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National Buttercrunch Day

Food · January 20

A day for buttercrunch, the crisp, buttery toffee candy often coated in chocolate and chopped nuts, and the simple pleasure of breaking off a piece.

National Buttercrunch Day falls on Wednesday, January 20, 2027. That is 85 days away.

Buttercrunch is a hard toffee made by cooking butter and sugar until the mixture turns golden and sets crisp. Many versions are spread thin, topped with melted chocolate, and pressed with chopped almonds or pecans before they cool.

The texture is the point. A good piece snaps cleanly, then shatters into buttery shards that soften slowly instead of sticking to your teeth like a chewy caramel. The flavor leans toward brown butter and a hint of burnt sugar, with the chocolate and nuts rounding it out.

At home it is usually made in one sheet and broken into uneven pieces by hand, which means nobody gets the same shape twice. That rough look is part of its charm, and it is why buttercrunch shows up so often in holiday tins and paper bags tied with string.

Making it takes a heavy pan, steady stirring and some patience. A candy thermometer helps, since the sugar needs to reach the hard crack stage to set properly. Pull it too early and you get something closer to fudge.

Leftover pieces, if there are any, can be crushed and scattered over ice cream or folded into cookie dough, where they keep a little of their crunch.

Ways to celebrate

• Try making a small batch of buttercrunch with butter, sugar and a thermometer.
• Share a few broken pieces with a neighbor in a paper bag.
• Look for buttercrunch at a local candy shop or bakery.
• Sprinkle crushed buttercrunch over a bowl of vanilla ice cream.
• Compare almond and pecan toppings to pick a favorite.

Dates

All national days on January 20

Also on January 20

• National Cheese Lover's Day
• Penguin Awareness Day
• National Coffee Break Day
• National Disc Jockey Day
• Take a Walk Outdoors Day

Categories: Food days