How to Make Honeycomb That’ll Leave You ‘Buzzing’ With Excitement

Honeycomb is a bubbly and crunchy sweet treat that’s not only a perfect addition to many desserts, but it’s also just as good on its own.

The best part is, it’s so easy to make! Read on to discover how to make this classic treat.

Bees make honeycomb from beeswax, and it’s used to store their pollen, larvae, and of course, sweet, delicious honey. As both honey and honeycomb are animal products, they are definitely not vegan.

I know what you’re thinking, can you eat honeycomb? Like, real honeycomb? Although the bees may not be too happy about it, you can eat it.

But fear not! We won’t be talking about beehive honeycomb in this article, we’ll be talking about the tasty, sweet honeycomb candy.

Our recipe for honeycomb uses our famous Lyle’s Golden Syrup, so it’s vegan, plus, you won’t have to worry about coming across any rogue bee stingers!

With just three ingredients, you can make some tasty honeycomb in three simple steps.

• 200g (7oz) Tate & Lyle’s Fairtrade Golden Caster Sugar

• 5 tbsp Lyle’s Golden Syrup

• 2 rounded tsp bicarbonate of soda

You need to start by making a caramel. To do this, stir the sugar and golden syrup in a large pan until the sugar has dissolved. Then simmer on a low heat until the mixture becomes an amber colour, this should take around 5-10 minutes. Top tip – use an oiled spoon to add Lyle’s Golden Syrup, it will stop the syrup from sticking to the spoon.

You will need to work quickly in this next step! Take your pan off the heat and add the bicarbonate of soda straight away. Then beat the mixture until it starts to foam and pour it into a greased 20cm (8’’) tin that’s been lined with baking paper. Don’t worry if you’re mixture is still bubbling, that’s a good thing.

All you need to do now is leave it to cool until it is solid, which normally takes between 1 – 2 hours. Then break it into chunks and enjoy! Top Tip – measure all your ingredients out before you start cooking, then you won’t need to rush around measuring the ingredients in between.

The short answer is no; baking powder and bicarbonate of soda are two different products. Bicarbonate of soda is what gives your honeycomb its bubbly structure, you will not get the same effect using baking powder.

Honeycomb can be tricky to get right. But with our recipes and these handy dos and don’ts, you will be able to make delicious honeycomb like a true master baker!

Mixing the bicarb in too much at this stage will knock out all the air, making your honeycomb flat. Mix it enough for the bicarbonate of soda to incorporate and then stop!

If your sugar syrup isn’t hot enough, it will make your honeycomb very chewy. The best way to make sure your sugar is at the right temperature is to use a sugar thermometer. The mixture should be at the ‘hard ball’ stage, which is normally between 121-130 degrees Celsius.

If you don’t have a sugar thermometer, place a spoonful of your sugar syrup into a bowl of cold water and let it cool down a bit. If the sugar is in a hard ball stage, it should be firm to the touch, and harder to mould as it cools down.

The colour is also a good indicator, the mixture should be an amber colour. If it’s any darker than that, it means your sugar is too hot and the honeycomb will taste burnt and bitter.

Once you have dissolved the sugar and you start to simmer your sugar mixture, you shouldn’t mix it as sugar crystals will start to form – which will ruin your honeycomb.

The best way to prevent sugar crystals from forming is to use a pastry brush and brush water on the side of the pan every so often.

If you store your honeycomb in the fridge or in a humid environment, it will make it go soggy. The best way to store your honeycomb is in an airtight container.

Now put what you’ve learnt into practice with these delicious recipes that all feature the scrumptious crunch of honeycomb.

Let’s face it, chocolate makes everything better! Adding chocolate to honeycomb makes an already tasty treat even more delicious!

Add our chocolate-dipped honeycomb to these silky-smooth chocolate mousse pots for the ultimate taste explosion.

The addition of honeycomb adds a deliciously sweet twist to this traditional Yorkshire cake.

You can’t make honeycomb without our famous Lyle’s Golden Syrup – it’s the most important ingredient (we’re not biased, I promise)!