Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Sweet, nutty, and delicious.
Texture: Perfectly crunchy with a slight candy chew.
Ease: Just 3 ingredients and 15 minutes prep and cook time.
Pros: Such a fun DIY!
Cons: None.
Would I make this again? Absolutely, I like to make a double batch and sprinkle them on everything I bake for weeks.
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I adore toffee.
Like butterscotch, toffee seems to be caramel’s forgotten cousin. To me, it deserves as much adoration as caramel. Maybe more!
As much as I love a buttery toffee recipe on its own, my favorite is when it’s added to something already delicious.
It’s the perfect addition to a chocolate chip cookie, blondie, brownie or even banana bread. Or sprinkle the toffee on cupcakes, French toast, or ice cream. Plus, you likely already have the simple ingredients on hand to make it from scratch.
Bonus: this toffee recipe is also a great treat for giving as delicious holiday gifts during the holidays or Christmas!
Sprinkle of Science
What is Toffee?
Toffee is a crunchy, sweet, buttery, cooked sugar candy, similar to caramel and butterscotch. These three classic dessert components seem very similar – so how do they differ?
- Caramel: Based on white granulated sugar. Typically, butter, milk/cream, and vanilla are added for flavor and to produce a thick, creamy caramel. Caramel can be heated less for a sauce consistency, longer for a chewy soft caramel, or even longer for a crunchier hard caramel. I have a recipe for caramel sauce here.
- Butterscotch: Similar process to caramel, but made with brown sugar instead of granulated white sugar. Cream and vanilla are also often added. I have a recipe for butterscotch sauce here.
- Toffee: Just like butterscotch, toffee starts with brown sugar – but the difference between butterscotch and toffee is the temperature it’s heated to. Toffee is cooked longer to a much higher temperature – all the way to the ‘hard crack’ stage. This means that toffee will harden completely as it cools, and can then be cut or broken into pieces, to be added to other delicious desserts, or simply enjoyed by itself!
What are Toffee Bits?
Just what it sounds like! Bits of crunchy sweet toffee, chopped or broken into pieces about the same size as chocolate chips.
Can’t You Just Buy These?
Yes, you can buy them in the baking aisle under the Heath brand. However, they can be difficult to find in some regions and stores. Additionally, many stores only carry chocolate-covered toffee bits, which you may not always want.
But trust me, this homemade toffee recipe is even tastier than the Heath version! Plus, no preservatives or artificial flavors in these homemade sweet morsels!
Only 3 Ingredients:
- Butter (more on this below)
- Light brown sugar
- Salt
Why American-Style Butter?
European-style butter (such as Kerrygold) contains a higher butterfat percentage, compared to American-style butter. This lack of water content in European-style butter results in the toffee separating, and/or refusing to set fully. Any butter over 80% butterfat will cause these issues unless you add in 1-2 tablespoons of water to the melting butter.
Step by Step:
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a small saucepan, melt the butter. Then, add the sugar and salt and whisk until combined. Continue whisking for about 10 minutes, or until the mixture looks like melted peanut butter (reference the picture below). Make sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan or pot.
- Pour the toffee onto the prepared baking sheet pan, allowing it to spread. Let cool for about 20 minutes.
- Use a mallet, rolling pin, or heavy object to crack the batch of toffee into small bits.
- You can now use your toffee pieces to amp up the flavor in cookies, brownies, streusel toppings, sprinkled on top of vanilla ice cream, you name it!
Tips for Making Toffee:
- Before you start the recipe, line a rimmed cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. It’s best to do this first because you will need to pour the finished toffee onto the prepared pan immediately.
- Use a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Pans with thinner bottoms will heat too aggressively and may cause separation or scorching.
- Never step away from the toffee while it’s on the stove. It can burn quickly.
- Do not try to touch or taste the sugar while it’s cooking, as it will be extremely hot.
- Separated toffee can sometimes be saved by removing the saucepan from the heat and whisking vigorously until it comes back together into a smooth mixture. You may need to add a tablespoon of water to re-emulsify.
- A candy thermometer is so helpful in making toffee. This is my favorite candy thermometer.
