By Week 511. Year 10. Tommy is 43. January grey. The crawfish sleeping. The hunting winding down. The business in its slow season. The pause before the spring. The inhale before the exhale. chicken fricassee to fill the quiet.
Made chicken fricassee this week — the kind of food that fills the house with the smell of Louisiana and the knowledge that whoever walks through the door is walking into a home where the stove is on and the food is ready and the welcome is unconditional. The meal was the day. The day was the meal. Both were good. The chain holds.
When the stove is already warm and the house already smells like something good, it feels right to keep it going — and in that January quiet between the hunting season winding down and the spring crawfish waking back up, I wanted something sweet and Southern to set out for whoever came through the door. Peanut brittle is that kind of thing here: old-fashioned, unpretentious, and made in minutes in the microwave so you don’t have to stand over a pot all afternoon. The slow season deserves its own kind of sweetness.
Microwave Peanut Brittle
Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 15 minutes | Servings: 12
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light corn syrup
- 1 1/2 cups raw or roasted peanuts
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Prep your surface. Line a large baking sheet with a silicone mat or buttered foil and set it nearby — you’ll need to move fast once the brittle is done.
- Combine sugar and syrup. In a large microwave-safe glass bowl (at least 8-cup capacity), stir together the granulated sugar, corn syrup, and salt until combined.
- First microwave. Microwave on high for 4 minutes. Carefully stir, then microwave on high for another 3–4 minutes, until the mixture turns a light amber color and reaches around 300°F on a candy thermometer.
- Add peanuts and butter. Carefully stir in the peanuts and butter (the bowl will be very hot). Microwave on high for 1 to 2 more minutes, until golden and fragrant.
- Add vanilla and baking soda. Working quickly, stir in the vanilla extract and baking soda. The mixture will foam up — stir just until combined, about 10 seconds.
- Spread immediately. Pour onto the prepared baking sheet and use a buttered spatula to spread it as thin as you can. Work fast — it sets quickly.
- Cool and break. Let the brittle cool completely at room temperature, about 20–30 minutes. Once hardened, break into pieces by hand or with the back of a spoon.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 210 | Protein: 5g | Fat: 8g | Carbs: 32g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 180mg