Coffee Toffee

Easy toffee recipe, sounds complicated but is NOT, this was the first recipe for a candy I ever made and it was successful the first and every time since! It is a family favorite, often requested, a must at the holidays! Use whatever chocolate you feel like and whatever nuts you feel like or leave out the nuts altogether! You can also leave out the coffee granules, but I love the richness it gives the toffee.

Attribution Link

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 8-10

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks or 8 ounces) butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons molasses (can swap corn syrup or honey)
1/4 teaspoon salt (or a heaping 1/4 teaspoon flaky sea salt)
1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso powder (I use plain Instant Coffee granules, Taster’s Choice)
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, or 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts (toasted, skinned and cooled) or any nut of your choice

Directions

Line a small baking sheet (I used half-sheets so I could use 2 different kinds of nuts) with parchment paper or a silicon mat and set aside.

In medium heavy saucepan (I used a 3-quart) with a candy thermometer attached, melt butter, brown sugar, white sugar, molasses, salt and espresso together over together. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally with a whisk until the temperature approaches 250¯F, at which point you should stir constantly until it reaches 300¯F.

Pour immediately into prepared baking sheet(s) — you can spread it more evenly with an offset or silicon spatula but don’t worry if you have neither.

Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the toffee and let them sit for a minute until soft, then spread the chocolate evenly over the candy base. Sprinkle the chocolate with chopped hazelnuts. You can either slide the sheet onto a cooling rack in the freezer until the toffee is set or just wait until set…not in a hot kitchen!

Break into pieces and store in an airtight container.

If your kitchen runs warm, you might prefer to keep it in the fridge so the chocolate doesn’t get soft.

Categories: Candy, Other Desserts

Submitted by: ascook on August 27, 2010