Who doesn’t love peanut brittle? It is one of my favorite treats to make and consume. 😊 I’ve always made peanut brittle with vanilla extract, but since I have been on a maple kick lately, I decided to try maple flavored peanut brittle. One word. YUM! I will never make peanut brittle with vanilla extract ever again. The subtle maple flavor makes this treat extra yummy.
This is the brand of maple extract I used.
Good news for you, it is SUPER SIMPLE to make! It also makes a great treat to give to coworkers, friends, and family during the holidays. Enough with all the words, let’s get to it.
Ingredients
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup water
1.5 tsp maple extract
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup unsalted butter (cold)
1 lb. raw Spanish peanuts
1 tbsp butter (use to coat the cookie sheet)
Kitchen Utensils
Cookie sheet
Saucepan
Spatula
Small bowl
Step 1: Mix the baking soda, butter, and maple extract in a small bowl and set aside.
Step 2: Grease a cookie sheet with the 1 tbsp of butter
Step 3: Add the sugar, light corn syrup, and water to a medium size saucepan and turn the burner to medium heat. Stir the sugar mix until well combined, then stop stirring completely.
Step 4: Allow the sugar mix to cook until it looks stringy. Think a thread from a spider web consistency. This will take a few minutes.
Step 5: Once the mixture achieves the string-like consistency, add the peanuts and stir until well combined. Allow the mixture to simmer until it turns brown. Think natural parchment paper color or brown paper bag.
Tip: Make sure you use raw Spanish peanuts. This is the key ingredient! I have tried making peanut brittle with salted peanuts and no. It does not taste right. You should be able to find raw Spanish peanuts in the baking isle or with the nuts. Below is a picture of the raw peanuts I used for this recipe.
Step 6: Add the butter/baking soda/extract mix you prepared earlier. Mix until well combined and mixture turns into a foam-like consistency.
Step 7: Once the mixture looks foam-like, remove from heat and immediate pour the mixture onto the greased cookie sheet. You’ll want to do this step as fast as possible. The cooler the mix gets, the harder it gets.
Tip: use a butter knife to spread the peanut brittle over the cookie sheet.
Step 8: Allow the peanut brittle to cool (about 30 minutes) then break it apart with your hands.
Step 9: Eat all the peanut brittle. Just kidding! But you are going to want to give some away so you don’t eat it all.
And that’s a wrap! Hope you enjoyed my post. If you have questions, please comment below or DM me on Instagram @acarriedaffairdesigns
Until next time. Xo
