Real Peanut Brittle

Add the sugar, water and corn syrup together in a 2 or 3 qt saucepan. Attach your candy thermometer. I like mine right next to the handle - you'll see why later. Place over high heat. Stir occasionally USING A WOODEN SPOON! Plastic spatulas will melt later and metal will get too hot to handle. Use wood! The temperature will pause here for a while as the water boils out.

While the sugar mixture boils, mix together the baking soda and salt in a small bowl. Mix together the teaspoon of water and vanilla in a separate bowl. Do not mix these two together yet, but keep a spoon nearby for mixing. Put these right next to the stovetop, within arms reach of the sugar mixture, which you should continue to stir occasionally.

While the water continues to boil out is a good time to prep for the ending. You'll need two cookie sheets, liberally buttered, or two silpats. Put them right next to each other and in an easy place to reach. You've gotta be able to pour this mixture up quickly at the end. Don't forget to occasionally stir your sugar mixture.

Continue stirring the mixture occasionally. When all the water has boiled away the temperature will start to creep upward again. When the temperature hits 240°F, toss in the butter and peanuts. The temp will drop quite a bit when you do this but it'll recover quickly. From this point forward you MUST STIR CONSTANTLY! All those peanuts are going to make the mixture much harder to stir and you'll probably have to hold your thermometer in place, but do your best. I like to put an oven mitt on my left hand, grip the pot handle for stability, and use my fingers to wedge the thermometer in place at the same time, leaving my right hand free to stir CONSTANTLY.

Our target temp for the ending is 300°F. As we're stirring constantly and approaching that number, look around make sure everything is in place. We should have two small bowls right next to us, one with the soda/salt mix, one with the liquids. There should be a spoon there for mixing them together. Also close by should be our two pans for the finished candy.

When you're almost done, somewhere around 290°F, stop stirring just long enough to pour water/vanilla bowl into the soda/salt bowl and quickly stir them together. Mix thoroughly but quickly cause you need to get back to stirring that sugar mixture. Don't do this too early because you want all that CO2 gas to go into your candy.

Alright, as soon as we hit 300°F you've gotta work very quickly! At 300°F, move the pan off of the heat and toss the thermometer out of the way. CAREFUL, that sticky mixture is deadly hot! Give your water/soda mixture a quick stir and toss it into the pot. It's going to hiss and foam and go absolutely crazy, so don't get burned! Quickly stir it together just enough to mix thoroughly but don't take too long or you're gonna have a mess. As soon as its mixed together, pour half out onto each of your pans or silpats. Do not spread! It'll look thick and puffy, but let it do its own thing and it'll all work out.

Let this cool for a while and it'll break right up, but it'll be slightly sticky in your teeth for 10-15 minutes as the sugars fully set. Its still good, but its not its best until its fully set. Now is a good time to clean up your pots and utensils, but its not hard. Some hot water will quickly dissolve all that sugary mess.