Georgia produces more peanuts than peaches—maybe it should be called the peanut state! This is one great way to use them. Daddy loved peanut brittle, and he made this all the time when I was growing up.

　　

Ingredients

makes 3 pounds

　　1 teaspoon vanilla extract

　　1 teaspoon baking soda

　　1 teaspoon salt

　　1 cup (2 sticks) butter

　　3 cups sugar

　　1 cup light corn syrup

　　3 cups shelled raw peanuts

　　

Step 1

Measure the vanilla into a small bowl and set aside. Combine the baking soda and salt in another small bowl and set aside. Butter 2 jelly roll pans or cookie sheets with sides liberally with the butter, using 1/2 stick butter on each one. Set aside.

　　

Step 2

Combine the sugar, corn syrup, and 1/2 cup water in a large saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, attach a candy thermometer, and cook over medium-high heat until the syrup spins a thread when poured from a spoon or reaches 240°F on the thermometer. Stir in the peanuts and continue cooking and stirring until the candy becomes golden brown or reaches 300°F. Remove from the heat immediately and quickly add the remaining 1 stick butter and the vanilla, baking soda, and salt. Stir only until the butter melts, then quickly pour the brittle onto the cookie sheets, spreading the mixture thinly. When the brittle has completely cooled, break the candy into pieces and store in a tightly covered container.

　　

From Gwen

Step 3

The syrup foams when the soda mixture is added. The bubbles make this brittle very light. Pour it up quickly to capture the air!

　　Reprinted with permission from Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen: Recipes from My Family to Yours by Trisha Yearwood with Gwen Yearwood and Beth Yearwood Bernard. Copyright © 2008 by Trisha Yearwood. Published by Crown Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved.Trisha Yearwood is a three-time Grammy-award winning country music star and the author of the bestselling cookbook Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen. She is married to megastar Garth Brooks.