Learn how to make sea foam candy!
I’ve been on a quest to figure out how to make great sea foam candy. There are a lot of different names for this type of candy, some people call it honeycomb candy, honeycomb toffee, golden crushers, cinder toffee, sea foam candy, sponge candy, sponge toffee, fairy food or hokey pokeys. Mostly we call it delicious!
Have you ever had it? It’s one of my favorite things! It tastes like crunchy caramelized sugar. Most chocolate candy shops sell it. A couple weeks ago, my Dad brought home some of the best I had ever had. It was light and airy…meltinyourmouthsugarygoodness! I have tried several times and I think I finally have it figured out! Making candy is a science. When making candy, things like exact temperatures and humidity in the can make or break it.
How to make Sea Foam Candy
It has just a few basic ingredients, so one would think it shouldn’t be that hard, but it’s a trial and error situation.
It’s fun to make at home because you can decide if you want to dip it in chocolate or just eat it plain. We dipped only half of each piece in chocolate. This helps keep your fingers clean when dipping, and it keeps it more about the candy than the chocolate.
We made a video so you can see how to make sea foam candy!
When it comes to dipping the candy in chocolate, we love milk chocolate, and we think Guittard Milk Chocolate chips are the best! If you have extra chocolate leftover after dipping the candy, we have found that scrapping it out of the bowl onto sheets of parchment paper and freezing it flat is a great way to save it. It’s easy to break chunks of chocolate off when you freeze it flat.
We added some of the candy to a vanilla milkshake, and it was SO GOOD!
It gives the shake a nice crunchy texture.
We love it dipped in chocolate THE MOST!
Here’s what it looks like when you buy it at the store. Usually it is completely covered in chocolate.
Have you ever made it at home?
For your viewing pleasure…my first failed attempts at making sea foam candy:
*Update! …We finally have a recipe that we love!
Sea Foam Candy
Ingredients
- ¼ tsp gelatin
- 1 tsp water
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- ½ cups light corn syrup
- ½ cup water
- 1 tbsp baking soda sifted
Chocolate For Dipping
- 1 bag chocolate chips of your choice (Guittard milk chocolate chips...are our favorite)
Instructions
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Line a 9x9 pan with parchment paper. We use binder clips to hold the parchment in place on all four sides.
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In a small glass bowl, add gelatin and 1 tsp water together and allow the gelatin to bloom.
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In a medium-large size (tall) pot, mix together sugar, corn syrup and 1/2 cup water. Heat over medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves and the mixture comes to a boil.
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Insert a candy thermometer and heat mixture to 300° F. Do not stir the sugar mixture after the candy thermometer goes in. The boiling sugar mixture will stir itself.
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Remove from heat and let sit for a minute or two, the bubbles should slow down. Add the bloomed gelatin and whisk, be careful, the hot sugar syrup will bubble up.
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Now sprinkle the baking soda over the sugar mixture and whisk vigorously. Return mixture to the heat and continue whisking for 30 seconds. The sugar mixture will rise up in the pot, nearly double in size.
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Quickly pour mixture into the parchment lined pan, it should pour out in a big glob. Do not try to spread it out, just let it settle into the pan. Allow it to cool completely for about 2 hours (or overnight) before taking it out of the pan.
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When ready, break it into pieces, this can be a messy process.
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Melt chocolate in a glass bowl for 1 minute in the microwave. Stir the chocolate with a spatula for an even melted consistency. Dip sponge candies in the melted chocolate, scrape off any excess, and set each one on a parchment lined pan. Once the chocolate is set, you can enjoy!
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Store in an air tight container at room temp.
Recipe Notes
If you dip the entire candy in chocolate it will protect the candy against humidity.
Making This Recipe? Tag us on Instagram: @NoBiggie using the hashtag #NoBiggieRecipes, so we can see what you are making in the kitchen!
Do you have a candy recipe that you love to make at home?
More sweet treats we LOVE:
–Cream Cheese Mints
–Homemade Nutter Butter Cookies
–No Bake Peanut Butter Balls
Azúcar says
First of all, we might have the same tastebuds. First pickled beets and now sea foam? BYU's is the best.
I haven't made it at home, but now I want to try.
Tiffany says
I'm intrigued. I don't think I've ever had it before. Adding it to my to-do list now!
terry says
My mom added black walnuts, which gave an added layer of flavor.
