Bron's Orange Chocolate Honeycomb Crunchies

I am a honeycomb fiend and make it several times throughout the year. I've adapted it from a recipe by the baking queen Mary Berry, all my family and friends adore it. It's a great treat for any occasion, so get baking, and I promise you will not be disappointed!

This recipe makes 16 large squares of delicious-ness.

Ingredients:

75g caster or granulated sugar
4 tbsp golden syrup
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
150g orange chocolate
100g milk chocolate
100g butter (margarine also works)
150g biscuits (My preference are malted milk biscuits)

Method:

1. Prepare for the honeycomb! Get a baking tray, and line with greaseproof paper. If you don't have any paper, you can grease with butter, but I've found the honeycomb tends to stick to the tray. Also have a whisk on hand, and the tray near to the hob.

2. Heat 2 tbsp of the golden syrup with the sugar in a pan (on low-medium heat). Stir with a wooden spoon at first to dissolve the sugar, then leave, swirling occasionally.

3. Keep an eye on the pan. You want the colour of the mixture to turn to a caramel colour (see below). This usually takes from 5 to 10 minutes, but I've found it depends on your own pans/hob. 

4. Once the caramel colour has been reached, turn the heat off and add 1tsp bicarbonate of soda. Very quickly whisk the honeycomb, and once the bicarbonate of soda is whisked in, pour onto the prepared tray (see below for how much the honeycomb expands!!). This is a very quick reaction, and be VERY careful not to touch the mixture. Leave to set. If you are in a hurry, you can put the honeycomb into the fridge now. Otherwise it'll take about 10 minutes to become solid.

5. Whilst the honeycomb is setting, break the chocolate into another pan with the butter and the remaining 2 tbsp golden syrup. I use orange and milk chocolate here, but use whatever mix of chocolate you prefer – it's very fun to experiment. Heat gently until the chocolate and butter have melted.

6. Once the honeycomb has set, break the honeycomb and biscuits into pieces (of your choosing depending on how much you love honeycomb), and add to the chocolate. Stir to combine, then pour into a lined tub. I find a standard lunch box lined with cling-film works perfectly, but lining any tin or tub (provided the mix fits in) will work. Place in the fridge, and leave for approximately 1-2 hours to set. Again, if you are in a rush, you can place the tub in the freezer, where it will only take 30 minutes to be set enough to cut.

7. Cut into squares, and devour.

NOTE: After you have made the honeycomb, run very hot water into the pan immediately to remove the residual honeycomb in the pan. This will make your life A LOT easier when it comes to washing up, believe me. 
NOTE 2: You'll find after making the honeycomb a few times how dark you like to get the caramel before the bicarbonate of soda addition. A lighter colour (cooked for less time) will result in a deliciously chewy toffee-like honeycomb, whereas leaving it longer makes it amazingly crunchier, and leaving it longer still makes it super crunchy, but also more bitter. Just experiment and have fun testing the honeycomb on your friends and family!

Like this recipe? Why not try a variation - White Chocolate and Ginger Honeycomb Crunchies