School is almost out for the year here, just a few more days left. This also means it is Christmas teacher gift time. Yes, I procrastinate on this one. I don’t get all crazy with teacher gifts. I keep it simple and try to make it cost effective. My son with Autism at one point had 8 or 9 teachers and aides. So we have almost always always done homemade gifts. Even now my younger 2 in elementary school do not stick with one teacher all day. Mr Awesome has 5 teachers for 5th grade and Lil Miss has 2 in 2nd grade. As for middle and high school teachers, we do not do gifts for them unless they have left their mark and are truly awesome. That is just us though. If we gave gifts to all 4 of my kid’s teachers and assistants it would be about 22 gifts. Christmas isn’t about going broke or who can spend the most on a gift. Well, that is what we think. So on the 6th day of my Homemade Christmas I made Melt in your Mouth Toffee for teachers in our life.
Truth is, I don’t know when it happened but I have fallen in love with toffee. I think everyone should love it. What is there not to love. Toffee is simple. The recipe I use has 5 ingredients, Butter, Sugar, Brown Sugar, Chocolate and Almonds. Yes, you need a candy thermometer but just because you have to use one doesn’t mean the recipe is hard. You bring your butter and sugar to a certain temperature and the pour into a pan, add chocolate, then the almonds and let it cool and you are done. It is easy! I invite you to try it and let me know what you think!
- 1 pound butter
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 cup chopped slivered almonds
- 2 cups chocolate chips (dark, mil or semi sweet)
- In a heavy saucepan, combine butter, white sugar, and brown sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture boils. Boil to brittle stage, 300 degrees F (150 degrees C) without stirring. Remove from heat.
- Pour hot mixture into a 9x13 dish that has been lined with foil or parchment paper. Sprinkle chocolate chips and allow to sit for a minute or two to melt. Then spread evenly with spatula into a thin layer. Sprinkle with almonds.
- Let the mixture cool (can be placed in the refrigerator or freezer) and break it into pieces before serving. Store in an air tight container.
Adapted from Allrecipes.com