Darcy says
Love your blog but don't think I've ever commented! I have a recipe for sea foam candy bookmarked and had to share the link. I haven't made it yet so I don't know if it's a keeper. When you do find the perfect recipe I do hope you'll share it! 🙂
http://www.intimateweddings.com/blog/sponge-candy-recipe-with-or-without-chocolate-this-sponge-candy-is-da-bomb/
Cherie says
I do NO GOOD when making boiled candies. I have tried to bring it down to a science because I know the secret is in the temp rise and fall. I know the altitude needs to be considered and adjusted when boiling the candy as well. Being in the rocky mountains, I finally just gave up. I switched to freezer canning also for the same reason.
buddens says
Email Alton Brown! Wouldn't that be awesome if he did an entire episode based on your question?
Debbie says
Keep trying! And bring us some.
Becky, yep says
I'm impressed…you did NO name dropping OR rock throwing!
I hope that when that amazing person that has all the secrets tell you that you post it!!! or link it whatever
Sarah says
This is one of my favorite things ever. My mom used to buy it for us every time we went to ZCMI. Remember when that existed? The candy counter was right as you came in.
Let me know when you find a good recipe. I can't wait to try it!
tammy says
I'm thinking it's one of those things you have to make over and over again until you get it right.
Linda says
I have grown up with this too. There use to be a lady that worked at a candy store in Utah called Russells. (They were famous for salt water taffy.) She was the mother of my cousin's wife who made wonderful chocolates. Still does. The candy shop is no longer in business. When we had a girls weekend with cousins, moms, etc. we would order like 10 pounds and divide it among us. Seafoam heaven. I can't find good seafoam now. So I am with you in wanting to try to make my own. Let's keep trying and I will let you know if I figure it out.
clloyd-olsen says
I remember Russell’s. I also remember the See’s Candy store on the same block as Auerbach’s in downtown SLC having some tasty, fluffy sea foam too.
Emily says
I've never had seafoam candy but I love your perseverance in trying to perfect it. You rock! I have yet to successfully make candy other than a simple peanut butter fudge. Good luck!
Vanessa & Tyler says
I have never heard of it! You will have to email or twitter me where you can get it
vanessa from inevergrewup.net
lk says
I have a tried and true recipe! We call it honeycomb in our family, and I like to make it without the chocolate, or just drizzle chocolate on it, rather than coat it. I hope it works for you. The trick is to remove it from the heat before it gets too dark. I usually stop when it's the color of (trying to think of a good color name: "wheat thins"?), because it will continue to darken a little into a caramel color.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cups water
3 tablespoons honey
1/3 cup corn syrup (I use light)
4 teaspoons baking soda, sifted
Directions:
In a large saucepan, gently combine the sugar and water then add the honey and corn syrup. Boil until amber colored and the sugar looks like caramel. Add the baking soda, and with a wooden spoon, stir in gently. It will foam up a lot. Pour the mixture onto a silpat or a piece of parchment paper on a sheetpan, and let cool. Break into pieces.
Good luck!
Marie {Make and Takes} says
I LOVE sea foam!!!! Tell me if find the recipe and I want to make it with you!
Amanda says
Here is a recipe from allrecipes.com: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Sea-Foam-Candy/Detail.aspx I've never even heard of seafoam candy, but this particular recipe got 4.5 of 5 stars. Must be worth trying…
Christine says
I know you posted this a long time ago, but I thought I’d add my recipe anyway. Let me know if it works for you!
I grew up in Utah and my grandmother is a published candy cookbook author, so candy runs in my veins. 😀 These recipes are all too complicated. If the recipe calls for egg whites, vinegar, etc., it’s not the right thing. Seafoam is really easy to make and all you really need is a good candy thermometer and to plan ahead.
2 cups light corn syrup
2 cups packed brown sugar
4 teaspoons baking soda (measure out and sift ahead of time – you don’t want clumps in your candy – blech.)
Before you start, prep everything. The cooking is slow, but once you add that baking soda, you need to move fast and have everything ready to go.
Line a 13 x 9 cake pan with aluminum foil and either brush with butter or spray with cooking spray. (I spray.) You can use a larger pan, but no smaller. I use a Pyrex cake pan and the foamy candy tries to overflow but just barely stays contained by the flaps of foil. But you kind of want it in the smaller pan so that the cooled candy is thick. What happens is that the middle third of the candy is the foamiest, with the top third and bottom third being a little firmer and more like the Macey’s candy. If you pour the hot candy into a larger pan, I’m afraid you’d lose that yummy middle layer and end up with all firm, which isn’t the point.
