Brittle Battle

After my failure with the almond brittle in Christie Matheson’s Salty Sweets (see post on May 10, 2010), I decided to look at some other recipes to find out where I might have gone so wrong. Alton Brown of Food Network’s Good Eats is usually a good go-to man – a food nerd who's entertaining. Sure enough he had a brittle recipe (traditional peanut instead of almond) with the added bonus of cayenne pepper to spice it up a bit.

Wouldn’t you know, based on reader comments, many of them had the same problems with Alton’s brittle that I had with Matheson’s. Following the directions, they ended up with “a gritty, cloudy praline-like mixture” (I feel your pain, sister!). But expect those results with Alton’s brittle only if you follow the printed recipe that appears on the website. If you watch the video, he has a few more clues that became the turning point for me in the battle for great brittle

The web recipe doesn’t say anything about the desired temperature of the sugar mixture but he does mention it in the video (350 degrees give or take 10 degrees). And he also offers a nifty tip on using a cast iron pan to diffuse the heat for even cooking. In neither case does he mention the amount of estimated time to reach stage of the cooking process – and it took a while.

Here’s Alton Brown’s recipe as it appears online with my note about the use of the candy thermometer to reach the right temperature and therefore the right hue of amber.

Peanut Brittle (from FoodNetwork.com)
Ingredients

1 1/2 cups lightly salted, roasted peanuts
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups water
Vegetable oil, for coating the saucepan
Softened butter for spatula

Directions

In a small bowl combine peanuts, cinnamon, and cayenne. Set aside.

Brush the inside of a medium sized heavy saucepan with vegetable oil. Add the sugar and water to the saucepan, cook over high heat, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until it comes to a boil. Stop stirring, cover and cook for 3 minutes. Uncover, (NOTE: Here’s where you insert the candy thermometer, careful to not rock the boat) reduce heat to medium, and cook until the sugar is a light amber color (NOTE: Or until it reaches 350 degrees +/- 10 degrees, which took me almost an hour). Stir in peanuts. This will greatly reduce the temperature of the sugar so work quickly. Once evenly mixed, pour mixture onto a sheet pan lined with a silicone baking mat or buttered parchment paper. Using a buttered spatula, spread thin. You will have to work quickly when pouring out and spreading the mixture in the pan. If necessary, in order to achieve single layer of peanuts, top with second sheet pan whose underside has been buttered. Cool completely and then break into pieces.

How did it taste? Pretty awesome. A nice peppery bite without being overwhelming. Makes me think about trying other variations, such as curry or cracked pepper, or maybe try it with cashews.

The Sweet Life

“Salt is the new black,” or so declares Christie Matheson in her new cookbook, Salty Sweets. In the 75 recipes she takes some familiar sweets – chocolate chip cookies, carrot cake, and even ice cream – and turns them up a notch with “a sublime kiss of salt.”

That’s fine by me. Salt seems to add a bit of sophistication to sweets. Salt in sweets isn’t new, of course, since it has a chemical function in most baked goods, but in Matheson’s recipes the taste of salt is noticeable without being overwhelming. Think chocolate-covered pretzels. Or in Matheson’s hands, peanut butter ice cream with a hint of salt to complement the nuttiness. Or toffee cookies with dark chocolate glaze with a sprinkle of salt.

The 144-page hardback book is divided into seven chapters with recipes plus a couple of  prelude chapters on baking tips and an overview of the types of salt used in the recipes, most of which are now available in any decent grocery store. However some salts, like fleur de sel, are a bit harder to find – and a bit more expensive. But like everything else, you can always buy it online. (Search Amazon.com for fleur de sel.) Since you asked, fleur de sel is French for “flower of salt,” and it’s slightly sweeter than sea salt.

The chapters with recipes cover little treats, cookies and bars, cakes and cupcakes, puddings, fruits, ice cream, and sauces. I wish the author had not spread herself thin over so many chapters – there are only eight recipes in the cakes and cupcakes chapter – and instead offered more recipes on a smaller range of topics.

Most of what I’ve made has been wonderful. Matheson’s directions are clear and concise, and her ingredients – with the exception of some of the fancier salts – are probably in your pantry now. Some of the recipes are accompanied by beautiful photographs by Joyce Oudkerk Pool.

The one exception I had was her recipe for almond brittle, which failed miserably. Candies are tricky to make and in some of the other “little treats” recipes Matheson advises the use of a candy thermometer, but not in this one. Following her directions for the temp, the cooking time, and the color the melted sugar should turn, I ended up with a gritty and crumbly lump that was far from brittle. Obviously the sugar hadn’t melted and the directions for the use of a candy thermometer would have been a huge help.

I do like the fact that Matheson encourages readers to cook with organic products, especially chocolate. (It’s good to know that eating chocolate can help save the rainforest, because I needed one more reason to eat chocolate.) She also recommends buying locally produced honey and supporting local beekeepers. More bees mean better local crops all around.

There are more recipes flagged for me to try so I’ll definitely be back to satisfy my salty sweet tooth.

Salty Sweets: Delectable Desserts and Tempting Treats with a Sublime Kiss of Salt
By Christie Matheson
(The Harvard Common Press, Boston, 2009)

Toffee Cookies with Dark Chocolate Glaze

(from Salty Sweets: Delectable Desserts and Tempting Treats with a Sublime Kiss of Salt, by Christie Matheson, The Harvard Common Press, Boston, 2009)

Makes 20 to 24 cookies

“I first made these cookies seven or eight years ago, when I was just starting to learn about the merits of really, really good chocolate. And, wow, do these showcase what a difference good chocolate can make. The cookies are sweet and rich, the perfect foil for an intense layer of dark chocolate.”

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 large egg yolks
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate
¼ cup chopped toasted pecans
Fleur de sel

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add the egg yolks, one at a time and mix well.
3. Combine the flour and salt in a small bowl, then add the flour mixture to the butter-sugar mixture, mixing until well combined.
4. Shape the dough in a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 10 minutes.
5. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about ¼ inch thick. Cut out circles with a 2-inch round cutter and place the cookies on the baking sheets.
6. Bake for 11 to 13 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Let cool completely on the baking sheets.
7. Bring water to a simmer in a double boiler, or set up a heat-proof bowl over a small saucepan with water simmering in the bottom. Melt the chocolate over the simmering water. When cookies are cool, spread them gently with a thin layer of melted chocolate. Before the chocolate dries, sprinkle lightly with the pecans and a few grains of fleur de sel. Let the chocolate set. The cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.