Bonfire toffee (also known as treacle toffee or plot toffee) is traditionally eaten on Bonfire Night when the UK celebrates the downfall of Guy Fawkes and his Gunpowder Plot. Rich, buttery and deliciously dark, this treacle toffee recipe also makes a great Halloween treat.
Why not also serve some Derbyshire thor black treacle cake at your Bonfire Night celebrations.
Why I Love This Recipe
- Traditional: This is the bonfire toffee of my childhood. Dark, hard and full of black treacle flavour. Just like Gran used to make!
- Easy: There is nothing complicated about this recipe. Just follow the instructions carefully for perfect results
- So tasty: Rich, mellow & buttery, this black treacle toffee is deeply delicious.
- Feeds a crowd: A little goes a long way. Since treacle toffee is intended to be sucked rather than chewed, just a few pieces will satisfy most people. It's perfect for sharing.
- Part of British history: Bonfire toffee is woven into tradition, served alongside hotdogs, mushy peas and toffee apples to mark the downfall of Guy Fawkes.
Jump to:
What is Bonfire Toffee?
Bonfire toffee is a form of hard candy made from brown sugar, golden syrup and black treacle (hence the alternative name treacle toffee).
It is as hard as rock and great fun to whack with a toffee hammer or rolling pin to break it into irregular, shiny & beautiful chunks of deep, treacly delight.
The name bonfire toffee comes about as it is served on 5th November across the UK as part of the annual Bonfire Night celebrations to mark the downfall of Guy Fawkes and the gunpowder plot in 1605 (hence the alternative name plot toffee).
I've perfected my recipe for treacle toffee and I'm sharing it along with plenty of handy tips. Think trays of glossy bonfire toffee begging to be shattered, plus instructions for making the cutest little treacle toffee lollipops.
Should you need more ideas for seasonal treats, I've also devised a handy Bonfire Night food guide with plenty of recipe suggestions.
My son has loved bonfire toffee since he was little (the way Grandma makes it, not how the shops sell it!) Found some treacle from last Xmas so thought I'd give it a go. Its amazing!! All the family said how nice it is. Thank you!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Lindsay
Ingredients Notes
There are a few recipes for old-fashioned treacle toffee knocking around and they are all, reassuringly, very similar in terms of ingredients:
Black treacle: This is a common baking ingredient in the UK and it is found in most supermarkets. It is extremely dark in colour which a rich, intense and slightly bitter taste. Outside of the UK try to hunt a tin of black treacle down. If it's not available try bootstrap molasses or black molasses or instead.
Golden syrup: Another key baking ingredient within the UK. Golden syrup is lighter in colour than black treacle and has a sweet, buttery & mellow taste. I do not recommend substituting any other ingredient for it in this traditional treacle toffee recipe. Golden syrup can also be bought online.
Sugar: Use dark brown sugar. Do not use caster sugar or light brown sugar.
Butter: Proper butter is going to give the best flavour to your black treacle toffee. If you need to use a dairy-free alternative use block-style butter substitute and add a pinch of salt to the pan.
Cream of tartar or white wine vinegar: Including one of these ingredients helps prevent the formation of sugar crystals. Don't worry, you won't be able to taste these ingredients and you can use either in my recipe (but not both).
Equipment Notes
To ensure your bonfire toffee reaches the correct temperature to allow a hard set it is essential to use a reliable sugar or food thermometer that can withstand temperatures up to 150℃/ 300℉. I use a Thermapen food thermometer.
I used a 7x8 inch baking tin but you can use a slightly smaller tin for thicker toffee or a slightly larger tin for thinner toffee. You could also use a circular tin (I'd suggest a 7 or 8 inch tin).
If you are making bonfire toffee lollies you will need some silicon lollipop molds that can also withstand heat of up to 150℃/ 300℉. If you are only making a few lollipops ensure you have a tin prepared for the excess toffee to be poured into.
Step by step instructions
Having the right ingredients alone won't guarantee perfect hard toffee. There are a few tricks to master before you'll be rewarded with a tray of beautifully glossy & shatterable treacle toffee that keeps well for several weeks.
Before you begin, take a moment to read through my recipe for treacle toffee along with all the tips - from start to finish, so you are confident about each stage before you start cooking.
- Step 1: Prepare your baking tin - grease & line it with baking parchment. Put all ingredients into a large, heavy-based saucepan and put it over a medium heat, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved.
- Step 2: Turn up the heat slightly and allow the mixture to come to a rolling boil. Stir frequently (at least every minute), to prevent the mixture on the bottom of the pan from burning. Continue to boil until the liquid reaches the hard crack stage (150℃/ 300℉) on a sugar or food thermometer. This will take around 15 minutes.