Pour the sugar and corn syrup into a VERY large, heavy cooking pot. (Adding the baking soda will make the syrup foam up, so you want plenty of room in that pot for expansion.) Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves. Continue cooking, without stirring, to 300°F on a candy thermometer, about 15 minutes. It’s easy to burn, so don’t be impatient and turn up the heat.
Remove from heat and stir in baking soda, mixing well. The syrup will foam up. Make sure your mix it pretty thoroughly so there aren’t any pockets of baking soda next to thick, unfoamed candy, but at the same time, mix quickly so you don’t lose the foam effect. Quickly pour into the prepared pan. Allow to set at room temperature until firm. Invert pan and peel off foil. Break into pieces. Coat in chocolate if desired.
I started making this for my hubby’s family a few years ago and now I’m expected to make it every year. 🙂 It’s what they remember from shopping at the old ZCMI food shop.
Good luck!
-Christine
Robin says
This is JUST what we were looking for. Sea Foam has always been my favorite candy and I was searching for a recipe and voila! Yours was perfect. We have finished our first batch and complete dipping it in chocolate. The texture is perfect and the directions were fabulous. Thank you for a wonderful candy recipe!
Rhonda says
Christine,
Thankyou so much for the Sea Foam recipe. It is just what I was looking for as well., except it seems to stick to my teeth when chewed more than I recall the store-bought variety. Does yours as well? I need a couple of additional tips before I attempt my second batch. Do you use light or dark brown sugar? Does it work with either? I think medium on my electric burner was a bit too high as it scorched before it reached 300 degrees, so I will reduce the heat…also, it seemed to take a lot longer than 15 min. to reach the desired temperature. I am using a Taylor Pro candy/deep fry thermometer. I’m not sure how to know what is a “good” candy thermometer. Finally, when I concluded stirring and put it into the pan, it was streaked a bit…is that normal, or should I have stirred more? I want to make it perfectly, so any help will be great!
Thanks! Rhonda
Christine says
Hi Rhonda,
Sorry I haven’t seen this reply for so long. I’m sure you’ve worked all of this out, but I thought I’d answer your questions anyway.
Mine doesn’t stick to my teeth. I would think that means it didn’t get quite hot enough, but it might be that it was a humid day.
I have always used light brown, so I don’t know if it would work with dark. I’ll try it next time and report back here.
I’ve scorched many batches of candy before finding the sweet spot on my stove, so I think you’re doing the right thing to turn down the heat. Another thing might be that at higher altitudes, your candy will be ready at a lower temperature. The way to test this is to boil a pot of water and put your thermometer in it. At sea level, water boils at 212, so all recipes are written assuming you’re at sea level. I’m at a high altitude, so my water boils at 207 – a full 5 degrees lower. So I only cook my seafoam to 295 instead of 300.
And yes, it does sometimes take longer than 15 minutes. It partly depends on the weather and whether there is anything else cooking on your stove and whether your pan was cold to start or warm… There are lots of reasons that changes, which is why we go by temperature instead of time.
Your Taylor is a great thermometer!
A little bit streaked is just fine. As long as you don’t see heavy dark ropes of unpuffed candy, it’ll be delish. Any areas where the baking soda doesn’t reach will be dense and not foamy and hard to eat.
RiverMan says
I had been using another recipe for years and always ended up throwing away the first batch for one reason or another. The most common problem with our old recipe was the candy didn’t foam up enough.
This year I threw away 4 batches in a row before searching online for another recipe to try. I found this one and it came out perfect on the first try!
Thanks for the recipe!
Christine says
Awesome! I’m so glad it worked for you.
RiverMan says
I do have a couple of tips though…. Taking the temperature to 300f is unnecessary. I have made four successful batches of this since finding your recipe. The first batch I followed the recipe exactly and it turned out great… but there was a little tiny bit of scorching on the bottom of the pan. The next three batches I made I took the temp too 285f and it came out exactly the same except no scorch.
Also…. When using a 13×9 pan the candy came out really thick and when I broke it up I had tons of crumbs and tiny pieces left over. I simply covered about a 3′ by 3′ area of my kitchen counter with buttered aluminum foil and poured the batch out into the center of the foil. It spread out slowly and came out about 1.5″ thick. I then picked it up and gently dropped in on the counter and it broke perfectly!
