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Homemade Almond Roca

Make a batch of Homemade Almond Roca for parties, cookie trays, or gift-giving. These English toffee candies are absolutely scrumptious, impressive, and easy to make.

homemade almond roca or English toffee.
Homemade Almond Roca or English Toffee is perfect for gifting and sharing, as it stays crunchy and delicious!

Homemade Almond Roca is a holiday classic

As a kid, I often savored gold-foil-wrapped Almond Roca candies by the fistful. We loved finding those happy pink canisters in our kitchen any time of year. To this day, it’s anybody’s guess whether all those chocolate covered English toffee candies were given to us by Mom’s friends or if she secretly stashed our pantry with them herself.

Either way, that pretty much started a long term friendship with the chocolatey, crunchy, highly addictive Almond Roca. 💓

almond-roca

English Toffee is Perfect for Gifting

Few goodies are more impressive or appreciated than a container of homemade Almond Roca gifted to your favorite people.

These homemade Almond Roca are easy and every bit as amazingly delicious as the ones you buy off the shelf.  The varied shapes and sizes of your homemade toffee candies makes it super fun for munching during the holidays.

Six ingredients

  • Light brown sugar – pack it in tight
  • Salted butter – you’ll need 2 cups (or 4 sticks.) While you’re doling out the butter, remind yourself it’s a special occasion
  • Roasted and salted almonds, coarsely chopped – if you can put them in the oven for a quick fresh roast (take care not to burn, of course) then you’ll be massively rewarded with a wonderful nutty aroma
  • Milk chocolate chips – you can technically use semi-sweet or dark chocolate, but milk chocolate simply tastes best in these crunchy/chewy toffee candies
  • Vegetable oil or canola oil can be used
  • Special equipment: Candy thermometer – now’s the time to invest in one, if you don’t have one already. Use it to make this unbelievable 4-Ingredient salted caramel as well.
homemade almond roca or English toffee.

perfect for parties, gifts, and keep well

Wrap ’em up, tie some ribbons, and generously share the love. Bonus: you can absolutely make them ahead of time, wrap them up, and they stay deliciously ‘n delightfully crunchy for several weeks at moderate room temp. They also freeze well for those holiday-treat-emergencies. They’re perfect for sharing any time of year.

More to make and eat:

Try this 4-Ingredient Salted Caramel

Shop This Recipe

  • candy thermometer

    Insulated handle and pan clip is adjustable to attach to any size pan.

  • 18x13 sheet pan

    Make cookies, jelly rolls, bars, plus one-pan meals, or roasted vegetables with secure grip.

  • All Clad 3-quart saucepan

    Classic tri-ply construction, made with a responsive aluminum core bonded together with 2 layers of durable, stainless steel all the way around for maximum durability and fast, even heat distribution.

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homemade almond roca

Homemade Almond Roca

4.40 from 69 ratings
English toffee is absolutely scrumptious. They're crunchy, chocolatey, and taste just like the original pink canister ones you've loved since childhood. Perfect for gift-giving or holiday party trays.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 40
Author: Amy Dong

Ingredients  

Instructions

  • Stir: In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, add brown sugar and salted butter. Stir often for 3-4 minutes, or until mixture is bubbly and thick and candy thermometer registers 280ºF.
  • Combine and Pour: Immediately remove from heat once thermometer hits 290F.
    Add 3/4 cup almonds to the mixture and stir to combine well. Pour evenly into a rimmed 18×13 baking sheet, using the back of a wooden spoon to smooth evenly into the pan. Work quickly here, as mixture thickens and sets quickly.
  • Melt and Layer: While toffee cools, set a heavy pot over low heat. Add chocolate and oil, stirring until just barley melted through. Use a rubber spatula to transfer melted chocolate evenly on top of toffee layer, taking care to smooth the surface. Sprinkle remaining chopped almonds evenly over the warm chocolate layer.
  • Chill and Cut: Chill in fridge for a couple of hours to cool completely. Once fully set, carefully cut the toffee into pieces with a sharp knife. Homemade Almond Roca keep well in airtight container for a couple of weeks at room temp.

Notes

  • Homemade Almond Roca can be kept airtight at moderate room temp for several weeks, as they keep very well. They can also be frozen for a longer period of time and defrosted at room temp for holiday (any day) treat emergencies 🙂 
  • If you enjoyed this recipe, please come back and give it a rating ♡

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 196kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 1.9g | Fat: 14.5g | Saturated Fat: 7.7g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 26.3mg | Sodium: 82.5mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 14.3g
Course: candies, Dessert
Cuisine: American
Diet: Vegetarian
Method: Stovetop

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Recipe Rating




63 comments

    • Sandi
    • 5 stars

    First time making almond roca. Tasted great! Took longer on stovetop to get to temp than indicated. Some of the toffee separated from the chocolate, but since both had almonds both went into a yummy “broke apart” pile. Would love to know the secret of getting the chocolate and toffee to stick together throughout!

    • Matt
    • 5 stars

    Try this, but use semi-sweet chic and put graham crackers on the tray before pouring the the layers. Makes it easier to get of the tray an and makes them taste amazing

    • Yummy
    • 4 stars

    Good flavor but with it getting soft when out of the fridge.

    • Sel Runn
    • 5 stars

    why does home made almond roca gets soft when not in the fridge? am i missing something? is there another ingredient to be used so the chocolate part stays firm thank you Sel

    • Julie
    • 5 stars

    I just made this recipe and it was my first time attempting homemade toffee, much less Almond Roca. I followed the recipe as written, but did sprinkle cocoa powder over the toffee before pouring melted chocolate on top. It turned out AMAZING!!! Toffee is super light and crispy and everything is intact. I can’t keep my hands out of it! Lol

      • Amy Dong

      Super awesome, Julie! Glad you like it so much 🙂 🙂

    • Linda L Stradley
    • 5 stars

    I’m about to make the “almond Roca” and am using my regular raw almonds. I can roast them and salt them but should I blanch them first?

      • Amy Dong

      No need to blanch! Enjoy, Linda! 🙂

    • Pamela L Dylina

    Amy, you have 2 cups 4 sticks of butter.. Is that 4 sticks equals 2 cups or 2 c. + 4 sticks..??

      • Amy Dong

      Updated to say 2 cups (yes, 2 cups = 4 sticks) Thank you, Pamela!

      • John Rhoe

      Both are true!

    • Ken
    • 5 stars

    You say that this lasts for a couple weeks at room temperature, no it doesn’t! Three maybe four days until the container is empty with four in the household.

    • Farrukh Aziz
    • 5 stars

    These were awesome, Amy! I love how these take only 20 minutes to prepare, makes it so much easier for me. 🙂

    • Vicki
    • 5 stars

    I made this recipe and it was delish! However, after about 24 hours the toffee softened and became crumbly. It was hard and chewy the first day. What did I do wrong?

      • chewoutloud

      Vicki, it’s hard to tell without seeing it, but was it allowed to fully cool before covering/storing?

        • Vicki
        • 5 stars

        No I didn’t realize I should do that. I put the chocolate on top of it and let it sit for a few minutes but then, I’m pretty sure I covered it. It is easier to eat softened and crumbly but I did want to know what happened so I won’t repeat my mistake. Thank you so much for your answer. The recipe is so good and everyone at the party really liked it.

        • Vicki
        • 5 stars

        I thought I replied but don’t see it so will try again. I didn’t wait until it was completely cooled before covering. As a matter of fact, the toffee that is against the side of the pan remained hard while the middle became soft so I think that must be my problem. Thank you so much for the recipe and for troubleshooting!

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