Roots

• The history of toffee begins with another candy, taffy. In 19th century cookbooks, taffy and toffee recipes are used interchangeably says Lynne Olver, editor of Food Timeline.

Tuff Stuff

• Early toffee creations involved boiling treacle, a molasseslike sugar, with flour. Later additions included cream or butter forming a "toughy or tuffy" candy broken into pieces or cut into squares.

British Versions

• Welsh forms of toffee are much more like American taffy and are pulled. Other English toffee varieties are mixed with brown sugar or molasses to create a rich flavor.

Let's Add Some Butter

• "Buttery toffee is often called butterscotch," says Lynne Olver. The ingredients for butterscotch are similar to toffee, but you add lemon juice.

Alike but Different

• According to "The ABCs of Toffee" on The Nibble magazine website, classic English toffee consists of toffee without the addition of chocolate or nuts and is very hard. Butterscotch or American-style toffee is a bit softer and has flavorings such as vanilla or lemon.