Salty Hazelnut Brittle Recipe
By
Kate Ramos
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Difficulty: Medium |
Total Time:
25 mins
|
Active Time:
|
Makes:
8 to 10 servings (about 1 pound 5 ounces)
This brittle is a quick, sweet treat you can whip up and snack on as is, or chop up and sprinkle over ice cream for an impressive garnish.
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- 2 teaspoons light corn syrup or agave nectar
- 1 cup toasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
INSTRUCTIONS
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Place sugar, water, and corn syrup or agave nectar in a medium saucepan and stir to combine. Cook over medium-high heat, without stirring, until mixture starts to brown, about 14 minutes. Gently swirl the pan until the mixture is an even, deep amber color, about 1 minute more.
- Immediately remove from heat and quickly stir in nuts and salt. Pour immediately onto the prepared baking sheet, spread in an even layer, and let cool. Once cool, break into small pieces and serve.
You should try cooking it to 350F (technically "caramel" stage), recommended by Alton Brown and many other sources
I made it with pepitas and it was easy pepeasy.
Yes, coolfoodie, stir until the sugar is COMPLETELY dissolved, THEN stop stirring and start "swirling" until it's the mix is amber... just as the recipe states. And you DO need to cook it to the hard-crack stage on the thermometer. You also may have to turn up the heat higher than medium, in case your burner is calibrated lower than the author's.
P.S. Isn't Steen's swell?
Made ths last night but it didn't harden. Should I have stirred the sugar/water until it dissolved and then cooked it til amber? If I use a thermometer, should it cook to the hard crack stage? Help! I have 4 more cups of totasted hazelnuts and a hungry crowd for Christmas! p.s. I used Steen's - it's great.
Hazelnuts are also known as filberts. You want to roast your own. Wherever you can buy them, if the brown skin is still on, then roasting will dry out the skin for easy removal. If you can buy them "clean" of that skin, then you just put them in a 330F oven for 10 minutes, and watch them carefully after that. I always roast more than I need so that I can taste test them as they roast, to see if they are done enough. It could take as much as 20 minutes at that temp. They can be roasted at a higher temp, but you REALLY have to watch them carefully, then. If they have that skin on, taking them out of the oven, and putting them in a paper bag, or in an old teatowel, letting them cool a little, and rubbing them together in that towel will take off the loose skins.
AnnieG
where can i find toasted hazelnuts?
I'm a big fan of ribbon cane syrup (Steen's might be the same thing). I use this one: http://www.carsonannsyrups.com/ . It's a delicious product, very much like an ultra-mild molasses. I think this might be the all-purpose Southern table syrup that Yankees like myself mistake for 'lasses. And I'm also a big fan of Lyle's, Volcanic Nectar blue agave nectar, and brown rice syrup. They all work really well in various situations.
Wholesome Sweeteners sells a vanilla-flavored corn syrup in health food stores that doesn't contain HFCS.
For anyone with a corn syrup aversion/allergy, a company called Steen's makes a cane syrup that is TERRIFIC:
http://www.steensyrup.com/index.html
It's entirely possible to make brittles and other caramelized sugar candies without the use of corn syrup. The corn syrup in many recipes, when it's in small amounts, is to stabilize the sugars for easier caramelization with less risk of crystalization. To omit the corn syrup from such recipes, be sure to start with a sparkling clean pan. You can place a lid on the pan at the beginning, so that steam will wash down the sides of the pan and prevent crystalization until the sugar has dissolved completely. The same technique can be used during cooking, or you can brush the sides of the pan with a clean pastry brush dipped in water. These techniques may make cooking down the sugar to caramel stage take a little longer (because the water has to boil off.) Don't stir the sugar mixture once caramelization has begun. Just swirl the liquid in the pan to distribute the color. It'll take a little longer, but you don't have to use the corn syrup if you don't want it or can't have it because of allergies or sensitivities.
The caramel I make for my brittle contains only granulated sugar and vinegar. In a 3 qt. pan heat 2 cups of sugar plus 1/4 cup cider vinegar to the boiling point. It will all melt together eventually. Continue to cook until the mixture turns dark amber. Stir only occsionally. It will look foamy and you'll wonder if it will look clear when you pour it, but it will.
Most Corn Syrup in bottles (K*A*R*O*) now has HFCS added to the CS. I just went in to get light CS for a recipe and read the label - it said "CS & HFCS". Go figure!! I think I will stick with Lyles.
Absolutely heavenly!!!! I actually let it burn a little to pick up the tiniest of bitter flavor and it was amazing
Tried the recipe with agave nectar and worked beautifully! Enjoy.
My husband has a corn syrup sensitivity, (both HFCS and regular). I'm planning to try the recipe with Lyles Golden Syrup as a substitute.
I think the agave nectar would be too thin to use and wouldn't encourage the right kind of crystal formation, but the worst thing that happens is that you have to scrap a batch. Let us know if it works.
I would not try using agave nectar. If you're going to make candy, I think you should just accept that it's not a health food. And save the agave nectar for bran muffins.
vickib, you are quite right about the corn syrup.
High fructose corn syrup is a commercial product that's used in manufacturing, and very unlikely to be found on grocers shelves.
AnnieG
About the corn syrup, most candy recipes call for it. I don't think it's the same thing as high fructose corn syrup, but I'm not 100% sure.
One thing that I have used with success in some recipes is brown rice syrup. You can find it in most natural food stores.
digkv
My mother made brittles every Christmas and for very special occasions during the year. She never used a thermometer, although for other things, she did. The recipe's description is exactly as she made it, and it was always perfect. The colour is the important part. You want the sugar to melt from it's crystal from to a liquid. (I always helped her, and made it myself, successfully, a few times, but it's just not a favourite amongst those who are recipients of my Christmas sweets packages)
AnnieG
If you grind this up in the food processor and add some neutral oil, you have a fabulous paste -- like peanut butter on crack.
Could something like agave nectar be used instead of corn syrup? Also, do you have an exact temperature it should reach? Thanks, this recipe sounds really intriguing and something I definitely want to try.