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This Copycat See’s Bordeaux recipe recreates the famous See’s Candy bon bons at home.
Made with brown sugar, butter, cream, and a hint of coffee, each bite melts into a sweet, creamy center coated in rich chocolate. Perfect for gifting or enjoying during the holidays, these homemade candies taste just like the real thing.
Reasons You’ll Want to Make Them
If you grew up loving See’s Candy, this recipe will bring back memories. It’s a spot-on recreation of the original Bordeaux, with that signature buttery brown sugar filling and smooth chocolate shell.
They’re surprisingly easy to make and store beautifully for the holidays. You can even adjust the flavor by using dark or milk chocolate, or adding coffee for a little extra depth.
What You’ll Need To Make Them
The complete recipe with ingredient quantities is listed in the recipe card below, but here is a quick summary.
The filling is made from simple ingredients: brown sugar, butter, and cream, which cook together to create a caramel-like sweetness. A bit of instant coffee (optional) adds depth and enhances the chocolate. The outer coating is melted chocolate with a touch of butter for smooth dipping.
Sprinkle with chocolate sprinkles or drizzle extra chocolate on top for that classic Bordeaux look.
How to Make Copycat See’s Bordeaux
This is a quick overview. Full ingredients and instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Start by boiling brown sugar and butter until smooth and caramelized.
- Stir in cream, coffee, and salt, then add powdered sugar to form a soft dough.
- Once cooled and firm, roll the mixture into small balls and chill.
- Melt chocolate with butter, then dip each candy until coated.
- Let them set on wax paper, drizzle extra chocolate if desired, and enjoy once firm.
Substitutions and Variations
These homemade bon bons are easy to customize.
• Use milk chocolate instead of dark for a closer match to See’s version.
• Skip the coffee if you want the traditional flavor.
• Add a dash of sea salt on top for a modern twist.
• Try shaping the filling in silicone molds for perfectly uniform candies.
Leftovers and Storage
Store Bordeaux candies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week or refrigerate for up to two weeks.
For longer storage, freeze them for up to two months. Just let them come to room temperature before serving to avoid condensation dulling the chocolate. This is what happened in my photo below.
Learn From Me
I’ve made these candies many times, and a few small tips make all the difference.
- Use a heavy-bottomed saucepan to prevent the sugar mixture from burning.
- Let the filling cool until firm enough to roll. If it’s too soft it won’t hold shape.
- When dipping, freeze the centers briefly for easier handling, and if the chocolate loses its shine, just drizzle more on top. They’ll still taste incredible.
Similar Recipes You’ll Love
Making a special holiday platter or looking to gift homemade goodies? I have so many candy and holiday treat Christmas recipes, but here are a few of my absolute favorites:
- Five Minute Microwave Fudge
- Peanut Brittle
- Homemade Candied Pecans
- Peanut Butter Balls
- Salted Mocha Caramels
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Ingredients
Inside filling:
- 1 cup golden brown sugar packed, C&H brand recommended, other brands may result in a more grainy texture
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon instant coffee (finely ground) Optional, See's Bordeaux does not have coffee, but I liked the flavor it added (I used Starbucks Via)
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups sifted powdered sugar
Outer chocolate coating:
- 12 ounces dark chocolate
- 1 tablespoon butter
Instructions
- Using a heavy bottom saucepan, melt 8 tablespoons unsalted butter and 1 cup golden brown sugar together over medium high heat and bring to boil. Allow to boil for about two minutes.
- Stir in 1/4 cup heavy cream, 1 teaspoon instant coffee (finely ground) (if using), and a 1/8 teaspoon salt and allow to come to a boil again for about 30 seconds while stirring constantly to avoid scorching. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Add 2 cups sifted powdered sugar to mixture and stir in well until a consistent dough is formed. Chill until mixture holds shape similar to play dough, about 2 hours.
- Roll sugar dough into 1-inch balls and set on a wax paper lined sheet. Freeze for about 10 minutes for easier dipping.
- Melt 12 ounces dark chocolate and 1 tablespoon butter at 50% power in 1 minute increments in microwave, stirring after each minute, until melted.
- Dip candy balls into melted chocolate and allow to set on the wax paper. Either sprinkle with chocolate cake sprinkles or pipe a very thin stream of chocolate on top, if desired.
- Store in airtight container.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Thank you for the Bordeaux recipe, Krissy!!! It’s my husband’s favorite (well ok!!! I won’t pass it by!!!) I can’t wait to try it!!!
A BIG THANK YOU for sharing this recipe! My husband is a big Bordeaux fan. He said it tastes exactly the same except my chocolate sprinkles were larger!!
Thank you for taking the time to share this recipe!!
I love See,s candy and am really far from a store, so this recipe was so cool for me to find I made some right away and was amazed at the results. So good!
Thank you so much for this recipe! I’ve never made candy at all before, but my mom is a huge lover of See’s bordeaux, and I wanted to see if I could make her some since we’re not close to a See’s store and it’s so expensive. I made them without coffee, and by the time I was doing the dipping my whole family was in the kitchen for lunch asking what I was making. I was terrified they wouldn’t come out right, so I gave my mom one without telling her what it was, and when she bit into it her eyes lit up and she said, “It’s a bordeaux! It’s a bordeaux!” I was absolutely not equipped to figure out the recipe myself, so thank you again- you’ve made my mother very happy.
Greetings Krissy, Very excited to try my first recipe with you of CopyCat Bordeauxs. I am curious, though, as to the type of dark chocolate you used. Since the 1980’s when we lived close to a See’s in California, we (me) became addicted and have always gotten milk bordeaux. One year they mailed dark chocolate in error and I literally could not tell the difference so I’d like to stick as closely as possible to your recipe. Please advise. Thank you, Tracy DiMaggio, Wisconsin (no See’s anywhere near)!
You can definitely use any kind of chocolate you like, and milk chocolate will work. I, personally, prefer dark chocolate, so that’s how I made them. Really, any kind of chocolate bar will work. Valrhona is my absolute favorite, but they are hard to find. I really like Lindt chocolate bars and they are much more easy to find at major grocery stores. You can even use chocolate chips if you want.
These were a huge hit this holiday! Bordeaux’s are my mother in law’s favorite candy of all time and she raved about them. She refused to share with anyone! Hahaha! I’m making them again this weekend for her surprise retirement party. Thank you for figuring out this recipe!
I followed you recipe without the coffee and it’s a winner ! I made it as a molded candy instead of a dipped one and it worked great. Will definitely be adding this one to my treat box. Thanks for posting it.