Orange Chamomile Honeycomb Vegan Candy Recipe
If you’re getting ready for Valentine’s day, and looking to save a little money from the pricey options out there, here’s a vegan candy recipe that will hit the sweet spot. This recipe is for orange and chamomile honeycomb, coated in vegan dark chocolate. The fruity and floral, light, crispy honeycomb candy uses just five ingredients, and the flavors actually taste a lot like honey without having to rob the hive! The rustic, chocolate shapes topped with orange zest, chamomile, and crushed honeycomb are simple to make, and sweet. The perfect way to ask someone this Valentine’s Day, “Honey, will you bee mine?”
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Happy Vegan Valentine’s Day!
It’s that time of year again- the time we celebrate love! Valentine’s day- which I also sometimes call Valerie-entines day- is amongst the sappier holidays out there, but that’s no reason not to celebrate. To me, it’s all about a small, simple gesture to show someone you love that you do, in fact, love them. And it doesn’t have to be a romantic partner- show a friend, a sibling, or family member that they are loved. Heck, give yourself a little love this Valentines day. Maybe a bunch of flowers to brighten the dining room. Make them this vegan candy recipe. Get them some great, cruelty-free bath bombs. Make them a homemade feast. Just do a little something to let someone know you love them. When we were first dating, my partner and I were in a long-distance situation for our first Valentine’s day. He called a local pizza shop and had them send me a heart-shaped pizza- it was super sweet! Admittedly, it was a no-cheese, not super great, sad vegan pizza, but it was heart shaped and a surprise. It brought a little love to my day.
Looking for Vegan Sweets for your Valentine? Try one of these!
- Homemade Vegan Strawberry Flavored Chocolates
- Nut-Free Sunflower Seed Butter Vegan Chocolate Cups
- Classic Vegan Chocolate Ganache Truffles
- Christmas Vegan Biscotti with Cardamom and Anise
- Chocolate Coated Cranberry Wood Ear Mushrooms
- Homemade Vegan Nutella Recipe
What is Honeycomb Candy?
Honeycomb candy is something I first learned about by watching the best reality food show- the Great British Baking Show. It has a wonderful, caramel-like flavor and a super satisfying crunchy texture. My sister described it as “like a Butterfinger, but better”. While I think Butterfingers are technically filled with a toffee, the airiness of honeycomb candy is decidedly reminiscent of the flaky chocolate bar (especially when, like this recipe, it’s covered with chocolate). It’s a neat little bit of sugar work, wherein you bring molten sugar up to the “hard crack” stage- this is the same stage used to make toffee, lollipops, and nut brittle. If you let your sugar cool from here, you would have a hard, glass-like sheet of sugar. Instead, we’re going to make honeycomb. The heat from the sugar reacts with baking soda when added, which breaks down and produces carbon dioxide. At the same time, the sugar is cooling and hardening, trapping those little bubbles inside the toffee. The inside is filled with small gaps, sort of like the pattern found in a beehive. Once it’s all the way cooled, it’s crunchy, light, and dissolves in your month.
How to Make this Vegan Candy Recipe
While honeycomb candy looks tricky, if you have an accurate candy thermometer it should be a piece of cake (or a piece of candy anyways). I will also say though, that after calibrating my three thermometers, I discovered that none of them are accurate, which explains the first batch of honeycomb that I made which burnt badly. So before making your honeycomb, I really recommend you calibrate your own thermometer- here’s how– and if you know of a nice, accurate candy thermometer please send that my way. Also make sure you’ve prepared a pan with parchment paper, so it’s ready. To add some flavor to our honeycomb, we used orange juice and made a concentrated chamomile tea. To that we add sugar and corn syrup- the corn syrup helps to stop the sugar from crystalizing. Make sure you use a fairly large pot, as the sugar will be bubbling up (and also super hot- you really don’t want to get burned with bubbling hot sugar). Whisk all your ingredients together, and then don’t whisk it. Just let it come up to 300 degrees, and don’t stir- I know it’s hard. Once it’s reached temperature, take it off the heat and use a whisk to whisk in the baking soda. It will get all lovely and bubbly- once it stops bubbling, pour it into your prepared tray and let it cool. Once it’s cool, break it into large pieces- you can save any extra little bits, and crush them to top the chocolate with.
Now it’s chocolate time! I use a quick little trick that gives you easy tempered chocolate, so it sets well. Melt 3/4 of your chocolate in a bowl over boiling water. If, like me, you are using chocolate chips or a lower quality chocolate, adding a little coconut oil can help make it smooth. Take the chocolate off the heat, and whisk in the remaining 1/4 of your chocolate chips. As the chocolate chips melt, the rest of the chocolate will cool, giving you your temper. Dip the pieces of honeycomb into the chocolate (a fork works well), shake off any extra, and place on a baking sheet to set. You can top with orange zest, crushed honeycomb, chamomile, or just leave bare. Stick them in the fridge, and let them set up. The final step is to avoid eating it all, before you can share them with your special someone.
Orange Chamomile Honeycomb Vegan Candy Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 chamomile teabag
- 1 medium-large orange
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp. corn syrup
- 2 tsp. baking soda
- 8 oz. vegan dark chocolate (chocolate chips, or chopped chocolate)
- 1 tbsp. coconut oil (optional)
Instructions
- Bring a small pot of water to a boil, and once it’s boiling pour ½ cup of water over the chamomile teabag. Let the tea brew for 10 minutes, then remove the teabag. Prepare a glass pan (approximately 11x7inches) with parchment paper on the bottom and sides. While the tea is brewing, zest the orange and set the zest aside. After the tea has brewed, juice the orange.
- Add the orange juice, chamomile tea, sugar, and corn syrup to a fairly large saucepan. Whisk all the ingredients together, add a candy thermometer, and start to heat the mixture. Don’t stir at all, while you wait for the sugar to reach 300°F (150°C).
- Once the sugar has reached temperature, remove from the heat and add the baking soda. Whisk well. The sugar will turn a lighter color and bubble up. Allow to bubble for a few seconds, and then pour into the prepared glass pan. Allow to cool fully to room temperature (about an hour), until hardened. Once the honeycomb has hardened, use a knife to break it into 20 or so fairly large triangle-like shapes.
- Start on the chocolate. Boil a small pot of water, and place 6 oz. of chocolate in a heat-resistant bowl. Depending on the quality of your chocolate, you may want to add the coconut oil to make the melted chocolate thinner. Once the chocolate is totally melted, take off the heat and add the remaining chocolate. Stir until it is all melted.
- Prepare a baking sheet with wax paper. Dip the pieces of honeycomb into the melted chocolate, shaking off any extra chocolate, and placing on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle the tops of the chocolate with the orange zest, the powdered bits from cutting the honeycomb, or some dried chamomile tea. Repeat with all the honeycomb. Let cool in the fridge until the chocolate is hardened. Once cooled, store at room temperature or the fridge in an airtight container.
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