The first thing you need to know when making candy is that you can't be in a hurry, its a process and it takes time. But, when done correctly, I promise it will be worth the wait. Always use a stainless steel pan and a wooden spoon, I've use these same tool for all my candy making, nothing else. Always use "real" ingredients; butter,never margarine and don't even try to substitute walnuts for almonds, that's not Almond Roca. The ingredients are very easy
1 lbs. butter (4 sticks)
2 1/2 cups of sugar
1 bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
3 cups of Almonds
Before I even start to cook the candy, I also like to chop my almonds and chocolate chips. I have always used a food processor for this process because without it, it would make this part of the candy making too hard. I chop both the almonds and chocolate faily fine and only put about a 1/2 into the food processor at a time.
Next I put a layer of almonds onto a cookie sheet followed by a layer of the chop chocolate chips. Remember to use a spoon when adding the chocolate because it chopped up so fine that it will melt in your hands.
Once all the "putsy" (one of my favorite words used by my MIL) stuff is done then the fun begins. Put all all four sticks of butter into your stainless steel pan and cook on medium to low heat depending on your stove. Once the butter is almost melted, add your sugar.
After adding the sugar and you stir and stir, you'll notice that you're butter and sugar are seperated....don't worry, this is totally normal and give it time and it will start to come together.
Once the butter and sugar become incorporated, it will turn into a pretty yellow bubbly mixture and once its starts to boil, stir every few minutes. You'll notice the mixture starting to change color, this is a good thing!!!
Next comes the tricky part, when is the candy done cooking? First off, the only time I use a candy thermometer is when I try something new, I don't know the last time I used one when making Almond Roca. My Grandmother always said that to cook it to 290 degrees but I think that it too hot. I would say 280 to 285 but I have developed a better way to figure out when my candy is done.
I get a very cold glass and water and put into next to the stove and when I think my candy mixture is almost done I put a little bit of the mixture into the glass of water. The mixture instantly hardens to the consistency that it will turn into. If I think its too soft, I let it boil for a few more minutes and try it it again with a new glass of water. The mixture should remind you of a toffee so it shouldn't be too soft and have a little bit of a crunch when you bit into it.
Once your mixture is done go ahead and pour into your pan of chopped almonds and chocolate chip. Just a reminder that is mixture is really hot and to be careful, I've burnt myself really bad a couple of times. Also, note the beautiful caramel color of this candy. When adding the mixture to the pan don't try to smooth it out just try to pour it as evenly as you can and the mixture will note go to the edge of the cookie sheet. Once you are finished pooring the mixture, I highly recommend imedeately soaking your pan in cool water, it makes is much better for the cleaning up later.
Once you've poured the mixture over the almonds and chocolate, you'll need to repeat the process in reverse order, chocolate and then the almonds. Now you're Roca is almost done....in like 3 to 4 hours. You have to find a cool place to let your candy set. I usually put mine in the garage or in the laundry, somewhere that my husband can't find it to taste it before its done. Most of the time, I let it sit over night and break it up the next morning.
Once my candy has hardened, I crack it into bit size piece. I usually use a steak knife to do this. The recipe is made most often at Christmas time and I put it on my Christmas trays or serve it at a party. But for this bake sale, I found these great little bags to sale them in.
If you have any questions about Almond Roca, just let me know and I'll help you anyway I can.
Happy Baking!!!
