Buttercrunch Day
Jun 29
Other Scottish Country Dances for this Day
Today's Musings, History & Folklore
"๐ถ I've treacle and toffee, I've tea and I've coffee,
Soft tommy and succulent chops;
I've chickens and conies, and pretty polonies,
And excellent peppermint drops."
~ "I'm Called Little Buttercup", Gilbert & Sullivan, 1878
A dance for a sweet tooth and recipes which call for lots of butter! If you're fond of toffee in general, you may also be fond of its American cousin "buttercrunch" which is known (ironically) in the United States as "English toffee"! Toffee in Britain is made with brown sugar and butter, whereas buttercrunch is made with white granulated sugar and butter. The differences do not stop there, however, since the delectable buttercrunch is usually made with a variety of nuts and other flavorings. Traditional British toffee, on the other hand, is not made with nuts. Toffee itself is a relatively new confection in its current form. Most food historian believe that this sweet treat rose to prominence sometime during the early 19th century. So whether you are a toffee traditionalist or a fan of toffee buttercrunch upstarts such as Heath Bars or Almond Roca, butter makes everything better! ๐ง
Chopped Nuts & Chocolate Swirls
Jun 29 is Almond Buttercrunch Day, delicious toffee covered with chocolate and almonds!
One of the better known commercial versions of an almond buttercrunch, Almond Roca, is a confection similar to chocolate-covered English toffee. Almond Roca was invented in 1923 by the Brown & Haley Co. of Tacoma, Washington. The candy's name is said to have been inspired by Tacoma's head librarian, who chose the Spanish word "roca", meaning "rock." By company tradition, a small amount of the original 1923 batch of toffee is carried over into each subsequent batch of candy.
Almond Roca was first candy of its kind to be sold in bite-sized pieces. Previously, toffee had been poured in sheets and broken apart and sold by weight. Much like the success of M&Ms, the butter-crunch toffee, nut and milk chocolate treat gained customers because it could travel without melting or becoming stale thanks to its formula and the use of the pressurized packaging Brown and Haley developed in 1927, after drawing inspiration from the meat-packing industry. It even had the slogan of โthe candy that travels.โ
Almond Roca was shipped to American soldiers serving overseas during World War II, and later in Korea. The chocolate coating extended the candy's shelf life and the airtight tins protected it from vermin.
Variations abound, from traditional to pumpkin spice flavoured to buttercrunch with the addition of candied bacon. For a starting recipe for a traditional almond buttercrunch using an entire pound of butter, click the buttercrunch!
Click the dance cribs or description below to link to a printable version of the dance!
