Bonfire Night Treats Treacle Toffee:
Bonfire Night has always been one we look forward to here at TPT, with many of our local towns hosting bonfires and fireworks displays. But, as a child, is there anything more exciting than getting bundled up in a coat, hat, and scarf and heading off to watch the display, sparklers in hand!
As a wee one, I remember some neighbours bringing along treats for us to enjoy while we stayed cosy beside the bonfire. The best one of which was treacle toffee or bonfire toffee. This smoky-sweet treat has an unusual flavour (some say there’s a hint of liquorice in the taste) and a hard and sticky texture. There’s nothing quite like its warming flavour on a cold November night.
So, this year, we decided to make our own and have included the recipe for you to try out too. If you do give it a try, we would love to see your pictures.
Treacle Toffee Recipe:
Ingredients:
- 450g Dark Brown Sugar
- 125g Golden Syrup
- 100g Black Treacle
- 125g Water
- 25G Butter
- 1/4/ tsp Cream of Tartar
What you need:
- Saucepan (a good heavy-based one is best)
- Silicone Baking Mould or a well-greased and lined baking tray
- Spatula
- Sugar Thermometer
Method:
If you use a silicone mould, you will be fine to lightly grease it. If you use a metal baking tray, grease it thoroughly and line it well to prevent the toffee from sticking to the metal. It’s fair to say you will never remove it if it sticks!
Place all the ingredients into the saucepan and give them a gentle stir over medium heat. Keep stirring until all the ingredients have dissolved into a liquid. It should look smooth and dark.
Once they have dissolved, turn the heat up until the liquid comes to a rolling boil. Place the thermometer in the pan and keep heating until the mixture reaches 150 degrees Celsius, 300 degrees Fahrenheit. This is the point where the toffee reaches the hard-crack stage. It can take around 10-15 minutes to reach this point. Keep an eye on it to prevent it from burning or bubbling over.
Remove from the heat and pour it into the pan or mould straight away, scraping as much out of the pan as possible to make cleaning up later as easy as possible.
Leave to cool for a couple of hours.
Now for the fun part! Place a piece of greaseproof paper over the toffee, and using the end of a rolling pin, and give it a bash, to break it into pieces. The shattered edges are all part of the charm.
We hope you enjoyed making it just as much as you enjoy eating it. Have a great Bonfire Night.
