5 Ingredients or Fewer

Marcella Hazan’s Croccante (2-Ingredient Almond Brittle)

Name: Marcella Hazan’s Croccante (2-Ingredient Almond Brittle)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: Makes about 16 pieces
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 1 1/4 cups (170g) whole blanched almonds (or 1 1/2 cups/170g slivered, but not sliced); 1 teaspoon vegetable oil; 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (225g) sugar; 1 large potato, washed and dried well, and cut in half crosswise

by: Genius Recipes

December 12, 2018

3.6

38 Ratings

Marcella Hazan’s Croccante (2-Ingredient Almond Brittle)

Photo by James Ransom

Prep time 15 minutes
Cook time 15 minutes
Makes about 16 pieces

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Author Notes

Though this looks like a snappy toffee that was made by an experienced pastry chef or at least a home candymaking enthusiast, its sole ingredients are sugar and almond and the only special equipment you need is a potato. No thermometer, no special-order invert sugars, no fancy molds. But that potato is the smartest, most effective way to smooth out hot praline to an even, glassy sheen—so, there, you should invest.

The recipe comes from the late Marcella Hazan, who we can credit, along with her husband and coauthor Victor, for introducing much of America to regional Italian cooking—mostly in savory recipes, but in plenty of memorable desserts, too. When I wrote to Victor to ask for his favorites, croccante topped the list: “I remember someone who wanted to package this praline and distribute it as a candy,” Victor wrote. “It is addictively delicious, and I miss it very much.”

But how did Marcella get away with fine candy-making without a drawer of special equipment? When you’re not trying to land precisely on the small temperature window for the soft-crack or hard-ball stage, you don’t need the precision of a candy thermometer. Any sugar that has colored this deeply and is unadulterated by cream or butter will have surpassed the hard-crack stage and wind up crunchy and brittle-like. You need only watch the color—the caramel should be deep brown, and the almonds golden (which will indicate a rich, bittersweet caramel and well-toasted, nutty flavor, respectively). And handle it with respect and care, because you definitely don’t want it to splatter on anything that isn’t heatproof (including *you*). Adapted very slightly from Genius Desserts (Ten Speed Press, 2018). —Genius Recipes

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What You'll Need

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Marcella Hazan’s Croccante (2-Ingredient Almond Brittle)

Ingredients

1 ¹/₄ cups (170g) whole blanched almonds (or 1 1/2 cups/170g slivered, but not sliced)
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (225g) sugar
1 large potato, washed and dried well, and cut in half crosswise

Directions

Using a knife, very finely chop the almonds into bits about half the size of a grain of rice. Scoop the chopped almonds into a bowl, leaving the smallest dusty particles behind.
Spread a large sheet of parchment paper or heavy-duty aluminum foil flat on a heat-safe counter or board and smear the parchment evenly with the vegetable oil.
Combine the sugar and 1/4 cup (60g) water in a small saucepan with a light-colored interior (preferably lightweight) and melt the sugar over medium-high heat without stirring, but very gently swirling the pan occasionally if needed to get the sugar to color evenly. When the melted sugar turns a rich tawny gold color, 8 to 10 minutes, add the chopped almonds and stir constantly with a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula, until the almond and caramelized sugar mixture turns a very dark brown, about 2 minutes more. Pour it, immediately but carefully, over the oiled parchment paper. Pick up one half of the potato and use the cut side to smooth the hot praline until it’s about 1/8 inch (3mm) thick.
When the croccante is cool enough to touch but not fully cool, flip or slide the slab onto a cutting board and peel off the parchment. Cut the slab into roughly 2-inch (5cm) diamond shapes and let cool completely. Store in an airtight jar in a dry, cool place at room temperature. Any leftover bits are delicious ground up and sprinkled over ice cream.
GENIUS TIP: THE EASIEST WAY TO CLEAN A STICKY, SUGARY MESS Next time you have a pot or tart pan that looks hopelessly globbed with caramel residue, douse it in boiling water. For cooking vessels, it’s especially easy: simply fill them with water, bring them to a boil, and then carefully pour the water down the drain. The stickiness will be freed, too. Repeat if needed. I bet more people would make caramel if they knew about this time- and agita-saver.

