| Chocolate-Almond
Toffee Bark
The phrase "hard crack phase" makes me think of...
a. 1991 through 1993, then rehab
b. my time in Catholic school
c. walnuts
d. two or more of the above
Apparently, "hard crack phase" is a candy-making term used to
describe somewhere around 209 degrees. Certs me. I was just
looking everywhere in this city for "toffee bits" in order to
make a blondie recipe from the October 2003 Everyday Food, which
Martha promised were "easy to find near the chocolate chips in any
grocery store," with little success. So I decided to make my
own toffee. You would not believe how easy it is! I made one
batch plain to break up into bits, and one batch of chocolate-almond
toffee bark. The whole process took about 10 minutes. Here's
how:
INGREDIENTS
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
chocolate chips (I prefer semi-sweet, but some like milk)
slivered almonds
DIRECTIONS
Heat the sugar and butter in a saucepan over medium low heat, stirring
slowly but steadily. You will see the mixture go through several
phases, sort of like a chemistry experiment. When it turns beige,
after 7-8 minutes, throw in a few almonds, give it a stir to mix.
Don't let the color get too dark - if it starts to accumulate little
bubbles on the surface, it's overdone and will taste burned. I had
to experiment with a smaller batch to figure out when it was done, but I'd
say 7-8 minutes should do it on a gas stove at least. Remove from
heat and pour the mixture out onto a greased cookie sheet or pyrex.
Sprinkle chocolate chips over the top. Let them melt and spread them
out with a spatula, then sprinkle with more slivered almonds. Let
cool, then crack up into 2" pieces. Yum!
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