- Step 3: As soon as the toffee reaches 150℃/ 300℉ take the pan off the heat and stir until the mixture stop bubbling. Carefully pour it into a baking tin lined with baking parchment (or silicon lollipop molds). The tin/ molds will be very hot so avoid touching/ moving them around.
- Step 4: Once completely cold, give the toffee a few firm taps with a toffee hammer/ end of a rolling pin or a pestle to break it up. If using silicon molds, the lollipops should unmold easily.
Expert Tips
Here are my tips to help you achieve perfect, rock hard Bonfire Toffee:
- Pay close attention to the quantities of cream of tartar and white wine vinegar: This treacle toffee recipe calls for 1 tbsp of vinegar or just ¼ tsp cream of tartar - quite a difference.
- Line your baking tin with baking parchment: While some recipes suggest simply greasing the tin, I have had mixed results. Using baking parchment ensures that the toffee won't weld itself to the tin and guarantees easy removal every time.
- Use a large heavy based saucepan: Ingredients should only fill about a quarter of the pan. As the toffee boils it will rise significantly and, if the pan is too small, it will take longer to reach the required temperature, or worse, boil over and make a horrible mess.
- Do not make this recipe with small children: The toffee is going to reach a very high temperature so it is not suitable to make with small children.
- Do not be tempted to taste the toffee as it cooks: You will burn your lips, mouth and tongue severely as the liquid toffee is incredibly hot.
- Do not multi-task. It is easy to burn your toffee if you get sidetracked on another task. Even worse, it may boil over.
- If making bonfire toffee lollipops never use metal molds: The toffee will weld itself to metal and no amount of tapping will set these lollipops free in one piece. Spoken from the voice of experience!
- Protect your worktops: Put the prepared tin and silicon molds onto heatproof mats to protect kitchen worktops and tables from the heat of the toffee when it is first poured into the tin and molds.
- Store properly: Once fully cooled, keep treacle toffee in an airtight container and store at room temperature away from humidity. If your toffee has been broken into chunks, seperate layers with baking parchment. Stored like this it will stay fresh for around 2 weeks.
- If left in the open bonfire toffee will become sticky: But it will still be edible and delicious.
Follow these rules for a perfect slab of rock hard Bonfire Toffee - but promise me you'll suck it. This toffee really is as hard as rock.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, but for perfect results every time a sugar or digital food thermometer is recommended. Without one, drop a small amount of the hot mixture into a bowl of iced water. If it snaps easily it has reached the hard crack stage and is ready. If it bends, return the pan to the heat for another minute and test again. Repeat until it snaps.
Black treacle is a very British product widely available in UK supermarkets but harder (and often more expensive) to find elsewhere.
Molasses can be used as a substitute, though it lacks the distinctive bitterness present in black treacle. This will, of course, affect the final taste and colour of your hard toffee. Blackstrap molasses, with a stronger & slightly bitter flavour, is a closer match and worth trying if you have some to hand.
If the toffee does not reach the hard crack stage (150℃/ 300℉) it will not set completely hard. Don't worry, soft toffee can be stored in the freezer to firm up. Once it's in your mouth, the texture won't matter - it will still taste wonderfully rich, buttery, sweet and treacly.
Traditionally served on Bonfire Night in the UK, treacle toffee would also be perfect for Halloween - especially presented as cute lollipops. Wrap them in cellophane to hand out to your spooky visitors.
Bonfire toffee is most commonly enjoyed in the north of England and The Midlands and is sometimes called Yorkshire bonfire toffee, suggesting Yorkshire origins. It is also popular in Scotland, where it is known as claggum and in Wales as loshin du.
Variations
- Chewy treacle toffee: To make a softer, chewy version of this treacle toffee recipe cook your mixture to the soft ball stage (115℃/ 235℉). Let it cool completely then cut it into pieces.
- Ginger bonfire toffee: Perfectly fitting for the season. Add in 1-2 teaspoons of ground ginger depending how punchy you would like it to be.
- Pumpkin spice toffee: Use your favourite pumpkin spice blend or swap it for chai spice.
This post is dedicated to my lovely maternal Gran who made the most amazing treacle toffee for my family Bonfire Night celebrations every year.
More Treats for Bonfire Night
Read my guide on catering for Bonfire Night or try the following recipes:
Have you made this recipe for treacle toffee? Is it just like the stuff of your childhood too? Please leave a review to let me know what you thought of it.
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📖 Recipe
Bonfire Toffee (Treacle Toffee)
Equipment
- 1 Large, heaved-based saucepan
- 1 Sugar or food thermometer such as a Thermapen
- 1 Baking tin (I used a 7x8 inch tin but you can use a slightly smaller tin for thicker toffee or a slightly larger tin for thinner toffee. You could also use a circular tin (I'd suggest a 7 or 8 inch tin)).
