Toasty pistachios in a buttery sweet salted caramel — what could be better? We love the texture: the nuts are slightly soft and the brittle is just the right amount of hard and crunchy. It’s kind of the perfect afternoon treat because it’s so rich you can only eat a small piece of it, and it’s wonderful with a caffè latte. (Truth be told, in the test run, we ate four pieces. It was a giant latte.)

Our tip: The great thing about brittle is that it can be made a full week ahead, so if you want to leave it at friends’ or neighbors’ doorsteps as a holiday gift, you can make it when you have time. It looks incredibly sweet in a gusseted cello bag with a festive bow.

Servings: 16

Ingredients

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
1 cup sugar
½ cup light corn syrup
1 cup unsalted, shelled raw natural pistachios, very coarsely chopped
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp kosher salt
¾ tsp baking soda
Flake salt

Special equipment
A candy thermometer

Directions

1. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, spray it with nonstick spray and set aside.
2. In a medium saucepan, whisk together sugar, corn syrup, and 3 tablespoons water. Stir over medium heat until the sugar dissolves.
3. Fit the saucepan with candy thermometer and bring the mixture to a boil, cooking until the candy thermometer registers 290°, about 3 to 4 minutes.
4. Using a heatproof spatula, stir in the pistachios, butter, and kosher salt (syrup will seize initially, but will melt as it heats back up). Continue to cook syrup, stirring often, until thermometer registers 300° and pistachios are golden brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. Caramel should be pale brown (it will darken slightly as it cools).
5. Sprinkle baking soda over the nuts and caramel, and stir quickly to blend the caramel thoroughly (mixture will bubble vigorously).
6. Immediately pour the caramel onto the baking sheet and, using a heatproof spatula, quickly spread out as thin as possible.
7. Sprinkle flake salt over the caramel, and let it cool completely.
8. Break the brittle into pieces. Store between two sheets of parchment paper (to prevent sticking) in an airtight container at room temperature.

Recipe source: Bon Appétit