Description
Brown sugar brittle was my favorite sweet while growing up in the Caribbean. It’s deliciously spiced, crunchy, and full of peanuts!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 150g brown sugar (¾ cup)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- 125g unsalted peanuts (1 cup)
Instructions
- Prepare a baking sheet. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly brush the parchment paper with oil and set it aside for now.
- Melt the sugar. Put the sugar in a large heavy-bottomed pan (preferably a stainless steel pan) and rub the lemon juice into the sugar with your fingertips. Shake the pan slightly to level the sugar. Set the pan over medium-low heat and cook without stirring until the sugar has completely melted, about 20 min. As a guide, my induction cooktop can be set from 1 to 9 (9 being the highest temperature) and I melt the sugar on 4. When ready the caramel should have a dark amber color and be smooth. If you still have patches of unmelted sugar after 20 min, reduce the heat to low and drag the patches of dry sugar into the melted sugar with a wooden spoon. Keep cooking over low heat until all the sugar has melted, about 5 to 10 min more. Don’t be tempted to increase the heat to make the sugar melt faster because if your caramel burns and turns dark, it will become bitter and you will have to start over.
- Make the peanut brittle. As soon as your caramel is smooth, reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Add the spices, lemon juice, and peanuts. Quickly stir everything together with an oiled rubber spatula. Scrape the mixture onto the parchment paper and use the spatula to shape the brown sugar brittle into a rectangular shape, about 2.5cm (1 inch) thick. The caramel will be sticky and burning hot so be careful. It will also harden quickly so you need to be fast.
- Cut into pieces. Let the brown sugar brittle cool down at room temperature for 10 min. At that point, it should be almost set. Peel off the parchment paper and transfer the brittle to a cutting board. Slice the brown sugar brittle into 9 pieces with a chef’s knife. I use a straight-down motion instead of slicing backward and forward. Put the pieces back onto the parchment paper and wait for them to be cold before serving or storing them.
Notes
You can keep the brown sugar brittle in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. It might soften over time.
You can individually wrap the pieces in cellophane or wax paper for a prettier look if you plan on gifting them.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 piece
- Calories: 157
Keywords: brown sugar caramel, caribbean sweets, caribbean treats, homemade peanut brittle without corn syrup