Spiced Pumpkin Seed Brittle

By IamTorsional • October 14, 2010 • 2 Comments

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Author Notes: I first made this recipe 4 years ago when my roommate and I had our first pumpkin carving party, which has now become a tradition for us to host. The base recipe came from Martha Stewart, but I started swapping out the honey for maple syrup (boyfriend's family is from upstate New York and he picks up a good bottle every year) and adding all the pumpkin spices. - IamTorsional - IamTorsional

Food52 Review: Packed with a bevy of pumpkin pie spices and pumpkin seeds, this brittle has Halloween written all over it. Our brittle crystalized when testing it (we used light brown sugar; dark brown might have been a better choice, given its higher percentage of molasses--an invert sugar which helps prevent crystallization), but we were able to save it using this trick: Pour out the brittle and let it cool. Return it to a new pan and let it come back to 300 degrees, stirring only if needed, making sure to use a new spoon. - Lauren - A&M

Serves 4-5

1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup Maple Syrup-Grade B if possible
1 cup shelled, roasted, and salted pumpkin seeds
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
fine flaked sea salt

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and stir in sugar and maple syrup, bring to a, be careful as this mixture will be very hot.
Stirring constantly, watch the mixture carefully as it browns, until it reaches about 280 degrees F.
When it becomes a nice golden amber color (5-6 minutes) add seeds and spices. Stir to mix for about a minute or so- candy thermometer should read about 300 degrees F
Slowly pour and spread mixture (about 1/8-1/4” thick) onto a cookie sheet with a silicon mat on it. Let mixture cool completely.
Once mixture is cool, sprinkle sea salt over the slab, then break into pieces.