Gali! There are already almonds in the recipe. 🙂 You can certainly score it and break it if you are able to. It will make breaking it a lot easier. Enjoy. 🙂
Lauren says
February 15, 2019 at 10:20 amI tried this toffee recipe for my base and added my own twist (pretzels, white chocolate, sprinkles, and decorating gel) and it worked beautifully! I didn’t have a candy thermometer but your video helped me understand what the color needed to be so I knew it was done. It tastes AMAZING and I am addicted!
Danyell S. says
February 7, 2019 at 8:08 pmI just made this today. Even though the butter separated (probably because my pans are the cheap thin ones), it still tastes so good. Thank you for this recipe! I can now make basically my favorite candy bar anytime I want now!
Sam says
February 7, 2019 at 9:14 pmI am so glad you enjoyed it, Danyell! 🙂
Ruth says
January 21, 2019 at 12:03 pmThe best ever!! I have made many and none compare to this. My thighs thank you!
Sam says
January 21, 2019 at 8:31 pm😂I am so glad you enjoy it, Ruth! 🙂
Jackie Lais says
January 13, 2019 at 2:50 pmI’ve never made candy before and Toffee is one of my husbands favorites… I watched your video and prepared as instructed… it was so fun to make and it turned out great! Thank you for sharing this recipe for Toffee!
Sam says
January 13, 2019 at 9:43 pmI am so glad you enjoyed it, Jackie! 🙂
JoAnn Angus says
January 12, 2019 at 3:06 pmI just wanted to know if I could substitute honey or agave for the sugar ? If so how much do you think I should use?
Sam says
January 13, 2019 at 11:23 pmHi, JoAnn. I have not tried this substitution. I am afraid the honey or agave would start burning.
Lori says
January 9, 2019 at 12:17 pmHi Sam, love your toffee recipe!
So the last batch i made, came out perfect, brought it to hard crack stage and was amber in color, but over time the caramel turned to a light cream color. I did refrigerate the toffee after 24 hours and is kept in a air tight container. Any suggestions as to why it turned to a cream color?
Lori
Sam says
January 9, 2019 at 11:57 pmHi Lori! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! So, that color change is interesting, I’ve never had that happen. Did the color change occur after the refrigeration, or before?
Lisa says
January 1, 2019 at 8:57 pmHi Sam, I have an almond toffee recipe that I LOVE but I always have a hard time getting the chocolate to stay attached to the toffee. Once I break the toffee into pieces the chocolate comes right off. I use bar chocolate (Cadbury’s) – and I suspect that it’s due to a higher fat content or something along those lines. Any pointers?
Sam says
January 1, 2019 at 9:56 pmI haven’t had that problem with this toffee, but I always add the chocolate when the toffee is warm, which helps the two gel together. 🙂
Dale in PGH says
December 20, 2018 at 8:02 pmI have never made candy before. So, after reading the recipe and watching your video (twice), I bought the candy thermometer you recommend, got everything ready in advance, and carefully followed all of the steps in the recipe except for using semi-sweet instead of milk chocolate chips. The toffee is EXCELLENT! I guess an old retired guy who’s not much of a cook can even be successful making candy with such good instruction. Thank you very much.
Sam says
December 20, 2018 at 8:48 pmThank you so much, Dale! I am so excited to hear this, candy can be very tricky, even if you follow all the steps correctly. I’m very happy to hear that it worked well for you. 🙂
Sherry J Gillard says
December 4, 2018 at 3:34 pmI love everything buttery, brown sugary, caramely, butterscotchy, including toffeery. Back in the good old days, the only place I could find a decent butterscotch was at the local Dairy Queen. They had the ULTIMATE BUTTERSCOTCH SYRUP to die for. It, like many other good old things, fell by the wayside and I was left hanging out to dry. I don’t suppose you have run across a good ol recipe for the best butterscotch in the world, have you? Or maybe you might know a good old woman who has one? I’d consider giving all my bags of crushed Coke cans for that recipe.
From Desperate for
Butterscotch
Sam says
December 4, 2018 at 6:29 pmHi Sherry! Unfortunately I do not have a butterscotch recipe. 🙁
Mikaru86 says
December 3, 2018 at 3:17 pmThis looks amazing! I was looking for new chocolate/candy recipes as part of my usual Christmas gift box to friends and family and this would fit nicely. Have you ever tried this with brown sugar? I’ve been toying with the idea of making toffee ever since I tried your caramel sauce (for the sandwich cookies I believe) a while ago. I think the richer flavor of the brown sugar might work well. However, I’m unsure whether simply substituting parts (or all) of the regular sugar with brown sugar would work.
Sam says
December 3, 2018 at 11:11 pmCandy is an excellent Christmas gift, your friends and family are very lucky! I haven’t tried using brown sugar in this recipe. I did try it several times in my peanut brittle (*hint*, coming soon), and it ended up burning, which was a bummer. If you do try it, I would LOVE to know how it turns out for you! 🙂
Mikaru86 says
December 4, 2018 at 1:20 pmHm, I think I’ll try substituting 1/4 of the sugar with brown sugar and see how well that works out. I’ll let you know whether it burns or not 😉
Sam says
December 4, 2018 at 4:03 pmThat sounds like a good starting point. I was thinking about it this morning and was going to recommend subbing some but not all of the sugar, so I think we’re on the same wavelength 😂
Looking forward to hearing how it turns out! 🙂
Mikaru86 says
December 5, 2018 at 3:39 pmTried them last night, they turned out great: https://imgur.com/a/ArXovPC
I used 1/4 brown sugar (and scaled everything up by 75% to fit my larger pan). I also added a dash of cinnamon to the boiling toffee mixture shortly before it reached 150°C.
In short, they are amazing. I ate what feels like 1/3 of the entire thing (I had some of it chopped into small pieces and mixed into some vanilla quark for dessert at lunch, that was a really nice combination). It was also very well received by my colleagues with comparisons to the Daim candy bars (not sure if they are a thing in the US) as well as Werther’s Original (very popular German hard caramel candy).
They will definitely be part of my Christmas gift packages, at least in one form or another (I’m thinking about spicing up the dark chocolate on top with my usual blend of cinnamon and instant cappuccino powder).
Sam says
December 9, 2018 at 12:06 amIt looks awesome. Great work! I am not familiar with Daim candy, but I know Werther’s original very well. I can definitely see the similarity there. That’s not a bad thing in my book! I am also not very familiar with quark either, but after looking it up, I bet the toffee would be great in it. I am impressed you only ate 1/3. 😉:)