salted chocolate almond toffee

THE BOYS and I have started an inadvertent tradition of making super ugly spritz cookies for our neighbors for the holidays. Our hearts are totally in it, we just haven’t quite nailed the whole process and end up with unidentifiable, colorful blobs. Maybe it’s because they’re gluten free or maybe it’s the altitude or maybe we it’s entirely pilot error and we just can’t quite master the cookie press. Whatever the reason, we alwayend up with “nailed it” style cookies. Though they are the ugly-super-delicious kind. They really are so yum, so I guess we get it where it counts. This year we also tried our hands at some pretty amazing gluten free sugar cookies as well 😂 #nailedit

Thank goodness for gracious neighbors with a sense of humor, cute packaging from The Container Store and this Iowa Girl Eats Salted Chocolate Almond Toffee. It. Is. Totally. Amazing. Really! And super easy to make. We’ll still make the ugly spritz cookies because we’re just not quitters, but this toffee will def be my new go-to holiday treat. Here’s the recipe for easy access, but you should really check out her site for more inspiration, she has tons of awesome recipes (I love her Simple Shrimp + Asparagus Risotto).

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 cup salted butter (2 sticks), cut into pats

• 1 cup roughly chopped roasted + salted almonds (I also added salted peanuts, which was super delish, but you can use any nuts you like)

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• 1 + 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

• 1-2 tbsp coarse sea salt

DIRECTIONS

• Line a 9x13” glass baking dish with parchment paper and set it aside. Tear off a sheet of foil big enough to cover the top of the baking dish then set that aside, too.

• Add sugar and butter to a small/medium-sized, heavy-bottomed saucepan and place it over medium heat. Stir contantly until until the butter has melted and come to a bubble. Clip a candy thermometer onto the pan then continue to cook, stirring every so often, until the candy reaches 300 degrees and is the color of maple syrup. Resist the urge to turn your heat higher then medium - be patient.

• Remove pan from the heat then, working quickly yet safely, remove the candy thermometer and add the almonds and vanilla. Stir quickly to combine then immediately pour into the prepared baking dish and spread candy into an even layer. It hardens really really fast!

• Sprinkle chocolate chips over the top then crimp the foil over the baking dish and let it sit for 2-3 minutes. Remove the foil and use the back of a spoon to spread the chocolate into an even layer. Let the chocolate set for 5-7 minutes (until it’s tacky vs. molten) then sprinkle with sea salt. Refrigerate until completely set, around 2 hours, then lift it out of the baking dish and break it into pieces. If you have any left, store remaining it in the refrigerator to extend its shelf life. But… I doubt you’ll have any left!

And when you’re all finished with the baking and cleaning and sampling and recovering from your sugar crash, you can package it all up in a beautiful little bundle and deliver it like a little holiday elf. See below for some of our favorite supplies for dolling up our baked goods for gifting. Perfectly pretty packages make up for our perfectly imperfect decorating skills. xo

1. Container Store waxed tissue paper for lining the boxes // 2. Bakers twine in every color via Etsy // 3. Container Store bakery boxes make everything look fancier // 4. Or these lovely kraft ones via Etsy // 5. Pretty waxed paper via Etsy // 6. Half Baked Harvest x Etsy Scalloped Treasure Cookie Boxes // 7. Container Store Window Boxes // 8. Window kraft bakery bags via Etsy // xo