- Make sure to let the toffee cool completely before you break it into bits and store it.
- If the toffee is flexible instead of hard, it wasn’t cooked long enough. You can break into pieces, return to the stove, and re-melt and cook to 295-305°F.
How to Store Toffee Bits
Once cooled and cut or broken into pieces, freeze in an airtight container or zip-top bag for up to 3 months. Allow to thaw at room temperature before enjoying or adding to cookie dough, streusel or other baked goods.
Try Next: Dutch Apple Pie With Caramel Streusel Topping
Homemade Toffee Bits
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Ingredients
- 1 stick (113 grams) unsalted American butter*
- 1 cup (200 grams) light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- Prepare your pan first: Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. This will make it easy to pour and cool the toffee later.
- Melt the butter: Place butter in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat and let it melt gently. Heating over high heat may cause the mixture to separate.
- Add sugar and salt: Once the butter is partially melted, stir in the brown sugar and salt, then use a whisk to whisk vigorously for 1 full minute until smooth and evenly combined. The sugar won't be fully dissolved yet—that's normal.
- Cook carefully: Keep the pan over medium heat, stirring constantly, including the edges to scrape up any sugar that sticks. The mixture will bubble, thicken, and look like smooth, melted peanut butter.⚠️ Important: Don't leave the pan unattended or stop stirring, even for a moment. Toffee can burn very quickly if ignored.
- If the mixture separates: If the butter and sugar split at any point (see Notes), remove the pan from heat and whisk vigorously until smooth. Return to medium heat, stirring constantly, to finish cooking.
- Check for doneness:*With a candy thermometer: 295°F-305°F (about 8-10 minutes)*Without a thermometer: Watch and smell closely. The mixture is ready when all three of these happen: the mixture is very smooth and glossy, the color turns a deep golden-brown, and a rich, toasty caramel aroma fills the air.
- Pour and spread: Immediately pour the hot toffee onto the prepared pan and use a spatula to spread evenly. Be careful, it's very hot! Let cool and harden, about 20 minutes.
- Break into pieces and store: Once hardened, crack into small pieces with a mallet, rolling pin, or heavy object, or cut with a sharp serrated knife. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Recipe Notes
- Butter: American-style butter gives the best texture and flavor. If using European-style butter ( 82% or more fat), add 1 tablespoon (14 g) of water as it melts to compensate for the lower water content. Cook to 300°F. The resulting toffee may be slightly greasier and is best used immediately.
- Salt: Don’t skip it! Salt helps stabilize the mixture and enhances the flavor overall.
- Pan: Heavy-bottomed pans distribute heat evenly. Avoid thin-bottomed or cheap pans, which can create hot spots and cause separation or burning.
- Heat: Keep medium heat consistent. Avoid abrupt changes or cooking on higher temperatures to speed up.
- Timing: Cooking time depends on your pan and stove. If separation happens within the first few minutes or your toffee cooks much faster than the time listed, your heat is likely too high. Always rely on sensory cues — texture, color, and aroma — rather than the clock alone.
- Toffee not hardening? If your toffee hasn’t set and is bendy, it likely didn’t cook long enough. To fix it, simply return the mixture to the pan over medium heat and cook while following the three sensory cues listed in the recipe — texture, color, and aroma — to know when it’s ready.
Recipes Using Toffee Bits:
Photos by Ashley McLaughlin. Recipe instructions updated in December 2025 for clarity.
Thank you so much for sharing this! I often see delicious recipes that call for toffee bits. I would just buy them, but the only ones I can find have almonds in them. My daughter is allergic to tree nuts… so I can’t use those. I’ll try your recipe and then I can put your toffee bits in all those other recipes!
So happy your daughter can now enjoy toffee bits and baked goods made with toffee bits, Erica!! 🙂
Brilliant! Just made it to avoid a trip to the grocery to make your toffee cookie recipe. It was easy and turned out perfect. And is delicious…. But now I need more brown sugar for the cookie dough, so need to go to the grocery. Lol. Thank you!
Yay! So excited to hear that you loved these toffee bits! I’m sorry you still had to go to the grocery store, though!
