An Easy Homemade Peanut Brittle Recipe
Peanut brittle is a flavorful, old-fashioned candy that’s sweet and salty with a beautiful snappy texture (and a reputation for sticking to your teeth!). Salted peanuts are scattered throughout for a nutty flavor and fun bite. If you’re a fan of peanut candy, you’ll definitely like this one! Candy making may seem intimidating, but that’s just because most of us don’t make it often. I get that and for a long time stuck to thermometer-free candies like potato candy but using a thermometer and moving your candy-making to the stovetop really isn’t that complicated. Take this recipe as an opportunity to become familiar with the tools and develop a knack for the process. Today I’m sharing my best tips and tricks so you can jump right in! One thing to note before we begin: I highly recommend making this recipe on a dry, low humidity day (so winter is a great time to start practicing!). Any moisture in the air can be re-absorbed into your candy, making it softer, and we want our candy to be hard and brittle (hence the name!). Humidity also slows the cooling process while your candy is setting, increasing the chances of having unwanted crystals form. So not a bad idea to check the weather forecast before you start!
What You Need
As like with my toffee recipe, it’s very important to have all of your ingredients laid out before you start. Once your mixture reaches 305°F, you need to move quickly as possible! Here’s what you need:
Butter. Use unsalted butter (since we’re using salted peanuts and adding salt ourselves!) and make sure it’s softened.Baking soda. I talk about this in-depth below, but essentially baking soda creates the proper texture and flavor in any good peanut brittle recipe. Make sure you’re not using baking powder!Peanuts. Use shelled, dry roasted peanuts and make sure they’re salted. This helps give our brittle a nice salty and sweet flavor!Light corn syrup. This is a crucial ingredient in many candies (like my homemade caramels), and it’s NOT the same thing as high fructose corn syrup! Stick with the light version here and save dark corn syrup for pecan pie.
SAM’S TIP: I strongly recommend using a candy thermometer for this recipe. While there are certainly ways to make candy without one, using a thermometer saves you guesswork and frustration. Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Peanut Brittle
As with most candies, you need to be patient while cooking–DO NOT crank up the heat to make it go faster! You risk burning your candy and will have to start over. SAM’S TIP: Your candy will still be extremely hot after pouring it into the pan (and so will the pan!). To help spread it out into a thin layer, grab a pair of forks and use them to pull the candy apart, spreading it more evenly into your pan. I demonstrate this in the video below if you need a visual! The holiday season is a great time of year to make candy because (depending on where you live) humidity is at its lowest. Plus candy makes a great homemade gift! Enjoy! Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
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