Very thin peanut brittle recipe request

[John Douglas]

Jana's cousin has great peanut brittle.................but will not tell us how to do it.

 

Any ideas?

 

John

[Jon Stine]

I wouldn't resort to violence, but you might try extorting the information out of her with the well placed use of some old family photos.

Might be worth a try!

Jon

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[Ed Hood]

Waterboarding seems to work...  or so I am told.

 

:-)

 

Ed

Kansas

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[John Douglas]

Not with this one..............she is/was squeaky clean!! I just found out that she charges her parents, who are in their 90's, for it.

[John Douglas]

I think I phased the question wrong, anyone have a recipe for very thin peanut butter brittle? :)

 

John

----- Original Message -----

From: John Douglas

To: The official Smoke Ring BBQ list

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[Gerry Curry]

You might have also phrased it wrong. (grin) 

On 2009-12-09, at 7:50 AM, John Douglas wrote:

I think I phased the question wrong, anyone have a recipe for very thin peanut butter brittle? :)

Gerry Curry

ge...@currysystems.com

[John Douglas]

I have been doing a Google search and one recipe calls for putting the cookie sheets in a 200 degree oven before putting the brittle on them. Now that sounds like that may be the trick. Anyone tried it this way?

 

John

[John Douglas]

I knew it did not look right...............but my spell checker loved it! :)

John

[Dan Gill]

John, "thin" is dependent upon how it is spread. You can also make it without the baking soda and it will be thin and hard.

PEANUT BRITTLE

 

From: Dan Gill, Ethno-Gastronomist

Uncle Howard Brown circa 1960

Howard spent many years perfecting his brittle

And only shared the recipe with Barbara because he liked her.

The trick to thin brittle is all in technique. You have to move really fast from the time you put in the baking soda until you get it spread. Spreading is an art: we butter the back of spoons and keep them in the freezer until use to reduce sticking. Again, work fast and keep spreading to a minimum – every time you touch it you loose the bubbles that make it light. Marble is essential. I tried it on a heavy stainless table and welded it to the top. It took the better part of a day to chip it off.

 

 

1 Lb raw peanuts, preferably blanched

2 Cups sugar

2 Cups light Karo syrup

½ cup water

1 tsp salt - heaping

1 level Tbsp baking soda (to be added later)

1 tsp vanilla (optional - I think the flavor is better without)

1 stick margarine (butter) to grease marble then add to mixture

 

Cook over high & add peanuts at 250°F

Cook to 290°F

Add soda & stir well

Pour on buttered marble & spread.

Loosen from marble with cold spatulas & let air under

Cut in half and lift again

Score for size desired while hot and pliable – I used a pizza cutter

Slide on pan & cool completely.

 

 

From the Boston Globe:

 

            Butter (for the pan)

1             teaspoon baking soda

1/4             teaspoon salt

1             tablespoon vanilla extract

2 1/2             cups sugar

1/2             cup water

1/3             cup light corn syrup

1/4             cup ( 1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut up

2             cups (about 10 ounces) roasted unsalted peanuts

1. Lightly butter an 11-by-16-inch jelly roll pan.

 

2. In a bowl, combine the baking soda, salt, and vanilla; set aside.

 

3. In a heavy-based saucepan, combine the sugar, water, corn syrup, and butter. Cook over medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the sugar dissolves and the butter melts. Turn the heat up and let the mixture bubble steadily, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 15 minutes or until it turns a deep golden brown (335 to 340 on a candy thermometer). Remove the pan from the heat and carefully stir in the vanilla mixture and peanuts - it will bubble up.

 

4. Immediately pour the mixture into the jelly roll pan. If necessary, use the wooden spoon to spread the mixture and flatten it. Set aside for 1 hour or until cool and hard.

 

5. Bend the ends of the pan to release the brittle (if necessary, run a large metal spatula under it to release it). Break the brittle into chunks. Store in an airtight container. Adapted from "Brittles, Barks, & Bonbons"

 

 

 

peanut brittle by Fudgemail

 

Sweet, but not sticky. Kind of buttery, never greasy. Hard,

but not tough. Thin and translucent. Aromatic, infused with

the flavor of roasted peanuts. These are the qualities of

unforgettable peanut brittle. Unfortunately, much of the

commercially produced peanut brittle is less memorable than

a tray of ballpark nachos. Here we share with you our

recipe and techniques for making classic peanut brittle -

the kind that will have your friends and family begging for more.

Ingredients

 

1 cup corn syrup

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup water

2 cups peanuts

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tbsp butter

 

Procedures

 

Use a fairly heavy, 2 1/2 to 3 quart saucepan. Stainless steel with a copper clad bottom is ideal. Do not use an all aluminum pan. You will likely get "hot spots" which cause burning before you know it. Place corn syrup and water into the pan over medium-high heat. After it warms up, but before it begins to boil, stir in the sugar. Bring to full boil, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon. Insert candy thermometer after a few minutes. When the temperature reaches 250 degrees F, add the peanuts and salt and stir. Bring the mixture back to a full boil. Now, in this phase, the correct amount of stirring is of critical importance. Constant stirring can prevent the browning that is required both for flavor and appearance. Under-stirring will cause peanuts on the bottom of the pan to burn, and may cause the syrup to burn at the sides of the pan. It takes practice to neither under-stir nor over-stir the candy as it cooks. Don't let your fear of burning prevent you from browning. Without browning, your peanut brittle will be pale in color and lacking in toasty flavor. Some manufacturers add caramel color, which doesn't help the flavor. Properly cooked, the candy will develop the rich golden brown color seen in the photo above, without the addition of coloring agents. When the temperature reaches 300 degrees remove the pan from the heat immediately. You may do this at 290 degrees, if the desired level of brownness has been reached. Do not let it go above 300 degrees, or the finished product may develop a weak, spongy structure. Immediately after removing the pan from the heat, add the butter and vanilla extract, and stir (carefully-it's HOT ! )until the butter is melted. Sprinkle the baking soda over the surface of the mixture and stir. The mixture will begin to foam up and double in volume. Now you need a clean, smooth, flat surface to pour the mixture onto. A marble pastry board is ideal, as the marble allows the candy to cool slowly enough so you have time to stretch it before it hardens. You may use a large baking sheet, but you will have to work quickly because the candy will cool and harden more rapidly. Prepare the surface ahead of time by coating it with butter or non-stick cooking spray. Immediately after stirring in the baking soda, pour the hot mixture onto the surface. Don't try to spread the mixture too much with your wooden spoon. You will end up scraping the peanuts into one place. Instead, put on a pair of cotton gloves, and put a pair of plastic food handling gloves over the cotton gloves. Coat the plastic gloves with butter, paying special attention to the fingers. Now, use a spatula to loosen the candy from the cooling surface, then pick it up and flip it over. Keep in mind that the candy is still very hot, and can melt the plastic gloves, so try to use a light touch, and handle the candy by the outside edges, which cool more rapidly. Flipping reduces the surface contact and allows for easier stretching of the solidifying mass. Stretch until the candy becomes thin, but without too many holes. The edges may have to be broken to allow them to stretch to the desired thinness. Once stretched, leave the candy alone to cool, which will take a couple of hours. After cooling, the peanut brittle can be broken up by hand, or by whacking it with the handle of a butter knife (watch out for flying pieces). Store the peanut brittle in airtight containers. If you use plastic bags, you may want to double bag it. The candy can have some sharp edges that tend to poke through.

 

Dan Gill, Ethno-Gastronomist
Something Different Country Store & Deli
www.pine3.info

[John Douglas]

Thanks Dan,

 

John