Homemade Heath Bars: Butter toffee topped with sliced almonds and milk chocolate makes for a surprisingly simple version of your favorite Heath Bars, just in time for the Easter baskets.
I’ve already told you guys how Boyfriend is the Ebenezer Scrooge of desserts. Even my Pecan Raisin Pie, which he raves about, only gets at most two bites before he is done.
So you can imagine my surprise when I asked for suggestions of what to make for the blog a couple of weeks ago and his immediate response was, “Heath bars.”
I was so taken aback I replied, “Like…homemade Heath bars?” You know, just to make sure I was understanding him correctly.
“Yeah, sure.”
Well, that was instructive.
Of course, since I am a lifelong chocolate hater (for which I feel the need to apologize every time I make mention of it) I wasn’t even sure what a Heath Bar was. Thank goodness for the Google machine, which told me that it is really nothing more than toffee covered with almonds and milk chocolate.
Ok, easy enough.
That night I pulled out the trusty candy thermometer and an entire pound of butter – yes, you read that correctly, a pound of butter – and set to making candy.
If you’ve never made candy before, it truly isn’t as scary as it seems. You’ll need a good candy thermometer (I tend to be leery of recipes that only tell you to go on time or the color of your candy – too much room for error, if you ask me) and some patience. Pick a day that you’re blessed with a decent attention span.
Your candy will take a while to get up to temperature, but it will only take a few minutes to go from perfect to overdone, so no walking away and doing something else, ya hear? Things also move fairly quickly once you get started, so have your ingredients measured and ready to go before you get started.
#Protip
Oh, and I should mention: If you aren’t a fan of almonds or milk chocolate, feel free to use your favorite nut or a nice dark chocolate. Mix it up! That’s the great thing about making things at home, remember?
Toffee adapted from The Pioneer Woman’s “Lia’s Butter Toffee” recipe
- 2 cups (1 pound) unsalted butter
- 2 cups sugar
- 1½ tablespoons water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup sliced almonds
- 2-3 cups chopped milk chocolate
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Measure out vanilla and almonds; set aside.
- In a large Dutch oven, bring butter, sugar, water, and salt to a boil, stirring constantly. Once butter and sugar are melted, insert your candy thermometer, making sure it is covered by the mixture but not touching the bottom of the pot. Cook, continuing to stir, until mixture reaches 298 degrees (hard crack stage). Remove from heat and quickly stir in vanilla, then pour mixture onto the prepared baking sheet. Smooth out with a spatula, sprinkle on almonds, then set aside to cool for at least an hour.
- Once toffee has cooled, place chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high in 30-second increments, stirring after each. Heat until just melted, then pour over cooled toffee and spread even with a spatula. Allow to harden, then break into pieces and serve.
DessertForTwo says
One pound of butter?! Sign me up! 🙂
Julia says
Did you know DID YOU KNOW Heath bars are my favorite candy next to a straight up dark-as-sin chocolate bar?? Once upon a time, I was a chocolate hater too, so I do understand your dislike of it, and I love you even more for making a chocolate-y treat in spite of your despisal. High fives. High fives for Heath bars!
Stephanie @ Girl Versus Dough says
So many applause emojis for Alex and these Heath bars right now.
Judy Ballew says
I can’t wait to try it.
cookingactress says
I haven’t made homemade toffee yet but i sooo need to! I love how buttery and amazing it is! and girl. YOU’D NEVER HEARD OF HEATH BARS??! I love you anyway but ahhhh! I’m glad Alex was smart enough to suggest you make these!
laurasmess says
I have no idea what a Heath bar is either (I love chocolate but they don’t exist here… my first thought was, “HEALTH bar? How is THAT a health bar? Oh wait, no L”) but these bars look delicious. I feel a sudden urge to dance around my living room. Do you, uh, home deliver?
Isadora says
When I first read the title of this post I thought it said “Health Bars” and then I looked at the picture and thought that they couldn’t possibly be healthy, but maybe, and then I read the pound of butter part and I finally realized they were called Heath bars, haha! Healthy or not, they still look delicious and I want them now!
Stephie says
Well, if you want to pass them off as health bars…I won’t tell anyone 😉
Nicole Neverman says
Thank you so much for attending week 3 of #PureBlogLove and linking your fantastic blog post. I love the simplicity of these heath bars. They sound fantastic!
I can’t wait to see what you have in store for our party next week Thursday 8 PM EST- Sundays at midnight . Have a great day!
Nicole
http://picnicnz.blogspot.co.nz/
Chrystal @ YUM eating says
Stopping by form #foodiefriday and this is my mothers favorite candy. I am going to have to make these for her as a Christmas gift for the goodie baskets we do.
Pure Grace Farms says
Love these simple ingredients. Looks delicious. Thanks for sharing at Foodie Fridays. Hope to see you again tomorrow.
Blessings,
Shari
Jodee Weiland says
I love Heath Bars, so I love this recipes! What a great idea…thanks for sharing!
Brian says
The toffee recipe needs more detailed cooking instructions, such as, “bring to a slow boil on low heat until it reaches 298F so as not to burn it – remember it is made of butter which burns easily”. If we don’t burn the 2nd batch then I’ll write again to tell you how it came out.
Stephie says
Thank you for sharing your tips and experience with the recipe, Brian.
Brian says
Stephie, the 2nd time worked out much better! We still burned the bottom slightly but the mixture as a whole did not burn and the toffee turned out pretty good. If I were to do it a third time (definitely next year) then I would change to a thick bottom boiler (cast iron dutch oven?) so the heat is evenly distributed (no hot spots). This batch was about 3/8 inch thick (about 3x thicker than a Heath bar) which was really appealing at first but then you find that you cannot eat much without becoming sick of it and it does not last as long because there are fewer pieces than if it were thinner. In order to make it thinner the cookie sheet/casserole pan should be pre-heated, say to 250F, to allow the toffee to spread thin before it cools. The pan should have a lip to prevent it from running off the edges. Thanks for doing the recipe and the web site!
Liz says
I always make English toffee for Christmas, but it would be fabulous for Easter, too! Why didn’t I think of that????
Alice @ Hip Foodie Mom says
what a great idea!! I love this!
Ashley - Baker by Nature says
This looks so amazing! Totally craving a heath bar now 😉
Megan Lawson says
Great alternative to the regular heath bar!
Tina Marie says
I’m going to try these this weekend! They look amazing.
kristi says
i love heath bars! can’t wait to try these!
Holly says
I want to try this with dark chocolate!
nicole @ I am a Honey Bee says
butter toffee… yes please!!!
Kelly says
Totally craving this now! Love heath bars!
Merry says
Now I can try to make this instead of scraping the ‘ugh’ chocolate off the Heath bars you buy! Yes, that is what i do. Yes, another chocolate disliker. (Yes there are many of us.) Wouldn’t say I hate chocolate, but not a huge fan.
Going to buy a candy thermometer tomorrow.
Thanks
Carol says
My butter/sugar mixture separated during cooking, and no matter how much I stirred, it wouldn’t smooth together. When I poured it into a cookie sheet, I had melted butter all around the edge. I’d this normal, or how do I remedy it for the next batch. I put heat on medium/low and cooked to 298. It didn’t burn, but it just didn’t look right. Thank you!