Fast, Easy, Cheap Gift Idea!
Easy Candy to Give or Eat!
If you're out of money and low on ideas for gifts for folks on your gift list, take heart! Here are a couple of ideas for gifts people will love and you can make them in your kitchen in less than an hour! Even if you don't cook - you can do these!
Nut Toffee: For years I shyed away from making candy because of all the soft/hardball issues and special thermometers. Then one day I stumbled up on a recipe that requires none of that! I now make Nut Toffee for my friends and family every year.
Equipment:
1 large cookie sheet with a lip (jelly roll pan) OR a 9"x13" baking pan.
1 large (preferably heavy) skillet OR sauce pan
Ingredients:
2 Sticks of Butter
1 Cup Sugar
1/3 cup Corn Syrup
3 cups of nuts (peanuts, almonds, pecans, cashews, macadamia nuts, walnuts, whatever).
Optional: For extra healthy Toffee use seeds too - sunflower, pumpkin, flax or sesame seeds all work great!
Dump all the ingredients into the skillet (or sauce pan) and mix over low heat until the butter is melted (a few minutes or less).
Raise the heat to mid/high and stir continuously. It takes about ten minutes. The mixture will be white for most of this time, then it will start to turn tan, keep stirring until it turns a warm golden brown.
IMMEDIATELY remove from the heat and pour into the jelly roll or lasagna pan.
Let cool. I place mine on a towel (don't want to crack glass shelves!) in the fridge.
When it's completely cool it should break into chunks.
The whole recipe costs between $5 and $10 depending upon the type of nuts you use. Divide in two - or even three - gifts as it's quite rich.
Place the candy in a decorative tin, glass bowl or even on a paper plate - and wrap with foil (it's recyclable). This is a gift everyone loves - IF you manage to avoid eating it yourself!
