DAD'S FAMOUS PEANUT BRITTLE

Peanut Brittle

4 cups granulated sugar
2 cups light corn syrup
2 cups water
1 ½ sticks sweet cream butter ( salted or unsalted)
4 tablespoons baking soda (pre-measure and have ready to pour in)
4 teaspoons real vanilla (pre-measure and have ready to pour in)
2 lbs. raw Spanish peanuts

( a good candy thermometer is a must)

Combine sugar, corn syrup, and water in a large heavy sauce pan on medium to high heat and stir. When mixture starts to boil, place candy thermometer in.

At 240 degrees add the peanuts. Stir slowly almost constantly to avoid burning the peanuts on the side or bottom of sauce pan.

At 260 degrees, add the butter and continue stirring.

At 300 degrees, turn off or remove from heat and add the vanilla. Quickly stir well. Immediately add the soda and whip or fold the mixture until soda is dissolved. Contents will foam up and double or triple in volume . . . thus the purpose of the large sauce pan.

Immediately pour the 300 degree mixture onto a large flat surface covered with extra heavy aluminum foil greased (with butter). If necessary, spread mixture with spatula if you feel it is too thick. Candy will spread to about 1 foot x 3 feet. Entire process takes about 1 hour.

* Be Aware, at this point, the candy is at 300 degrees, so the surface it’s poured onto must be of some material that the high temperature will not damage. For example . . .Not your formica cabinet top!!!, nor your grandmother’s heirloom linen table cloth, nor your favorite plastic picnic table cloth etc. etc. etc.!!!

Let mixture cool thoroughly, at least 1 to 1½ hours. Then break into desired size pieces. To be sanitary, I suggest you wear latex or vinyl gloves while doing this. Candy will stick to your teeth and be hard to bite off until it sets about 4 hours!!