Christine says
That’s a great tip about the temp.
I was worried that if the candy didn’t come out really thick, that you wouldn’t have the soft, foamy middle layer of the candy. That you’d just have the denser part. If it’s only 1.5″ thick, is it more dense?
RiverMan says
It comes out perfectly in my opinion… Of course everyone has their own preference but at 285 it’s nice and airy and crunchy!
Just try a half batch sometime and see! 🙂
Dawn Monroe says
Christine,
At what point do you add the vinegar? And how much? It is left out of the recipe and I’d like to try this! Thank you!
Christine says
Hi Dawn,
There is no vinegar in my recipe, so you never add it. 🙂
In my opinion, the recipes with vinegar and egg whites, etc., are not correct. Just the three ingredients are all you need.
Hope that helps!
-Christine
kami says
thanks Christine!
Renee says
I made this today and mine is sticky and chewy not hard and melt in your mouth. I took it off at around 280 degrees. Could this be why? Where I’m from in Pennsylvania we call this sponge candy!
Christine Parry says
Hi Renee! Yes, it didn’t cook long enough to get hard. You need it to get to the “hard crack” stage or it will be chewy. And if you’re at sea level or close, it’s more important to get it close to 300 deg.
How fun to know another name! My friend from Scotland says it’s the same as a candy bar called “Crunchie.”
Amber says
Just saw this pinned on pinteret and thought it was interesting. I’m from northwest Pennsylvania and we have this here except it’s called sponge candy. I always thought it was a local thing because whenever we go someplace new they’ve never heard of it!
Pat says
This recipe was called “Sponge Toffee” in my day in Ontario, Canada. Here is a terrific recipe for the above.
http://www.foodnetwork.ca/recipes/recipe.html?dishid=6208
Lisa O says
When do you add the vinegar—and how much!?!?
Jessie says
My family and I love this candy: a great tip for those of you who have ever had it stick to the pan: get those silicon mats and put them in a deep glass dish that is smaller than the mat-after it has solidified you can just pull out the mat and break up the sea foam-no stick, no mess, no butter.
suzanne says
last week my friends came down to orlando for spring break. the wife was at a wedding in sacramento and when she flew in, she brought a big bag of sea foam with her. i had never heard of it or tried it, but i seem to remember at some point seeing it made on tv. anyways, the wife (she has a name, but i’m getting particularly fond of calling her “the wife”. haha!) and i both cook A LOT. so this morning, through texting back and forth, i told her that i would find a good recipe for sea foam. my first try was the one star recipe on food network. no baking soda? REALLY? and you were my second. the funny thing is that i know that i need to look no further. “the wife” (it is starting to have a ring to it, eh?) and the whole family is mormon! i texted her and told her about the zxcm (i think that was it) store that they carried the sea foam at and she said that is where her couch is from! haha!!
anyways, thanks for the great recipe! i can’t wait to try it out tonight!!!!
Gina says
Does anyone know, why when I make this it gets huge like a rising cake ( which is awesome) but then it falls very thin and not as airy as I would like( minimal air)?? I would like to know what I’m doing wrong!! This is the first recipe that I have even gotten the rise effect from and I love how easy and yummy it is!! Please Help!! Thank you
Renee says
I made this today and maybe got impatient and went to about 280 degrees. Mine is a bit on the sticky/chewy side not the crunchy melt in your mouth side. Thinking of trying again. Ate there any other suggestions? I noticed you said something about vinegar but your recipe doesn’t call for it?
Susan Gross says
I followed the directions and no foam! I now have a 9 x 13 piece of hard candy. Very disappointing,
Terri says
I am cooking this right now!! Though, the recipe I have found has 2tsp of white vinegar
in the cooked mixture and then two tsp of baking soda is whisked in after it reaches 300
degrees.and is removed from the heat. Maybe this helps….
Molly says
Interested in why you use gelatin? I’ve never seen a recipe with gelatin before….
Gretchen Bazeley says
I made this and loved it! It looks exactly like the pics above and so yummy!! thank you 🙂
Anna says
Excellent recipe! My candy turned out perfectly the first time!! The hardest part for me was tempering my dipping chocolate which I chose instead of the Guittard chocolate chips you recommended. I want to try using those the next time.
I’m curious if the chocolate blooms when you use the chocolate chips?