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75 Reviews

llarkins December 29, 2022

followed exactly as written/video turned out delish!

Dori H. December 23, 2022

I use sliced almonds and chopped them to "half grain of rice" sized as best I could. I added a tablespoon of corn syrup (hoping to minimize crystal formation). When I added the almonds the mixture went dry. I was able to rescue it by adding water to loosen, and constant stirring on high heat until the color looked right (quite a few minutes). I poured onto oiled parchment as instructed, and spread with the cut side of a halved orange (something another reviewer suggested). Scored it, and cooled it on the porch. It turned out great! Very pretty and even more delicious than I imagined!

pimimond April 16, 2022

Love me some Marcella...that said, honest to god, Marcella: chop pieces to 1/2 the size of a grain of rice? What kind of wicked stepmother fuckery are you trying to do here? I blanched my own whole almonds (1 min. in boiling water, rinse under cold water, pop the skins off, you welcome) My pieces were bigger and it was all JUST FINE AND DANDY CANDY. I watched the video twice and followed the instructions exactly (except for that half-a-grain-of-rice BS) and it was a glorious triumph and I thank you!

HeatherinLA March 6, 2022

I’ve made this twice now. Same disaster each time. I waited til the sugar was golden. I didn’t stir it. The second I add the almonds they soak up all the liquid and I’m just stirring dry almonds for 2 min. So frustrating. I think you oversold it as a ‘simple’ 2 ingredient recipe…

belby0 December 30, 2020

Wow, this is addicting! I thought I'd taken it too far - it smelled burned - but it wasn't. it's amazing. Now I have to figure out how to not eat it all so I can give it as gifts.

belby0 December 30, 2020

Wow, is this stuff addicting! I thought I'd taken it too far - it smelled a little burned. But it wasn't. I'm not quite sure how I'm not going to eat it all before I give as gifts. Thank you!

belby0 December 30, 2020

Wow, is this stuff addicting! I thought I'd taken it too far - it smelled a little burned. But it wasn't. I'm not quite sure how I'm not going to eat it all before I give as gifts. Thank you!

Mason K. May 19, 2020

I’ve made this close to a dozen times. The first time went perfectly. The next 3-5 times all had some level of crystallization issues - but each time I just turned up the heat and if it happened when I put in the almonds (most of the times), I just kept stirring like a madman. The end result always came out fine.
I finally realized I was being overly cautious and had the heat too low (it took forever for the sugar to darken). The last couple of times have been as easy as the first. I just start it with the heat on the high side of medium-high.
I once did a double batch and it started crystallizing on me. I kind of panicked and dumped the almonds in. It got worse. Much worse. I was pretty sure it was going to fail, but I finally cranked the heat up high and stirred as fast and as hard as I could. It finally re-melted just about the time my arm was going to fall off. I don’t recommend doing a double batch.
As for smoothing it out, the potato technique works well and is a fun twist when people ask how you made it. And I’ve tried the apple technique, too. It works well, and you get to eat an apple with some caramel bits on it when you’re done. But, my go-to smoothing technique came out of necessity. After starting the sugar boiling one time, I realized I didn’t have an apple or potato in the house. After a brief panic (hmm, that sounds familiar), I just got out another piece of parchment paper and pressed it on top of the oiled parchment. Then I peeled it off and laid it aside (oiled side up!) After pouring out the croccante mixture on the original parchment, I put the 2nd piece on top (oiled side down) and then smoothed it all out with a rolling pin. Works great!
In terms of taste, it seems to be slightly polarizing. I have a number of friends and family members who are always asking me to make it. But I’ve had a few who thought it tasted a little burnt. I’d say about a 5-1 ratio of “this is great” to “it’s not for me”. (Several of the people who are the biggest fans keep asking me to push it a little closer to the burnt line.)

