Oh my god, where has December gone? I can’t believe it’s almost over and this is only my third post of the month. But seriously, it’s not all my fault. I had a weekend getaway (Leavenworth, WA, so fun!), I had jury duty (depressing case, don’t ask), and then it was Christmas. But now, finally, here is Peanut Brittle! I also had to wait and post this because I sent some to my mom and aunt for Christmas and I didn’t want to spoil the surprise.

This was seriously easy. I was afraid it was going to be tricky what with having to reach a certain temperature and not having the sugar crystalize and what not but it was no problem at all. Just pop it all in a pot, melt, stir, darken in color, pour, roll and cut. Well, perhaps that is a bit of a simplification but not by much.

If you have a candy thermometer, it certainly wouldn’t hurt to be aware of the temperature while making the brittle. I did not use one and I was blissfully unaware of the actual temperature at all times. I am living on the edge of peanut brittle making!

Yeah, there’s corn syrup in this recipe. But there’s also more than a stick of butter so seriously, you’re concerned about the corn syrup??!

Peanut Brittle
(Recipe adapted from Jacques Torres)
Non-stick spray
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 1/4 cups unsalted toasted peanuts
1/4 cup plus 1 tbsp corn syrup
1 scant cup granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, cubed
1/4 cup honey
2 tsp salt

Line two flat baking sheets with parchment paper. Give them a quick coating with non-stick spray.

Place all the ingredients in a saucepan and place over high heat.

Cook to a caramel color while continuously stirring with a wooden spoon.

This will take about 10+ minutes. The color will turn really quick. I stirred and stirred and stirred for about 8 minutes and then I stirred and it was a darker color. It also got thicker. Pull it off heat as soon as it darkens!

Immediately pour the peanut mixture onto the parchment paper lined baking sheets. Place another piece of parchment paper over the hot brittle (I sprayed mine with the non-stick spay first).

Use a rolling pin to roll the peanut brittle into a 3/8-inch thick flat layer.

Use a sharp chef’s knife to partially cut the brittle while it is still warm.

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Related peanut brittle content on the Website Foodista:

This is a kind of recipe mash-up. A lamb tagine recipe (with the wonderful & amazing spice-paste-rub stuff) and a chicken tagine recipe with the tomatoes and broth and oven cooking. And wow, good call to mix the two recipes togetther! This was WONDERFUL — all caps wonderful. I wrote it down right after dinner so I would remember exactly what I did.

Let’s see, what else? I did not make this in an actual tagine (*hint* *hint*) but a big, heavy, ovenproof, wide skillet. That worked well. I also used some of a spice mix I got at Penzeys — Rogan Josh. It has ginger, paprika, cumin, garlic, etc…so if you don’t have that specific blend, you can just add a little of those spices or omit it, it was only a 1/2 teaspoon. I was really just looking for an opportunity to use it. It smells so good. I wind up with so many little jars of spice blends from Penzey’s because they all smell so good!

Obscure ingredient alert: I actually had sundried tomato paste! If you don’t, I’m sure you could just use regular tomato paste. I’ve also included the recipe for the couscous I made to accompany the tagine and a harissa yogurt sauce below.

Chicken Tagine with Chickpeas & Golden Raisins
Adapted from two recipes by Bobby Flay — one for Chicken Tagine and one for Lamb Tagine
2 lb chicken thighs and drumsticks (I used about 1 lb bone-in, skin on drumsticks and about 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs — this was a good combination!)
6 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 tbsp honey
1/4 cup olive oil
1 handful chopped cilantro
Pinch of saffron threads
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tbsp sun-dried tomato paste
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 white onion, diced
1 leek, cleaned, trimmed and sliced
Optional: 1/2 tsp Rogan Josh seasoning
2 cups chicken stock
1 cinnamon stick
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup golden raisins

Mix together the garlic, honey, olive oil, cilantro, saffron, paprika, cumin and tomato paste in a large bowl. Rub the mixture all over the chicken and cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 5 - 8 hours. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven or a tagine over high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper on both sides and place in the hot pan, in batches if needed; cook until golden brown.

