I wanted to see if I could replicate my favorite brown sugar bon bon to share as a holiday treat and the result was a perfect Copycat See's Bordeaux!
Have you ever had a See's Bordeaux? I grew up on that stuff. Every Christmas and Easter there would be no shortage of See's candy around us, and I would always go for the Bordeaux first. I'll take this creamy, rich, sugary bon bon over anything with nuts or caramel. I'm one of those uniquely talented folks who can identify every See's candy from the outside before even taking a bite. I had to avoid biting into that nasty one that tastes like fruitcake, afterall. When I figured out I could actually replicate my favorite bon bon from the comfort of my own kitchen, I was a little thrilled, to put it mildly.
The inside consists of brown sugar, butter, heavy cream, and coffee. No wonder it tastes good, right? Those four ingredients alone could satisfy every sweet tooth craving I'll ever have!
I'm not the best chocolate dipper in the world. In fact, I think I kind of suck at it. Because my first dip wasn't very pretty, I ended up throwing them back in for a double dip and that did the trick! I didn't have chocolate cake sprinkles like you see on the real Bordeaux's but knew I had to pretty them up a bit, so I just put my extra chocolate in a plastic bag, snipped off the corner, and drizzled it on top. Perfection.
Before I took my final photos, I threw my dried bon bons in the freezer with all of my other holiday treats. I can't remember if i simply ran out of time or ran out of daylight, but the final photos didn't happen on the day I made them. Pity, because once you stick them in the freezer and then pull them out, the chocolate loses its shine, but we'll just pretend I didn't do that, mmmm kay?
The inside is a wonderful, sweet, rich, creamy, naughty center. Again, had I not been in a rush and actually allowed these beauties to come to room temperature instead of cutting a frozen one in half, they would have looked even more awesome, but I'm not too proud to admit my mistakes! It didn't stop me from eating them either!
Be sure to scroll down past the recipe to see all of my past year's holiday treats too!!!
Copycat See's Bordeaux
Ingredients
Inside filling:
- 1 cup golden brown sugar (packed, C&H brand recommended, other brands may result in a more grainy texture)
- ½ cup butter
- ¼ 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))
- pinch salt
- 2 cups sifted powdered sugar
Outer chocolate coating:
- 12 ounces dark chocolate
- 1 tablespoon butter
Instructions
- Using a heavy bottom saucepan, melt butter and brown sugar together over medium high heat and bring to boil. Allow to boil for about two minutes.
- Stir in cream, instant coffee (if using), and 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 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 chocolate and 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.
Brad
The official Bordeaux ingredients list from See's does not include coffee or molasses.
Milk Bordeaux Ingredients: sugar, brown sugar, cream, cocoa butter, milk, chocolate, butter, corn syrup, salt, vanilla, confectionery glaze, soy lecithin, vanillin.
I think we can skip the last three ingredients... But curious if using cocoa butter would be better than coffee.
Krissy
That would be an interesting addition!
Jackie
Is the brown sugar packed?
Thank you..
Krissy
Yes. I updated the recipe card. Thanks for asking!
Melinda
All of the ingredients after cream are for the chocolate coating on the outside. The inside is a brown sugar cream filling.
Mitzi
I agreed with the one comment that they were good as far as the taste but sort of grainy... obviously the brown sugar did not break down as much as it should have to make the inside smooth. I was afraid if I boiled it too long it would leave a burnt taste. Any suggestions? They did taste like the brown sugar squares that See's makes, being they were not smooth in texture. All in all, I liked them very much but wish they had been smoother.
Krissy
What kind of brown sugar did you use? I've always only used C&H golden brown, but bought a bag of organic brown sugar at costco and it was super grainy. I'm thinking that may make the difference.
Connie
Do you use packed brown sugar for this recipe? Slightly packed? Loose? I’m old school & way back it was always packed. So many recipes now don’t specify & that’s confusing to me. Please advise. Bordeaux is my favorite & I’m dying to try it. Thank you.
Krissy
Packed!
LoriAnn
Awesomely easy and spot on!
Jordan
I don’t drink coffee.. do you think it would mess with the recipe if I left it out? Is there something I could substitute for it?
Krissy
You can leave it out!
Clara G
I made several batches of these Seas Bordeaux candy for a wedding reception and they turned out perfect you only use just a tad which is like a fourth of a teaspoon of instant coffee it doesn't take much they were spot on I dip them in chocolate bark and to get the sprinkles on them after they were hard I placed them in the microwave for just 10 seconds and then sprinkle the sprinkles on top of them and they turned out perfectly just like them
Cheryl
I tried to make this substituting swerve brown sugar and confectioners sugar and it tastes like chemical air! What did I do wrong? I used butter and coconut cream instead of dairy. The texture is dry and crumbly and tastes horrible. How can I fix this mess?
