Tag Archives: toffee

the simplest and most amazing toffee you’ll ever eat

Posted in dessert by

I first had a version of this toffee at a friend’s Passover dinner a few years back and I shamelessly ate more than my fair share at the end of the long meal.  I couldn’t help myself it was so good!

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My friend told me then how easy it was to make but I decided not to attempt it on my own because this is exactly the sort of thing you don’t want sitting around your house or you will eat it all in a very short amount of time and then feel guilty for having done so.  However, it is a great thing to make when you need to bring a sweet treat to a party or event on short notice because it is super quick and simple to make.  There are only five ingredients: matzo crackers, butter, brown sugar, chocolate chips, and whatever you choose to top it with– shredded coconut, crushed peppermint candies, toasted sesame seeds, dried cranberries, or in this case, sea salt.

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After laying out matzo crackers on a foil-lined baking sheet you make caramel in a saucepan by heating up butter and brown sugar over medium-high heat until it gets all thick and gooey.

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Then you spread the caramel over the matzo crackers and bake it in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes until it gets bubbly.

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Scatter semi-sweet (it would be good with dark chocolate too!) chocolate chips over the hot caramel and let sit for 5 minutes so that the chocolate melts.

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Then spread the chocolate around with a spatula and finally sprinkle with sea salt (or topping of choice) and let cool and harden.

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The final step is to break up the toffee into pieces to serve and watch it disappear.  Hopefully not all into your mouth but I totally wouldn’t judge if it did…

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Matzo Toffee (adapted from recipe by Zoe Bakes found at www.lhj.com)

  • 6  unsalted matzo crackers cup
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
  • 1 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1 cup chocolate chips
  •  Sea salt

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with greased foil and arrange crackers in an even layer.

In a saucepan, make caramel by heating the butter and sugar over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until sugar dissolved and mixture has thickened, 3 to 5 min. Pour caramel over crackers, using a spatula to spread in an even layer. Bake until caramel is bubbly, 15 min. Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips evenly over the top; let chocolate sit for 5 min, then spread evenly over crackers. Sprinkle surface with sea salt and chill to set chocolate.

Transfer to a cutting board and peel away foil before cutting into strips. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

get along little cowgirl

Posted in cookie by

I’m a big fan of cookies that have the kitchen sink in them– you know, chocolate chips, marshmallows, peanut butter, pretzels, cornflakes– the more the merrier.  One of my favorite cookies from a bakery in New York even has potato chips in it.  Craziness.  So over the weekend when I was looking through cookbooks and found a recipe for Cowboy Cookies I felt like I hit the jackpot.  Better yet I found it in a cookbook that my aunt put together of my grandma’s recipes and there’s a funny photo of my grandma looking very uncomfortable on a horse next to the recipe.  So that settled it.

You start with a basic cookie dough recipe and then add oatmeal:

Chocolate chunks:

Toffee chips:

These are the mix-ins I chose, but this is a recipe you can get creative with.  Next time I think I’m going to add crushed pretzels, dark chocolate chips, and candied bacon.  Oh yes, I said bacon.

In honor of my grandma I’ve decided to re-name this cookie the Cowgirl Cookie.  Giddyup.

Cowgirl Cookies

  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 2/3 cup white sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 cups oatmeal
  • 1 package semi-sweet chocolate chunks (or chocolate chips)
  • 1 package toffee pieces, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Cream butter and sugars in mixer fitted with paddle attachment.  Add eggs and beat until incorporated.  Scrape down sides of bowl and add vanilla.  Beat for 5 seconds.

Add flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder and beat until incorporated. 

Stir in oatmeal, chocolate chunks, and toffee pieces.  (Note: you could experiment with a variety of mix-ins.  Butterscotch chips, pretzel pieces, and peanut butter chips would all be great.  Go crazy!)

Put spoonfuls of dough on parchment paper-lined sheets.  Bake for 11 to 13 minutes.  Cool on wire rack.