English Toffee

ENGLISH TOFFEE WHO COOKED THAT UP?

J.J. wonders...

When you think of English toffee... Is it like THIS?

or is it like THIS?

The first time I began thinking about the origin of a recipe was in the Farmers' Market in Los Angeles a long time ago. I became puzzled while watching a candy maker stir up a batch at what is called "Littlejohn's English Toffee House." It was covered with chocolate and nuts and had a crunchy-hard center. "That's not what I've known as English toffee," I thought, remembering the caramel-type candy in twisted wrappers that we always received at Christmas time back east. And sure enough, English friends who saw the English toffee in California would raise their eyebrows even higher and they would talk about slabs and hammers. Then they would taste it, and ask for more.

I spoke with Mrs. Littlejohn, who was the proprietor at the time, and she told me that her husband had developed his candy in Portland, Oregon, in 1935. He had been a fudge maker and wanted to create a new kind of Victoria Brittle, a candy made famous by Charles W. "Candy" Rogers in Victoria, British Columbia. Actually, the basis of this candy is a kind of butter crunch, rather than a traditional brittle or a toffee.

The term "English toffee," however, apparently pre-dated Mr. Littlejohn's efforts, for the Heath Bar, developed in 1928, is called "English toffee," and in fact its center is more like a hard toffee than a butter crunch. On the other hand, the Almond Roca candy, produced by Brown and Haley in Tacoma, Washington, at the rate of 800,000 pieces a day, and developed in 1923, seems to be more like the candy called Enstrom's Almond Toffee of Grand Junction, Colorado, or the "Toffee-ettes" or "Victoria Toffee" sold by See's Candies in California.

However, the English slab and hammer type toffee still exists and the twist-wrapped toffee is still especially popular at Christmas time. Farrah's of Harrogate claim to have been making English toffee since 1840, and Walkers' Nonsuch Limited will take you (by way of the Internet) on a Virtual Tour of their factory in Stoke-on-Trent, where they have been making the candy since the 1890's.

However, if you enjoy making your own candy, there are several recipes available on the Web. There is a very organized and detailed one for American English Toffee. There is also a recipe for the hard candy-plus-hammer version of English English Toffee. Finally, here's a recipe for the kind of candy most Americans think of as "English Toffee," but it was originally called "Almond Butter Crunch" when it was first published by Family Circle Magazine in November 1972.

ENGLISH TOFFEE, American style

1 1/2 c Whole blanched almonds, chopped (12 oz)
      1 c Butter or margarine
1 1/2 c Sugar
      3 Tbs. Light corn syrup
      3 Tbs. Water
      8 Semisweet chocolate squares (1 oz. each)

   1. Place chopped almonds on a cooky sheet; toast in moderate oven
(375F) 10 minutes, or until lightly golden.
   2. Combine butter or margarine, sugar, corn syrup and water in a
medium-size heavy saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring
constantly, to 300F on candy thermometer. (A teaspoonful of syrup
will separate into brittle threads when dropped in cold water.)
Remove from heat; stir in 1 cup of the toasted almonds. Pour into a
buttered 13x9x2" pan, spreading quickly and evenly; cool. Turn out
onto wax paper.
   3. Melt chocolate squares in the top of a double boiler over hot
water; remove from heat. Spread half the melted chocolate over top of
candy; sprinkle with 1/4 cup nuts; let set for about 20 minutes; turn
candy over and spread with remaining chocolate and sprinkle with
remaining nuts. Let stand until set. Break into pieces.
   Makes l pound.

Alas, I can't really tell you who it was that actually originated Toffee, American, English or otherwise. It looks as though we all did, and from the way this page is consulted each Christmas season, it seems to me that English toffee, in one form or another, continues to be even more of a treat at the holiday season as it was during my childhood. And isn't it wonderful?!

Please Note: I can't vouch for any of the commercial products nor for the recipes. They are here for your information only as a guide to what is available on the World Wide Web.

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