Lee
These are delicious, but not quite Bordeaux. I made a batch, and taste-tested against the real thing; I think maple instead of coffee would give the right taste.
Krissy
great suggestion. I'll try that. Thank you!
Amy
I used to work for Sees. Definitely not coffee in it. It’s a decadent brown sugar buttercream center. Period. The only time you might have the flavor of coffee with one is if it was hand-packed next to a mocha. The assorted ones that were pre-packed would never do that for aesthetic reasons. Just so you know for accuracy sake. (Also had to be aware of allergens.)
Krissy
I debated adding the coffee. In the end I did it to make the flavor more intense. I appreciate the insight!
Sarah Mc
I am curious, do you know the recipe or ingredients at least?? Would be very helpful if so. Thank you in advance!
Krissy
The ingredients, quantities, and instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Janet Stellar
I love See’s Bordeaux! Made these but used dark brown sugar and wasn’t quite the same flavor. Thinking I might have cooked the sugar and butter too long? Tasted just a little like burned butter. Darn it! Will try again with light brown sugar and watch the heat with the butter. The texture was great though. Very creamy.
Alison L Correia
I made these last year and they were wonderful! Easy to make and so tasty! Thank you for the recipe!
Peachy
LOVED it!!! Thanks soooo much! ❤❤❤❤❤
Harz
I skipped the coffee and added a generous teaspoon of Molasses when I added the cream. Oh my God it was so good.
I screwed up and used 1/2 cup cream rather than a 1/4 cup, so I added an extra heaping 1/2 cup of powder Sugar. They were so unbelievable creamy and delicious. I had to move fast when rolling them out and had to completely freeze the balls so they would dip without melting. It was a challenge but they turned out great even though I goofed.
If I hadn't ruined the consistency they would have been but perfect copycat for sees. The molasses definitely enhanced the brown sugar flavor making it richer and more like sees Bordeaux filling.
Jen Naka
I'm salivating over this recipe! I'm having thoughts of making these using a chocolate/candy mold (rather than dipping). I'll be pouring chocolate into the mold and letting that set up before adding the dough. Would you recommend chilling the dough and pressing it into each mold cup (in place of dipping), or should I pour it while it's still warm into the molds and then letting it set up?
Krissy
I feel like it might get too hard if cold so I wouldn't refrigerate. Please let me know how they turn out if you use the candy mold! I'm actually not a huge fan of dipping but it's what I've always done.
Jen Naka
Thank you for the reply, Krissy. I will definitely let you know how it turns out! 🙂
Caitlyn Crane
These turned out great! They taste just like the sees candy. It took a lot longer than the prep time stated in the recipe but was so worth it. I see a lot of comments saying the coffee flavor was strong. The candies didn’t taste like coffee to me. The espresso powder just gave it a little something extra to make you think “wow that’s delicious what is that”
Margaret
Mine were a little grainy not the really smoothness of sees. What can I do to improve the next batch.
Bea
Could be a heat issue. Not hot enough and the sugar doesn't break down. Too hot and you end up with little hard pieces in it making it grainy.
I don't have any heavy bottomed pots, just thin cheap ones, so I have to use a lower heat than the recipe calls for (medium heat stirring constantly). I also pull it off for a second while I add in the cream then put it back on the burner.
Ehq
Hi! I had a quick question. Is the filling able to be made in advance and then rolled and dipped in the chocolate the next day? I am trying to adapt the filling recipe for a cake and have the brown sugar mixture as the filling for a cake. I don’t want it to be too stiff but just wondering. Thank you! Excited to try
Heidi
Mine tasted too much coffee I think I added a little bit too much instant coffee
Krissy
Did you use a Starbucks via pack? That's what I use and I don't think the coffee flavor is too much... but then again, I drink a ton of coffee.
Fran
Did you add water to the instant coffee before adding?
Krissy
Nope. Just the powder.
Marci
This looks like an amazing recipe, but did you really mean to roll the filling into 2 inch balls? That seems extra large.
Krissy
Thanks for catching that. I updated the recipe to say 1-inch.
Elyse
These were good but to me they tasted more like the butterscotch squares from see's
Lauren
These look amazing!! How long will the filling last by itself? Will it need to be kept frozen?
Thanks!
Krissy
I think if refrigerated, it should be fine for a couple of weeks
Rebecca
So Good!