Sugar Savvy

California Brittle

I strolled into my local See’s Candies’ store (one of the oldest stores in the chain) the other day and tried to decide what to taste next. My teenage son tried to be helpful. How about this one? No, I just wrote about it. How about this one? Nope. And so on. I wasn’t in the mood for a butter cream or something really rich. What to choose? The line of customers behind me was getting longer. Then I spotted the squares of California Brittle. Perfect, something crunchy and chocolately. Sold.

California Brittle, with its golden toffee filling and nuggets of almond, is available in the stores coated in either dark or milk chocolate, but it is only available in milk chocolate on the website.

Tasting Report

Description: Both the dark and milk chocolate versions of California Brittle are bumpy squares filled with golden toffee and almonds. The milk chocolate version is piece number 22 on the website and catalog.

Taste: This was a great candy, mostly because of the perfection of the gold-colored, hard toffee-almond filling (think of it as a crunchy version of See’s excellent caramel). The toffee was sweet but not overly so, flaky and crunchy with lots of chew but not sticky or gummy. While See’s calls the filling a “hard” toffee, it was easy to bite into. The almonds in the filling with were crisp and flavorful. The dark chocolate version left a stronger chocolate aftertaste than the milk chocolate. It also offered more of a contrast and balance to the toffee-almond filling. The milk chocolate flavor seemed to melt into and complement the toffee taste.

Free sample with purchase: Almond Square

See’s Trivia: See’s newest catalog offers a few recipes using See’s Candies. For what promises to be the gooiest brownies ever, try “Brownies a la Lorayn.” Mix one package of “family-size” brownie mix as directed on package. Pour half of the brownie mix into an 8” by 8” pan, greased. Layer ONE POUND of See’s caramel filled Milk Patties in an even layer. Top with remaining brownie mixture. Bake according to directions on package. Cool and cut into squares. For more on Milk Patties, see Sugary Savvy’s The Chocolate Box See’s Piece by Piece #9.

Ingredients: Milk chocolate (sugar, milk, cocoa butter, chocolate, soy lecithin, vanillin) or dark chocolate (sugar, chocolate, cocoa butter, butter, soy lecithin, vanilla, vanillin) coating, sugar, butter, almonds, salt

Well-Fed Network Ratings: I liked both of these candies. As compared to other See’s Candies, I would give these both about an 8.5 out of 10. Pros: Excellent toffee taste and texture. Cons: Could have used more of a chocolate presence.