I can’t thank you enough for this recipe! As a mom to a nut allergy child, store bought toffee often contains almonds. So using this recipe helps me to use toffee in more recipes now without my son being left out of the deliciousness!!
So excited you love this toffee recipe, Trish! Glad your son can now enjoy more baked goods 🙂
Hi,
I know you say it’s best not to refrigerate or freeze the toffee. But, does that apply if I want to mix up my cookie dough and place it in the refrigerator for a couple of days before baking?
Thanks
Hi Madeline! No, that rule doesn’t apply if the toffee is in cookie dough 🙂 We recommend most of our cookie doughs be refrigerated (24-72 hours) before baking (including this delicious recipe, which uses the homemade toffee bits!), so you can absolutely do that with these homemade toffee pieces mixed in 🙂
This is such a great recipe. I recently used it in a batch of cookies for a bake off and it worked amazingly. Strongly recommend!
1. You may have to stir VIGOROUSLY if your sugar and butter separate.
2. It can sometimes be salvaged by adding water one tablespoon at a time to a max of 1/4 cup, then slowly reheating. The water melts the sugar again.
BUT BE PATIENT. ONE tablespoon at a time because it may take only one, stir like crazy on low heat, and the second the sugar and butter combine again snatch that puppy of the stove and pour it out to cool.
Hope this helps someone!
Your suggestion with the water SAVED my toffee!! It kept separating but with a little water and vigorous stirring it came back together!! THANK YOU!!
I will never buy toffee bits again. This was so easy! I was skeptical at first because when I poured the mixture on to parchment paper, it didn’t spread very well. I used a spoon to help it spread and waited 20 minutes to check on it. It tasted so good, and had the perfect consistency of not too hard, and not too soft. Can’t wait to add it to the brown butter chocolate chip toffee cookie recipe!
So happy you tried this recipe out! I agree, it’s hard to stop eating them! 🙂
Have you used this recipe to make peanut brittle?
We haven’t, but please let us know how it goes if you give it a try!
Just made this toffee (will be using it for the browned butter chocolate chip cookie recipe tomorrow). First time ever making toffee and it went really well! Directions were east to follow and the little piece I tasted of it is amazing! Cannot wait to try this in the cookie recipe tomorrow! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
So happy you love this recipe! Enjoy your cookies 🙂
Thank you for sharing this recipe. It turned out perfectly.
So glad you loved them!
I used this toffee recipe for some salted caramel browned butter cookies. It worked so well in the dough. The toffee tastes so good! I’ve been snacking on the extra toffee pieces!
I think that’s the best part of this recipe…the leftovers haha! So glad you love them 🙂
Ive tried this but I can’t get it to come put crunchy. It turns out more like chewy caramel.
Hi Leslie! I’ve actually had that happen to my toffee in the past, and it was because I didn’t boil the mixture long enough. Did you use a digital thermometer to verify temp or just use the visual indicator (referencing Tessa’s pics in the pink box above the recipe)?
I recently tried to make King Arthur’s English Toffee and my butter and sugar separated terribly. I ended up pouring off a puddle of butter after it hardened but luckily it was still yummy. Their recipe instructed to not stir at all after initially stirring in the sugar…my question is: is your recipe equivalent to a butter crunch toffee for making English toffee? And then: Any idea why that recipe required no stirring while Tessa instructs to continually stir? I’m so confused! Haha. And would really love to perfect my toffee game. Thank you for any insight!
Hi Amber! Our recipe is not equivalent to a butter crunch toffee. Sorry to hear your English Toffee recipe didn’t work out well! One thing I love about King Arthur Baking is that they typically include a blog post separate from their recipes that goes into more detail regarding the process. I’m linking theirs HERE. I checked it out, and they do note that if your syrup mixture is boiled too quickly, the butter and sugar can separate. Any time you’re working with a recipe that includes caramel, or toffee in this case, stirring can actually be detrimental to the recipe as it can cause the sugar mixture to splash onto the sides of your pan, causing the liquid to evaporate, which allows the sugar to form back into its crystal form. I hope that helps! I’d recommend reading through the comments on their recipe to see if anyone else experienced that issue, or commenting yourself for some help. They’re pretty good at responding 🙂