This holiday season, you will LOVE this easy recipe for homemade keto English toffee! Made with 5 ingredients, it’s sweet, addictive and secretly low carb and sugar free! Perfect for all your holiday parties and gifts!
Toffee crack, Christmas crack, and old fashioned English toffee candy- Whatever you call it, it’s a classic Christmas recipe that ALWAYS appears during the holidays.
I’ve been meaning to try a sugar free and low carb version for ages, but always seem to put it off until the next holiday season. This time, I was prepared and ready to give the classic English toffee a keto and low carb makeover!
What is English Toffee?
English toffee, as opposed to traditional toffee, is thicker, more buttery and often can include nuts. Traditional holiday style English toffee often has a layer of chocolate, making it the perfect dessert or portable gift.
It can sometimes be said that traditional toffee uses white sugar and English toffee uses brown. I’ve tried with both keto options (swerve and golden monk fruit) and both work.
How to make easy keto English toffee
Making English toffee is deceptively easy, provided you have a candy thermometer. Using one solves the issue of how to stop the butter and sugar from separating.
The Ingredients
- Butter. The quality of the butter you use makes a HUGE difference. I’ve used grass-fed butter and good quality traditional butter and they have been great. Some dairy-free butter will work too, but any of the cheaper ones tend to contain water and can affect the toffee.
- Granulated Sugar Substitute. Homemade brown sugar substitute should be used. I cannot vouch for any other sugar substitutes. If you can tolerate sugar, table sugar and brown sugar will work.
- Chocolate chips. Chocolate chips to top the warm toffee with and melt beautifully to form a gorgeous layer.
- Chopped nuts of choice. Optional, but I love adding a handful of finely chopped almonds or pecans for some added crunch.
The Instructions
- Line a small loaf pan or square pan with parchment paper. Place some of the optional nuts over the bottom and set aside.
- In a small saucepan, combine your butter and sugar. On low heat, heat up the mixture, stirring regularly. Once it starts to bubble, add your candy thermometer and keep an eye on it. Stir every 30 seconds, until it reaches 300F.
- Remove from the heat and whisk very, very well, to ensure the mixture doesn’t separate. Gently pour into the lined pan and let sit for a few minutes.
- After the toffee has sat for several minutes, top with chocolate chips in an even layer and cover with tin foil for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, use a rubber spatula to spread the chocolate over the top.
- Refrigerate until firm, before breaking up into pieces.
Dietary Substitutions
- Paleo English Toffee. Be sure to use good quality. grass-fed butter and refined sugar free chocolate chips on top.
- Vegan English Toffee. Use dairy-free butter and dairy-free chocolate chips on top.
How long can you keep homemade toffee?
- To store. Store English toffee in a sealable container. They will keep fresh for at least a week. You can also refrigerate them, and they will keep for at least a month.
- To freeze. You can freeze English toffee, but the texture will not be the best once thawed. Wrap toffee in parchment paper and place it in a ziplock bag.
More healthy holiday dessert recipes
- Walnut Brownies
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Almond Butter Cookies
- White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
- Pecan Pie Bars
- Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars
Tools to make the best easy English Toffee recipe
- Candy Thermometer. A MUST for ensuring perfect toffee, without the fear of it burning or separating!
- Non-stick saucepan. A good quality saucepan ensures even heating throughout.
English Toffee {Keto, Vegan, Paleo}
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter
- 1/2 cup allulose or brown sugar
- 1 cup keto chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup raw almonds chopped finely
Instructions
- Line a small loaf pan or square pan with parchment paper and spread out the chopped almonds. and set aside.
- In a small saucepan, combine your butter and sugar substitute. On low heat, heat up until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Stir regularly. Once the mixture begins to bubble, add your candy thermometer into the center of the mixture. Continue to stir every 30 seconds, until the thermometer reaches 300F (hard crack). Remove from the heat.
- Once you have removed from the heat, stir continuously to ensure the butter and sugar doesn't separate. Pour into the lined pan and let sit for several minutes.
- After several minutes, top with chocolate chips, before covering with tin foil. Let sit for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, use a rubber spatula to spread out the toffee in an even layer.
- Refrigerate until firm. Once firm, break apart into pieces.
Notes
- To store. Store English toffee in a sealable container. They will keep fresh for at least a week. You can also refrigerate them, and they will keep for at least a month.
- To freeze. You can freeze English toffee, but the texture will not be the best once thawed. Wrap toffee in parchment paper and place it in a ziplock bag.
Nutrition
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Ok, so it says this is vegan, but the recipe says butter. Do you mean vegan butter?
Hi Kathy, the post includes an option tested with vegan butter (the Flora brand)
I didn’t see when to put the almonds in?
Never mind, I found where the almonds are! Sorry! My bad!
I think this turned out pretty good, but the actual toffee was kind of crumbly. I brought it up to 302ish (302 is what the thermometer said was hard crack), poured it in the pan, and let it sit. Maybe I didn’t let it sit long enough, either on the counter or in the fridge? I still liked the end result, though maybe a little different than the picture.
Hi! I placed it on my floor (the most even temperature surface) and let it sit, but it should be a thick caramel state 🙂
Always love your recipes! And share with friends whenever possible. My favourites are your mug cake recipes… easiest for not over indulging!
In your toffee directions above… #4. Should probably read… “After 5 minutes, use a rubber spatula to spread out the *chocolate* in an even layer.”
Ahhh thank you!!! Will amend it 🙂
Hi, thanks for this recipe. Traditionally my family has always made a sugar version of this and it is to die for. So I made your recipe and tweaked it a bit and oh, I have died and gone to heaven. I only had plain monk fruit, so I added 1/2 T or molasses, 3/4 c total of slivered almonds, and 1t of salt. Added almonds and salt after it started to boil. Topped it with Lily’s Milk Chocolate baking chips. My grandma recipe has salt in it and I just love the sweet and salty aspect of toffee. Thank you so much!
The substitutions sound fabulous, Laura!
Thank you for sharing this recipe. It was very well explained and simple to succeed. Delicious!
You are so welcome, Evelyne!
Any thoughts on using coconut oil? I know, I know, you’ve already given like 4 different alternatives 😆…
No idea! Feel free to experiment and see!
If I use monkfruit sweetener will it taste like monkfruit .I just don’t really like the taste of it
The one I used tastes just like sugar.
My toffee tastes incredible but it never got hard. It stayed chewy. I cooked to 300 degrees. Should I have cooked it longer?
Hi Korey- try chilling it longer 🙂
Unfortunately it never fully hardened and it’s been in the fridge for a few days. It’s delicious and soft like a caramel but I was really hoping for that crunch 😕
How do you measure 1 piece?
Oops, I missed the 12 servings at the top!
Hi,
Would it be possible to switch. Onkfruit for maple syrup or honey or a combination?
Nope, but you can use white sugar or brown sugar.
hello! this tasted fantastic. mine turned out with a sandy texture and kind of soft. i used a candy thermometer to the temp of 300. should i have cooked it a little longer? thanks for your imput.
Hi Shellie. It should be thick and creamy and it firms up when chilled. Perhaps whisk it a little longer once removed from the heat.