One of my favorite holiday pasttimes is baking. Well, that and candymaking. If only I had a little elf to follow me around and clean up after me. Actually, I could use that all of the time, not just during the holidays. Sigh...

Regardless, December marks the time of year when I pull out all the stops on my baking and candymaking. The aromas in our home this time of year are so tempting that sometimes, my neighbors even pop over just to see what we are making (and to get a sample, of course!). Moreover, when my daughters' friends and their moms find out we are making a batch of our family's famous Baklava, people start mysteriously finding reasons to stop by.

"I thought you might need a copy of that memo about the field trip next week since Teen in Line never gives you the school bulletin." (true re: the bulletin...)

"Could we borrow a cup of sugar?" (Uh, yeah, but don't you live a couple of miles away?)

And then, there are those who simply call a spade a spade...

"We heard you were making Baklava, do you have any extra?!"

The Baklava recipe is a little involved. However, my friends tell me that my English Toffee is legendary, as well. So, here's a recipe to knock your holiday socks off!

There is something of a science to toffee, but really, the most important thing is to be patient and to use a candy thermometer if at all possible. If you are not a practiced candy maker, it will be difficult at best without one. My toffee only has chocolate on one side, and yes, that's the way we like it! There's less chocolate to get on your hands, and I really don't like to overpower the taste of the delicious toffee flavor!

Princess Peg's English Toffee
1 cup butter (no substitutes)
1 cup sugar
3 T. light corn syrup

1/2 to 3/4 cup chocolate chips (semi-sweet, milk chocolate or white!)
1/2 to 3/4 cup finely chopped (or ground) pecans or almonds, optional

Prepare a cookie sheet with a hot pad or trivet beneath it to protect the surface below for when you pour the hot toffee out of the pan.

Place butter, sugar and corn syrup in large saucepan, and begin to cook over medium heat. Stir constantly until mixture dissolves. Continue heating and stirring until mixture boils. Adjust heat as necessary to avoid scorching. Continue stirring, and monitor with a candy thermometer until candy reaches the "hard crack" stage, or about 305 degrees. Be patient. This will take about 20 to 25 minutes. By this time, the candy will be thick and will have turned a nice golden brown (the color of toffee!).

Remove from heat. Working quickly, pour the toffee onto the cookie sheet, spreading with a wooden spoon to desired thickness (I like it about 1/4 inch thick). Immediately sprinkle the chocolate chips atop to begin melting. Wait a few minutes for them to melt. Then, spread the melted chocolate out with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle with nuts. Gently press nuts into the chocolate to set them in place.

Cool toffee completely. Break into bite size pieces, and enjoy!

One way to tell if the toffee is done is to have a glass of cold water and drop a small dollop of the toffee “syrup� into it. It will harden pretty quickly (30 seconds). Take it out of the water, and test the consistency. If it's crunchy, it should be done. Part of making candy is trial and error, but once you've mastered it, it's really pretty easy and always a hit!

This recipe can also be doubled nicely, though I would try it with just a single recipe the first time out! Good luck!