Normas Peanut Brittle Recipes

MOM'S BEST PEANUT BRITTLE

Steps:

• Grease a large cookie sheet. Set aside.
• In a heavy 2 quart saucepan, over medium heat, bring to a boil sugar, corn syrup, salt, and water. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Stir in peanuts. Set candy thermometer in place, and continue cooking. Stir frequently until temperature reaches 300 degrees F (150 degrees C), or until a small amount of mixture dropped into very cold water separates into hard and brittle threads.
• Remove from heat; immediately stir in butter and baking soda; pour at once onto cookie sheet. With 2 forks, lift and pull peanut mixture into rectangle about 14x12 inches; cool. Snap candy into pieces.

THE BEST PEANUT BRITTLE

Steps:

• Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and grease with nonstick cooking spray.
• Stir together the sugar, corn syrup and 1/2 cup water in a medium saucepan fitted with a candy/deep-fry thermometer. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, then continue to boil until it's golden brown and it reaches 340 degrees F, about 15 minutes.
• Working quickly, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the butter and baking soda until smooth (it will foam and bubble up). Stir in the peanuts until evenly distributed amongst the sugar mixture.
• Pour onto the prepared baking sheet and quickly smooth with a rubber spatula into a thin and even layer. Let harden uncovered at room temperature until cooled completely. Break into pieces and store in an airtight container.

OLD FASHIONED PEANUT BRITTLE

Steps:

• Use heavy skillet with a tight lid to boil sugar, water, and karo (400*F.) until it spins a thread 1 foot long. Add raw spanish peanuts and vanilla. Stir gently until peanuts crack or pop. Stir until light beige, not gold or tan. Remove from heat. Add 2 scant teaspoons baking soda. Stir quickly and pour onto greased cookie sheet.

PEANUT BRITTLE

Steps:

• Line a quarter sheet pan with a Silpat (parchment will not work here).
• Make a dry caramel: Heat the sugar in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. As soon as the sugar starts to melt, use a heatproof spatula to move it constantly around the pan-you want it all to melt and caramelize evenly. Cook and stir, cook and stir, until the caramel is a deep, dark amber, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Once the caramel has reached the target color, remove the pan from the heat and, with the heatproof spatula, stir in the nuts. Make sure the nuts are coated in caramel, then dump the contents of the pan out onto the prepared sheet pan. Spread out as thin and evenly as possible. The caramel will set into a hard-to-move-around brittle mass in less than a minute, so work quickly. Let the brittle cool completely.
• In a zip-top bag break the brittle up into pieces as small as possible with a meat pounder or a heavy rolling pin-we grind our brittle down in the food processor to the size of short-grain rice (you don't want anyone to chip a tooth on it!). Eat or cook with it at will. Store your brittle in an airtight container, and try to use it up within a month.
• hazelnut brittle
• Follow the recipe for peanut brittle, substituting hazelnuts for the peanuts.
• [makes about 250 g (1 3/4 cups)]
• cashew brittle
• Follow the recipe for peanut brittle, substituting 3/4 cup cashews for the peanuts and increasing the sugar to 1 1/2 cups.
• [makes about 375 g (2 1/4 cups)]
• pumpkin seed brittle
• This, obviously, is made from a seed, not a nut, but it works just the same. We use pepitas, or hulled pumpkin seeds. We've tried making them from raw shelled seeds scooped straight from a pumpkin, but to no avail.
• Follow the recipe for peanut brittle, substituting pumpkin seeds for the peanuts. When adding the seeds to the hot caramel, take care, they will "pop" a bit!
• [makes about 250 g (1 3/4 cups)]
• Elsewhere in this book
• Peanut brittle is used in Peanut Butter Crunch (page 185).

ANN'S CRUNCHY PEANUT BRITTLE

Steps:

• Mix and set aside the butter and soda.
• In a large pan, mix and boil the sugar, water,and syrup to hardball stage (254 degrees F).
• Add peanuts and stir constantly until mixture turns yellow (NOT AMBER) about 5 minutes.
• Remove from heat and add butter mixture and vanilla.
• Pour onto greased cookie sheet.
• Pat into a thickness you like with the back of a spoon.
• Cool and break into pieces.
• Store in airtight container.

PEANUT BRITTLE

Steps:

• Use a bit of butter to grease a baking sheet, preferably one with a low rim. Combine sugar and 2 tablespoons water in a heavy skillet and turn heat to medium. Stir until smooth, then cook, adjusting heat so that mixture bubbles steadily. Stir occasionally until mixture turns golden brown (which it may do rather suddenly).
• Stir in the peanuts and a large pinch of salt, if desired. Pour mixture onto greased baking sheet and spread out. Cool for about a half-hour, then break into pieces. (You can score brittle with a knife when it has solidified slightly but not yet turned hard; that way, it will break into even squares.) Store in a covered container for up to two weeks.

OLD-FASHIONED PEANUT BRITTLE

Steps:

• Butter a large baking pan; set aside. Combine peanuts, sugar, and corn syrup in a medium saucepan. Set over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
• Insert a candy thermometer. Continue boiling, without stirring, until temperature registers 295 degrees, about 6 minutes. When sugar begins to brown, stir nuts gently to ensure even cooking. Remove saucepan from heat, and stir in the butter and baking soda; the mixture will begin to foam up, so mix quickly. Pour onto the prepared baking pan.
• As soon as candy is cool enough to handle, use your fingers to stretch the brittle as thinly as possible over the baking pan. Allow the brittle to cool completely, about 45 minutes, then break into bite-size pieces.

TWO MINUTE PEANUT BRITTLE

Steps:

• Coat a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
• Place the caramels in a bowl, and heat in the microwave for about 2 minutes, or until melted and bubbly. Some microwaves may take longer. Stir in the peanuts, and pour out onto the prepared baking sheet. Press as thinly as you can. Cool completely, then break into pieces.