Remove chicken to a plate or bowl. Make sure you get up all the garlic pieces and crispy cilantro bits.

Return the Dutch oven/tagine to the stove and add the onions, leek and Rojan Josh seasoning and cook until soft. Add the stock, tomatoes, cinnamon stick, tomatoes, chickpeas, and raisins and bring to a simmer.

Nestle the chicken (and any accumulate juices) down into a tagine or Dutch oven. Cover and cook in the oven for 45 minutes or until the chicken is tender. Do not remove the lid to check on the chicken until after the 45 minutes.

Garnish with chopped clinatro and serve harissa sauce on the side.

Harissa Sauce
1/2 cup 2% fat Greek yogurt
1 tbsp harissa paste

Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl and let stand at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator before serving. This is awesome stuff. Do not skip it!

Almond, Orange & Pomegranate Couscous
1 cup couscous
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp orange zest
1/4 cup toasted almonds, chopped
1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
2 green onions, sliced
salt

Bring the chicken stock, pinch of salt and olive oil to a boil. Add the zest, green onions and couscous. Stir. Add the almonds and pomegranate seeds to the top. Turn off the heat and cover for 5 minutes.

Fluff with a fork and serve with the tagine.

This is a great recipe in which to use some of that turkey stock you just made. Or, of course, chicken stock works well too. Vegetable stock/broth probably too. This is not completely authentic, I’m sure. I’ve added tomatoes and tweaked the ingredients to my liking. Such as: I prefer this very garlicky and thick but you can adapt that to your needs. It can be stew-like or soup like. You can prepare it dressed like a reindeer. The choices are endless.

I also used a mix of spinach and wheat rigatoni, making it more like a healthy pasta dish with a chickpea sauce. That is just my way.

Instead of using a potato masher, you can also take about half the chickpeas out, use a blender on the remaining chickpeas/stock/veggies and then add the reserved whole chickpeas back into the pan when you add the pasta.

I halved the original recipe which fed four, so below, should feed two.

Okay, let’s do this!

Pasta e Ceci (Pasta with Chickpeas)
Adpated from the Splendid Table, who in turn, adapted it from Jamie Oliver — the original recipe is in Jamie’s Italy. It is, I checked!
1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
Extra virgin olive oil
A sprig of fresh rosemary, leaves picked and finely chopped
1 14-oz. cans of chickpeas
2 cups of chicken stock
Optional: a piece of Parmesan rind
3/4 cup dried ditalini or other small Italian “soup” pasta
handful of cherry tomatoes halved or quartered, depending on size
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Optional 2: a small handful of fresh basil or parsley, leaves picked and torn, or more rosemary for garnish…and grated Parmesan cheese

Put the finely chopped onion, cherry tomatoes, and garlic into a saucepan with a little extra virgin olive oil and the rosemary and cook on low, with the lid on, for about 15-20 minutes, until all the vegetables are soft, without any color. Stir a couple of times to make sure nothing is getting to dark. The first time I did this, I put it on low, walked away and came back 20 minutes to burnt garlic and rosemary.

Drain your chickpeas well and rinse them in cold water, then add them to the pan and cover with the stock. If you have one (and I do, just for these types of occasions), put a small piece of Parmesan — or any hard italian cheese — rind in there and let it simmer. Cook gently for half an hour and then, use a potato masher to mash the chickpeas up a bit.

Season the soup with salt and pepper, and add the pasta. Simmer gently until the pasta is cooked. And discard your rind if you have it in there. It’s job is done

At this point, if the soup is a little thick, pour in some more chicken stock to thin it down, and add more salt and pepper if needed. Oh, why not, throw in a little grated Parmesan right now.

Serve drizzled with good-quality extra virgin olive oil and some torn basil if you have any. I did not.

I threw a rosemary piece on top for garnish.