Honeycomb Candy Recipe

Honeycomb candy

1. Line a 9 inch square pan with parchment paper (sides and bottom). Set aside until needed. For flatter honeycomb candy, line a half sheet baking pan with parchment paper or silpat.
2. Keep a spatula and a whisk ready, as you will need them towards the end of the cook time.
3. Place the sugar, golden syrup, water, and salt in a large saucepan (this mixture will expand a lot, so use a large pot with enough space). You can use honey if you do not have golden syrup. Or corn syrup if you have neither.
4. Gently stir to saturate the sugar with the water.
5. Heat over medium high heat, while swirling the pot frequently to ensure the sugar is dissolved.
6. Brush the sides of the pot with a pastry brush dipped in cold water to dissolve the sugar crystals on the side of the pot. Do NOT stir the sugar syrup.
7. When the sugar syrup comes to a boil and all the sugar has dissolved, clip a candy thermometer to the side of the pot.
8. Heat the sugar mixture until it reaches 300°F / 150°C. Swirl the pot as you heat the sugar to make sure the syrup is evenly heating (check several spots in the syrup with the candy thermometer to make sure it's evenly heating).
9. Get the prepared pan, whisk, and spatula ready when the sugar syrup is close to 300°F. You can use an oven mitt for whisking the sugar base in the following steps, if you like.
10. When the sugar syrup reaches 300°F, remove the pot from the heat and immediately add all of the baking soda.
11. Whisk the baking soda well into the sugar syrup. Make sure to reach all the corners of the pot. The sugar syrup will expand into a foamy honeycomb mixture.
12. As soon as the baking soda is thoroughly mixed in and the mixture has expanded, scrape the honeycomb mixture into the prepared pan.
13. Allow the mixture to harden for a few hours.
14. Once the candy is hardened, remove it from the pan and peel off the parchment paper. Place it on a cutting board.
15. Use the tip of a sharp knife to break the honeycomb into pieces. These will be uneven pieces.

For more dense, sponge candy texture

1. While the sugar syrup is cooking, bloom the gelatin in the water in a small microwave-safe bowl. Let it bloom for 10 minutes.
2. Microwave the gelatin for just a few seconds to dissolve the gelatin. Do NOT let it boil.
3. Add the dissolved warm gelatin mixture into the sugar syrup, followed by the baking soda. Whisk vigorously, and then transfer the mix into the prepared pan (as per instructions above).

To coat honeycomb with chocolate

1. Temper the chocolate using this guide.
2. Dip the honeycomb candy in tempered chocolate (you can dip them either fully or partially). Alternatively, you can brush the chocolate on the toffee pieces with a clean, dry pastry brush.
3. Place them on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle salt on top before the chocolate sets.
4. Allow the chocolate to set at room temperature (do not put them in the fridge).