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!
How to Make Toffee
Toffee Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup coarsely chopped almonds*
- 1 cup (2 sticks ) unsalted butter cut into pieces (226g)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (200g)
- ¼ cup water (60ml)
- ½ 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
Recommended Equipment
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.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase anything through these links I will get a small commission at no extra cost to you. Please view the disclosure policy for more information.
Jenn Addison
This is my 4th time making this recipe and it came out perfect for the 4th time. My son is crazy for this stuff. Tonight I added a tsp of almond extract and topped it with chopped toasted pecans. Amazing! Also made a sample where we add the chocolate earlier and swirled it into the toffee. Also Amazing! Thank you! I’ll be purusing your recipe collection for a while!
Jenn
Sam
I am so happy to hear this, Jenn! Thank you so much for trusting my recipe and letting me know how it turned out for you, I really appreciate it! 🙂
Jocelyn
First time making toffee and it worked out perfectly! Per usual, love your recipes!
Sam
Wonderful, I am so happy to hear this, Jocelyn! Thank you so much for commenting, I appreciate it! 🙂
Lily
I tried it twice and both times the butter separated. First batch burned in a pan. So I tried a sauce pot and it didn’t burn but separated. Does the type of butter have anything to do with it. I used grassfed unsalted butter?
Sam
Hi Lily! It sounds like the heat may be a little too high. I hope this helps. 🙂
Lily
Thank you I’ll try again. I also think I stired it too much. Good thing I only made half the recipe.
Sam
Good luck! 🙂
Lauren
Hi! I’m going to try this recipe out tomorrow but was wondering, does it have to be a 9×9 pan? I only have 8×8. Thanks!
Sam
Hi Lauren! The 8×8 will work, it will just result in a little bit thicker toffee, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. 🙂
Lauren
Thank you! It worked out perfect! I was wondering how long it took for the butter mixture to be ready and I baked 3 batches of this and each one took me 20 mins (once it started to boil), just a heads up for others wondering (I know this also depends on your pan and stove but just as an estimate 🙂). Thank you so much for the recipe!
Becky
I made this and it tastes great – perfect crunch, but it is way darker than normal toffee. I used candy therm, quickly put in vanilla and removed from
heat- maybe didn’t remove it quit quick enough?
Sam
Hi Becky! It may have just needed to be removed a few seconds earlier. 🙂
Raemi
Can this recipe be quadrupled? I need to make a lot for Christmas.
Sam
Sure thing! It can be a little tricky to get it heated properly if you have that much candy but it can definitely work. 🙂
Nikki
Has anyone made this using an electric flat top stove? The problem is medium heat causes the heating element to come on and off again. I can see it cooling and heating the toffee. It took a good 20-30 minutes at medium to get to a soft ball even ( 240 f). I got to 295 f and it was very dark with a bit of smoke and I got scared it was burning so took it off. It tastes soooo good. It is chewy ( again I didn’t get to a hard crack) and has just tiny bit of a burnt taste… any suggestions?? I did not turn up the heat.
This is a great recipe. So much better than the one I tried a couple days ago. I just need to figure out my cook top.
Lauren
Hello! Yes I used an electric stove top and it took me 20 mins, once boiling, to reach 305° with no issues. I left it on a 4/10 heat the whole time stirring constantly
Donna young
Cant wait to make this will let u know how it turned out and thanks for the recipe a
Miki
I made this recipe, kept heat at Medium the whole time and stirring it constantly. But as I poured it into the pan i saw that the bottom on half of pan was burnt. I just hope it still taste good.🙄
Sam
O no! You may have still needed to turn the temp down just a bit. A few more things to look out for, you need to make sure to mix the stuff on the bottom of the pan as you stir, and sometimes I find that with a cheaper pan this can happen too. I hope it’s still good. 🙂
layla
hi this was my first time making toffee currently we are waiting for it to cook but i’m sure it’ll taste delicious bc it smells amazing thank you for this recipe!
Sam
I hope you love it, Layla! 🙂
Yasmin
I’ve tried this recipe for the third time today. It came out delicious every time!! The first time I tried it, the thermometer broke so in the other times I waited for the color to resemble what you show in the video and it came out fine. Also, I found that after about 24 hours in the refrigirator the toffee is crunchy, doesn’t stick to the teeth, and tastes great!
Thank you for the recipe!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you have enjoyed the recipe, Yasmin! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
H
This is so good! I didn’t have a candy thermometer but it still worked out and looks great! My little sister is practically drooling over the toffee, and she told me to “tell them it’s *contented sigh* really good.”
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that it turned out perfectly and that you enjoyed it! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Rafael Baquero
I had trouble with mine, the butter separated and it ended very greasy.
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Rafael! Sometimes the butter separates from the toffee, there are two things that could have caused this:
1) the heat was too high when initially melting the butter/bringing the toffee to a boil
2) humidity can also cause this, unfortunately, candy is temperamental and even the weather can affect it so humidity might have been the issue
I really hope that helps but I am happy to help troubleshoot further!
Karen
I followed instructions and used candy thermometer to 305degrees.
But my toffee is is more of a caramel consistency. It tastes great. But, what did I do wrong. I want crunchy toffee. Any suggestions appreciated.
Sam
Hi Karen! If it was very humid where you are that may have affected the toffee, or your candy thermometer may be inaccurate (or if it was touching the bottom of the pan it might have said that it reached temperature when it really hadn’t yet). You can use this method for checking if your candy thermometer is accurate. I hope that helps! The toffee should definitely be crunchy and not soft 🙂
Jayme
This was the BEST ever. I had never made toffee before and was nervous but your tips and suggestions prepared me well. I was so tempted to turn the heat past medium but held tight and was patient….it paid off. Deliciousness all around. I made one batch with pecans and one with cashews and had none left after our Christmas party. Everyone kept asking who made the toffee. Thank you!!
Sam
I am so happy to hear this, Jayme! Toffee (or any candy) can be tricky to make, especially your first time, I’m glad yours was such a success! Thank you for coming back and letting me know how it turned out, I really appreciate it 🙂