Ingredients
- 450g/ 1 lb Dark Brown Sugar
- 125ml/ ½ cup Water
- 125g/ 4 ½ oz Golden Syrup See notes on substitutions
- 100g/ 3 ½ oz Black Treacle See notes on substitutions
- 25g/ 1 oz Butter
- Either 1 tablespoon White wine vinegar or ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
Instructions
- Before you start read the recipe notes for all of my cooking tips
- Grease & line a metal baking tin with baking parchment and put on a flat, heatproof surface. Also lay any silicon lollipop molds on a flat, heatproof surface
- Put all ingredients into a large, heavy-based saucepan and put over a medium heat. Cook until all sugars have dissolved and the liquid is smooth and dark
- Turn up the heat (medium high) and boil, stirring frequently, until the liquid reaches the hard crack stage (150℃/ 300℉) on a food/ sugar thermometer. This will take around 15 minutes - be patient and do not leave the pan unattended since it could boil over and/ or the toffee could overcook and burn
- As soon as the toffee reaches 150C/ 300F, tip it into your tin and/or molds and leave to cool completely
- Once cool, give the toffee a few firm taps with a toffee hammer or the end of a rolling pin to break it up. If using silicon molds, the lollipops should unmold easily.
- Store in an airtight tin (using baking parchment to keep layers of toffee seperate) or wrap up in boxes or cellophane bags to give as gifts
Notes
- Pay attention to the quantities of cream of tartar and white wine vinegar: This recipe calls for 1 tbsp of vinegar or ¼ tsp cream of tartar - quite a difference.
- Line your baking tins with baking parchment: Although some recipes suggest greasing the baking tin and pouring the toffee in, I have had mixed results. Lining the tin with parchment removes the risk that the toffee will weld itself to the tin and refuse to come out.
- Use a large heavy based saucepan: The ingredients should come just ¼ up the side of the pan when added. As the toffee cooks it will bubble and boil, rising up the side of the pan significantly. If your pan is too small the toffee will take a long time to reach the required temperature. And, if it boils over, onto your hob, it will be nasty to clean up.
- Do not make this recipe with small children: The toffee is going to reach a very high temperature.
- Do not be tempted to taste the toffee as it cooks: you will burn your lips, mouth and tongue severely.
- Do not multitask. It is easy to burn your toffee if you get sidetracked on another task. Even worse, it may overflow.
- Do not use metal molds if making bonfire toffee lollipops: Toffee welds itself to metal and no amount of teasing or bashing will shift these lollipops out. How do I know? The voice of experience and 24 hours of soaking my pops out of metal molds.
- Store the toffee as soon as it has cooled entirely in an airtight container. If you have already broken the toffee into chunks use baking parchment to separate the layers. Store at room temperature and avoid a humid environment.
- If left in the open bonfire toffee will become sticky: But it will still be edible and delicious.
Eileen says
Wow! Thanks so much for this. The recipe's so clear and all your hints and tips are invaluable. Treacle toffee is my mum's favourite so I thought I'd try making some for her birthday. However, although I've made other sweets, I'd never tried making toffee, probably because, personally, I'm not really a fan. I searched around the web for a recipe and yours was the clearest and most comprehensive. I made it yesterday and it's AMAZING! Safe to say, I'm now a treacle toffee convert. Thanks so much!
Jane Saunders says
Ah Eileen, that's an incredibly kind comment - thankyou so much for this!
Chantal says
Maybe a silly question but if the toffee sticks to metal pans, how do you wash the saucepan after boiling and pouring into prepared pans?!
Jane Saunders says
There's never a silly question about caramel making! Hot soapy water helps get the pan clean after it's been made. And if it's being stubborn. just leave the pan full of water for 30 minutes for the caramel to dissolve.
Lisa says
Perfect results, just like my gran made - thank you!
Jane Saunders says
Thanks for the feedback Lisa - glad you enjoyed it.
Kazuko Catalano says
Excellent post. Keep writing such kind of info on your page.
Im really impressed by your blog.
Jules says
Great recipe for perfect treacle toffee as I remember it from my childhood. Thank you.
Alison says
Just like my grandma used to make!!
Having made several (unsuccessful) attempts at making rock hard treacle toffee over the years, which produced a few pans full of something that would be better suited to tar the roads with ?♀️? I’d all but given up...then I found this recipe! So easy yet absolutely perfect. Thank you!
