Toffee with Chocolate and Almond Slivers

Toasted almonds on the bottom, salted toffee in the middle and more almonds and semi-sweet chocolate on top. Break this apart like peanut brittle with a little hammer. Buttery, sweet and salty, and delicious. 

So, my house-hunting trip to Cairo was indeed canceled.  We had been blessed by an invitation to share Thanksgiving with a family there on Friday and I was planning to make this to bring, to share, since I wouldn’t have a proper kitchen in the serviced apartment.  I decided to make it anyway, because, so rich are my blessings, I have been graced with another invitation to share Thanksgiving here in Kuala Lumpur.  Since I have an actual kitchen and oven, I will also make an apple pie.  And green beans, just like my grandmothers used to make, to bring as well.

May you all be blessed richly with friends and family who love you this Thanksgiving.  I am firmly convinced there is no greater blessing than friends and family who love you!  I am more grateful than I can express.  Surely, I do not have my family with me, but they are safe and I hope that they also know how much they are loved by me and how much I wish we could be together. 

Ingredients

2 rounded cups or 300g of slivered almonds

2 cups or 450g unsalted butter

3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

2 cups or 450g sugar

1/8 cup or 30ml light corn syrup

1/3 cup or 80ml water

1 1/2 rounded cups or 290g semi-sweet chocolate chips

Method

Toast the almond slivers in a dry non-stick frying pan over a medium heat.  Stir or toss them frequently to make sure they brown evenly. 

It's hard to see how toasted these are but they were darker than the photo makes them appear. 

Line a baking pan with sides  (minimum 15 1/2in x10 1/2in or 40cm x 27cm) with foil.  Butter the foil liberally.

Sprinkle half of the toasted almonds on the foil.

Ah, see! They look more toasted in the natural light.

In a heavy saucepan, add butter, salt, sugar, corn syrup, and water. Cook over medium-high heat.

Cook the mixture until it reaches 290-300 degrees using a candy thermometer, which is the soft crack stage. Be really careful at this step, at 280 it goes really fast, and can burn in mere seconds. 

Pour the mixture immediately over the almonds. Set a timer for five minutes and let it cool until it is firm but still hot.

Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the toffee.  Set your timer for two minutes and, when it rings, spread the chocolate all over the toffee.

Sprinkle with remaining toasted almond slivers.  Chill in the refrigerator until it hardens completely.

Peel the toffee off of the foil and turn it over.  Gently break it into pieces with a small hammer. 

Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container, with waxed or parchment paper between the layers.  Or serve immediately!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who is celebrating this weekend!

Adapted from this recipe, but originally from Pinterest and The Idea Room.  I tried to find the original post on Pinterest but I don’t really understand how it works, I guess.