The Best Homemade Toffee

Christmas is just days away and there’s no time like the present to embrace the most wonderful time of the year. Now before you go all bah-humbug on me, tell me…what are your favorite holiday traditions? Maybe it’s making a gingerbread house? Or trimming the tree in your favorite ugly sweater? Decorating cookies by the fire or warm, frosted cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning. We all have those one or two special things that make us fall in love with the holidays all over again, year after year.  For me, it’s making homemade toffee. Nothing says the holidays quite like a fresh batch of english toffee.

With its toasted, nutty aroma and rich, caramel flavor, toffee satisfies all my sweet and salty cravings in one fell swoop. Not to mention it’s breeze to make with just a handful of simple ingredients. It’s wildly addicting and makes the most perfect holiday treat for all the chocolate and nut lover’s in your life. Trust me when I say you can’t have just one piece of this crunchy, buttery, chocolatey crack. It’s simply the best thing EVER!

I’m always surprised to hear that people think making toffee is too tricky, too messy or just too much trouble. I’m here to tell you it’s none of those things and it’s absolutely worth every minute you spend standing by the stovetop. Throw on your softest, fuzziest slippers bakers {hey, might as well be comfy} and let’s make some toffee!

How to make the best homemade toffee

For best results, prep all of your ingredients ahead of time and measure everything in advance. The cooking process moves quickly and you’ll want to be prepared with all of your ingredients within arms reach. Follow this step-by-step guide and check the recipe card below for ingredients and detailed instructions.

Step 1: Melt the butter, sugar, vanilla and salt in a large, heavy bottom pot over medium heat. Continue stirring until the mixture reaches 260 degrees.

Step 2: Add the sliced almonds and stir often until the mixture reaches 295-300 degrees. As the toffee cooks, keep the heat steady. Sudden spikes in temperature can cause the butter to separate.

Step 3: Remove from the heat and quickly stir in the baking soda.

Step 4: Carefully transfer the toffee to two medium baking sheets, using a spatula to spread it evenly.

Step 5: Sprinkle the toffee with chocolate chips. Once the chips have started to melt, use an offset spatula or the back of a spoon to spread the chocolate evenly over the toffee.

Step 6: Sprinkle the melted chocolate with chopped nuts. Chill until fully set and then break into pieces.

Tips for the best almond toffee

• Use high quality ingredients. When making toffee I always recommend using the highest quality ingredients you can find. With just six ingredients in the entire recipe, now is not the time to skimp on the good stuff.
• Don’t walk away from the stovetop. Toffee can go from perfectly done to badly burnt in a matter of seconds. Stay close to the stovetop and be ready to do lots of stirring.
• Temperature is everything. Come armed with a candy thermometer. Using a candy thermometer makes candy making fun AND foolproof! The toffee is done once the temperature reaches 295 degrees. Remove the pot from the heat and immediately stir in the baking soda. You’ll need to act fast here so that the toffee doesn’t harden right in the pan before you have a chance to spread it onto the baking sheet.

How to store

The hardest part about making this almond toffee is waiting for it to cool. For best results, cool the toffee for several hours {you can speed this up by placing it in the fridge} before breaking it into pieces. To break the toffee, simply snap the slab into random pieces by hand. Break the toffee into bite size or jumbo pieces as you wish. I like to eat my toffee straight from the fridge for extra crunch, but you can also keep it at room temperature. Store it tightly wrapped and it will stay fresh for days, if not weeks. That is of course if you can manage not to eat it all in one sitting!

Can you freeze toffee?

Absolutely! To freeze toffee, place it flat on a parchment lined baking sheet and freeze for at least 3 hours. Then transfer the toffee to a large freezer bag or container and freeze up to 3 months. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight.

Homemade almond toffee is a tradition that’s meant to be shared and I truly hope this recipe will become a part of your holiday celebrations for years to come. Make it, pin it, share it, ship it. It’s a little piece of holiday cheer with every bite.