Jane Saunders says
Fantastic Alison - it took me a bit of trial and error to perfect the recipe, but at least now it's written down. Inspired by my fond memories of Bonfire Nights long ago with my lovely Gran and her amazing Bonfire Toffee, so I'm thrilled you've found this recipe useful too!
Katrina says
Hi I’m looking to make treacle toffee and my Nanny used to make it but unfortunately she is no longer here either to ask how she made it and my aunties and uncles are not quite sure either. I was just wondering, I understand in your recipe that a thermometer is necessary but I do not have one and I just wondered if it is at all possible to not use it as surely people like my Nanny wouldn’t have had a thermometer back in those days to make it with? ? i love your detailed recipe and i’m looking forward to trying! x
Jane Saunders says
That's a great question. Thanks for bringing it to my attention - this is something I definitely need to cover in my post. I've found an article on the BBC food website that might help you: https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/techniques/how_to_test_for_stages_of_sugar_syrup 🙂 Your Granny probably used this ice-cold water trick too - Basically, you'll need to keep a very close eye on the toffee as it cooks and keep on testing it until you reach the hard crack stage. Do take care not to end up with it burnt, as it's not pleasant to eat like that. If you can stretch to buying a thermometer, you stand less chance of ending up with soft/ burned toffee by heating it too little/ too much. They don't have to be expensive - I found this one on amazon at £8.35 https://amzn.to/3vhJAYf
Hope the links helps and thanks again for asking such a great question.
Alison says
Yes! My grandma used to drop it in ice water to see if it was ready.
Jane Saunders says
Such a neat trick!
Emma says
The first was the right texture.. hard and crunchy.. but it was burnt by time it hit 142... So I did it again and I only let it get to 141... and it tastes delish and was hard as it should be.. but once in mouth it went chewy. Is that how it should be? Or should it be more like hard boiled sweets and stay crunchy
Jane Saunders says
Hey Emma, so pleased you gave it another shot and got better results. It should be hard like a boiled sweet - which happens when the temperature gets to 150C (known as the hard crack temperature: https://www.recipetips.com/kitchen-tips/t--1459/how-to-test-stages-of-sugar.asp.) As you can see from those charts, your toffee should not be burning at 142C.
Are you UK based and able to get the exact ingredients listed? I'm afraid I'm at a loss as to why your toffee would burn if the ingredients are right, your thermometer is working and you have been stirring frequently.
Nevertheless, when I first attempted bonfire toffee it took me a few goes to get it right - I ended up with a batch that went hard initially but then softened. I stored it in the freezer so it went nice and hard, then it would soften in my mouth as I ate it. Though not perfect it was still delicious. It sounds as if your toffee is behaving in a similar way as it didn't' reach 150C - if it gets sticky pop your pieces into the freezer to firm up before sucking them.
Emma says
I am UK. The only difference is the first batch I used dark muscovada. The second I used dark brown sugar. I am please with the results but I am tempted to try again today to get it just right. Alot of sugar recipes say don't stir the mixture and just let it boil. Have u done it without stirring? X
Jane Saunders says
Hey Emma, that's interesting re the sugar. It's possible it made the difference, who would have thought it.
Re stirring, I find that once everything has dissolved I'm generally fine to stir this kind of sugary liquid. I know that when making caramel using just sugar or sugar with just a splash of water, this should not be stirred, but because there are so many other ingredients in this toffee recipe, stirring is okay and it helps everything cook more evenly.
Emma says
3rd time lucky and omg... this is so good. Finally got the temp over 150. I'm guessing it was the muscovada that had a much bitter taste as I did nothing different. I'm addicted ??
Jane Saunders says
Fantastic - so very pleased Emma. Thankyou for taking the time to write in so we could troubleshoot together and get you on the right track. Bonfire toffee is such an old-fashioned yet heartwarming treat. It brings back fond memories of my wonderful Gran, so it's all the more important for me that readers get success with this recipe so they get a touch of nostaglia too.
Emma says
Is 150°c the correct temp to get to? I have tasted it now and if it wasn't for the burnt taste this would be perfect. Would the temp at 140 be ok? Gonna try it again ?
Jane Saunders says
Hi Emma -I just spotted this message but have just replied to your next one (150C is correct - details above).
Emma says
I've just made this and put in the tray to set.. my temp got to 142 and it smelt really burnt. I hadn't left it at all and kept stirring frequently. I haven't tried it yet but was worried about the burnt smell
Jane Saunders says
Hi Emma, if you've been constantly stirring it as instructed, everything is measured out correctly and your thermometer is accurate, then everything should be fine. Treacle is quite intense, both in flavour and smell, so that could be behind it. If it turns out to be burned and you are certain that all measures and instructions were followed accurately then I would double check your thermometer is calibrated properly. Hope this helps.