| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 2 hr 55 min |
| Active: | 55 min |
| Yield: | 4 to 6 servings |
Ingredients
- Vegetable oil, for greasing baking sheet
- 1/2 cup raw almonds, toasted and chopped (see Cook’s Note)
- 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips, such as Ghirardelli 60-percent
- Zest of 1 orange
- 1/2 cup dried cherries, roughly chopped
- 3 cups sugar
Instructions
- Grease a rimmed baking sheet with vegetable oil. Toss together the almonds, chocolate chips, orange zest and cherries in a small bowl, then spread them out in an even layer covering the entire baking sheet.
- In a medium saucepan, stir together the sugar and 1/2 cup water. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Once the sugar has dissolved, stop stirring; instead, using a pastry brush dipped in water, brush the sides of the pan a few times to incorporate any sugar stuck to the sides of the pan. Continue cooking until the sugar syrup turns golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Carefully pour the caramelized sugar over the nut mixture on the baking sheet. (Be careful not to move the baking sheet at this point; it will be very hot.) Let cool for at least 2 hours.
- Break the brittle into pieces and place in bags for hungry trick-or-treaters.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 6 servings |
| Calories | 599 |
| Total Fat | 13 g |
| Saturated Fat | 3 g |
| Carbohydrates | 125 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Sugar | 119 g |
| Protein | 3 g |
| Cholesterol | 0 mg |
| Sodium | 4 mg |
Reviews
First and last time I will probably make this, took me three times to get the sugar to caramelize just right and then it did not evenly spread over entire mixture. Now I have caramelized sugar everywhere too, guess I’m not an intermediate cook yet!
This turned out cloudy the first time I made it so I decided to do a little research. Sugar cannot carmelize until all the water is boiled off. You can use as little or as much water as you want but the more you use the longer it will take. Stirring also affects carmelization. I remade this recipe only stirring to incorporate once or twice in the beginning before it reached boiling and left it alone after. I got a perfect brittle the second time. Hope this helps!
I’m watching this year-old program and the brittle recipe intrigued me. So did the ratings though. Pretty sad that Food Network hasn’t updated the recipe to read 1-1/2 cups of water to the sugar. All they write is “This recipe differs from what was originally broadcast.” Not very helpful and glad I did read the reviews first. For not updating…one star.
I wish I had read this review sooner. I made the same mistake and can’t even make more since I don’t have anymore almonds. I didn’t even realize that the sugar had done this until i had already poured it on top of the rest of the ingredients.
Dear Giada I made this today for my Halloween party. I was so excited to put it in little baggies for the kids. But guess what the recipe on the website says a half cup of water but on the TV show it says one and a half cups of water. I followed the website and the sugar was all crystalized and I had to toss it all. I watched the TV show after my party and I realized what was wrong. I wish you guys monitored the bedside recipes better to not cause disappointment.