Bonfire toffee

The use of treacle (or molasses) in the United Kingdom began in the 1660s, when it was first used to make gingerbread. Bonfire toffee emerged soon thereafter. although foods were often cooked several decades before their names or recipes for them appeared in print. Toffee was widely popular by 1800. However, it is not entirely clear as to why it became associated with Guy Fawkes Night. In the 1890s, it was sometimes called "Tom Trot". Bonfire toffee was usually a homemade confectionery. Although industrial manufacturing of confectionery had begun in the 1840s, the price of black treacle in the 1890s and first decade of the 20th century often rose above the price of sugar which made store-bought toffee too expensive for many. Even in the 1960s, it was common for older people in a neighbourhood to make bonfire toffee to hand out to children on Guy Fawkes Night. By the mid-1950s, bonfire toffee was often made in large sheets and pieces broken off with a toffee hammer. This practice was discouraged by some due to concerns about food safety. However, it is still available year-round in speciality sweet shops, where it is usually broken by hand and wrapped in paper. Although bonfire toffee is usually considered a Halloween or Guy Fawkes Night treat, it has a Christmas association as well. In Wales, an old tradition exists of plygain, a Christian worship service held between 3:00– 6:00 a.m. in which Christmas carols are sung (and sometimes, but not always, accompanied by holy communion). After plygain was over, people would stay awake to decorate the house, play cards, eat cake or pikelets (a variation of the crumpet), or make bonfire toffee. ==Ingredients==

The ingredients often include butter or margarine, black treacle, sugar, and sometimes white vinegar. The treacle is the critical ingredient, for it is less sweet than sugar and has a slightly bitter flavour that gives bonfire toffee its unique taste. One recipe calls for of butter, of treacle, and of brown sugar. The mixture is cooked over medium heat until melted, and allowed to boil (being constantly, rapidly stirred) for 15 minutes. White vinegar gives the toffee a slightly sharper taste, and alters the chemistry of the toffee so that it is not so brittle. Other recipes call for about of water, and vary the amount of the other ingredients. It can be cut or rolled into sticks while still warm. Some recipes call for essence of almond, lemon, or peppermint to be added for flavour, or for cayenne pepper to be added to give it a spicy kick. Food colouring (usually dark brown or black colour) is used in cheaper versions, when not enough treacle is present in the mixture to turn the toffee a dark colour. By one estimate, of bonfire toffee has , of protein, of carbohydrates, of fat, and of dietary fibre. ==Footnotes==