Almond Roca In The Round

Total Time: 1 hr 5 mins Preparation Time: 45 mins Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1 1/2 cups toasted sliced almonds, divided
• 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate
• 1 teaspoon vegetable shortening

Recipe

• 1 lightly spray 36 mini-muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
• 2 in a large saucepan, heat butter over medium heat until butter is melted. add sugars, water and corn syrup, stirring to combine well. cook, stirring until sugar dissolves. raise heat to medium-high. bring mixture to a boil. cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until mixture reaches 300 degrees f. on a candy thermometer. remove from heat, and stir in 1 cup toasted almonds.
• 3 working quickly, carefully spoon about 1 tablespoon sugar mixture into prepared muffin pans.
• 4 in a small bowl, combine chocolate morsels and vegetable shortening. microwave on high in 30-second intervals, stirring after each, until melted and smooth (approximately 1-1/2 minutes total.).
• 5 spoon about 2 teaspoons chocolate mixture on top of sugar mixture, spreading chocolate to edges of muffin cup. sprinkle remaining 1/2 cups almonds on top of chocolate. let stand for 1 hour, or until chocolate is set.
• 6 note: to make a simplified version of almond roca, prepare butter-sugar mixture according to recipe directions, but instead of spooning it into muffin pans, simply spoon onto a sheet of parchment paper or a silpat. spread to 1/4-inch thickness. allow to cool completely. spread melted chocolate on top of cooled candy. sprinkle wih remaining 1/2 cup toasted almonds. let stand for an hour or until chocolate is set. break into pieces and enjoy!