A Toffee Like No Other

When I was growing up, my dad would sometimes travel for work. Though my mom and I both missed him very much while he was gone, a small part of us knew what that meant: a dinner trip to Frisch's Big Boy complete with a stop at Dairy Queen. Now, my mom and I are by definition creatures of habit. We would always order the same burger at Big Boy and the same treats at Dairy Queen -- a Peanut Butter Parfait for her and a Heath Blizzard for me.

I've loved toffee nearly as long as I've loved ice cream and I thought Dairy Queen had it down pat. That is, until I discovered Red Rocks Toffee at a local shop here in Conifer. I bought several boxes for my family (and myself, let's be honest!) for the holidays. I'm ashamed to say that Heath Toffee was ever a favorite! From that very first bite, I knew Red Rocks Toffee Company was on to something great! My father-in-law is a huge fan as well, having gotten some toffee from us as a holiday gift. Last time we stopped by the outlet, he bought four boxes. I'm not kidding!

A couple boxes of Red Rocks Toffee ready to go.

Red Rocks Toffee Company and owner Pete has a great story. What started as a day in the kitchen with a friend making toffee from church cookbook recipe, soon turned into a big experiment! Pete thought, though that batch was pretty good, perhaps he could make it mind-blowing. After loads of trials and honing the difficult skill of baking at altitude (a feat I have yet to master), Pete landed on a special mix of ingredients that made an incredible toffee and thus Steamboat Toffee Company was born. A few years later, after a move to the Denver area, Pete launched a second brand -- Red Rocks Toffee.

From the Denver Post, here's Pete whipping up a fresh batch!

This toffee is the real deal, folks. It's totally hand/heart-made, micro-batch cooked, hand-portioned and hand-packed. It's sweet, almond-y, and the texture is on point. I don't know if it's the cooking at 7,000 feet of elevation, the pecans, if there's a secret (addicting!) ingredient in there, or what, but this is truly Blue Ribbon Toffee (it actually is a blue-ribbon award winner at the Routt County fair, in northwest Colorado!).

My personal favorite use -- aside from eating it straight from the package -- is crumbling it up over ice cream (a la Dairy Queen Blizzard) or over cheesecake. Pete has a few other tasty ideas over on Red Rocks Toffee website. You can also snag a box (or two!) for you or a loved one. Know that Pete makes it himself daily, so when it arrives, it will be fresh and delicious! You definitely don't want to miss out!