Peanut Brittle

Directions

1. 1
   Line a quarter sheet pan with a Silpat (parchment will not work here).
2. 2
   Make a dry caramel: Heat the sugar in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat.
3. 3
   As soon as the sugar starts to melt, use a heatproof spatula to move it constantly around the panyou want it all to melt and caramelize evenly.
4. 4
   Cook and stir, cook and stir, until the caramel is a deep, dark amber, 3 to 5 minutes.
5. 5
   Once the caramel has reached the target color, remove the pan from the heat and, with the heatproof spatula, stir in the nuts.
6. 6
   Make sure the nuts are coated in caramel, then dump the contents of the pan out onto the prepared sheet pan.
7. 7
   Spread out as thin and evenly as possible.
8. 8
   The caramel will set into a hard-to-move-around brittle mass in less than a minute, so work quickly.
9. 9
   Let the brittle cool completely.
10. 10
    In a zip-top bag break the brittle up into pieces as small as possible with a meat pounder or a heavy rolling pinwe grind our brittle down in the food processor to the size of short-grain rice (you dont want anyone to chip a tooth on it!).
11. 11
    Eat or cook with it at will.
12. 12
    Store your brittle in an airtight container, and try to use it up within a month.
13. 13
    Follow the recipe for peanut brittle, substituting hazelnuts for the peanuts.
14. 14
    [makes about 250 g (1 3/4 cups)]
15. 15
    Follow the recipe for peanut brittle, substituting 3/4 cup cashews for the peanuts and increasing the sugar to 1 1/2 cups.
16. 16
    [makes about 375 g (2 1/4 cups)]
17. 17
    This, obviously, is made from a seed, not a nut, but it works just the same.
18. 18
    We use pepitas, or hulled pumpkin seeds.
19. 19
    Weve tried making them from raw shelled seeds scooped straight from a pumpkin, but to no avail.
20. 20
    Follow the recipe for peanut brittle, substituting pumpkin seeds for the peanuts.
21. 21
    When adding the seeds to the hot caramel, take care, they will pop a bit!
22. 22
    [makes about 250 g (1 3/4 cups)]
23. 23
    Peanut brittle is used in Peanut Butter Crunch (page 185).