Hold onto your hats, people! Churro Toffee is officially in the building and it is PHENOMENAL. Buttery, crunchy toffee with a white chocolate and cinnamon sugar churro topping JUST like the one they serve at Disney parks! A must make for the holidays!
Have I got a recipe for you today that’s going to shock, amaze, and blow your minds. I know, that’s kind of intensely high praise but I promise, it’s worth it.
Whether or not you’ve been to a Disney park in the last few years, you may or may not have heard of churro toffee. It’s exactly what it sounds like: a toffee that has a churro-y flavor and it’s good. While I haven’t had Disney’s version, I can only imagine it’s very delicious – after all, any time I see a food blogger friend go there, they always rave about it.
So since I haven’t been to the parks in a million years (hi, fixing that stat!), I figured I would whip up my own churro toffee to try this out for, ya know, research purposes. I gotta know what I’m in for before I try the real stuff, right? Right. 🙂
Anyhoo, this stuff is addicting, surprisingly easy even for novice candy makers and probably tastes better than Disney’s because it’s homemade and homemade stuff really is the best.
Making Toffee
Toffee is pretty simple to make and requires pantry ingredients you probably have on hand, including:
- Butter: I use unsalted since I’m adding salt to the toffee mixture
- Granulated sugar: for sweetness and the structure of the toffee
- Water: to help with the cooking process
- Salt: to counter some of the sweetness
- Pure vanilla extract: for flavor and sweetness
You’ll simply boil your toffee ingredients, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until your toffee reaches 305 degrees F on a candy thermometer. While I don’t recommend making toffee without a thermometer, it can be done if you’re more experienced. 305 degrees F on a candy thermometer is known as “hard crack stage” and your toffee will be richly golden brown, almost like the color of a raw almond.
When making candy, I always recommend cooking in a pot with a heavy bottom as opposed to a flimsy pot. This is because the heavier bottomed pots are less likely to scorch your candy, and because we’re not stirring the toffee constantly, this is crucial.
To finish our toffee, we’ll sprinkle the top with white chocolate chips, let them melt and spread it into an even layer, and then top with sparkling cinnamon sugar. Perfection!
Churro Toffee will soon become your family’s fave!
Churro Toffee
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into cubes
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
For the Churro Topping:
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Line an 8x8 square pan with parchment paper and allow the parchment sides to hang over the edges of the pan for easier removal later. Set aside. Meanwhile, measure out your vanilla and set it out next to your stove so it is ready when you are.
- In a medium heavy bottomed pot, add the cubed butter, granulated sugar, water, and salt and turn the stove to medium heat. Cook, stirring gently occasionally with a wooden spoon, until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Once the mixture begins to come to a boil, attach a candy thermometer to the pot.
- Allow the mixture to boil, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon until mixture reaches 305° degrees F on the candy thermometer, also known as hard crack stage. The toffee should be the color of a raw almond. Depending on your stove, this could take anywhere from 10-20 minutes. Once it reaches 305° degrees, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract; note that the vanilla will cause the mixture to bubble and foam violently, so be careful.
- Pour the toffee into the prepared parchment-lined pan in an even layer. Let set for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, sprinkle the top of the toffee with the white chocolate chips in an even layer. Cover the pan with foil and let set for another 5 minutes. Remove the foil and spread the now melty chocolate chips in an even layer using an offset spatula.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar and ground cinnamon until combined. Sprinkle liberally over the wet white chocolate layer. Allow the toffee to set completely at room temperature, about 3 hours. You can also expedite this process by refrigerating it.
This buttery, sugary, spicy deliciousness is a MUST for your holiday baking trays!
Have a super sweet day!
xo, Hayley
Lisl says
Made this toffee this afternoon! So yummy and so easy! The hardest part was waiting for it to set! And a “thumbs up” and big smile from my son 🙂
Angela says
I’m a long time toffee maker, and this was amazing, as well as fun to do something different. Absolutely delicious. Definitely giving it out for the holidays, along side my traditional toffee. Thanks for the idea!
Heather says
Such an easy recipe! The directions were easy to understand and the toffee is delicious. Would highly recommend!
Emma+Mullen says
I just made this and it turned out perfectly!! Thank you Hayley, what a fun treat!!