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Enjoy the most amazing toffee sauce following my easy Toffee Sauce recipe! Made with simple ingredients and even simpler steps, this perfectly luscious sticky toffee sauce tastes so much better than store-bought and anyone can make it.
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Sticky Toffee Sauce
Today I'm going to share with you one of my favorite easy dessert sauce recipes: my creamy, rich, absolutely luxurious toffee sauce recipe. This simple toffee recipe comes together in minutes with easy steps, and makes for the most gorgeously thick, creamy toffee sauce you'll ever taste.
Naturally, I started this off with my butterscotch sauce recipe, which was already a huge winner in my house. Then I started customizing! To capture that classic toffee flavor, I swapped out the brown sugar for white sugar. No corn syrup here- toffee sauce without corn syrup tastes so much better. Finally, I spiced things up- literally- with a healthy portion of cinnamon and my pumpkin pie spice.
Of course, the best part about home cooking is how easy it is to customize. This easy toffee sauce recipe is perfect for that. I've included my favorite spices, but you can easily leave them out and adjust the amount of cream for the perfect flavor and consistency.
Tools to Make Toffee Sauce
- A candy thermometer for measuring the temperature. This is absolutely necessary for sugar sauces like caramel, butterscotch, and toffee! It only takes seconds for the sugars to burn, which can really mess up your pans.
- A heavy-bottom saucepan for making the toffee. Ideally, use one that doesn't have hotspots, as they can make the heating uneven.
- A whisk for mixing the sauce!
- Thick kitchen gloves or oven mitts. I really recommend using these when you're adding liquids to the sauce as the sugar will be very, very hot, and you don't want to burn yourself if anything bubbles.
- A pastry brush or silicone brush for brushing down the sides of the pan.
Ingredients in Toffee Sauce
- White sugar: I prefer white sugar for toffee as it has a more clean sweet flavor. Dark brown sugar can also be used, but it will become more like butterscotch sauce.
- Water: Both for dissolving the sugar, and some on the side to use to wipe down the sides of the pan.
- Unsalted butter: I don't recommend salted butter, as it can easily turn the sauce too salty. It's better to add salt to taste at the end.
- Heavy cream: Cream is important in capturing that rich, smooth toffee sauce texture. You can also use canned coconut creme, but it will add a coconut flavor.
- Pumpkin spice: You can choose to leave out the pumpkin spice if you want a simpler flavor.
- Cinnamon: A little cinnamon helps make toffee taste like toffee, so I recommend leaving it in even if you skip the other spices.
- Vanilla: You can use vanilla extract or imitation vanilla. I've used Mexican vanilla imitation before and it was delicious.
Toffee Sauce
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1½ cups White sugar
- ⅓ cup Water
- 1 cup Unsalted butter - chopped into small cubes
- 1 cup Heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon Pumpkin spice
- 2 teaspoons Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
Instructions
- Add sugar and water to a heavy-bottom sauce pan over medium heat. Stir gently until the sugar dissolves.
- Stop stirring and bring the mixture to a boil. Allow it to boil for 7-8 minutes without stirring it; it should reach 250℉ on a candy thermometer and will be orange-gold in color.
- Add butter. Whisk it in until fully combined, but be careful not to splash it.
- Very slowly pour in the heavy cream, being careful as it may bubble up. Stir until fully combined.
- Add pumpkin spice, cinnamon, and vanilla. Allow the mixture to boil for another 3-5 minutes until it thickens and is glossy. It should be a deep golden-brown color.
- Before serving, allow the sauce to cool. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Toffee Sauce Detailed Instructions
Step 1: Place a saucepan over medium heat, and clip on the candy thermometer. Add the sugar and water, and let the sugar dissolve with gentle whisking. Then, using a wet pastry brush or silicone brush, wipe down the inside wall of the pan, making sure no sugar crystals remain.
Step 2: Bring the mixture to a steady boil and let it boil for 7-8 minutes, without stirring. Keep an eye on the temperature! You want it to reach 250℉. It will have turned into a thicker, orange-gold liquid by this point.
Step 3: Add in your cubed butter, making sure to add it carefully so the super hot sugar doesn't splash. Then whisk slowly to melt it entirely and mix it in without causing any splashing. You want to make sure to use cubed butter, as it will melt all at once, reducing the chance of uneven cooking causing the sugar to burn.
Step 4: Once the butter is melted, slowly pour in the cream, still whisking. Adding the cold cream may cause the sugar mixture to bubble up, so be extra careful while adding it.
Step 5: Add the spices and vanilla, and stir one more time. Wipe down the edges again, then let the mixture boil for another 3-5 minutes until it becomes thick and glossy. The transformation is fast, so keep an eye on it.
Step 6: Allow the sauce to cool (it will be very very hot), then serve and enjoy!
Hi, I'm Isabel! I've been sharing my recipes online, in cookbooks, and in TV specials since 2012. The most important thing to me is Sunday supper with my family, and inspiring togetherness with my recipes!
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Tips for Making Toffee Sauce
- You absolutely must use a candy thermometer. Other types of thermometer, including instant-read, aren't accurate enough for heating sugar and making candy.
- I recommend keeping a clean pastry brush on hand with a cup of water to dip it in. Use the pastry brush to wipe down the edges of the pan so that the boiling sugar doesn't come in contact with any sugar crystals; this can cause crystallization.
- Always chop up the butter before adding it! Adding the whole chunk of butter without dicing it can mean the toffee will cool down too much, or heat unevenly as the butter slowly melts, causing burning.
- Don't be tempted to stir the sauce while it's boiling! You need to let it boil without stirring to ensure that it doesn't crystalize.
- Add in the cream very slowly! If it's boiling too much, turn down the heat while you add it, and whisk vigorously (but not so it splashes). If it curdles, it will ruin the sauce.
- For a thicker consistency, use less cream.
Leftover Toffee Sauce Storage and Reheating
- Refrigerator: Store leftover fully cooled sauce in the refrigerator in an airtight container or jar! It will last up to 4 days.
- Freezer: You can absolutely freeze toffee sauce, and it's a great way to store it long-term. I recommend storing it in an ice cube tray until fully frozen, then pop the cubes into a freezer-safe container or plastic bag. This makes it easy to thaw only as much as you need.
- Reheating: Reheat the toffee sauce in a saucepan over medium-low heat or in the microwave in 20 second bursts. Be careful microwaving it, as it can pop and spatter when hot.
- Thawing: Thaw frozen toffee sauce in the fridge overnight, or by placing the frozen sauce in a saucepan over low heat and stirring often.
FAQ
Yes! You can absolutely make it ahead of time. While it will thicken in the fridge, a quick microwaving will make it thin again. You can also freeze it and it will reheat great.
The difference lies in the use of butter! Caramel sauce tends to use sugar, water, and cream, while toffee incorporates butter. This leads to a flavor almost like butterscotch!
What to Serve with Toffee Sauce
Toffee sauce is a classic served with desserts like ice cream, cakes, puddings, and apple pie, but it's also delicious served as a decadent topping for your breakfast waffles and pancakes! Or, use it as the sugar coating for candied apples or candied strawberries.
Check out my favorite autumn dessert recipes below, the perfect flavors to fit with spiced toffee sauce.
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