Can baking sheets continue to cook toffee?
I make tons of toffee every year. And I mean tons. Never had a problem. Now this year, something so wrong. Same recipe. Same pans. Same house. Same stove. Same thermometers. I even bought new thermometers just in case. So here is the deal. Everything is fine. Cooks fine. Looks good. Smells great. Once it reaches desired temp, I pour it onto a lightly buttered baking sheet. Same as always. Cooks down. Put it in freezer. Everything is the same as I have done for YEARS! Now when I take it out and break it up, it’s perfect around the edges but super dark and almost burnt in the middle. I can’t figure it out. So my question is this? Could the baking sheet be “cooking” the mixture? Can the pans go bad? I don’t understand how only around the edges is good. I can’t stress enough how everything is the same down to the brand of ingredients. I’m about to lose my mind! PLEASE HELP!
Best Answer
Toffee cannot continue to cook once it's been poured onto a baking sheet. There is no heat source at this point and therefore there can be no increase in temperature.
All other factors being equal, I might suggest looking at your ingredients. Are you using beet sugar this year when you usually use cane sugar? It might seem like a trivial difference, but beet sugar does caramelize differently from cane sugar, so it's a relevant concern for toffee-making.
However, you might not need to get to the bottom of this mystery. You know that the temperature you're using with the current ingredients and equipment is burning the toffee. You could try cooking the next patch to 5-10 degrees less than your previous attempts so that it won't burn. I'm pretty sure that 290 degree toffee will be just as crunchy and lovely as 300 degree toffee.
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Can I use parchment paper when making toffee?
While toffee cooks, line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Pour toffee onto the prepared baking sheet.Can you use parchment paper for English toffee?
Watch carefully so mixture does not burn. Immediately pour toffee onto a large cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. If necessary, quickly spread mixture to 1/4-inch thickness. Sprinkle with chocolate chips; let stand about 1 minute or until chips are completely softened.What happens if you cook toffee too long?
The toffee continues to change color and becomes darker as the temperature rises. If toffee cooks to too high a temperature and the toffee is dark in color, unfortunately, there is no way to save this batch of toffee. Ways to prevent this from happening include: If you use a Candy Thermometer test it for accuracy.How do you know your toffee is done?
Here's how you know when the toffee is ready. Keep one of the almonds near the pan. It's your color cue. When the toffee is the color of the almond skin, it's done!Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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