Peanut Brittle

This was my Dad's favorite recipe.  I'm not as fond of the brittles as my Dad was.  I don't like how hard the nut brittles are.  I also vividly remember my Dad breaking teeth on a couple of occasions while eating peanut brittle.  So... consider yourself warned.  This is one of those recipes I made every year with my Aunts in the days after Thanksgiving.  I've made this recipe using cashews instead of peanuts.  It's still really hard, but I like cashews better, so I like the mix a little more.  I believe you can sub in any kind of nut that you want in place of the peanuts.

One last word of advice before you begin this recipe... once things move, they move fast.  Measure out all of the ingredients and keep them close by, ready to add in as you go,

Peanut Brittle
You will need a candy thermometer for this recipe.
1 1/2  tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup water
1 cup light corn syrup
3 TBSP Nature's Balance vegan butter + extra for buttering the pans
1- 2 pound nuts (Chop them up if you want...)

1) Using the Nature's Balance, (but not the part you've measured out, but the extra), butter two cookie sheets.  Place the buttered cookie sheets in a 200* oven while you work.  The warmth of the oven will help the brittle spread when you add it.

2) Mix sugar, 1 cup water, vanilla and corn syrup into a large, heavy duty saucepan.  Stir frequently until the candy mix reaches 240* on the candy thermometer.  (soft ball stage)

3) Add in butter and peanuts, stirring constantly until the temperature reaches 300*. (Hard ball stage)
Remove from heat and add the baking soda and salt.  Stir until the mix is light and bubbly.  (This is the coolest reaction!)

4) Pour half the mixture onto each sheet.  Cool completely before removing from the sheets and breaking into pieces.  (Truly, you can lift the entire sheet out of the cookie sheet.  My Aunts would break up the mixture with meat mallets.  A true Marylander would break this recipe up using crab mallets!)