Apple Toffees

Name: Apple Toffees
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 50 min
Cuisine: International
Ingredients: 10 - 12 Large apples (if you have a juicer) OR; 960 ml Fresh pressed apple juice (not from concentrate), e.g. Copella / Innocent; 115 g Unsalted butter; 200 g Caster sugar; 110 g Light brown sugar (normal or muscovado); 80 ml Double cream

Love Baking Over a year ago 1,204 views

Cook: 50 mins

Dessert

Ingredients

10 - 12 Large apples (if you have a juicer) OR
960 ml Fresh pressed apple juice (not from concentrate), e.g. Copella / Innocent
115 g Unsalted butter
200 g Caster sugar
110 g Light brown sugar (normal or muscovado)
80 ml Double cream

Accompaniment

Description

Chewy toffees with a lovely fruity flavour from apple juice that is reduced to a syrup and used instead of liquid glucose / golden syrup.

Method

1
If you have a juicer, use it to make 960 ml juice from the apples.
Pour the apple juice into a large saucepan and boil over a high heat for about 35 to 40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it is reduced to a thick amber syrup, between 80 ml and 120 ml in volume.
Grease a 20 cm square / 16 X 26 cm rectangular tin (or similar) with a little softened butter, then line the base with baking paper, with overhang at two opposite ends.
Chop the cold butter into little chunks, add to the pan with both sugars and the cream and place over a medium heat for about 5 to 8 minutes until the temperature reaches 122 C on a sugar / jam thermometer (hard ball stage*).
Pour into into the prepared tin and leave at room temperature for at least an hour. Cover with clingfilm and put in the fridge for at least 2 hours to set completely (can be left overnight).
Once set, remove the toffee slab from the tin, using the paper, and cut into small pieces with a sharp knife**. If it is rock hard, leave it to soften ever so slightly for 5 minutes before cutting, so that it doesn’t crack (more likely than with my other caramel recipes as it is boiled to hard ball stage, not soft ball). Eat as they are, or wrap each one in greaseproof paper.
If you like them soft and chewy, keep at room temperature. For a firmer texture, keep them in the fridge.

Chef's Tips

*If you don't have a thermometer: after 5 minutes take a little of the mixture with a teaspoon and drop into a glass of cold water. If ready, it will immediately form into a ball that you can lift out. When you take it out of the water it will keep the ball shape although it won’t be completely hard when you press it. If is still too soft, give it another minute or two, but keep your eye on it so that it doesn’t go too hard, or burn.

**The author of the recipe recommends oiling the knife with sunflower oil to help cut the caramel, but I didn’t find it helped particularly. Try this technique if it is sticking.

The original recipe suggests mixing together 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon and 2 teaspoons sea salt flakes, and stirring in just before pouring into the tin. As I don't like salted caramel, I left this out, and really like them plain, but may try adding cinnamon in the future. I suggest adding the salt and / or cinnamon if it suits your personal taste.