Ann December 30, 2019

Made this for the third time for Christmas. My previous 2 attempts—which I think I commented on but am too lazy to check—were delish, but much lighter in color than the picture, largely due to my fear of burning the sugar. This time I courageously allowed the syrup to achieve the dark brown of the photo. Sad to say, it tasted a bit burnt, the nuts moreso than the brittle. Since I don’t know what this “should” taste or look like, never haven eaten any but my own, I am wondering if the dark color is the way it should be and, if so, how one gets to that color without burning the nuts?

Misa December 14, 2019

Yummy. I sprinkled the almond powder I generated on top of the finished croqquante while it was still hot and it looks great. Had to use regular roasted almonds b/c that’s what I had and it seems fine. Cooled faster than I thought so I have rather irregular pieces which I will say adds to the homemade charm.

Tracy April 12, 2019

Delicious...need out fantastic on my firs try....not to not eat it all in one sitting!🤣

CHeeb January 28, 2019

I have found that having a lid for the pan you are making the caramel brittle in helps create a steam shower down the sides of the pan. It may take a little longer for the sugar to brown,but it helps prevent those stray crystals from forming and causing your sugar to seize. I ruined sugar even with a wet pastry brush to wipe down the inside of my pan,because my brush had sugar crystals in it. The lid is a great trick,especially if it is glass and you can watch the color form and your swirling through the clear lid.

robyn F. January 28, 2019

Thanks for the tip!

Jeff January 23, 2019

I tried 3 glorious times and each one was a crystalline finale...ended up more like Belgian pearl sugar so guess who’s making almondy liège waffles this weekend?

Kristen M. January 26, 2019

Jeff, I'm sorry to hear it and I'm very impressed with your patience! I think if I'd tried 3 times I'd be a lot more grumpy than you. The only things I'd think to recommend are just really leaving the sugar alone while it darkens, or trying the suggestion below of adding a few drops of lemon juice to the sugar to help create an invert sugar that's a bit more stable. But those liège waffles sound like a great way to go, too.

Gwen January 12, 2019

I made this last night and followed the recipe as it was written. I was worried about the sugar recrystallizing, but I used the times given along with the sugar's appearance, and never stirred anything until the chopped slivered almonds were added. I was pleased with the results, and decided to order the book the recipe was taken from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. I'd also ordered one of the Dansk sauce pans with the white interior before Christmas, and used that for the sugar.

susan January 2, 2019

Disappointing. Took 3 tries for it to not recrystallize on me and then the results were only ok. Hard to get it to darken to the same point as shown on the video. Tasted one note and just not as rich and flavorful as when done with a bit of cream and/or butter in it.

Kristen M. January 5, 2019

I'm sorry to hear it, Susan. I'm surprised that the color didn't get dark enough, which would help with a deeper flavor—in my experience it keeps going one way until it's scorched. I hope you can use the crystallized stuff as an ice cream topping or in other ways.

Christine T. December 28, 2018

I'm so disappointed to have wasted $10 of almonds. My sugar mix never turned tawny, so I added the almonds after about 10 minutes. Nothing had happened after six minutes, then everything seized up badly. Still white. It was not even usable as topping. But the video was charming and the clean-up trick worked perfectly.

Kristen M. January 2, 2019

Hi Christine, I'm so sorry to hear it. Did your sugar ever melt and look clear, like simple syrup? If not, it sounds like it may have started crystallizing even before the almonds were added—otherwise, it might have just needed a little more time to turn gold. Timing will depend on so many things, so following the visual cues is always a safer bet than the timing cues. I'm surprised it wasn't suitable as an topping—did you try bashing it into crumbles with a food processor or in a Ziploc bag? Regardless, I'm sorry it was a frustrating experience for you!

Christine T. January 3, 2019

Yes, it did turn clear, just never golden. It was not "bashable" because it was already quite crumbly when cooled. And the flavor was not good. But stay tuned: not willing to be defeated by a pan of sugar, I tried again and it was perfect. As another reviewer suggested, I turned the heat up after adding the almonds, and voila!

