Crunchy candy perfection
If an easy-peasy, crunchy candy dipped in chocolate sounds like your kind of good time, have I got a deliciously simple treat for you. Honeycomb, which goes by myriad whimsical names (more on that below), is made with just four ingredients — sugar, syrup, baking soda and cream of tartar — or five if you count the water (but who’s counting?).
Yes, honeycomb making involves boiling sugar on the stovetop and using a candy thermometer and, yes, that can be scary. But I will be holding your hand all the way through the short (and sweet) process.
But what is honeycomb?
Honeycomb is a candy that goes by many names, including sponge toffee, hokey pokey and cinder toffee. And when coated in chocolate, it is often referred to as “crunchie bar” (because it tastes like an English candy bar of that name) or “violet crumbles” (because it tastes like an Australian candy bar of that name).
Honeycomb is in the toffee family and is thus structurally rigid and crunchy in texture. However, due to the magic that is baking soda, which is added to the hot sugar-syrup mixture after it reaches temperature, it is filled with the most marvelous bubbles, giving the finished candy a light and airy feel.
Its origins are a little tricky to decipher. Some believe it first appeared in the 1940s, but others claim it showed up in the U.S. in the mid-19th century and in Britain in the 1920s. But one thing is clear: Honeycomb candy is popular all over the world, and once you make it from scratch in the comfort of your own kitchen, you’re going to understand why. If there is a homemade candy that offers up more bang for the buck than honeycomb, we have yet to be introduced.
Tips for making honeycomb
Make sure to measure out and place next to the stovetop all of your ingredients before you begin cooking your sugar and honey.
Do not stir the sugar and honey mixture once it begins to boil.
Once it reaches a boil, you’re looking for an amber color and a temperature of 300 degrees.
Work quickly when whisking in the baking soda and cream of tartar. You want to make sure that the soda is evenly distributed, but you do not want to deflate any of the bubbles that the soda creates.
Work quickly when transferring the honeycomb to the prepared pan to set up. And do not touch the honeycomb once it is in the pan. Attempting to smooth or even out the candy in the pan will only release bubbles, and released bubbles are the enemy of a light and airy honeycomb.
Crack your honeycomb and
place it in a sealed container as soon as it reaches room temperature. If you keep the honeycomb on the counter for too long, because of its exposure to the air, it will begin to get tacky, as it easily absorbs moisture.
If you want to dip your candy in chocolate, do so as soon as it reaches room temperature. Again, so the candy doesn’t have time to absorb moisture from the air. Place the dipped chocolate in the refrigerator or freezer to set up.
How do you keep it crunchy?
Honeycomb acts like a sponge once it reaches room temperature, absorbing the moisture around it. And once absorbed, the candy turns sticky and tacky. To avoid this, do not let honeycomb sit out on the counter, uncovered after it has come to room temperature — particularly if there is a lot of humidity in the air. Instead, once it reaches room temperature, immediately break it into pieces and store the pieces in an airtight container on the counter or, my personal favorite, in the freezer.
If you are dipping your honeycomb in chocolate, once dipped, immediately place the candy in the freezer or refrigerator to set the chocolate and to avoid the candy from getting tacky.