Honeycomb is fabulous. It is so quick and easy to make. It can be coated in the melted chocolate of your choice and you've made your own (safe) version of a crunchie or violet crumble bar. You can break it up into shards and serve with other dippers for a chocolate fountain (like I did with this batch) or into small chunks and mix it through some good quality vanilla ice-cream. Once you've made it once you will wonder why you never have before and the stuff you might be able to buy in the shops will seem pretty poor in comparison. You will also unaccountably get enthusiastic compliments from the people you serve it to and they will be amazed that you made it yourself. That has been my experience anyway.
The only thing I'll add here is that it really is worth getting yourself a sugar or candy thermometer. Mine was only $15 from House and it makes all the difference to getting an excellent result.
Ingredients:
1 cup caster sugar
2 generous tablespoons honey
1/4 cup water
1 heaped tsp bicarb soda
Method:
Prepare a baking tray/cookie sheet by lining it with baking paper and making sure you have somewhere safe to place it while the mixture cools.
Combine sugar, honey and water in a large saucepan (you need a lot of expansion room) and stir over a high heat until all the sugar is dissolved and the toffee mixture reaches a rolling boil. After that don't stir any more.
Watch the temerature closely now. You need it to reach the "hard crack" stage which is 150C. This is seriously hot stuff- don't be tempted to touch or taste it and tempting as it may be, don't let any little kids hang around to watch while you are making this. A burn from this stuff would be very serious.
When it reaches 150C turn the heat off and immediately add the bicarb soda, then stir like crazy with something with a long handle. The toffee will froth and expand rapidly. You need to get it mixed through evenly so that all the mixture is frothy and then pour it out onto your prepared baking tray as evenly as you can manage but don't fiddle with it too much.
Allow it to cool. Possibly the hardest part.
That's it. After that you can break it up and use it in whatever way you would like. It's quick, easy and fun and only uses a few common ingredients so it's perfect for whipping up when you didn't realise you needed to cook something (and you don't have diabetic guests).
Clean up is pretty easy too. Just fill the pot with water, the residue will dissolve.
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