Kristen M. January 5, 2019

Hooray! Thanks for trying again and for reporting back, sugar conqueror.

Tasti D. December 25, 2018

I used a stainless steel saucepan and had some problems. I'm wondering if the stainless steel was the problem. I watched the video a few times and followed the recipe carefully, but my sugar never caramelized beyond the "tawny gold" color once I added the almonds. It just bubbled up and evaporated.

Tasti D. December 28, 2018

OK, I tried again and had to crank the heat on my stove to "super boil" to get the sugar to darken once the almonds entered the pan. The color looked better, but it didn't have any bitter or smoky notes.

Kristen M. January 2, 2019

Hi Tasti, thanks for your commitment and for reporting back! Stainless steel itself should be just fine. It sounds like the first time, the sugar crystallized on you: When it looks like it's drying out and evaporating, that's usually what's going on—the sugar is turning back into solid crystal form from liquid caramel. If you make it again, I'd recommend disturbing it as little as possible while it cooks and caramelizes to avoid introducing any sugar from the sides of the pan or other bits that could encourage crystallizing, and to let it hang out on that super boil setting a little longer if you want more bitter, smoky notes.

Hallie G. December 19, 2018

I really recommend watching the video before starting! I just tried this recipe exactly as written and it came out perfectly. Cutting it quickly turned out to be a bit of a workout, but I think these will be a big hit. Sending out as part of my holiday care packages to friends and fam.

Kristen M. January 2, 2019

Thanks for reporting back, Hallie—so glad it worked out well for you!

Renée R. December 18, 2018

Regarding the sugar to nuts ratio: It's due to the sugar seizing. The ratio is correct. When I made it I carefully put the sugar in the pan, making certain no sugar was on the sides. I then very carefully poured the water over the sugar and NEVER stirred it. I placed it over medium heat and didn't swirl or move the pan until the end when it started changing color. At that point I barely swirled it, added the nuts when the color was right and stirred until it had darkened. As the recipe says, this only took about two minutes. Everything turned out perfectly. The potato behaved exactly as it did in the video and the cooled croccante cut up beautifully. I'm convinced the sugar/nut ration issue is only due to the sugar seizing. Hope this helps.

Stefanie A. December 22, 2018

Thanks for this Renee. I just tried this recipe and the sugar crystallized. After reading your suggestion I think I probably swirled too much. Going to try again later today.

Renée R. December 22, 2018

Stefanie, I hope your next try is successful because this is so delicious. I'm going to make it again very soon. Good luck!

Kristen M. January 2, 2019

Renee, thanks so much for your input—you summed the ratio issue up perfectly!

robyn F. December 18, 2018

I tried this with castor sugar - the sugar turned the right color but the almond to sugar ratio was not right - there were way too many almonds, not enough liquid. Will save as a topping for ice-cream and buy regular sugar today to try it again. Any input much appreciated...I thought castor sugar is just superfine sugar? Also would coconut or beet sugar work?

Kristen M. January 2, 2019

Hi Robyn, just making sure you saw Renee's comment above about the ratio—she's exactly right!

robyn F. January 2, 2019

Thank you Kristen and Renee. I did watch the video - twice before attempting the recipe. I didn't know if the castor sugar I used was an issue. Mine did turn the tawny color but then totally seized. I did not stir it. Anyway I will try it again one day and appreciate your feedback on it and your recipes always. On the other hand I did make the chocolate cloud cake and it was a dream! My new go to flourless chocolate cake. We have had two recipes in the family for many years - the James Beard Chocolate roll up and Winners Chocolate Cake which may have been a Fine Cooking recipe. This beats both hands down. SWOON and might I add that I consumed far too much of it myself over the next three days as I made it for just the three of us. Lol. ;-)

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Ingredients

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Recipe by: Genius Recipes

Popular on Food52

75 Reviews