hot toffee
After years of making different candies, I have settled on the one that always earned rave reviews: butter crunch. It has only four ingredients: butter, sugar, nuts, and chocolate. For those of you who cook, I'm including the recipe. Tips follow under the appropriate images.
1/2 lb. butter
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 c. blanched almonds (i use half toasted with skins)
1/2 lg. bag chocolate chips
Chop 1/3 blanched nuts fine. Put them, the butter and sugar into a large pan. Cook over high heat, stirring constantly, until the almonds turn brown and the mixture forms a hard ball in cold water. Immediately pour onto a large, flat cookie sheet or baking pan. Let cool slightly. Then sprinkle with chocolate chips. Let them melt and smear them around. Chop the rest of the nuts fine and sprinkle over warm chocolate. Press in lightly. Let cool thoroughly. Break into irregular pieces.