Ingredients
100 grams brown butter
300 grams raw hazelnuts
220 grams brown sugar
60 ml maple syrup
60 ml brown rice syrup
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
Coarse flake sea salt for sprinkling on top
Makes about 3 small bags of brittle
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350f.
Spread the hazelnuts out evenly on a baking sheet so they are not overlapping each other.
Once the oven is preheated, place the hazelnuts in the middle of the oven and cook for 15 minutes, stir, then cook for 15 minutes more. Remove hazelnuts from the oven and put them in a pot with a lid to keep them hot but not cooking on the hot baking sheet.
While the hazelnuts are in the oven, brown the butter.
In a light- coloured pot on the stove, melt the butter over medium high heat.
Once the butter begins to sputter and foam, keep a close eye on it. You want to cook off all of the water and brown the milk solids, so stir and scrape the bottom of the pot often while looking for brown flecks to appear.
Once the butter has plenty of brown flecks remove the pan from the heat so the browned milk solids don't burn.
Measure out all of the ingredients except for the baking soda and hazelnuts and place them in a thick-bottomed pot with tall sides.
Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. You want to keep a very close eye on the brittle through the entire process so it doesn't burn. Burning can happen very quickly so stir with a wooden spoon often and use your nose. If you start to smell burning, then the stovetop down a bit.
Measure out the baking soda and set aside so it will be ready when you need it.
Prepare a clean baking sheet and a metal cake spatula or spreading device for when you are ready to pour the hot brittle onto it. When the brittle is ready, you will be pouring very hot brittle into the sheet pan and quickly spreading it out as thin as possible before it cools. Get your flake salt ready as well.
Continue boiling and stirring the brittle for about 20 minutes. About 10 minutes in, fasten your candy thermometer to the side of your pot. It should be reading the temperature of the brittle itself, not the bottom of the pot.
Once the brittle reaches 300 f, you have reached crack stage and are ready to spread the brittle on the sheet pan.
Turn off the heat, add the baking soda and stir quickly and thoroughly. Then add the still hot hazelnuts and stir together.
Pour the brittle into the prepared sheet pan and spread the brittle as thinly as possible before it starts to cool and set.
Sprinkle your coarse flake salt on top of the warm brittle.
Place the sheet pan on a cooling rack and let the brittle cool completely, about 1 hour. Then break into pieces and enjoy, or place in an air-tight container (brittle can absorb ambient moisture, creating a sticky surface if left out).
