Easy Brown Sugar Toffee Recipe | CDKitchen.com (2024)

FAQs

Is light or dark brown sugar better for toffee? ›

Taste is obvious: sweets made with dark brown sugar will have a slightly deeper flavor with those notes of caramel and toffee I mentioned.

Toffee vs Caramel

The difference between toffee and caramel is that caramel is made with white granulated sugar and cooked to 340 degrees Fahrenheit, whereas toffee is made with butter and brown sugar and cooked to 295 - 309 degrees Fahrenheit.

You might wonder why the toffee recipe includes baking soda. It is added at the end of the boiling stage and creates lots and lots of bubbles. These bubbles help to lighten the texture of the finished toffee, resulting in an easier-to-bite candy.

Penoche is a simple but delicious candy made from brown sugar, butter and milk. Penoche is a bit lighter than fudge and has a wonderful maple caramel flavor. Also known as brown sugar fudge candy, this classic recipe is from our vintage cookbook from 1951, Sue's Candy Kettle.

Candy and toffee are different because candy is made from boiled sugar syrup, while toffee is made from caramelized sugar with butter and sometimes nuts. Both have been enjoyed for centuries and have various cultural histories.

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.

If you don't stir the toffee often as it's cooking, the toffee can separate. Once the toffee reaches 250 F degrees, stir the toffee frequently to make sure the ingredients stay together. The toffee can also separate if the temperature is too high and it gets too hot too fast. So keep the temperature around medium heat.

Sugar Stages Temperature Comparison

For a soft crack candy, like butterscotch, you'd want a temperature of 270 to 290 degrees. This will leave the percentage of sugar at around 95%. For a hard crack candy, like toffee, you'd aim for a temperature of 300 to 310 degrees and a 99% sugar concentration.

Toffee is a hard candy that combines the classic cooked sugar sweetness of caramel with the richness of butter. Technically, toffee is butterscotch—a combination of butter and sugar—cooked to what's known as the hard-crack stage in confectionery: over 300 degrees Fahrenheit on a candy thermometer.

Mel's Dumbed Down Version: patience, moderate heat and heavy-bottoms (see saucepan note above) make the best toffee. What is this? It's important while the toffee cooks to only stir it occasionally. Constant stirring can cause the toffee to crystallize and separate.

Why is my toffee chewy and not crunchy? ›

Low and slow

Simmering the syrup for English toffee to the requisite 300°F temperature can (and should) be a slow process — up to 20 minutes or so. 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.

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.

Muscovado Sugar

This musky-flavored sugar is produced by boiling freshly harvested cane juice until it thickens, then crystallizing the mixture. Muscovado sugar is only partially evaporated, making it incredibly moist, sticky, and rich.

Brown sugar milk boba is most recognizable by the brown sugar syrup smeared around the walls of the cup which is meant to be mixed with the rest of the drink before enjoying. This drink is also known as brown sugar milk, brown sugar milk tea, brown sugar bubble tea, and many other variations.

Some natural brown sugars have particular names and characteristics, and are sold as turbinado, demerara or raw sugar. These have been centrifuged, and therefore can be said to have been refined to a large degree. Muscovado is darkest of the modern types of natural brown sugar.

In general, yes, the sugars are interchangeable in most recipes. Especially in most standard baking recipes that call for a mix of sugars like cookies and/or when brown sugar isn't the star ingredient for flavor, you can use one versus the other. You can also mix them together in a recipe if you're running low.

Moderate the heat as needed – turn it down if the toffee is boiling or cooking too fast so it doesn't burn. Cook until the toffee registers 285-290 degrees on an instant-read or candy thermometer and is deep amber brown in color, about 20-25 minutes.

The molasses content in dark brown sugar will make your baked goods moister than if you use light brown sugar. That means that not only is the flavor affected, but the texture will be, too. Light brown sugar will result in a subtler flavor, while dark brown sugar will give your baked goods a richer flavor.

Dark brown sugar has a very strong molasses flavor, while light brown sugar is a little drier and has a much milder flavor. ... A darker brown sugar brings that slightly bitter molasses note to gingerbread and can add depth of flavor to chocolate cake.