Butter toffee nuts

[lperry]

I was cleaning out the freezer and found that I have accumulated about five pounds of raw peanuts. General consensus is that they should be made into butter toffee peanuts, the kind that you buy that have the bumpy, uneven, crispy shell of buttery, salty goodness. I've been searching here (apologies if I missed a topic) and Googling the same search terms, but I am only finding recipes for sugared nuts (typically egg-white recipes) and hard, shiny-shelled candied nuts.

Has anyone made these at home? Do I just need to adjust methods on a candied nuts recipe?

Thanks,

-L

[Gifted Gourmet]

recipe for butter toffee peanuts without egg whites!! just butter and sugar and peanuts ... how bad might it be??

[lperry]

This sounds really good, and very similar to some toffee that I make during the holidays. What I really want is a recipe that keeps the nuts separate and coated instead of a candy with nuts in it. Do I just need to add more nuts, stir, and separate them on the sheet? Will that give me the right texture?

[Kerry Beal]

This sounds really good, and very similar to some toffee that I make during the holidays.  What I really want is a recipe that keeps the nuts separate and coated instead of a candy with nuts in it.  Do I just need to add more nuts, stir, and separate them on the sheet?  Will that give me the right texture?

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Yup, you cook the nuts with the sugar in the pan, when the colour is right you take them off the heat, throw in a tbsp or so of butter, and separate them on a piece of parchment.

[lperry]

Attempt number one has been completed with fair success. I roasted the peanuts, so they were a little oily, and the toffee is half butter, so what I got was a lot of toffee sliding off the nuts. Not that that kept us from eating it ...

Any ideas?

[JAZ]

In Michael Recchiuti's book Chocolate Obsessions, he has a chocolate bark recipe that starts out with caramelized peanuts. I used the same technique for almonds for an almond bark and it worked great -- and the almonds were so good on their own they almost didn't make it into the bark.

For 8 oz raw nuts, he calls for 3.5 oz granulated sugar and 2 tsp. butter. I thought the amount of butter wouldn't be enough, but you definitely get the butter taste, and the texture was great. The procedure is to lightly toast the nuts, then mix in a hot pan with the sugar and heat until the sugar is melted and coats the nuts. Then add the butter (he also calls for salt) and stir until the butter is mixed in and the nuts are shiny.

[lperry]

Thanks! I'll try this way next and report back.

[Trishiad]

Just home from a road trip. Stopped at some tiny fruit stand and bought some butter toffee nuts. Am coming down from the sugar rush now.

This batch also had bits of coconut in it. You almost don't notice it but it does add texture.

[lperry]

In Michael Recchiuti's book Chocolate Obsessions, he has a chocolate bark recipe that starts out with caramelized peanuts.

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Thank you so much! These are fantastic. I foresee additions of coconut, sesame seeds, cayenne pepper.....

I also foresee more trips to the gym. It took all of fifteen minutes to make these start to finish. Very dangerous!